Palm House, Sefton Park, Liverpool

When Sefton Park opened its gates in 1872 it was missing a centrepiece. A generous donation of £10,000 by local benefactor, Henry Yates Thompson, led the Parks Committee to abandon plans for a band pavilion and set their sights on a spectacular Palm House.

Construction of the Palm House commenced and by 1896, its elegant glass structure stood proudly as a symbol of Victorian horticultural ambition. The Palm House became a beloved landmark, housing exotic plants from around the world and providing a tranquil retreat for generations of Liverpudlians. The great glass domes provided the ideal conditions for plants from South East Asia, Australasia, the Americas, Africa, Europe and the Mediterranean to thrive.

Throughout the years, the Palm House faced its share of challenges, including bomb damage during the Second World War and periods of neglect. However, thanks to community efforts and restoration projects, it has been beautifully restored to its former glory.

The bronze Peter Pan statue, relocated in the grounds of the Palm House following restoration in the 1990s, is a full-size cast of the original, commissioned by author J M Barrie, and erected in Kensington Gardens in London in 1912. Sefton Park’s replica statue was erected on 16 June 1928 and continues to be a firm favourite with visitors of all ages.

Today, the Palm House is not only a botanical haven but also a vibrant venue for events, concerts and celebrations, continuing to enrich the cultural life of Liverpool.

More photos can be seen here.

National Coming Out Day

National Coming Out Day was first celebrated in 1988. Thirty seven years later, it’s still in our calendars – but why do we need it? 

National Coming Out Day is an annual celebration which takes place on 11 October every year. It was first celebrated on the one-year anniversary of the 1987 National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights – a date chosen to honour the bravery of LGBT+ individuals who decide to come out and live openly. Although it started off as an American awareness day, the meaning of National Coming Out Day is still highly relevant to LGBT+ communities across the world today.

Coming out is a unique experience for each LGBT+ person. It’s not a one-time event; many LGBT+ individuals who come out to their closest friends and family may later come out at work, to their extended family, or to casual acquaintances.

For some, coming out is no longer a big deal – it can be a simple matter of correcting someone’s assumptions about you, or introducing your partner. For others, coming out is still a huge challenge. The very real fear of facing discrimination, bullying or judgement can cause LGBT+ people to stay “in the closet”, struggling with anxiety while they strive to be themselves.

Talking about coming out and sharing our stories can help to strengthen our community and support one another with this experience. While coming out can be daunting and scary, it can also be the first time that LGBT+ individuals are able to be truly open with the people closest to them.

Over the last few decades since National Coming Out Day was first recognised, we’ve seen huge progress for the LGBT+ community, with legislation on same-sex marriage, discrimination laws and educational reforms all helping to protect and support LGBT+ people.

However, these legal developments don’t mean that the fight for LGBT+ rights is over. In the UK, we continue to see LGBT+ people suffer from attacks, hate and abuse. Across the world, LGBT+ people are still campaigning for laws and attitudes to change. For many, coming out can be dangerous – or simply not an option.

National Coming Out Day isn’t a day to force LGBT+ people to come out, or to shame people who haven’t done so. It’s a day to celebrate the beauty of being true to yourself, for having the courage to share an important part of your life with others, and for celebrating those who may come out to you. Rather than being perceived as exposing yourself or confessing something, we should see coming out as a marker of coming into your identity and allowing others to share in that knowledge. National Coming Out Day should also be a day to acknowledge the difficulties of coming out, and to remember that it’s still not something all LGBT+ people can safely do.

Today, some would argue that coming out (and having a day to celebrate it) is unnecessary. It’s true that no one should have to come out, and that not coming out doesn’t mean that you’re “hiding” or “lying”. In an ideal world, being straight and/or cis wouldn’t be perceived as default, and no one would make any assumptions about anyone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

But for so many in our communities, that day is still a long way off. Coming out has always been an important part of LGBT+ history.

For those who are questioning their identities or living in an unwelcoming environment, seeing someone come out can offer a feeling of hope, solidarity and reassurance.

Race, ethnicity, language, religion, culture, gender expression, sexual orientation and gender identity should never be barriers to us living our full lives.

Coming out is a personal choice and is a significant part of living in our identity publicly. We all deserve the right to live our lives genuinely, completely and honestly.

Hello, sailor!

Lord Nelson was “queer”, a prestigious gallery has suggested. 

The British naval hero was fatally shot during the Battle of Trafalgar, in which the Royal Navy triumphed over the combined forces of France and Spain in 1805.

His final moments aboard HMS Victory are depicted in two paintings at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. 

It is generally believed that Nelson’s last words on his deathbed after being shot were ‘kiss me Hardy’, which he uttered to his flag captain Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy.

According to the contested account, Hardy then kissed Nelson on his hands and forehead.

That account has prompted curators at the Walker Art Gallery to put Nelson in the “Queer Relationships” collection.

Online information from the gallery, which is part of the National Museums Liverpool group, states: “Historians have speculated about the exact nature of the relationship between Hardy and Nelson. Regardless of the truth, for many, Nelson’s famous request is symbolic of the sometimes hidden queer history of life at sea.”

It adds: “Whether or not their relationship was sexual remains unknown, but their friendship is reflective of the close relationships formed between men at sea. Intimate relationships, both sexual and platonic, could develop between those on board.”

The paintings depicting Nelson are by Daniel Maclise and Benjamin West.  

Maclise’s has been added to an article on the gallery’s website about the “history of LGBTQ+ love”. 

The move follows efforts by museums, galleries and other groups to highlight “hidden” stories of LGBT people throughout history. 

However, historians have not previously uncovered any evidence that Nelson was gay or bisexual. The fact is that he had a passionate relationship with his mistress Emma Hamilton and had been married for 18 years to his wife Frances Nisbet when he died. He also had a daughter, Horatia, with Lady Hamilton and sent passionate letters to her.

Was Nelson gay? The jury is still out.

Royal Northern College of Music

A group of us from Out in the City visited the RNCM on 2 October to hear a marvellous lunch-time concert. As on previous occasions there were six grand pianos for the programme, for me the most interesting was Wagner’s Tannhäuser Overture (arranged for 4 pianos by John Wilson, who was present).

The two others were also very exciting to hear, ‘Shangri-La beneath the summer moon’ (world premiere), composed by a student at the college, Lucian Amette Crosby and ‘Aerobatics Over Lake Wanaka’ by Adrian Sutton.

(Review by Bruce)

Thank You For The Music

We took a chance on a super trouper afternoon at Central Library to celebrate International Older People’s Day.

We listened to two hours of ABBA classics with the fantastic solo tribute artist “One of Us”. Here are some photos of the event:

International Lesbian Day

There are two main days to recognise and celebrate lesbian communities: International Lesbian Day on 8 October and Lesbian Visibility Day on 26 April. 

International Lesbian Day is a day for celebration of lesbian culture and history and serves as an opportunity to raise awareness of the lesbian community and advocate for their rights and inclusion. 

We haven’t always had recognition. In the Scottish court case Woods and Pirie vs Dame Cumming Gordon (1811) two teachers were accused of having a lesbian relationship by a pupil, claiming they had indecent sexual relationships. However, one judge found that sex between women was “equally imaginary with witchcraft, sorcery or carnal copulation with the devil”, illustrating notions at the time that tied sexuality with masculinity.

Denholm Elliott (31 May 1922 – 6 October 1992)

Today we are remembering Denholm Elliott, CBE on what would have been his 103rd birthday.

He was an English actor, with more than 125 film and television credits.  His well-known roles include the abortionist in Alfie (1966), Marcus Brody in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Coleman in Trading Places (1983), and Mr Emerson in A Room with a View (1985).

On TV he memorably portrayed the terrified title character in a Christmas 1976 adaptation of the Dickens ghost story The Signalman.

Secretly bisexual, Elliott was married twice: first to actress Virginia McKenna for a few months in 1954, and later, in an open marriage, to American actress Susan Robinson, with whom he had two children.

Pride in Ageing 2025

Since 2019, LGBT Foundation’s Pride in Ageing programme has been offering support and opportunities for members of the LGBTQ+ community aged 50+ in the North West of England. The success of this programme led to its expansion from Greater Manchester into Liverpool and Merseyside this year, with dedicated events to help older LGBTQ+ people connect, get involved in the community and shape the future of LGBTQ+ health and wellbeing provisions in the region.

2025 marks LGBT Foundation’s 50th Anniversary and the sixth consecutive year of Pride in Ageing, inviting reflection on the last 50 years of LGBT Foundation’s services, campaigns and advocacy to support LGBTQ+ people and highlight the issues they face throughout their lives. In this year’s video we hear from several of their volunteers about the impact of LGBT Foundation’s work and why Pride in Ageing continues to be one of their most valued programmes.

Throughout the year they are continuing to look back on this legacy – from conversations facilitated by 50th Anniversary Ambassador Dita Garbo (RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Season 6) with their Pride in Ageing volunteers, to an exhibition at Manchester Central Library featuring materials from their archives, showing the scale of work they’ve contributed to since 1975.

Find out more about Pride in Ageing and their 50th Anniversary by visiting http://www.lgbt.foundation/prideinageing and http://www.lgbt.foundation/50years, and please consider donating today or leaving a gift in your will with their free will writing service to help them continue this groundbreaking work.

Join their newsletter community: http://www.lgbt.foundation/newsletter

Donate today to fund their life-saving services: http://www.lgbt.foundation/donate

Write a will with them for FREE in October: http://www.lgbt.foundation/freewills

Here are some short articles about prominent LGBT+ people listed by birthday:

Annie Leibovitz

Anna-Lou Leibovitz born 2 October 1949 is an American portrait photographer best known for her portraits, particularly of celebrities, often feature subjects in intimate settings and poses. Leibovitz’s Polaroid photo of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, taken five hours before Lennon’s murder, is considered one of Rolling Stone magazine’s most famous cover photographs.

The Library of Congress declared her a Living Legend, and she is the first woman to have a feature exhibition at Washington’s National Portrait Gallery.

Leibovitz had a close relationship with writer and essayist Susan Sontag from 1989 until Sontag’s death in 2004. During Sontag’s lifetime, neither woman publicly disclosed whether the relationship was a platonic friendship or romantic. In 2006, Newsweek magazine made reference to Leibovitz’s decade-plus relationship with Sontag, stating, “The two first met in the late ’80s, when Leibovitz photographed her for a book jacket. They never lived together, though they each had an apartment within view of the other’s.” When Leibovitz was interviewed for her autobiography A Photographer’s Life: 1990–2005, she said that the book told a number of stories, and “with Susan, it was a love story.” While The New York Times in 2009 referred to Sontag as Leibovitz’s “companion”, Leibovitz wrote in A Photographer’s Life: “words like ‘companion’ and ‘partner’ were not in our vocabulary. We were two people who helped each other through our lives. The closest word is still ‘friend’.” That same year, Leibovitz said the descriptor “lover” was accurate. She later reiterated: “Call us ‘lovers’. I like ‘lovers.’ You know, ‘lovers’ sounds romantic. I mean, I want to be perfectly clear. I love Susan.”

Gore Vidal

Eugene Louis Vidal, (3 October 1925 – 31 July 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the social and sexual norms he perceived as driving American life. Vidal was heavily involved in politics, and unsuccessfully sought office twice as a Democratic Party candidate, first in 1960 to the United States House of Representatives (for New York), and later in 1982 to the United States Senate (for California).

As a novelist, Vidal explored the nature of corruption in public and private life. His novel, The City and the Pillar (1948), about a dispassionately presented male homosexual relationship, offended conservative book reviewers’ literary, political and moral sensibilities.

In the satirical novel Myra Breckinridge (1968), Gore Vidal explores the mutability of gender roles and sexual orientation as social constructs established by social mores. Vidal often repudiated the label “gay”, maintaining that it referred to sexual acts, not innate sexuality. He described his style as “knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.”

Chevalier d’Éon

Charles d’Éon de Beaumont (5 October 1728 – 21 May 1810), usually known as the Chevalier d’Éon, was a French diplomat, spy, freemason and soldier. D’Éon fought in the Seven Years’ War, and spied for France while in Russia and England.

D’Éon had androgynous physical characteristics and natural abilities as a mimic and a spy. D’Éon appeared publicly as a man and pursued masculine occupations for 49 years, although during that time, d’Éon successfully infiltrated the court of Empress Elizabeth of Russia by presenting as a woman. Starting in 1777, d’Éon lived as a woman and was officially recognised as a woman by King Louis XVI.

This year’s theme is “Building Belonging: Celebrating the power of our social connections”. 

Each year on 1 October, people across the world mark United Nation’s International Day of Older People to raise awareness of opportunities and challenges faced by ageing populations, and to mobilise the wider community to address difficulties faced by older people. 

Communities and organisations are welcome to mark the day in a way that’s right for them – it could be bringing people together through food and fun, to hear how your place might take action to be a better place to age. 

However you choose to mark International Day of Older People this year, your activities will be helping to change the narrative on ageing, and get more people talking about the changes needed, so that everyone can enjoy a good later life, now and in the future. 

These celebrities came out publicly after 60

Take inspiration from these eleven brave men and women who came out later in life.

It’s never too late to come out. You can do it at any age.

That’s the message from this group of celebrities, newsmakers and one music executive, who shared their true selves with the public in the seventh, eighth, ninth – and even tenth! – decades of their lives. Whether you’re out and proud or curious and questioning, take inspiration from these brave men and women who came out later than most.

Meredith Baxter, 78

• Age she came out: 61
• Where she came out: On The Today Show, in the Advocate and People magazine

When the thrice-married and three-time Emmy nominee and mom from Family Ties learned the tabloids got hold of a lesbian cruise story about her, Baxter took matters into her own hands. “I didn’t want some tabloid to take the story and make it up,” Baxter said during an interview on the Today Show. “I wanted it to be in my own words.”

Two years later, she told Oprah: “After coming out on national television, I felt unburdened and that’s the way I feel now,” she says. “I don’t have anything I’m trying to hide.”

Victor Garber, 76

• Age he came out: 63
• Where he came out: In a TV Critics Association press tour interview

You know him as the man who designed the Titanic and went down with the ship, and from dozens of roles in movies and on TV. Less known in 2013 was Garber’s sexual identity, publicly revealed when the blog Greg in Hollywood asked if a Wiki entry on Garber’s page about his “partner” was “something that’s public, that you’ve confirmed.”

Garber was surprised but answered: “I don’t really talk about it, but everybody knows.” And he was out.

Garber and Rainer Andreesen married in 2015.

Caitlyn Jenner, 75

• Age she came out: 65
• Where she came out: During a television interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer

“I’ve been thinking about this day forever,” the one-time Olympian and Kardashian dad said to Sawyer at the start of their interview. “My brain is much more female than it is male,” the 65-year-old explained.

“I’m not gay. I’ve never been with a guy,” Jenner added, before identifying as asexual. “For all intents and purposes, I am a woman.”

George Takei, 88

• Age he came out: 68
• Where he came out: In an interview with Frontiers magazine

Asked by the now-defunct magazine why he decided to come out at that moment, Star Trek’s Mr. Sulu responded: “I think it was more the political climate. Society has been changing. Today gay teens are now feature stories in Time Magazine – that generation thinks being gay is just a part of society. The world has changed dramatically.”

In a recent interview, Takei says he was also prompted by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s rejection of a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state. “I was so angry that I spoke to the press for the first time as a gay man at the age of 68.”

Richard Chamberlain, 90 (died 29 March 2025)

• Age he came out: 69
• Where he came out: In his autobiography

In Shattered Love: A Memoir, The Thornbirds actor and Dr. Kildaire heartthrob said he hid his sexuality to protect his privacy and career, but while he was writing the memoir, it “was as if an angel came in and put his or her hand on my head and said, ‘Richard, you’ve been barking up the wrong tree here. All your self-dislike of having grown up during the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s, that was when being gay was totally verboten.’ Suddenly, deep, deep within my bones, I realised that I had been lying to myself, like society had been lying to me, and that there was nothing wrong at all, nothing wrong with me.”

Holland Taylor, 82

• Age she came out: 72
• Where she came out: An interview on WNYC radio in New York, In the interview, the Two and a Half Men star wanted to avoid labeling the conversation a “coming out.”

“‘So have you come out?’” Taylor asked rhetorically. “No, I haven’t come out, because I am out. I live out.” Taylor did reveal she was in a relationship with a much younger woman, whom she didn’t name but the world would later learn is actor Sarah Paulson, 32 years her junior.

“There’s a very big age difference between us, which I’m sure shocks a lot of people, and it startles me,” Taylor said. “But, as they say, ‘If she dies, she dies.’”

Lily Tomlin, 86

• Age she came out: 73
• Where she came out: In People magazine

Tomlin refused to buy into the orthodoxy of “coming out” for years, plus, she says, “My mother would have died. Literally.” So the Grace and Frankie co-star waited until 2013 to officially tie the knot with her longtime partner Jane Wagner at a courthouse in the San Fernando Valley, followed by an intimate ceremony with friends a few days later.

Of her mother, who died in 2010, Tomlin told the Telegraph: “Bless her heart, she was Southern, basically fundamentalist, but she was very witty and sweet and kind, and she adored Jane.”

Susan Sarandon, 78

• Age she came out: 75
• Where she came out: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Forever young Sarandon’s admission in 2017 that she is “open” was followed in December 2022 to Jimmy Fallon: “I’m bi, so…”

The blurt came with a side-eye to the audience and a not-so fresh joke

from Fallon: “You mean you like dogs and cats,” to which Sarandon replied, “I’m fluid. I’m very fluid, where animals are concerned.”

The gag preceded the premiere of Sarandon’s latest role in NBC’s Monarch, so the moment was likely far from spontaneous, but the cat, as they say, was out of the bag.

Clive Davis, 93

• Age he came out: 80
• Where he came out: In his autobiography

In legendary record executive Davis’s memoir, The Soundtrack of My Life, the producer for Whitney Houston and Billy Joel, among countless others, revealed his “bisexual life” for the first time. His first sexual encounter with a man went down during “the era of Studio 54.”

“On this night, after imbibing enough alcohol, I was open to responding to his sexual overtures,” writes Davis, who describes the same-sex encounter as “welcome relief.”

He is divorced and has had multiple relationships with both sexes.

Joel Grey, 93

• Age he came out: 83
• Where he came out: People magazine

Broadway and Cabaret legend Grey fathered two children, including actress Jennifer Grey, but had known and acted on his attraction to men since he was young. But like many in his generation, Grey doesn’t “like labels.”

“But if you have to put a label on it, I’m a gay man,” he admitted.

The fact wasn’t a secret to family and friends: “All the people close to me have known for years who I am,” Grey told People, yet “it took time to embrace that other part of who I always was.”

Maybelle Blair, 98

• Age she came out: 95
• Where she came out: The Tribeca Festival in New York

The woman who inspired Madonna’s character in Penny Marshall’s 1992 hit A League of Their Own took the opportunity to reveal her sexual identity at the premiere of the TV version of the story.

The real-life “All The Way Mae” said, “I hid for 75, 85 years, and this is basically the first time I’ve ever come out.” She added: “In our day, you wouldn’t dare tell your family or hint to anybody that you were gay. It was the most terrible thing in the world.”

But the All-American Girls League changed her life, said Blair. “I went back to Chicago, and I got on the team, and I’ll tell ya, it was the most amazing time of my life, because they asked me to go out to a bar,” she recalled with apparent glee. “Well, it turned out to be a gay bar, and I was never so happy in my life.”

We have received the following message:

“I’m reaching out on behalf of The Dyke Agenda, a non-profit, queer collective. 

We are a group of queer women, non-binary and trans folk who want to help keep our crucial queer spaces open in Manchester. Our goal is to run pop up events tailored to our beautiful community, who we know are hungry for safe spaces. 

We are also really interested in documenting the current happenings of and history of queer spaces within Manchester. Our plan is to conduct interviews with those involved in Manchester’s current and past queer community, events, and venues. We would love to interview a member/s, who identify as queer women, non-binary and/or trans. The interview would be shared on our social media accounts. 

Please let me know if this is something you would be interested in.”

If interested, please contact us and we will forward your message. 

Afternoon Cream Tea at Rochdale Town Hall: A Delightful Experience

Nestled within the stunning Gothic architecture of Rochdale Town Hall, the afternoon cream tea experience at The Martlet Kitchen is a delightful treat for the senses. The grandeur of the Grade 1 listed building, with its ornate carvings and sweeping staircases, sets the perfect backdrop for a leisurely afternoon.

We started with a small bowl of tomato soup, accompanied by a samosa and onion bhaji. The afternoon tea menu offers a selection of traditional finger sandwiches, including egg mayo and watercress, local honey roast ham and pickle and cream cheese and chive. Each sandwich is crafted with care, providing a delightful balance of flavours.

The highlight of the tea experience is undoubtedly the freshly baked fruit scones, served with seasonal fruit jam and clotted cream. The scones are light and fluffy, making them the perfect accompaniment to the rich and creamy clotted cream.

For those with a sweet tooth, the selection of desserts is sure to impress. The carrot cake and chocolate cake are standouts, offering a delightful combination of sweetness and texture. The macaroons with vanilla butter cream are equally delightful, providing a perfect ending to the meal.

The service at The Martlet Kitchen is attentive and friendly, ensuring that guests feel welcome and well-cared for. The staff are happy to accommodate dietary requirements, making the experience enjoyable for everyone.

Overall, the afternoon cream tea at Rochdale Town Hall is a wonderful way to spend an afternoon. The combination of delicious food, beautiful surroundings, and excellent service makes it a must-visit for anyone in the area.

More photos can be seen here.

Who was thong inventor Rudi Gernreich?

The first leaves are falling and autumn is coming, so it must be time for an article on those two narrow straps that sit just above the hipbone, their edges cutting into sun-tanned flesh: the thong. 

These days, thanks to the revival of fashion from the 2000s, it seems to be everywhere: sticking out of low-rise jeans, shimmering underneath transparent beach dresses or revealing derrieres on the beach. 

But what many people might not know about the thong bathing suit is that its creation was political – and its creator a gay man. 

July 1974: Los Angeles’ last summer of nude bathing 

“Everyone was nude,” a lifeguard recalls in the newspaper LA Times. In the summer of 1974, Venice Beach became a sea of bare bottoms. Nobody knows exactly how the famous beach in Los Angeles became a popular location for naturists, but hippies readily popularised the nudist craze, taking advantage of the fact that there was no explicit ban on nudity yet. 

But the naked summer dream didn’t last long: First came the press, then the police. After nudity made headlines, Los Angeles promptly banned it altogether. 

What does this have to do with the thong?

Rudi Gernreich, an Austrian-born designer who lived in LA, rebelled against the ban by creating a tiny piece of fabric for all genders that covered only the bare minimum.  

The designer was not interested in sexualising bodies. On the contrary: He wanted to set them free.

“The liberation of the body will cure society of its sexual hang-up,” Gernreich once said.

It wasn’t the first time he broke taboos with fashion. 

Gernreich was born into a Jewish family in Vienna on 8 August 1922. He was 16 years old when he fled the Nazis with his mother in 1938, and they settled in Los Angeles. His father had taken his own life shortly before. To survive, his mother sold baked goods door-to-door and young Rudi washed corpses that were to be autopsied. 

“I do smile sometimes when people tell me my clothes are so body-conscious I must have studied anatomy. You bet I studied anatomy,” Gernreich said, referring to this job, in an essay in Moffitt and Claxton’s “The Rudi Gernreich Book.” 

His actual studies, however, were in art; he went on to work as a costume designer and a dancer. His designs often show his fascination with bodies in movement.

‘Winter or summer, male or female, everybody will dress alike’

Gernreich was ahead of his time. While homosexuality was still a criminal offence in the US, he co-founded the Mattachine Society, one of the first organisations for LGBT+ rights in the US.

For Gernreich, the future of fashion was unisex, and he promoted queer styles long before they became an established concept. 

“Clothing will not be identified as either male or female … women and men will wear skirts interchangeably … the aesthetics of fashion are going to involve the body itself,” he predicted back in the 1970s.

Gernreich freed the nipple

In 1964, Gernreich presented a design that went down in history as women’s first topless swimsuit: the monokini. The provocative piece, which covered the bottom up to the midriff, featured two straps that left the breasts completely exposed.

Gernreich believed that women should be allowed to show their nipples just as men do, and above all, that they should be the ones calling the shots when it comes to their clothing.

“I don’t like to dictate women what to wear,” he said in an interview in 1966.  

The designer, who died in 1985, remains a pioneer of body positivity, and his legacy marks how little has changed surrounding prudery – as today Instagram censors images of female nipples, and society still sexualises nudity.

Detention

One of our members will be performing in Gary Clarke Company’s DETENTION on Wednesday, 8 and Thursday, 9 October at Blackpool’s Grand Theatre at 7.30pm.

DETENTION explores the impact of Section 28 – a piece of largely hidden legislation from Thatcher’s Conservative Government which “prohibited the promotion of homosexuality”.

As part of the community cast, she will be performing alongside the professional cast and other local participants to explore the effects of this legislation through movement and dance.

DETENTION is a bold and moving exploration of the violence, loneliness, protests, debates, unlikely allies and the remarkable individuals / organisations of the time amidst the political and social upheaval.

If you would like to come and show some support, you can book your tickets here from £15.00.

Hope to see you there!

Timeline of same-sex marriage in Europe

Year in which same-sex couples are allowed to marry

The Netherlands introduced same-sex marriage 16 years before Germany and 24 years before Liechtenstein.

Play the Rainbow Lottery and support Out In The City

The UK’s first and only lottery supporting LGBTQ+ good causes.

Welcome to the Rainbow Lottery, the exciting weekly lottery that raises money for the full spectrum of LGBTQ+ good causes totally, openly and exclusively.

The hope is to make a difference to good causes so they can carry on their vital work – which helps us all. Play the lottery, support the community – it’s fun, it’s simple and everybody wins!

How the lottery works:

• £1 per ticket – that’s right, unlike many other lotteries, the lottery tickets are only £1 per week.
• For every ticket you play, 80% goes to good causes and prizes.

£25,000 jackpot prize

• Match all 6 numbers and you win the JACKPOT!
• Every month there is a Super Draw. On Saturday, 27 September one person will win a £1,000 Aldi gift card (or £1,000 cash or plant 1,000 trees!)

Buy tickets here.