LGBTQ Rights, Historical Preservation, The Arts and other causes
In the press, whether a short newsy paragraph or a full column of Levin vituperation, my union is dismissed as a foolish little set-up. Read More
1979: The Most Unkindest Cut of All
The march through London's West End on 24 July (1979) was a high-spirited and invigorating experience. At least 4,000 members of British Actors' Equity were on parade, representing every theatre in the country. Read More
1988: Ian McKellen, trainee-activist
The new Ian McKellen emerged with the new year. The actor was doorstepped at the Playhouse Theatre late one night in the first week of January by a journalist who had just seen his one-man show, Acting Shakespeare. She thrust a handful of papers at him and briefly explained the worry of gay rights groups over a clause in the Local Government Bill which they feared would send them back to the ghetto. McKellen listened, took the documents, and went home.Read More
Dearly beloved: my text for today is from the Local Government Act 1988 - Section 28:Read More
1989: What the Glorious Rose Has Given You
Day after day, and by night, we actors visit the Rose. To us, it is already a shrine. This is where modern drama was born. Read More
1989: A Shade of Pink at the Rose
At the moment, quite the most exciting theatrical novelty in London is not the emergence of James Bond as a song and dance man, nor even Tootsie's transformation into Shylock, but the reappearance of Rose, one of the oldest dames in the business. Read More
"Silence at Court - McKellen warns of a new sensation". That was the Evening Standard's headline when Michael Owen interviewed me 11 years ago, as Bent was about to have its world premiere at the Royal Court Theatre. Read More
1990: This Age of Discrimination
Throughout its recent leader "Homosexual Politics", The Times misuses the crucial word. Let us be clear. 'Homosexual" can refer to either gender. But the age of consent at issue concerns only gay men. Read More
Sir Ian McKellen attacks those who wish to maintain the present age of homosexual consent Read More
1992: Outing Old Stage Frights
Ian McKellen reviews "Not In Front of The Audience", by Nicholas de Jongh. Read More
1993: Through a Gay Viewfinder
Whether the question is moral, military or genetic, opinion-formers
persist in seeing homosexual issues from a straight angle.
Read More
1993: No Reason to Treat Us Differently
Ian McKellen urges Parliament to lower the age of consent for homosexuals to 16. Read More
1993: On the Anniversary of Oscar Wilde's Arrest
In London 98 years ago, as today, two of the most popular hits in the West End Theatre were An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest. 98 years ago this week, the author’s name was removed from the hoardings outside the theatres and, shortly after, the plays themselves were taken off. Read More
1993: The Age of Consent in UK
"Should the age of consent - that is the age at which people can legally have sex together in private - be the same for everyone irrespective of their gender or sexual orientation, or not?" Read More
1994: It is a Question of Human Rights, Not Numbers
I was on a TV phone-in last week and during the course of a quarter of an hour segment, there were 2,000 calls from young men in the country who wanted to know how to tell their parents they were gay. Read More
Around the edge of the participant's medal it says: "To do one's best is the ultimate goal of human achievement. Read More
1995: Michael Barrymore Comes Out
The developing story of Michael Barrymore's coming out as a gay man has dominated the popular press this last week, understandably, as a very famous public image has been peeled aside to reveal an unexpected private life. Read More
1995: Foreword to "Gay Letters"
Judging by my mail these days, I am not alone in writing fewer letters than I used to. Read More
1996: Before, Now and In Between
There is a fantasy as old as the modern gay rights movement, that if all our skins turned lavender overnight the majority, confounded by our numbers and our diversity and recognising a few of our faces, would at once let go of prejudice for evermore. Read More
1999: Coming Out For the Count
Michael Portillo's record on gay rights is both appalling and hypocritical. His 'confession' suggests this may not change. Read More
Homophobia is Everywhere. Read More
The following address was delivered to the "Making a Difference" conference celebrating a decade of FFLAG (Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) Read More
2008: Stonewall Equality Dinner Keynote
It was 20 years ago. The biggest story regarding gay people in this country was about AIDS, and our lives were beginning to become a matter of public discussion. Read More
2008: The Hobart Shakespeareans
December, 1983: I was onstage at the Westwood (now the Geffen) Playhouse with my solo entertainment “Acting Shakespeare." Read More
Foreword to Queers in History: Growing up gay was difficult in post-war UK. To begin with, in a land where homosexuality was illegal, we had to accept the law and language of others to define ourselves. Read More
Since it was founded in 1974, the Young Vic has lived up to its name
by sponsoring young writers, young directors and actors and their
young audiences – a theatre that looks to the future.
Read
More
Any two people in the UK should be able to marry. The proposal is a modest one. Why then does it provoke such opposition from those like Lord Carey, who knows from his own experience "how wonderful marriage can be" and yet argues against gay citizens enjoying an equivalent marital bliss. Read More
2012: Message to the Prime Minister of New Zealand
New Zealand has an undeserved reputation (amongst those who have never visited) as living a little in the past, not quite up-to-date with the world elsewhere. As a regular visitor, I've often pointed out how, on social issues, the Kiwis have lead the world - first country to give women the vote, a nuclear-free stronghold and in the vanguard of civil rights for gay people. Read More
2013: Margaret Thatcher and the Unions
In the 1980's, there were Thatcher's battles with our trade unions. The public violence, defending and attacking the miners' strike, was shocking: Read More