On the world of gay television after Queer as Folk

QaF changed how television dealt with homosexuality, and it also led to the Dr Who revival.

Queer as Folk first aired on 23 February 1999. There were reactions from the tabloids, from Conservative MPs and most surprisingly from Becks Beer, who withdrew their sponsorship.

A ‘weddingophobe’ takes the plunge.

A journey from resistance to acceptance.

I don’t mean to sound as if getting a civil partnership with a foreigner is as simple as getting an Oyster card or a lottery ticket – you have to really want it and the Home Office obviously must be satisfied it is valid. It took six months of applications, travelling, meeting relatives, and missing each other.

Dr Who author David Llewllyn is the guest columnist this month.

David Llewllyn writes about science-fiction, and how it addresses the subject of sexuality.

It’s curious that while non-genre television still tip-toes around the subject of sexuality, sci-fi and fantasy programmes, from Buffy to Torchwood, have tackled it with aplomb. Perhaps this is the Trojan Horse principle in action, and audiences are more willing to accept gay and lesbian characters if they are surrounded by aliens and vampires.

Maurice, the book that helped me to understand my sexuality

How the book, following on from the film, changed the life of William Summers.

Maurice is not a great film. It is not even as great a book as Forster’s others. Yet at the age of sixteen I found it to be revolutionary.

A personal take on civil partnerships

It is not in the end about weddings but about the right to have one.

Even at my best friend’s wedding I had to ward off the evil-eye of the mother-in-law, who thought of me as a second-class citizen as well as other things I will not commit to this page. The Daily Mail had done its work on her.

Jim Akers on his diagnosis as HIV positive and how that changed his life.

A moving story that about being HIV positive changed a young man’s life.

I was told I had acquired a virus for which there was no cure, no successful treatment, and only one probable outcome: early death. In 1990, the average life expectancy for a person with HIV was between eight and twelve years.

From Recipes to Pecs: A brief personal history of gay magazines

A look back at this history of gay magazines, and recollections of their importance of the coming out process, by Paul Baker.

Gay Times used to feature pictures of gay celebrities or icons on its front cover in the 1980s and early 1990s – can you imagine Jimmy Somerville getting on the front cover of GT now? By the mid 1990s a change was afoot and now the rules were that the front cover was always a meaty young orange torso, with almost every other issue featuring the word SEX in big bold capitals.

Thanks to the Geography teacher: Growing up with the Lesbian magazine

A look back at this history of gay magazines, and recollections of their importance of the coming out process, by Abigail Wiseman.

I discovered Diva magazine. To me it seemed ‘lame’ compared to my exposure to American mags. It was nevertheless a significant tool in starting my new life in London, where I knew no-one.

Reaching for the Top Shelf: Remembering a first time

A look back at this history of gay magazines, and recollections of their importance of the coming out process, by Bryon Fear.

I wasn’t able to return to the newsagent until the following weekend. Going to ‘town’ on a school night was not only unthinkable, but would have been highly suspicious. The next seven days were spent debating and berating my cowardice.