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Inspiration

Some of My Favourite Influential UK Gay Men

By Gay, InspirationNo Comments

To celebrate the release of my Influential UK Gay Men article, which you can read in full for FREE here, here are some of my favourites:

Mark Ashton (1960-1987)
Mark Ashton was a lifelong activist for equality. He helped found Lesbian, Gay Support the Miners (LGSM) charity. He volunteered at the Switchboard and LGBT+ charity.

In addition to fighting for LGBT+ equality Ashton also campaigned for nuclear disarmament.
Towards the end of Ashton’s life, he advocated for young people’s involvement in politics, using music and art as engagement strategies.

Ashton sadly died of AIDS, a short period of time after diagnosis in the late 80s.

A famous Ashton quote is:
“Why should gay people like me support the
miners? Because miners dig for coal, which
produces power, which allows gay people like us
to dance to Bananarama till 3 o’clock in the
morning.”

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Next we have my future husband Jonathan Bailey:

Jonathan Bailey (1988-Present)
Jonathan Bailey is a star of stage and screen, who is perhaps most famous for his portrayal of Anthony, 9th Viscount of Bridgerton and Fiyero in Wicked (the film with the musical of the same name).

In terms of speaking about his sexuality Bailey has said:

“If I can fill spaces that I didn’t have growing up then I feel like that’s a really brilliant thing.”

And:
“I hope queer kids will see my work and know that things will be okay.”

Bailey recalled learning that one of his fellow actors was told:
“There’s two things we don’t want to know: if you’re an alcoholic or if you’re gay.”

Rupert Everett (1959-Present)
Rupert Everett came out as gay when it wasn’t popular to do so. This takes great bravery and courage and for that this man has a special place in my heart.

Everett has played various roles in films, on TV and in theatre productions. But only recently being recognised with winning awards. These days Everett is married to his partner Henrique.

Everett has been criticised for some of his views. But he explained in an interview:
“For me, being gay was about wanting to do the opposite of the straight world, so I think that’s
where my problems in this particular area come from. But that’s me, just me. I’m not having a
go at gay couples who do. I think if Elton (John) and David (Furnish) want to have babies, that’s
wonderful. I think we should all do what we want.”

Paul O’Grady (1955-2023)
It is no exaggeration to say that Paul O’Grady was loved by millions thanks to his prime time TV show: The Paul O’Grady Show. On this show, he chatted with guests, shared his love of dogs and had a warmth that radiated through television sets up and down the country.

Gay people will particularly remember council dweller Lily Savage, a character played and created by O’Grady. O’Grady was known for his quick wit whether as Lily Savage or as himself.

In addition to his work, O’Grady did a lot for charities including ones that support children, animals and
dementia. These were all causes close to his heart.

O’Grady was proud of his working class roots and often supported The Labour Party.

O’Grady has been declared by some to be a national treasure and I completely agree. O’Grady had a settled married life with a husband on a farm in Kent. Returning to London for work purposes.

O’Grady wrote his autobiography in two parts. He died quite suddenly of a heart attack. O’Grady had struggled with an addiction to cigarettes all of his adult life and probably before then, which contributed to his cause of death.

One thing I’ve noticed when talking with others about O’Grady, is that they never say anything bad. It’s always positive.

Alan Turing (1912-1954)
Alan Turing’s story is a sad one. These days his face resides on a £50 banknote and is celebrated as a hero. Turing was for all intents and purposes a genius. He is described as a creator of modern computing, a mathematician, a computer scientist, a cryptanalyst, a philosopher and a theoretical biologist. Turning studied at the top universities in both the UK and in the USA.

Turing’s story starts out quite positively. In 1936, he published a paper that outlines the ‘Universal Machine’ code that forms the basis of modern computers, even today.

Then in 1939 Turning broke the German Enigma code, giving the British a significant advantage in the Second World War. But he didn’t stop there, continuing to help break other codes that were vital to the success of the war efforts against the Germans. 

After the war, in 1952 Turing was convicted of gross indecency due to all male homosexual activities being illegal until as late as 1967. Turning was made an example of. He was chemically castrated using hormones, denied the ability to work on the intellectual projects that he had done so previously and publicly shamed. Turing was hounded and harassed by the Police. They were instructed to monitor him closely, in case he became a security risk, given his previous level of security clearance. 

In 1954, Turing ended his life by cyanide poisoning. He was just 41 years old at the time. Turing no doubt felt like his life was over. He was no longer allowed to do his work and he was under constant surveillance.. Like there was nothing left worth living for. 

Despite those in power knowing about Turing’s contributions to the War efforts and his other great works, it took a Royal Pardon in 2013 to decriminalise him and many others who had been treated the same way for illegal homosexual acts. Just goes to show that just because something is law, doesn’t mean it’s right.

I wish so many things for Alan Turing. I wish he had lived to see the decriminalisation of homosexuality/homosexual acts. 

I wish Turning had got to see the civil rights movement that followed and the strides towards equality that we have made. 

I wish that they had continued to let him work, imagine what other great works he could have achieved. 

I wish that he’d found acceptance from his peers, society and most importantly found love. 

I wish he could see that he’s on every £50 note. 

Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, said about Turing: 

“Turing was a leading mathematician, developmental biologist, and a pioneer in the field of computer science.

“He was also gay, and was treated appallingly as a result. By placing him on our new polymer £50 banknote, we are celebrating his achievements, and the values he symbolises.”

I would like to hope that this would never happen again in the UK. 

But across the world, there are still many places where being gay is a crime with severe punishments for those caught. Some gay people are still oppressed and discriminated against for who they love. It’s so wrong.

Want to read the full list? You can for FREE here without any subscription, payment or sign up. You may also like to sign up to my newsletter here. Please consider buying one of my books if you like this creative work:

Best Wishes,

Antony

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Yorkshire Sculpture Park with Sye

By Friends & Family, Happiness & Joy, Inspiration, NatureNo Comments

Distraction.

I think that’s the word. I needed a distraction after my recent Nasal Surgery. So my good and dear friend Sye and I went to Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Yorkshire Sculpture Park is exactly what it says on the tin.

Here are some photos from our day:

Essential Info:

  • Buy tickets here.
  • Open 10:00-17:00 with the exception of Christmas & Boxing Days.
  • Has toilets, restaurant, coffee shop and gift shop.
  • Good for walks of all lengths.

Blog soon,

Antony

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My Law of Attraction Wishes & Goals

By Books & Authors, Creativity, Friends & Family, Gay, Gigs & Shows, Happiness & Joy, Health, Home, Inspiration, Life, Love & Relationships, Money / Finances, Music & Radio, Nature, Paganism, Thinking, TV, Online Streaming & FilmsNo Comments

In my last post: My View on The Law of Attraction – Including Pro/Cons Lists, I discussed The Law of Attraction in great detail. Thinking about The Law of Attraction was useful in terms of me developing some wishes and goals for my life. Here they are, some may not appear to be realistic, but The Law of Attraction encourages you to think and feel big, so that’s exactly what I’ve done here:

Health:

  1. My Diabetes is in perfect control.
  2. I sleep well. I have plenty of energy.
  3. I’m healthy and happy.
  4. I relax regularly.
  5. I always have plenty of food available to me.

Money:

  1. I have millions of pounds in the bank.
  2. I am financially secure and prosperous.
  3. I have active subscriptions to Disney+, Amazon Prime, Amazon Music and Netflix.

Home:

  1. I own a home with a garage and garden.
  2. I always feel safe and love at home.
  3. I live near Rivington.
  4. My home is always clean and tidy. I have a cleaner that helps with this.

Career:

  1. I spend my days writing books, blog posts and articles, working 7am to 3pm, Monday to Wednesday (3 days a week).
  2. I spend one day a week (Thursday) doing addiction counselling.

Social / Romantic Relationships:

  1. I have a secure and happy relationship with a handsome, kind and funny man. I marry this man.
  2. My family, friends and husband are happy and supportive of me.
  3. I regularly do fun things with family, friends and my husband including: theatre trips, music gigs and comedy shows.
  4. I go on holiday twice a year, one holiday in the UK and one holiday abroad. Both holidays are enjoyable, places of beauty with lots of fun things to do.

Spirituality:

  1. I feel connected to the universe. 
  2. All of my spells are successful.

Blog soon,

Antony

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Ida & Louise Cook: An Extraordinary & Inspirational Story

By Inspiration, ThinkingNo Comments

The following is the the final chapter in my latest book My Royal Navy Friend. It’s such an inspirational story, that I thought it deserved to be shared far and wide. So I decided to post it here:

Hi Roy,

My last email. A whole year in the Royal Navy. Well done, I’m so proud of you.

There’s nothing more inspiring to me than ordinary people that do the extraordinary for others. The story of Ida and Louise Cook is one such story.

Ida and Louise were British sisters who worked as Clerks for the Civil Service. Ida also wrote romance books under the pen name Mary Burchell, authoring a staggering 112 books in her writing career.

These sisters loved the Opera and would often travel abroad together to see their favourite singers and performances.

Sometime in the 1930s they began hearing about how bad Jewish people were being treated in Germany and Austria. 

The sisters travelled to both of these countries under the guise of seeing Operas and witnessing this poor treatment of the Jews for themselves. Then something remarkable and extraordinary happened: These two incredible and amazing ladies decided that they must help as many Jewish people as they could to escape this persecution.

Ida and Louise could see that it was only going to get worse for Jewish people in Germany and Austria. Remember this was before the outbreak of World War 2, before the concentration camps and genocide that would follow.

Jews were free to leave Germany and Austria at the time, but they weren’t allowed to take any assets with them. This meant no money and no valuables. The policy of the UK and many other countries that were safe for Jewish people was that they had to prove they had the financial assets to support themselves and their families. 

This meant the Jewish people were essentially stuck in Germany and Austria. Now at this point in the story, I want to scream: What were the UK Government and Governments of safe countries thinking with this ridiculous policy? Why weren’t the general population outraged by this policy?

But what we have to remember is that at the time, there was no internet or social media. Many people didn’t travel abroad.  People weren’t as connected as they are now. So the vast majority of the general public didn’t know what Jewish people were experiencing in Germany and Austria.

Back to the story. Ida and Louise came up with a plan. They would travel to Germany and Austria as often as they could, using the guise of going to see the Opera as the reason for their frequent travels. On the return journey they would smuggle anything of value given to them by Jewish families. This was so that Jewish families could prove to the UK Government that financially they could support themselves.

Ida and Louise’s plan not only took a great deal of planning, their own money and time, but came at a huge personal risk. Imagine if they had been discovered in Germany and Austria.

In November 1938, just less than a year before World War 2 officially started, in the dark of night the Jewish people were targeted in Germany and Austria. 

Over two nights, Jewish homes and businesses were destroyed, Synagogues (Jewish places of worship) were attacked and there are even reports of individual Jewish people being arrested without cause. This was all backed by the Germany and Austria Governments and citizens were actively encouraged to participate in the assaults on the Jewish communities.

Ida and Louise’s response was fantastic. It was to up their game. They continued the asset smuggling, but went further. Ida and Louise worked hard in the UK to make sure officials signed off as many visas as possible, as quickly as possible, to save as many Jews as possible.

Ida travelled throughout England, making as many people aware of the situation for Jewish people in Germany and Austria as she could. In some of these talks she also raised small amounts of money for Jewish people that needed help. Every penny went to the Jewish people in need.

Ida and Louise rented a flat in London for homeless Jewish people to live whilst they established a life in the UK. The cost of this flat being paid by Ida and Louise.

Ida and Louise took no payment for their work from the Jewish people. They paid for everything themselves, mostly funding their endeavours through Ida’s fiction writing.

In total, Ida and Louise saved 29 Jewish people. They helped them escape persecution and come to the safety of the UK. Throughout their lives Ida and Louise kept in touch with these people, keeping an active interest in their lives and continuing to support them in any way that they could.

What an incredible true story of two wonderfully kind, compassionate and inspirational people. 

Best Wishes,

Antony

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