1395: Dressed in women’s clothes and working as a prostitute
This plea and memoranda roll from the 14th century describes how John Rykener, under the name Eleanor, and John Britby were arrested near Cheapside in the City of London. Rykener was dressed in women’s clothes and working as a prostitute, while Britby had paid for his services. When Rykener was brought before the mayor and aldermen of the City of London, a complex story emerged. Living and working as a woman, he had slept with many men and women, including members of the church and gentry. Considered by some to be a piece of satirical writing, mocking the clergy and gentry, the official document suggests otherwise. Read the transcript.
1533: Buggery Act
The Buggery Act, passed during the reign of Henry VIII, moved the issue of sodomy from the ecclesiastical courts to the state. The act did not explicitly target homosexual acts between men, as it also applied to sodomy between men and women and a person with an animal. However, male homosexual convictions were the most common and publicised. Convictions under the Buggery Act were punishable by death.
1762: Molly and the pillory
“Molly” was slang for homosexual men. A common punishment for homosexual men was to be placed in the pillory, where they would be pelted with excrement, rubbish, rotting vegetables, stones and even dead animals. Pillories were positioned in busy areas and missiles were provided. People were put in the pillory for hours each day, over three days. Frequently they suffered head injuries, and some were blinded, knocked unconscious or even killed. This image is from a ballad sheet, a souvenir designed to be sold to spectators containing words to be sung to a well-known tune. Here’s a full version.
1828: Offences Against the Person Act
The Buggery Act was among the laws repealed and replaced by the 1828 Offences Against the Person Act. The new language focused on male same-sex activity explicitly, while the Buggery Act had applied to men and women collectively. Homosexual acts between men remained punishable by death.
1947: Albertine Winner’s Homosexuality in Women
Albertine Winner, the first female deputy chief medical officer at the Department of Health, wrote in Homosexuality in Women: “There are two categories of female homosexuals … the woman who tends to prefer the society of women … and a much more dangerous type, the promiscuous Lesbian who … may cause great harm and unhappiness.”
1951: The first transgender woman to undergo appropriate plastic surgery in the UK
Roberta Cowell (AKA Robert Cowell), an ex-Spitfire pilot and father of two who doctors had found to be a woman with male genitalia, had surgery to revert to her true sex in March 1954. Her parents issued a statement of support, as reported by the Guardian.
1955: The Problem of Homosexuality
Clergy, doctors and lawyers led by the Rev Dr Derrick Sherwin Bailey produced the privately printed The Problem of Homosexuality in 1955. Addressing the Church of England’s role in law reform, it recognised the state’s role in regulating society but acknowledged the violation of the rights of homosexual people. It pointed to evidence of the suicide of men who had been charged with committing homosexual acts with an adult, saying: “The sense of shame at public exposure appears to be a motive … if the law is unjust, then the longer it remains responsible for human tragedy, the more inexcusable does its retention become.”
1957: Wolfenden report
The Wolfenden committee recommended that “homosexual behaviour between consenting adults in private should no longer be a criminal offence”. Despite support from the archbishop of Canterbury, the government rejected the report.
1964: Campaign for Homosexual Equality established
This poster was produced for the Campaign for Homosexual Equality to highlight the inequities faced by LGBT people, particularly in the armed forces. Until 1994 homosexual conduct in the forces remained a criminal offence, and after 1994 homosexual conduct was no longer treated as criminal but would still lead to discharge. In 2000, the law was finally changed to end the discrimination against LGBT people serving in the armed forces.
1967: Sexual Offences Act
This law stated: “A homosexual act in private shall not be an offence provided that the parties consent thereto and have attained the age of twenty-one years.” However, private acts were not legal if more than two people were present. Although the act marked a change, it still meant people did not have sexual freedom and could not enjoy a free and open relationship with a person of the same sex. Here’s how 1967 changed gay life in Britain.
1977: Mary Whitehouse v Gay News
Mary Whitehouse, founder of the Nationwide Festival of Light and the National Viewers’ and Listeners’ Association, took Gay News to trial for blasphemy, in the first such case for 40 years. Gay News had published a homoerotic poem about Jesus by James Kirkup titled The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name. Denis Lemon, founder of Gay News, ultimately lost the case.
1983: Jenny Lives With Eric and Martin published in UK
Jenny Lives With Eric and Martin by Susanne Bosche describes a few days in the life of a five-year-old named Jenny, her father, Martin, and his boyfriend Eric who lives with them. When it was reported that the book had been found in a school library, a moral panic ensued. The issue escalated to the highest levels of government and resulted in Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, under which councils were prohibited from intentionally promoting homosexuality – resulting in funding being withdrawn from arts projects and educational resources. Section 28 remained enforceable until 2003.
1984: Changing the World – A London Charter for Gay and Lesbian Rights
The Greater London council (GLC) supported and funded numerous projects that promoted equal opportunities. In 1984 it published Changing the World: A London Charter for Gay and Lesbian Rights. This explained the idea of heterosexism and its impact on LGBT people. A year later the GLC funded the opening of the London Gay and Lesbian Centre, where people could meet and get advice.
1986: London Strategic Policy Unit and HIV/Aids
The first UK case of Aids was recorded in 1982, when a 49-year-old man was admitted to hospital in London suffering from pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. He died 10 days later. The London strategic policy unit sought to provide clear information to demystify HIV/Aids, to show how it affected everybody and to ease the public’s fear of being in contact with those living with the disease.
1987: Galop newsletter
A newsletter from Galop, which was founded in 1982 to expose discrimination in the police’s treatment of gay and lesbian people. Police carried out raids on LGBT venues in “space suits” and rubber gloves for fear of contracting Aids. Arrests were often based on public order rather than sexual offences. This meant pubs, clubs and other venues could be closed, and people feared losing their livelihoods.
1988: Ian McKellen marches against Section 28
The actor Ian McKellen was among those at the forefront of the campaign against Section 28 legislation. In 1989 he co-founded Stonewall, a group renowned for its campaigning and lobbying for LGBT rights.
Read more: Anti-Gay Law ‘Is a Legal Non-Starter’, Christian Wolmar, The Observer, 22 May 1988.
1990: Outrage
Outrage, a British LGBT rights group committed to nonviolent, direct action and civil disobedience, was founded following the murders of several gay men in London. The stickers address a variety of causes such as equal parenting, anti-heterosexism and an end to homophobia.
1990: Lesbians and Policing Project pamphlet
A pamphlet produced by the Lesbians and Policing Project outlining police powers of arrest and individual rights when arrested. Also gives contact numbers for the London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard.
2001: Age of consent for gay men lowered to 16
In 1994 MP Edwina Currie’s amendment to lower the age of consent for gay men from 21 to 16 was defeated and it was lowered to 18 instead. The lesbian age of consent was not set. Seven years later, and after three defeats in the House of Lords, the Labour government forced through legislation lowering the age of consent for gay men to 16.
2013: Marriage (Same-sex Couples) Act
The Civil Partnership Act 2004 had given same-sex couples the same rights as married heterosexual couples in the UK, but they were not permitted to marry. The Marriage (Same-sex Couples) Act gave same-sex couples the opportunity to get married.
2017: Policing and Crime Act – the ‘Alan Turing law’
Alan Turing, the mathematician who broke the German Enigma codes during the second world war, was granted a posthumous royal pardon in 2013 after he had previously been convicted of “gross indecency” and was chemically castrated. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 served as an amnesty law to pardon all historical instances of criminal convictions of gross indecency against men and has become known as the “Alan Turing law”. It only applies to convictions in England and Wales; campaign for the pardon to be implemented in Scotland and Northern Ireland is ongoing. Coverage from the Guardian.
Oral histories and memorabilia
Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, Speak Out London volunteers, assisted by London Metropolitan Archives, have created a community archive using oral histories and memorabilia. Those interested in learning more about LGBT history are welcome to visit the LMA
