Queer as Fact

Following on from last week's episode on the 1980s UK activist group Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, today's Queer as Fiction episode delves into the 2014 film adaptation of the historical events that led to LGSM.  Join us for a discussion of the film's presentation of politics, (more) hatred of Thatcher, and why Pride feels about three seconds away from being a musical at all times. Check o...

In today's (COVID-delayed) pride special, we're talking about the 1980s UK activist group Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, and their work with the Neath, Delais and Swansea Valley miners support groups in South Wales. Join us to hear the true story of the events of the movie Pride (2014), featuring our hatred of Thatcher, a 27-person (and 2-dog) queer sleepover, and an inspiring story of soli...

Today we're talking about queerness in video games. We'll be starting in the 80s with one of the first queer video games, Caper in the Castro, before moving on to Nintendo's controversial trans character Birdo, and ending with what may be the world's first online pride parade, which took place in World of Warcraft. Join us for a noir detective story, trans dinosaurs and our dubious knowledge of ho...

Happy Pride! We're starting off our Pride content by talking about the South African activist Simon Nkoli. Join us to hear about Simon's gay rights and anti-apartheid work, Africa's first Pride, and a lot of wholesome personal growth. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact.  If you enjoy our content, consider  supporting us on Patreon ,  che...

Today we're talking about the life of trans activist Maryam Khatoon Molkara. Join us to hear about Tehran's 1970s queer scene, an amazing velvet suit, and almost 40 years spent advocating for trans people in Iran. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact.  If you enjoy our content, consider  supporting us on Patreon ,  checking out our merch ,...

Join Irene and Alice in this bonus episode for an interview with Roland Betancourt Professor of Art History at the University of California, Irvine, about his new book, Byzantine Intersectionality: Sexuality, Gender & Race in the Middle Ages. Amongst other things, we discuss transgender Byzantine saints, the future of queer scholarship, and how to sneak queer history into everything you write. Che...

Today's episode of Queer as Fiction takes us back...to the future! Join us for a brief, light-hearted romp through Theodore Sturgeon's 1953 science fiction short story, The World Well Lost. Look out for appearances from gay aliens, Kurt Vonnegut and Kirk/Spock shipping!  Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact.  If you enjoy our content, cons...

Today we're bringing you part 2 of our discussion on the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Join us as we figure out exactly what surrealism is, discuss Frida's relationships with women, and provide a thorough list of her pets. Note: If you're really just here for our discussion of Frida's sexuality, that begins at 1:03:23. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about...

Today's long-awaited episode is on the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. Join us for the first of two episodes on Frida, while we discuss pyrotechnic pranks, the first of many self-portraits, and the complicated politics behind Frida's famous style of dress. Note: We are aware of and apologise for the audio issue at 41:23. It continues only until 41:31. Check out  our website , where you can find out ev...

Today we're looking at sexuality in Pompeii through the lens of the so called "Two Maidens", found embracing in their final moments. Join us as we discuss how toxic masculinity skews our views of the past, read some sexy graffiti, and discover what may be the only surviving piece of female-female love poetry in ancient Rome.  Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to k...

Welcome back to our two-part mini-series on the 19th-century Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. In this episode, we'll be talking about how to score yourself a wealthy patron, the rumours surrounding Pyotr's death, and understanding sexuality through the metaphor of asparagus. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact. If you enjoy our...

Today's episode is the first of our two-part series on Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, 19th century Russian composer and the most handsome boy at his high school. Join us to learn about abandoning your public service job for a career in the arts, and scolding your dog through song. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact. If you enjoy our content,...

It's back to back episodes featuring recent Netflix films as we discuss Mart Crowley's 1968 play, twice adapted into film, The Boys in the Band. Join us for a discussion of "turning on" and other 60s language, mining the death of your parents for dialogue and the controversial place the play has held in gay culture throughout the 52 years of its existence.  Check out our website , where you can fi...

Happy New Year! 2021's first Queer as Fact is on the Mother of the Blues, Ma Rainey. We'll be talking about the blues and Black identity in the Great Migration, the new Netflix film Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, and a possible lesbian orgy. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, including source posts for each episode of our current season. If...

Today's episode is on the 1985 slasher film A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. Join us as we discuss the slasher genre's complicated depictions of gender, finger knife fellatio, and what a better, gayer draft of the script might have looked like. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact. If you enjoy our content, consider  supporti...

Welcome to the first episode of Queer As Fact season 6! Today’s episode is on Yoshiko Kawashima, a queer Chinese-Japanese spy and public figure. Join us for rituals to commemorate queer life milestones, smuggling an ex-Empress in the boot of a car, and no less than four pet monkeys. NOTE: This episode contains a brief discussion of sexual assault from 24:30 - 27:10. Check out  our website , where...

In today's bonus episode, Alice and Irene interview author emily m danforth, the author of queer YA novel The Miseducation of Cameron Post about her new book, Plain Bad Heroines. Tune in to hear us discuss uncovering our hidden histories, Emily's experiences researching and writing queer historical fiction, and openly bisexual early 20th century writer Mary MacLane. Check out  our website , where...

To celebrate 100 episodes of Queer as Fact, we asked our listeners to submit questions, and now we have answers!  Join the whole Queer as Fact Qrew for answers to questions like how we got started as a podcast, our thought process when dealing with the pronouns of historical figures and, perhaps most importantly, whether Patroclus was a pineapple on pizza kinda guy.  Look out for another bonus epi...

Welcome to the final episode for Season 5, where we are discussing Jennie Livingston's 1990 documentary Paris is Burning. Join us as we explore the creation, critical response and legacy of the film, featuring cameos from Madonna and Ru Paul. Stick around until the end for an exciting announcement about our upcoming 100th episode!   Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there...

In today's episode, we discuss Kapaemahu, a Hawai'ian sacred site commemorating four non-binary individuals. Join us to learn about gender in Kānaka Maoli culture, how the story of these stones has survived four centuries, and the logistical difficulties of moving large rocks. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, including source posts fo...

Today's episode is on transgender pioneer, Roberta Cowell. We'll be covering everything from her career as a race-car driver and her time flying Spitfires in WWII, to her battle to access medical transition in the 1950s and the complexities on how she presented her story to the public. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, including source...

Today's episode is on American blues singer Gladys Bentley. Join us for our first venture into the Harlem Renaissance, where you'll find eight hour piano marathons, explicitly queer lyrics, and legally recognised weddings between women. Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, including source posts for each episode of our current season. If...

Today's Queer as Fiction episode is a follow-up to our episode from earlier this season talking about the mythological figures, Achilles and Patroclus.  This time, we're here to talk about modern depictions of the pairing. Join us as we compare and contrast Wolfgang Petersen's 2004 film Troy, Madeline Miller's 2011 novel The Song of Achilles, and the 2018 BBC mini-series Troy: Fall of a City.  Che...

Today's Queer as Fiction episode is not on modern adaptations of the Iliad, but it does still feature a character named Andromache!   Join us as we discuss the recently released Netflix film, The Old Guard, from its refreshingly upfront gay representation to the promise of an even gayer sequel.   Check out  our website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, inclu...

Today’s episode is about Audre Lorde, in her own words, “black, lesbian, mother, warrior poet”. Learn about Audre's travels from Mexico to Benin, how she navigated her multifaceted identity over her lifetime, and the names of not one but two queer pets!   Check out  our new website , where you can find out everything there is to know about Queer as Fact, including source posts for each episode of...