Virgin Radio Pridecast

Tom Allen kicks off 2022's queer conversations and chats to fellow comedian and podcaster Suzi Ruffell. They discuss their friendship, career highlights, dating horror stories and their coming out stories. It's definitely not to be missed! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TV fanatic Benjy Potter and The Sun's TV Editor Rod McPhee are joined by Jamaican competitive swimmer Michael Gunning as he dives into his top LGBTQ+ telly picks. Michael discusses coming out on reality TV on E!'s 'The Bi Life', LGBTQ+ representation in sports including the importance of his friendship with Tom Daley and the impact of this year's LGBTQ+ TV smash hit, Heartstopper. Hosted on Acast....

With the return of Virgin Radio Pride right around the corner, this week is the final Virgin Radio Pridecast! But fear not - Alex and Shivani will be hearing from some of Virgin Radio Pride’s most special guests on perhaps one of the most important questions of all: what does Pride actually mean?! You’ll hear from Kate Holderness and Adele Roberts, Virgin Radio’s very own Graham Norton, and more -...

With the return of Virgin Radio Pride, and Pride season itself fast approaching, this week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are looking at Pride events; how they started, their purpose, and how they are evolving. They’ll hear from activist Tony Openshaw on attending one of the first Pride marches, and singers Conleth Kane and Dan Gillespie Sells on Pride being both a pro...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are exploring the many different identities which are found inside the LGBTQ+ community. They’ll hear from comedian Stephen K. Amos on how these different identities give us different perspectives and experiences, and from Skin from Skunk Anansie on the changes that are needed if we want to make the community more equal.  T...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are taking a look at the benefits that LGBTQ+ people can take from being part of a community, hearing from our very own Matt Cain and author Lo Shearing on the shared set of experiences the community has, as well as historian Dan Vo on having a sense of outsider perspective.  They’ll also be discussing the more negative asp...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex and Shivani are talking about something which nearly all of us use every single day - social media. But - is living life online really that positive, or are there downsides? And what effect does social media have on the LGBTQ+ community in particular? You’ll hear from broadcaster Riyadh Khalaf on his experiences of getting trolled online, poet Sophia B...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, with so much discussion about the new ban on conversion therapy for sexuality but not gender, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are going to be talking all about conversion therapy and the harm that it causes.  You’ll hear from evangelical gay Christian Jayne Ozanne, who resigned as a Government Equality Advisor over what she termed a ‘hostile environment’...

Alex Milsom is back for this week’s episode of the Virgin Radio Pridecast, joined as always by Shivani Dave, and this week we’re getting a little bit linguistic, talking about the different ways we can describe our diverse community, and of course ourselves.  You’ll hear from sociolinguist Sophie Holmes-Elliott on whether words which have previously been used against us can be reclaimed, acto...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, we’re continuing our celebration of Trans Day of VIsibility, which took place at the end of March. Last week we examined the rise in anti-trans discourse and debate in the UK, and this week we are going to be looking at the experiences of trans people in their day to day lives and careers. Alex is away for this one, so Shivani will be joined by super-sub pr...

Trans Day of Visibility 2022 was yesterday (Thursday 31st March), and to celebrate, the next two episodes of the Virgin Radio Pridecast are dedicated to trans rights and the experience of trans people here in the UK.  This week, Alex and Shivani will be looking at the recent rise in anti-trans discourse, and examining some of the possible reasons why this has taken place. They’ll be hearing f...

With Mothers’ Day coming up on Sunday, it’s all about parenting this week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast! Alex and Shivani will be looking into all the ways in which members of the LGBTQ+ community can have children, as well as the stigma that some parents face, and the fear from many in the community that they’ll never be able to have kids.  You’ll hear from Paul and Robin, a couple who had a...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex and Shivani are continuing their exploration into bisexuality, looking at whether ‘bisexuality’ is still a valid term, and also investigating bisexual representation in the media and beyond…  You’ll hear from Dominic Arnall on what he thinks bisexuality is, author Lo Shearing on why they use the term ‘bisexual’, and activist Ramses Oliva on the di...

For the next couple of weeks on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex and Shivani are looking into bisexuality, exploring what it’s like to live as a bisexual today, as well as whether the very term ‘bisexual’ is still relevant. This week, they’ll be looking at what it’s like to come out as bisexual, as well as some of the stereotypes about bisexuality which are still applied today.  You’ll hear f...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex and Shivani will be delving into the world of religion, looking at the relationship between religious organisations and the LGBTQ+ community, and examining whether religious freedoms and LGBTQ+ rights can co-exist. You’ll hear from evangelical gay Christian Jayne Ozanne on the harm that religion can cause, journalist Paul Brand on the trade-off between...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are delving into the world of comedy, looking at how LGBTQ+ comedians bring their identities to their work, and whether jokes about sexuality/gender identity are ever acceptable.  You’ll hear from Suzi Ruffell on the need for gay comedians to mention their sexuality at the start of each gig, as well as Rosie Wilby on whethe...

It’s LGBTQ+ History Month 2022 and Alex Milsom and Shivani Dave are exploring all things queer history in this episode of the Virgin Radio Pridecast.  The show looks back through the archives of three-month pop-up radio station Virgin Radio Pride, highlighting some of the best moments, as well as attempting to continue the important conversations started over the summer. It has already featur...

In this Valentine’s Day special, you’ll hear from actress Kate Holderness and her girlfriend, Radio 1 DJ Adele Roberts on the rise of dating apps in the queer community, as well as Kate’s rather interesting use of online forums to date before the apps existed! You’ll also hear from trans activist and author Juno Dawson on how shame from childhood affects dating, as well as writer Lewis Oakley on w...

This week, the Virgin Radio Pridecast is back with another episode looking at the LGBTQ+ community’s relationship with the music industry… Alex and Shivani will be hearing from legends LP and Adam Lambert on what it means to them to make music for the community, singer Conleth Kane on the reception to his song ‘Proud’, and Justin Vivian Bond and Bright Light Bright Light are back, this time talkin...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, with the BRIT Awards rapidly approaching, Alex and Shivani are delving into the world of music - asking why so many of our favourite music icons are from the LGBTQ+ community, as well as looking at the struggles which many queer artists have to make it in the industry. You’ll hear from the legendary Skin from Skunk Anansie on her experiences of being black...

This week on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, Alex and Shivani are continuing their exploration into education and the relationship which the LGBTQ+ community has with it. You’ll hear from Tik Tok inclusivity educator Benjy Kusi on whether we have a responsibility to educate those outside of the community on LGBTQ+ issues, Peter Tatchell on the link between direct action and education, former teacher E...

It’s back to school for Alex and Shivani on the Virgin Radio Pridecast, because for the next couple of weeks, we’re going to be exploring the relationship which the LGBTQ+ community has with education.  This week, we’re going to be looking back to the late 1980s, when a piece of legislation was introduced which banned any form of LGBTQ+ education from taking place in schools. You’ll hear from...

It’s the first week of January, the Christmas tree needles have (hopefully) been hoovered up, and thoughts for many of us turn to New Year’s Resolutions - lots of which involve physical activity! So - for the first Pridecast of 2022,  Alex and Shivani are discussing the relationship which the LGBTQ+ community has with sport…  You’ll hear from Poet Sophia Blackwell on how gender condition...

It’s Christmas Eve, and that means it’s the final Virgin Radio Pridecast of the year! Christmas is all about family - and this week Shivani and Alex are continuing their family special - looking at all of the diverse and wonderful families which lie under the LGBTQ+ rainbow… You’ll hear from couple Amir and Aamir on moving away from home to live as their true, authentic selves, from Mary from Fami...

This week, with Christmas fast approaching, Alex and Shivani are delving into a topic which is on everyone's minds at the moment: family. With some families still rejecting their children because of their sexuality or gender identity, and the LGBTQ+ community experiencing disproportionately high rates of homelessness, Christmas can be a tough time for many... They'll hear from activist Matt Mahmoo...