Description
Step into the vibrant world of LGBTQ+ fashion as we take a captivating journey through its rich and diverse history.
From the androgynous styles of the 1920s to the bold statements of the Stonewall era and beyond, this event will uncover the evolution of LGBTQ+ fashion as a form of self-expression, resistance, and identity.
With award winning poet, playwright and author, Joelle Taylor, fashion historian, Eleanor Medhurst, and Polari host and curator, Paul Burston, this lively event promises to be a fascinating deep-dive into the wardrobes of our LGBTQ+ past.
Please note, this venue has changed from the printed programme.
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About the Artist
Paul Burston
Paul Burston is curator and host of award-winning LGBTQ+ literary salon Polari and founder of the Polari Prize book awards for LGBTQ+ writers, based at the British Library. In 2016, he featured in the British Council’s Global List of ’33 visionary people promoting freedom, equality and LGBT rights around the world’. Paul Burston is the author of six novels and five non-fiction books and the editor of two short-story collections. His memoir We Can Be Heroes: A Survivor’s Story (published by Little A) is a tale of living through two pandemics, surviving two near death experiences and battling his own demons.
About the Poet
Joelle Taylor
Joelle Taylor is the author of 4 collections of poetry and a novel. Her most recent collection C+NTO & Othered Poems won the 2021 T.S Eliot Prize and was the subject of a Radio 4 arts documentary, Butch. C+NTO is currently being adapted for theatre with a view to touring. A former UK SLAM Champion she founded the national youth poetry slams SLAMbassadors through the Poetry Society in 2001, remaining its Artistic Director until 2018. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and the 2022 Saboteur Spoken Word Artist of the Year.
About the Historian
Eleanor Medhurst
Eleanor Medhurst is an independent fashion historian and the author of Unsuitable: A History of Lesbian Fashion (2024), as well as the online blog Dressing Dykes. She studied design and fashion history at the University of Brighton, and has worked towards the sharing of queer histories through her involvement with Queer Looks and Queer the Pier exhibitions at Brighton Museum. She lives in Birmingham with her wife.
About the Chair
Peg Alexander
Peg Alexander is a Leeds based award winning broadcaster, presenter, and journalist across TV, radio, podcasts and events. A colourful, warm, optimistic northerner, she’s all about the world we live in and life in general – people, politics, the planet, and cake. She‘s a regular on shows including Jeremy Vine on 5 and previously Steph’s Packed Lunch, and is often heard on national radio putting her twopenneth in.
Broadcasting is her 2nd career. Before moving into the media she was a charity CEO and was senior in public policy. She was also founding Director of Bradford’s UNESCO status as the world’s first City of Film. She now combines both careers.
She’s written 2 books – one on how to keep weight off long term and is currently finishing a travel-inspired memoir.
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