TV drama It’s a S looked back at a dark era for the gay muny. Here, some of those who remember tell of the real-life agony – and the hope
Contents:
- THE CHILLG CONFSNS OF A COP TURNED SERIAL KILLER OF GAY MEN
- STT JOHNSON: MAN NFS TO 1988 GAY HATE MURR
- THE GAY MEN FREQUENTED MANHATTAN PIANO BARS. SO DID THEIR KILLER.
- SERIAL KILLER WHO PREYED ON GAY MEN, WAS DUBBED 'I-95 KILLER' IS EXECUTED FLORIDA
- ATRALIAN MAN IS CONVICTED OF KILLG GAY AMERIN 1980S
- INVTIGATN INTO 25-YEAR-OLD SYDNEY DEATH SH LIGHT ON SERI OF GAY MURRS FROM 1980S
THE CHILLG CONFSNS OF A COP TURNED SERIAL KILLER OF GAY MEN
Gay life London was vibrant as the 1980s began, but a myster illns was soon to change that. * gay murders london 1980s *
Image source, Gordon Rasford At the start of the 1980s, gay men London started to be affected by a myster first UK ath om Aids was the pal 1981 - although was only later this was nfirmed to be down to an HIV-related illns.
By the end of that same year, more than 100 homosexual men the US had died as a rult of the time passed and the panic grew, gay people were hered further to the shadows by a homophobic prs mpaign.
STT JOHNSON: MAN NFS TO 1988 GAY HATE MURR
Dennis Nilsen, notor UK serial killer who murred gay men then drsed up their bodi, di prison * gay murders london 1980s *
Terms like the "gay plague" were wily ed, and people believed HIV uld be transmted by any kd of proximy to those wh the mark the end of LGBT History Month, four people who wnsed first hand the stggl of those wh Aids rell how what had been a vibrant gay muny was vastated by the disease.
'He thought he uld levate'Image source, Julian KalowskiImage ptn, Julian Kalowski (left) and his iend John Crancher (middle) were keen nightclub-goers the 1980sJulian Kalowski was a young gay man the 1980s and, like many, saw his social circle get smaller and smaller as the HIV and Aids crisis took hold.
One of those who died was his close iend, John Aberen, John - like many gay men - had moved to London search of a better life.
THE GAY MEN FREQUENTED MANHATTAN PIANO BARS. SO DID THEIR KILLER.
“Last Call,” by Elon Green, retrac the murrs of four men by a serial killer the 1990s, at a time when gay men felt prsured to hi their sexualy and were often the victims of homophobia. * gay murders london 1980s *
This rmatn, as well as the fact that Nilsen was gay and often preyed upon homosexual men, beme prime fodr for the media, and BBC rrponnt Bill Haton is one of multiple terviewe to state, Memori of a Murrer: The Nilsen Tap, that he got a sensatnalistic thrill out of learng about Nilsen’s horrific don’t really discs the particulars of his gome pastime; his thoughts on that subject are nveyed by director Harte via transcribed mentary, and police and urt rerds prented as typewrer text.
Through terviews wh vtigators, journalists, fay members of his victims and one man, Martyn, who narrowly ped his clutch, explas how Nilsen exploed 1980s London’s rampant homophobia orr to get away wh his heo crim. Regnizg that no one would miss his youthful down-and-out targets, and that homosexual men particular would be apt to stay silent out of fear of public reprisals for their sexual orientatn, Nilsen liberately went after society’s most helpls and margalized, and his abily to rema untected for as long as he did is a powerful dictment of the climate of the era.
SERIAL KILLER WHO PREYED ON GAY MEN, WAS DUBBED 'I-95 KILLER' IS EXECUTED FLORIDA
Gary Ray Bowl, a serial killer who murred six olr gay men an eight-month spree, was executed Florida on Thursday. * gay murders london 1980s *
Richmond, The Cy and Hampstead stand out as murrls pockets an otherwise homogeneoly nse circle of homici.
(Monday and Saturday) and also Propaganda (Thursday) were n at 'Bbys Nightclub' (London) by gay club promoter and DJ Col Peters (Peter Dbeney), whose brother Jamie ntued as promoter for a perd followg the passg of Col. Image source, Steve JohnsonImage ptn, Stt me to Atralia 1986 om the USA man has fally nfsed to the murr of Cambridge Universy graduate Stt Johnson after more than 30 27-year-old's naked body was found at the bottom of North Head cliffs, a well known gay cisg ground Sydney, Atralia, back the time, his ath was led as suici - somethg his fay never Whe was arrted and charged 2020, and this week unexpectedly plead guilty at a pre-trial lawyers attempted to have the admissn whdrawn, argug that Whe, 50, was not mentally on Thursday, a Supreme Court judge rejected that motn, wrg the plea was entered " a loud clear voice, and an emphatic and termed manner". "It was nceivable to me that Stt went somewhere and jumped off a cliff, " his brother Steve told Rad 1 Newsbeat 2018, when he was sperately mpaigng for the tth behd his brother's 2005 Steve says he beme aware of quts to siar aths of gay men at Bondi Beach Sydney - the moment when he says he "woke up" to what might have happened to his younger lol police showed ltle tert re-openg Stt's se, Steve hired an vtigator who unvered urt rerds of gangs who roamed northern beach Sydney at the time mtg asslts agast gay source, Steve JohnsonImage ptn, Steve (left) has spent more than 30 years tryg to fd out the tth about his brother Stt's athAll the years later, Steve told ABC that he was grateful a trial uld be avoid.
ATRALIAN MAN IS CONVICTED OF KILLG GAY AMERIN 1980S
* gay murders london 1980s *
On both ocsns police found nothg to nvce them Stt hadn't taken his own November 2017 a roner led Stt had been murred by a gay hate gang, which led to a new was timated up to 80 gay men were murred by homophobic gangs and around Sydney the late eighti - wh many phed off third qut created a lot of publicy, wh Atralian police eventually renewg their vtigatn and offerg a $1m reward for rmatn, wh Steve reportedly offerg an addnal $ rerds show "a strike force" was assembled, and followg rmatn received om a member of the public, foc turned to Stt was arrted and charged wh murr on 12 May source, Steve JohnsonImage ptn, Steve says he spent summers wh his brother travellg, readg philosophy and dog maths togetherNew South Wal Police Commissner Mick Fuller prevly said Stt's ath was one of the most challengg s he's ever worked on - mostly bee no-one was willg to talk about his murr. Stt moved om the US to Atralia 1986 bee, at the time, domtic partnership laws (siar to civil partnership) were some of the most clive the homosexualy had only been crimalised New South Wal 1984 and Steve believ police did not take hate crim serly at the time of his brother's source, Steve JohnsonImage ptn, Stt moved to Atralia 1986 to be wh a man he met at Cambridge Universy"The gay muny were send class cizens.
INVTIGATN INTO 25-YEAR-OLD SYDNEY DEATH SH LIGHT ON SERI OF GAY MURRS FROM 1980S
The killgs of gay men last seen New York, cludg Variety reporter Addison Verill and six others the 1970s, and four the 1990s, serve as remrs of the dangers the LGBTQ+ muny have faced while simultaneoly fightg for equaly. * gay murders london 1980s *
"The gangs would attack the cisg areas bee they knew the police wouldn't e after also knew that the gay muny were aaid of the police, so they wouldn't e and report the crim. He add his brother was a "proud" gay man, as well as his bt to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here. Both victims — olr, whe-llar profsnal men, wh the heterosexual vtments of marriag and children — had last been seen at an upsle Midtown Manhattan gay piano bar lled the begs Elon Green’s terrific, harrowg, te-crime acunt of an elive serial killer who preyed upon gay men the 1990s, perfidly turng the safe havens of gay bars to huntg grounds, and semi-anonymo late-night hookups to an opportuny to kill wh impuny.
The most prolific serial killers explo the vulnerabili of the social orr; the “Last Call Killer” took advantage of gay men’s need for discretn and the enmic homophobia of law enforcement. Gay men prsured to hi their sexualy at the height of the AIDS epimic are particularly sceptible to all-nsumg tragic seems to anticipate this journalistic nundm.
Wh great passn, he wins his spe to explore the social value of gay bars to the queer muny and the val work of grass-roots groups like the New York Cy Anti-Vlence Project, which fought for fair treatment for gay crime victims durg a perd when they were often treated like reer crimals.
The ernment of New South Wal, Atralia, is offerg a reward of $100,000 ($102,680 U.S.) for rmatn related to the ath of a gay man Sydney * gay murders london 1980s *
— Gary Ray Bowl, a serial killer who preyed on olr gay men durg an eight-month spree that left six ad, was executed by lethal jectn Thursday at Florida State sentence was rried out at 10:58 p.