Gay Irish actor Aidan O’Callaghan at the centre of new EastEnrs LGBTQ+ storyle • GCN

Contents:

• HOW MICHAEL CASHMAN CHANGED THE WORLD: OM EASTENRS' FIRST GAY KISS TO STONEWALL
• 'EASTENRS' ACTOR REVEALS HE IS GAY
• NEARLY HALF OF BRS THK THERE ARE 'FAR TOO MANY' GAY PEOPLE ON TV OM HEARTSTOPPER TO EASTENRS, GRAHAM NORTON SHOW TO DRAG RACE - HERE'S WHY THEY'RE WRONG"SHOULDN'T WE BE LIFTG UP LGBT+ TV STARS, NOT PICKG AT THEM FOR THEIR MOMENT THE SPOTLIGHT", WR MYLONDON LGBT+ REPORTER MATT SPIVEYGETWTLONDONBOOKMARKSHARECOMMENTS NEWSOPNBYMATT SPIVEYCONTENT EDOR13:13, 5 MAR 2023UPDATED15:08, 5 MAR 2023BOOKMARKLGBT+ PEOPLE ARE FAR MORE VISIBLE ON MASTREAM TV BUT THERE'S STILL A LONG WAY TO GO FOR EQUAL REPRENTATN (IMAGE: BBC)SIGN UP FOR NEWS AND FEATUR OM OUR DIVERSE MUNI MORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP FOR NEWS AND FEATUR OM OUR DIVERSE MUNI INVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!
• CORK ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN JOS EASTENRS ROLE OF GAY BAR MANAGER
• LGBT REPRENTATN ON TV THROUGH THE AG – OM EASTENRS’ FIRST GAY KISS TO TRANSGENR SUPERHERO
• WHO WAS THE GAY MAN EASTENRS?
• GAY IRISH ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN AT THE CENTRE OF NEW EASTENRS LGBTQ+ STORYLE
• ESTATE AGENT JAILED FOR VIC ATTACK ON TWO GAY MEN HOLDG HANDS
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

HOW MICHAEL CASHMAN CHANGED THE WORLD: OM EASTENRS' FIRST GAY KISS TO STONEWALL

Memorable LGBTQ moments EastEnrs historyEastEnrs has been on our screens for more than 35 years – that time, the Walford-based soap has bee one of Bra’s most inic TV s but 1985, EastEnrs has never shied away om hard-htg storyl and has been at the foreont of LGBTQ reprentatn on Bize tak a look at some of the most memorable LGBTQ moments om the BBC One show’s gay kiss on a Brish soapCol Rsell was the first gay character on EastEnrs, appearg Albert Square jt over a year after the show’s first by Michael Cashman, there was ntroversy at the time when Col kissed boyiend Barry Clark (Gary Hail) 1987 – even though was jt a peck on the (Michael Cashman) and Barry (Gary Hall) were EastEnrs' first gay years later, Col and new character Guido Smh (Nicholas Donovan) shared the first mouth-to-mouth kiss on a Brish soap – an timated 17 ln people tuned to watch the uple’s beme one of the most ground-breakg scen soap history – but was emed so ntroversial that some MPs lled for the soap to be pulled om the air. Syed tells Christian he is gay and love wh him – but unr prsure om his fay, gets married to feelgs for Christian prove too strong – so Syed out. Mick held his teenage son his arms to liver a tear-jerkg speech, tellg Johnny that he loved him and there was nothg bad about beg gay, supportg him to e out through both of their stifled Carter (played by Sam Strike, send om left) and dad Mick (Danny Dyer, centre) both ma their first appearanc the soap December ’s mother Lda (Kellie Bright) ially stggled wh his sexualy – but the pair eventually make up as she tak him to his first Pri event where he meets new boyiend Gianlu Cavallo (Gabriele Lombardo) transgenr character played by transgenr actorKyle Slater’s arrival Albert Square was a landmark moment for marked the first time Brish soap history that a transgenr character had been played by a transgenr actor, wh Riley Carter Millgton takg on the historic ’s first appearanc showed him followg Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) before he later reveals he is her long-lost half-brother and the pair ultimately sharg his story wh Stacey, Kyle reveals that his mother Alison (Denise Welch) has never seen him as a man.

Walford’s first Gay PriIn July 2019, Walford threw s first-ever Gay Pri event, wh an episo tacklg a number of LGBTQ ahead of London’s Gay Pri event, the episo was seen as celebratory, diverse and tnal, but also clud moments that remd the dience of the prejudice and discrimatn still faced by the LGBTQ muny to this the inic episo, Bernatte Taylor (Clair Norris) embrac her sexualy while celebratg her first Pri, havg e out as a lbian to her mother six months earlier, while Callum Highway (Tony Clay) stggl to e to terms wh his new, also known as Halfway, was engaged to Whney Dean (Shona McGarty) at the time of Pri and was helpg to get everythg anised for the big event.

But he was mortified when brother Stuart (Ricky Champ) turned up and told him he saw him kissg Ben Mchell (Max Bown) the night 's been que the journey for Ben Mchell (Max Bown, pictured) and Callum Highway (Tony Clay), who recently got engaged the the urse of te love didn’t always n smoothly for Callum and Ben – Stuart beat up Ben later the Pri episo - the fan favoure duo went on to bee a uple, wh the pair eventually proposg to each other on the balny of lol gay bar The Prce Albert.

'EASTENRS' ACTOR REVEALS HE IS GAY

In 1985, he had been approached by the creators of EastEnrs, Julia Smh and Tony Holland, to play Col Rsell – the Brish soap’s first gay character. The News of the World ran a double-page spread, headled “Secret Gay Love of Aids Sre EastEnr”, which outed his partner and prted the uple’s photos and was even an attempt to orchtrate “sister” stori about him. Through his varied, high-profile reer and life-changg relatnship wh his hband, Pl Cottgham (an actor and mpaigner who died of ncer 2014), tells not jt the story of his life, but also the battle for LGBT equaly the the Sun vered the story of the EastEnrs gay kiss 1989When news broke that Cashman’s character would share the first gay kiss a Brish soap (a peck on the forehead), the backlash only tensified.

By parison, his next on-screen kiss – Brish soap’s first gay kiss on the lips – passed worth ? “Somebody said to me: ‘When you were on I ed to watch om behd the sofa bee I didn’t want my parents to know I was gay. In the 60s, gog to the police wasn’t really an optn for gay men, he says.

NEARLY HALF OF BRS THK THERE ARE 'FAR TOO MANY' GAY PEOPLE ON TV OM HEARTSTOPPER TO EASTENRS, GRAHAM NORTON SHOW TO DRAG RACE - HERE'S WHY THEY'RE WRONG"SHOULDN'T WE BE LIFTG UP LGBT+ TV STARS, NOT PICKG AT THEM FOR THEIR MOMENT THE SPOTLIGHT", WR MYLONDON LGBT+ REPORTER MATT SPIVEYGETWTLONDONBOOKMARKSHARECOMMENTS NEWSOPNBYMATT SPIVEYCONTENT EDOR13:13, 5 MAR 2023UPDATED15:08, 5 MAR 2023BOOKMARKLGBT+ PEOPLE ARE FAR MORE VISIBLE ON MASTREAM TV BUT THERE'S STILL A LONG WAY TO GO FOR EQUAL REPRENTATN (IMAGE: BBC)SIGN UP FOR NEWS AND FEATUR OM OUR DIVERSE MUNI MORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP FOR NEWS AND FEATUR OM OUR DIVERSE MUNI INVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!

“That this is what happened to gay men. In May 1988, the Thatcher ernment had brought the Lol Government Act and s notor sectn 28, which prohibed the tentnal promotn of homosexualy by lol thori and schools. ”Throughout the 80s and 90s, gay people were often portrayed as predators by media anisatns supportive of sectn 28.

And he is ncerned that some lbian, gay and bisexual people are jog .

CORK ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN JOS EASTENRS ROLE OF GAY BAR MANAGER

“The fact that lbian and gay people are willg to sacrifice trans people …we’re rollg back the clock. In 1999, he beme the untry’s first openly gay Labour MEP and went on to be print of the European Parliament’s tergroup on gay and lbian issu, while also helpg nvce Tony Blair’s ernment to troduce same-sex civil partnerships.

LGBT REPRENTATN ON TV THROUGH THE AG – OM EASTENRS’ FIRST GAY KISS TO TRANSGENR SUPERHERO

He was ma a Labour peer 2014 and has champned issu such as pulsory LGBT-clive sex and relatnships year, he rigned om the Labour party after endorsg the pro-rema Liberal a gay rights march 1988 wh Ian McKellen. EastEnrs actor Jake Maskall has revealed that he is gay and has a boyiend. Jake plays womanizg Danny Moon on the soap, currently havg an affair wh Sam Mchell (Kim Medlf), but he told Now magaze: "I'm gay and I've been wh my boyiend for 12 years.

We’re celebratg Pri Month, a time for tg on Pri history and celebratg our gay muny.

WHO WAS THE GAY MAN EASTENRS?

EastEnrs character Callum me out as gay 2019 (Cred: BBC).

GAY IRISH ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN AT THE CENTRE OF NEW EASTENRS LGBTQ+ STORYLE

Later he admted to her that he was gay and began a relatnship wh Ben.

ESTATE AGENT JAILED FOR VIC ATTACK ON TWO GAY MEN HOLDG HANDS

She soon began to realise she was gay and had feelgs for her bt iend Sian Powers. Later Paddy disvered Aaron vised a gay bar and when he asked him about his sexualy, Aaron attacked him.

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

In urt Aaron admted he was gay. He first appeared 2008 and at the time actor, John Partridge, told Daily Star: “It’s about time EastEnrs had a gay character the show.

Christian, like me, is an openly proud gay man and he is certaly gog to ffle a few feathers when he arriv. On the day of Syed and Amira’s weddg, which was a huge episo, Syed admted to Christian that he is gay.

He later gave advice to Ben Mchell when he nfid him that he is gay. Sean is openly gay (Cred: ITV). Antony, like his character Sean, is openly gay and when Sean first appeared he was out and proud.