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

Contents:

• 'EASTENRS' ACTOR REVEALS HE IS GAY
• HOW MICHAEL CASHMAN CHANGED THE WORLD: OM EASTENRS' FIRST GAY KISS TO STONEWALL
• MICHAEL CASHMAN IS BACK EASTENRS – AND 30 YEARS ON, A GAY KISS IS STILL NTROVERSIAL
• LGBT REPRENTATN ON TV THROUGH THE AG – OM EASTENRS’ FIRST GAY KISS TO TRANSGENR SUPERHERO
• EASTENRS' TONE GAY KISS TO BE REPEATED FOR BBC FOUR'S PRI SEASON
• CORK ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN JOS EASTENRS ROLE OF GAY BAR MANAGER
• GROUNDBREAKG TV GAY CHARACTERS COL AND BARRY RNE  EASTENRS AFTER 33 YEARS
• GAY IRISH ACTOR AIDAN O’CALLAGHAN AT THE CENTRE OF NEW EASTENRS LGBTQ+ STORYLE
• WHO WAS THE GAY MAN EASTENRS?
• I’M 43 – BUT I’M MA TO FEEL LIKE A DOSR BY YOUNGER GAY MEN
• I’M 43 – BUT I’M MA TO FEEL LIKE A DOSR BY YOUNGER GAY MEN

'EASTENRS' ACTOR REVEALS HE IS GAY

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.

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

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. Black gay love is revolutnary.

When two Black men love each other on screen, shows others what is possible, and shows that you n be who you are and still fd we want to take a look back at some of the Black gay upl that we've seen on TV who have spired viewers and changed media as we know . Unfortunately, the upl aren't as numero as they should be, but as more Black queer creativ get chanc to tell stori, we n only image what the future of Black gay reprentatn looks like.

EastEnrs actor Jake Maskall has revealed that he is gay and has a boyiend.

MICHAEL CASHMAN IS BACK EASTENRS – AND 30 YEARS ON, A GAY KISS IS STILL NTROVERSIAL

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. 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.

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

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.

EASTENRS' TONE GAY KISS TO BE REPEATED FOR BBC FOUR'S PRI SEASON

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. “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.

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

”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 . “The fact that lbian and gay people are willg to sacrifice trans people …we’re rollg back the clock.

GROUNDBREAKG TV GAY CHARACTERS COL AND BARRY RNE  EASTENRS AFTER 33 YEARS

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. 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. It’s three s sce out gay character Col Rsell first walked to EastEnrs, and right to the grip of 80s tabloid homophobia.

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

Stonewall, the transformatn LGBT rights and a mastreamg of gay people has happened sce then – all of which the actor behd Col, Lord Michael Cashman was a part – yet still the sight of two men or women kissg mak poofsWhen Col Rsell had the first gay kiss aired on primetime TV, The Sun labelled them “yuppie poofs”, and ran a spread head “EastBenrs” to s lns of rears. Cashman’s private life was flnted to all: “Secret Gay Love of AIDS Sre EastEnr” read one headle, outg his then boyiend to his neart and Lord Cashman re-appears the show for his short stt, shouldn’t be fotten how many stori of LGBT people have been allowed to be told those three s bee of his, and EastEnrs’ bravery“They prted our addrs – all but the door number – and that afternoon a brick me through the wdow, ” Lord Cashman told Gay Tim magaze 2014.

“Then very shortly after that, I read crloly the Christmas edn of Capal Gay that the ernment were brgg a clse to ban the promotn of homosexualy, and that was , that led me to foundg Stonewall. ”OutrageJt this week a gay kiss ntroversy is back the papers, wh some Twter ers angry they and their kids saw two men kiss on Monday’s Coronatn Street.

And gays n’t smooch on the box before bedtime? Gay people aren’t newsIt’s 22 years sce Beth Jordache kissed a woman Brooksi, and people still are upset by who fictnal TV characters p off wh.

WHO WAS THE GAY MAN EASTENRS?

Back the 80s, Dot Cotton actrs June Brown has said she bterly disliked liverg homophobic l back the 80s – but like many of that generatn, Dot’s attus reprent a very real sectn of shift social attus, and Stonewall’s major part , would likely have been unimagable 30 years ago. EastEnrs’ nvictn to challenge homophobia at s height turned a group of actors – Lord Cashman and Sir Ian McKellen beg two – to some of the most effective equaly advot of a Lord Cashman re-appears the show for his short stt, shouldn’t be fotten how many stori of LGBT people have been allowed to be told those three s bee of his, and EastEnrs’ bravery. While we may now take for granted the prence of queer figureheads on TV, ls than 30 years ago the mere prence of someone intifyg as gay uld send viewers to a tailsp, pecially as beg gay – or gay marriage – was illegal.

For ’s Pri Week, we’ve looked back through the years of LGBT relatnships on TV, celebratg landmark moments and trailblazg shownners who fied the odds to get the sential scen on air while startg to break down homophobia and transphobia the procs. Here are jt some of the characters and shows that broke new ground brgg lbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer stori to our screens. 1989: Col Rsell and Guido Smh air first gay kiss on UK TV Eastenrs.

I’M 43 – BUT I’M MA TO FEEL LIKE A DOSR BY YOUNGER GAY MEN

Col Rsell and Guido Smh aired the first lip-to-lip kiss on Eastenrs (Picture: BBC)In 1989, the first lip-to-lip gay kiss aired on Brish TV urty of Eastenrs.

It happened between Col Rsell (Michael Cashman) and his romantic other half Guido Smh (Nicholas Donovan) – after years of character Col beg out and gay on the seri. 1994: Brooksi airs first pre-watershed gay kiss between Beth and Margaret. The first lbian kiss beme so inic aired as part of the 2012 Olympic ceremony (Picture: Channel 4)Brooksi’s 1994 lbian kiss between Beth (Anna Friel) and Margaret (Nila Stephenson) is often ced as the first UK gay kiss, but unfortunately they were five years late.

It was also the first gay kiss between two women. The moment was so inic, even managed to land a place a montage for the2012 London Olympic Openg Ceremony – airg across the world cludg untri where homosexualy was illegal. Sean and Pedro held their first gay mment ceremony on TV1994: The Real World airs first gay weddg ceremony on TV, and stars HIV+ nttant.

I’M 43 – BUT I’M MA TO FEEL LIKE A DOSR BY YOUNGER GAY MEN

In 1994, realy TV show The Real World: San Francis broke some ser ground whout even meang to when gay uple Sean Sasser and Pedro Zamora held a mment ceremony to each other live on air. Exchangg vows and rgs, the pair effectively beme the first gay weddg to ever air on televisn. But the show phed forward regardls, and even had gay rights activist Candace Ggrich officiate the weddg to drive the pot home.

1997: Ellen Degener out as gay on her s.