Rupert Everett's Shades of Gay | Full Documentary | LGBTQIA+

Jun 24, 2022 2017 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the legalisation of homosexuality in the UK (the 1967 Sexual Offences Act was given royal assent on 27th July of that year) - a great leap forward for tolerance and equality. But while the country basks in self-congratulation, one gay man - Rupert Everett - wants to ask some uncomfortable questions about what was lost, as well as gained, when gay men and women could finally step out from the closet. In this documentary, Rupert is going to meet a cast of LGBT men and women to chart some of the changes that have taken place in gay life and gay culture over the last fifty years. From the men in their eighties who frequented the underground gay clubs of Soho and cottaged with palace guards, to young transgender people coming out as the 'only trans in the village' in rural Britain, the cast will exemplify something about the gay experience in the different eras of LGBT visibility, from gay bashing to the AIDS crisis to the first 'gaybies'.

“Somewhat recently, the Pride acronym has adopted more letters. Many sources now refer to the LGBTQIA+ community, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual. While some of those words are often discussed, others may need some further explanation.” [Source]

Viewer discretion is strongly agvised. Please note that this documentary is NOT suitable for children.

I should like to add that this is a whole new world for me. The lewdness, drug-taking, free sex is totally abhorrent to me. I have never had any part in such a debauched way of life; and nor will I ever.

I placed this documentary up before I had watched it all the way through. Had I done so first, which I usually do, I probably wouldn't have posted it at all. But now that it is up, I suppose it should stay up. But it portrays a way of life that is totally alien to me. For me, having same-sex attraction means something far, far purer than this.

Even before coming out, when I still lived a straight life, I never believed in free sex. I never believed in bed-hopping. Straight or gay, we all need standards in life. Watching this debauchery makes me want to climb right back into the closet! – © Mark Alexander