JOHN LEWIS was a Canadian-born music composer who gained a bachelor in Music, along with several awards and distinctions.

As the 1970s got underway John came to London and was commissioned to compose music scores for the renowned Ballet Rambert. A chance encounter at Rambert Studios and an interest in buying a synthesiser led John to join Brian Hodgson at his established, Electrophon Studio in Covent Garden. The pair composed music, released albums, and worked with well-known names from the music scene.

Little did John know that with all the trappings of London’s gay scene and the creative circles he no doubt mingled and networked. That there was a silent and deadly pandemic looming which would end his life just as he was near completing a score for BBC’s Dr Who.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - JOHN LEWIS THE COMPOSER

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS and the works of John Lewis, featured in this podcast. No copyright infringement intended -

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• Dr Who - Mark of the Rani / BBC Radiophonic Sounds ©BBC
• Where Are We Captain? by Wavemaker Hodgson/Lewis © Polydor Records
• New Atlantis by Wavemaker Hodgson/Lewis © Polydor Records
• I'm a Computer ©Pete Davies - Goo-Q Website
• Holberg Suite, Grieg - Performed on Piano by Gerhard Oppitz
• Thunder & Lightning (© Unknown) - by John Lewis, Gareth Marshallsea & C.Platt

It was one thing to have your HIV/AIDS diagnosis and your private life dragged through the British press. It was another if you were a respected medical or healthcare professional with an HIV/AIDS diagnosis.

In 1992 & 1993 Dr. Curran, Dr. Clayton & Dr. Shuttleworth were not only vilified for their private lives but had their professional reputation scrutinised by the press causing widespread panic among their patients and the public. It is unforgivable that their reporting of these men didn’t show them the same level of care and compassion the Doctor’s showed their patients.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - THE THREE DOCTORS

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

Martin Johnson met the late Diana, Princess of Wales on her first visit to the UK’s first AIDS hospice in February 1989.

But no stranger to the press Martin was ‘outed’ as a gay man when subject to a police “raid” which saw him arrested along with 36 of his birthday guests in 1982. Accused of hosting an “orgy” Martin put his case before the European Court of Human Rights, but what did they rule?

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - MARTIN JOHNSON

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• BBC - Princess Diana's visit to Mildmay Hospital 24 February 1989

In 1992 Roy Cornes was a 24-year-old haemophiliac, infected with HIV through contaminated blood products. Through no fault of his own he then found himself at the centre of a worldwide media frenzy.

Roy’s life was turned upside down by one woman who alleged Roy was “knowingly” and deliberately spreading HIV to women. The media dubbed him a “maniac”, a “monster” and the “AIDS Casanova”. With plans for “hits” on his life & MPs raising urgent questions, we look at what happened next!

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - ROY CORNES

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• ITV News - Online Video Report
• Channel 4 News Report

“DO NOT REVIVE - AIDS” was the suicide note left by grammar school teacher John Hutchinson in August 1986. John's friends told the inquest he hadn’t seemed himself days before his death. John perhaps foreseeing his recent HIV test result being positive, without ever learning the outcome of his test.

We also look at two young men who took their own lives merely for ‘suspecting’ or ‘fearing’ they had HIV/AIDS. The coroner giving his verdict alluded to the then-recent 1988 AIDS campaigns and the fear and stigma they whipped up as not being helpful. With both young men testing negative for HIV post-mortem, we learn they had nothing more than minor, common ailments.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - "DO NOT REVIVE - AIDS"

SAMARITANS

If you have been affected by this episode you can reach out to the Samaritans day or night:

CALL: 116 123 (24 Hours)

EMAIL: [email protected]

WEBSITE: Click Here

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

Will & Gloria once again delve into the British newspaper archives and attempt to unpick the real stories, of real people behind the sensational and attention-grabbing headlines of the 80s and 90s AIDS pandemic.

In a series finale Will & Gloria head to Brighton for the bank holiday weekend. Through the papers, the pair learn about the life of the UK’s first openly gay football referee, Norman Redman from West Sussex. However, very little is made of his years of campaigning for gay rights and HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Norman had to first contend with teams refusing to play because he was “homosexual”. Then teams refused to play when they learned Norman was “an AIDS carrier” as they deemed him “a health risk”.

The pair also uncover stories from the newspaper archives which include a visit to Brighton AIDS centre by the late Princess Dianna in 1990. A young man convicted of wielding an HIV-infected needled when challenged for stealing a bulb of garlic. And a new game being played in the school playgrounds of West Sussex called “AIDS”.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - NORMAN REDMAN

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers

Will & Gloria once again delve into the British newspaper archives and attempt to unpick the real stories, of real people behind the sensational and attention-grabbing headlines of the 80s and 90s AIDS pandemic.

In 1985 a 29-year-old man named Roger Youd was subject to a court order to be detained in Monsall Hospital when expressing he wanted to merely “go home”. Manchester council stated the order under the Public Health Act 1984 was sought because Roger was "bleeding" and given he had “AIDS” he was in their view “very dangerous” to the public. Little did they know the story would cause a national "furore" and Roger would eventually appeal to the Crown Court.

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16 December 2025 a SPECIAL TRIBUTE EPISODE - Remembering Roger Youd

In this special tribute episode, "Remembering Roger Youd" published on the 40th anniversary of Roger’s untimely passing on 16 December, intimate recollections from his brother Carlton Youd sit alongside an inspiring interview with Paul Fairweather — a close friend and longstanding, respected LGBT and HIV/AIDS activist who helped establish Manchester’s AIDS line along with the picket and protest in response to Roger’s unlawful detainment.

We also hear first‑hand accounts of Roger’s deep friendship with Ian, a bond so close they mischievously called one another “sisters,” a small, wry testament to the humour that sustained them. Roger’s catalogue of imported disco records — traded for the use of Ian’s solarium — made for a friendship that endured through ordinary joys and the looming, unknowable crisis to come, AIDS.

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All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - ROGER YOUD

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• Audio 'It's a Sin' [Episode 3] by Russell T Davis/Channel4 - Watch 'It's a Sin' - HERE

Will & Gloria once again delve into the British newspaper archives and attempt to unpick the real stories, of real people behind the sensational and attention-grabbing headlines of the 80s and 90s AIDS pandemic.

In a series of child first’s, we hear the emotional accounts from brave parents who sadly lost their child to AIDS.

Irene, a mother who only learned she was HIV positive days before delivering twins discovers she only passed HIV to one of her twins. Doctors said only one of the twins contracting HIV was an “amazingly unusual case” and said to be a ‘first’. We also hear the story of one-year-old Antony Thorpe who was the first child in the UK to die due to AIDS after receiving contaminated blood in America when he was born 14 week premature.

And Eileen and Billy Quirk share how their 10-year-old son Stephen Quirk, was the first child living with haemophilia to die of an AIDS-related death after receiving contaminated blood products in the UK.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - CHILD FIRSTS

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• 'News at Ten' - Antony Thorpe report believed to be BBC

Will & Gloria once again delve into the British newspaper archives and attempt to unpick the real stories, of real people behind the sensational and attention-grabbing headlines of the 80s and 90s AIDS pandemic.

Two men around 30, each with an HIV/AIDS diagnosis are on the same hospital ward. One is a patient and the other, a nurse. Both men were photographed with the late Diana, Princess of Wales as she opened the UK’s first HIV/AIDS ward at London’s Middlesex Hospital in 1987.

The patient on the ward only agreed to be photographed if he had his back to the camera in fear of being identified due to the rhetoric and stigma at the time. The nurse of the ward openly shared his HIV status with the waiting news cameras for the first time. But who were these courageous men, what happened to them and what impact did they have on HIV/AIDS stigma?

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - Ivan Cohen & Shane Snape

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers
• ITN News archive reports 'Princess Diana/Broderip Ward' 1987
• BBC news archive / BBC Sounds 'Witness History' interview with nurse John O'Reilly [2017] FULL EPISODE HERE

Will & Gloria once again delve into the British newspaper archives and attempt to unpick the real stories, of real people behind the sensational and attention-grabbing headlines of the 80s and 90s AIDS pandemic.

Scottish artist Edward Cairns, 34, who was also a gay man was found dead at his London home in October 1984. Edward’s untimely death which was thought to be AIDS-related, fell under the scrutiny of the West London Coroner Dr. John Burton. And it didn’t go unnoticed by the Coroner, the sensational headlines in the tabloid press along with the media presence at the inquest.

Given ‘Eddie’ was a very talented up-and-coming artist Will & Gloria also looked at how the press covered HIV/AIDS-related ART exhibitions within the UK and some of the people behind the ART.

All articles and relevant documents from this episode are available on the:

XTRA Tea Blog - Artist Edward Cairns

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Music / Instrumental by Aries Beats 'A Sin' + WEBSITE

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Third-party media: Used under 'fair use' for the sole purpose of education, criticism and/or research relating to HIV/AIDS.

• British Newspaper Archives / Newspapers