ITV Pridecast

Being LGBTQ+ and a person of faith might appear somewhat at odds with one another. The prejudice and discrimination that’s often projected onto members of the LGBTQ+ community by religions all over the world can lead many to turn away from faith. In the UK especially, and with regards to Christianity in particular, more and more people appear to be choosing a different path. In the 2021 census, less than half of the population in England and Wales described themselves as Christian and those with ‘no religion’ was the second most common response.

However for someone like Jayne Ozanne, faith is something at the centre of her life. She describes herself as a gay Evangelical and works to try and ensure all LGBTQ+ people feel a sense of belonging and inclusion when it comes to their faith. For Jayne, the church must do so much more to make everyone feel included, or it risks creating its own demise. She chats to Liam McConkey and Dougie Robertson in this ITV Pridecast episode about embracing her identity as a gay Christian and wanting to inspire others that a person’s sexuality and religion can coexist without having to shun one for the other.

One way in which people have often tried to suppress their sexuality in favour of their faith is through the practice of so-called “conversion therapy.” This is an area that Jayne has taken a keen interest in and she is currently the founder and chair of the UK’s Ban on Conversion Therapy. The LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall, defines conversion therapy as ‘any intervention that seeks to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.’ It adds, ‘conversion therapies work towards one goal and that goal is to ‘cure’ someone from being lesbian, gay, bi, trans, ace, intersex and/or queer.’

The whole issue of conversion therapy gained significant media attention in 2018 when ITV News reporter, Paul Brand, showed that the practice was still taking place in parts of the UK. That led to calls for it to end, with even the Prime Minister at the time, Theresa May, vowing to ban it saying conversion therapy “had no place in modern Britain.”

Five years on and three different Prime Ministers, conversion therapy is still not illegal in the UK. There have been delays and u-turns on the policy but in June 2023, the UK Government said a bill was ready to be presented to Parliament. That however, appears to have a significant loophole that would allow conversion therapy to continue if a person volunteered for it. In response, the UK Government says it’s “committed to protecting people at risk from conversion practices” and scrutiny of the bill will allow for analysis and the addressing of any “risk of unintended impacts.”

For Jayne, the u-turns and delays on a potential ban led her to resign from the government’s LGBT Advisory Panel in 2021 due to its slow progress. Having gone through conversion therapy herself, Jayne says this long overdue ban is needed if people are to be finally protected from the harm that the practice can cause.

It’s a topic that Dougie also has first-hand experience of. He grew up in a fundamentalist religious background which has strict ideals, and being gay certainly wasn’t one of them. In an article for The Independent in 2018, Dougie spoke very openly and movingly of spending years trying to ‘pray the gay away’ and if he’d been offered conversion therapy he would have taken it. For him now, Christianity is no longer a part of his life but he says he fully supports the work of people like Jayne who are trying to create a much more inclusive church that does not practice or act as the facilitator for conversion therapy.

Support networks

Galop: the LGBT+ anti abuse charity - it works to support victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence, hate crime, honour-based abuse, forced marriage and conversion therapy. Call on 0800 999 5428. There’s a free online chat service on their website or email: [email protected]

Mermaids - supports transgender, nonbinary and gender-diverse children and younger people until their 20th birthday as well as their families. Contact on 0808 801 0400 or email [email protected]

LGBT Foundation - offers a range of support to LGBTQ+ people, which includes wellbeing help and support. Contact on 0345 330 3030 or email [email protected]

Switchboard LGBT - offers advice and support to LGBTQ+ people including a helpline and its email and web-chat service. Call 0300 330 0630 or email [email protected]

Every year ITV now has its very own Pride Day and it’s a chance to celebrate and support LGBTQ+ people across the company and in the wider community. This year, ITV Pride Day was held at the start of Pride month in June and as part of the celebrations, a live ITV Pridecast was recorded with some of those from across the company to discuss why they’re proud to be who they are.

Joining Liam McConkey for this special edition of the podcast is Paul Brand, the UK Editor of ITV News and presenter of the Tonight programme. Jess Clayton, a Digital Trainee Journalist at ITV Cymru Wales. Harry Tan, the Senior Vice President of Marketing and Digital Products at ITV Studios. And Stephen Bailey, a stand-up comedian and regular contributor on the Laura Whitmore Breakfast Show.

During Pride month and all through the summer, Pride events will be taking place across the globe. They are a chance for members of the LGBTQ+ community and their allies to come together and celebrate but also to show solidarity and a reminder that rights cannot be taken for granted.

Discrimination and even hatred towards LGBTQ+ people still exists in many countries across the world and even in Britain, people’s rights are being tested. The Rainbow Map and Index ranks all 49 countries in Europe in order of their LGBTQ+ “legal and policy” rights and has done so since 2009. Up until 2015, the UK regularly found itself in top spot as the most LGBTQ+ friendly place in Europe. However, now in 2023 it has fallen to 17th position.

If anything, what this shows is the importance of Pride and the power it has in championing LGBTQ+ people. Pride first began as a protest and those roots are something that cannot be forgotten, especially when the community is facing such testing times today.

For most of us when we hear the word talent show, our minds jump to Britain’s Got Talent, the X-Factor or even Pop Idol, but now a new show has hit our TV screens…Project Icon on BBC Three is the brainchild of chart-topping singer Jason Derulo. Looking to find the UK’s next music star, Derulo is also a judge on the show alongside singer-songwriter Becky Hill and music manager Frank Harris.

The winner of the show’s first series is 29-year-old Dylan And The Moon and he joins Liam McConkey and Jo Lewis on the latest ITV Pridecast. Dylan has been singing for over 20 years and after winning Project Icon he’s hoping his dreams of sharing his music with thousands of people will now become a reality.

Dylan’s music style is a mix of jukebox rock ‘n’ roll with modern indie-guitar pop and during the show, we get to see why his creative talent wowed the judges. We also find out that Dylan’s songwriting has been pivotal in helping him embrace his identity as a trans man.

Dylan began his transition in 2020 and says it’s his music that’s helped him vocalise his true self. He says Project Icon did a brilliant job in allowing him to share his story and he’s received incredible support from viewers. By being a proud and visible trans man, Dyan hopes this will create a ripple effect and inspire others to embrace who they really are.

This ITV Pridecast episode with Dylan coincides with the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOBIT) on 17th May. The day is now celebrated each year and aims to raise awareness of the violence inflicted towards LGBTQ+ people across the globe.

First established in 2004, the day is supported by more than 130 countries and is even recognised in 37 countries where same-sex acts are still illegal. At present, 64 countries in the world have laws criminalising homosexuality and out of the 53 nations in the Commonwealth, 29 have laws which deem homosexuality as illegal.

In some countries the death penalty is even the punishment for those caught performing same-sex acts. These countries include Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Mauritania and Brunei, among others.

As well as being supported by many states across the globe, IDAHOBIT is also recognised by international organisations, including the European Parliament and the United Nations. The 17th May was chosen to celebrate IDAHOBIT, as this was the day the World Health Organisation declassified homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1990.

More information about IDAHOBIT can be found on its website

Watch Dylan Holloway’s performance on Project Icon on BBC iPlayer

Listen to more of Dylan’s music on Spotify

And you can follow Dylan And The Moon on Instagram

The transcript of this episode is available here: ITV Pridecast with Dylan and the Moon - transcript

For many LGBTQ+ people, finding a space where you can meet fellow members of the community can be incredibly liberating and powerful. Going to a place where you can socialise with those with shared life-experiences can be so fulfilling, especially when many LGBTQ+ people have to balance their authentic identity within a straight-leaning society. For Polly Shute and Peach Bond, this is the foundation of their work in providing safe spaces to lesbians, queer women and non-binary folk across the UK. As part of ITV’s coverage of Lesbian Visibility Week 2023 (24th-30th April), Polly and Peach join ITV Pride Co-Chair, Jo Lewis, to discuss the need for more varied spaces for LGBTQ+ women and non-binary people and the importance of Lesbian Visibility Week itself.

The annual event run by Diva and Stonewall recognises, celebrates and supports LGBTQ+ women and non-binary people, including those from other under-represented groups, such as black and ethnic minorities, those from a religious background, or those who have a disability or are neurodiverse. The term lesbian refers to a woman who has a romantic and/or sexual orientation towards women. Some non-binary people may also identify with this term. LVW celebrates all those that may identify in this way; such as lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, transgender, non-binary, queer, intersex and asexual individuals.

On this episode of the ITV Pridecast Polly and Peach tell Jo about their personal journeys into the LGBTQ+ community and why they spend an incredible amount of their free time helping to create spaces for all marginalised groups within the LGBTQ+ community. They also chat about the importance of feeling visible both in and out of the workplace and what lesbian and queer women want to see more of when it comes to representation and safe, inclusive spaces.

Polly’s Out & About Community has an outreach of around 15,000 people across various digital channels, creating and curating day, evening and extended weekend events and experiences across the UK. Out & About covers a range of events, such as the monthly 200-person Southbank Surfing social, which takes place in London and Manchester. Another event being the Out & Wild Festival which is held in Wales and is the UK’s only Wellness and Experience festival.

Similarly, Peach’s social group, Lesbian & Queer Women (LQW) spans the UK, covering London, Kent, The Midlands, Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Sunderland. LQW has attendees of all ages, some of which join online from overseas. With various digital platforms, Meet Up groups and a mailing list, LQW reaches over 13,000 lesbian, queer and non-binary individuals. LQW runs a whole host of meet ups and social events varying in size, including group weekend breaks to different cities, gallery trips, meals out, nights out, walks and summertime picnics.

Links to the groups that Polly and Peach mention in this Pridecast episode:

-Out and wild:
https://outandwild.co.uk/

-Southbank Surfing:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/southbanksurfing/?locale=en_GB

-Out and about community:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.beoutandabout.co.uk/

-LQW:
www.wearelqw.com

-London Lesbians and Queer Womxn MeetUp group:
https://www.meetup.com/wearelqw-london/

-Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds Lesbians & Queer Womxn
https://www.meetup.com/mlllqwomxn/

-The Midlands Lesbians and Queer Womxn
https://www.meetup.com/tmlqwomxn/

On the ITV Pridecast for March, Issah Nalzaro joins Liam McConkey for this episode. Issah has been at ITV for the past two years and during that time he has worked within the Internal Communications department for the business. His main role is to make sure all employees at ITV are kept up-to-date with the content the company is producing as well as opportunities and initiatives colleagues can get involved with. Alongside his day job, Issah is also a member of the ITV Pride network and recently became assistant-chair of the group.

Being a gay man, who was born in Saudi Arabia, with Filipino parents, Issah is very conscious of the intersections that exist within his own life and he is determined to make sure there is a broad and open conversation around intersectionality in the workplace. He also wants to make sure that people with a range of backgrounds and identities feel the ITV Pride network provides them with a safe space to be their authentic selves.

Outside of work, Issah tells Liam about his love of musical theatre and how the genre has played a big part in allowing him to embrace his true self. For many people, musical theatre can act as a form of solace and escapism. Issah feels this is especially so for many LGBTQ+ people and he says musical theatre is really starting to give a platform to many from the community. He discusses how his favourite musical, Six, which is a musical comedy about Henry VIII’s six wives, has someone who is non-binary playing the part of Anne Boleyn and how it’s incredibly progressive.

Issah also discusses how he hopes TV can push even further to tell the stories of people with diverse backgrounds and how there is still much work to do to achieve that. For him, this is where ITV’s diversity and inclusion networks play a huge role in making sure the voices of a range of people are heard.

To round off ITV Pride’s coverage of LGBTQ+ History Month, the ITV Pridecast is back looking at what it means to be asexual and aromantic. Many LGBTQ+ people’s lives have been recorded and documented over the years, allowing for a celebration and time of reflection during each February. However, the recording of asexual and aromantic people’s lives has been much more limited with more still needed to be done.

Those who are asexual do not experience sexual attraction to anyone. Unlike celibacy, which is when people choose to abstain from sexual activity, asexuality is intrinsic to those who identify in this way. According to a report by Stonewall from last year, 2% of the population in the UK now identify as asexual. People who are aromantic are those who do not have any, or very little, romantic feelings towards others. However, not all aromantic people are asexual and vice versa, and while the two can overlap it doesn’t mean the two always go hand in hand.

Someone trying to raise more awareness of people who are both asexual and aromantic is Yasmin Benoit and she is the guest for this ITV Pridecast. She is a British model who identifies as both asexual and aromantic. After coming out in 2017, Yasmin has worked to become a voice for the asexual and aromantic community and give a platform to people that have not been heard within the mainstream.

She is working to make sure that those who are asexual and aromantic have full social and legal recognition and to make more people aware of the intersectionality that exists within these identities. In 2022, in partnership with Stonewall, Yasmin began this work by launching the UK’s first asexual rights initiative, The Stonewall x Yasmin Benoit Ace Project.

In this episode of the ITV Pridecast, Yasmin discusses what it means to be asexual and aromatic and the work she is doing to support the community. She also chats about the dynamics about being a model as well as an asexual activist and dispelling misconceptions around the two. Joining Liam McConkey to co-host this episode is Dougie Robertson. Dougie is an Engineering Manager for ITVX and an ITV Pride Committee member. Within his work for the ITV Pride network, he works closely with InterMedia UK which aims to support members of the LGBTQ+ community across the media industry.

The transcript of this episode is available here: ITV Pridecast with Yasmin Benoit - transcript

More information on asexuality and aromanticism:

• Asexual Visibility and Education Network: https://www.asexuality.org/
• Stonewall's six ways to be an ally to asexual people: https://bit.ly/3ZpurSf
• Yasmin Benoit's website: https://www.yasminbenoit.co.uk/
• Stonewall's five things you should know about aromantic people: https://bit.ly/3KHalik

To mark the start of LGBTQ+ History Month the ITV Pridecast is back and joining Liam McConkey for this episode is none other than screenwriter Russell T Davies and TV producer Nicola Shindler. The duo have worked on an array of dramas together including, Queer as folk and It’s a Sin. Now they’re back working on the muchly anticipated ITVX mini series, Nolly.

Davies and Shindler are known for giving a voice to characters who are often stripped of it and this couldn’t be more true of Nolly. Noele Gordon, played by multi-award winning actor, Helena Bonham Carter, was the star of the hit soap opera, Crossroads. At the height of her career and the show’s success, Nolly, without any warning was unceremoniously axed from the soap. She never found out why she was sacked by the bosses at ATV, but it was a decision made by a group of male executives, towards a woman working at a time of dreadful sexism.

For Nolly, it must have been a bitter blow, especially after all she did in helping to set up ATV and what we now call daytime television. Said to be a pioneer of her day, Nolly was also a history-maker in that she was the first woman on TV to interview a British Prime Minister and has even been credited as the first woman to be seen on colour TV. Now Davies and Shindler want to shine a light on what happened to Nolly and remind people of the important part she played in the development of British Television. Nolly is available to stream on ITVX from Thursday 2nd February.

During this ITV Pridecast, Liam also chats with Davies and Shindler about some of their other productions and the impact they’ve had on the LGBTQ+ community. The pair first worked together over two decades ago when they produced the groundbreaking hit Queer as folk. The Channel 4 series told the story of three gay men living around Manchester’s Canal Street and showed the fun experienced by many people visiting the city’s gay village at that time.

Fast forward two decades and Davies and Shindler worked together to write and produce the incredibly moving, It’s a Sin. The series depicts the lives of a group of gay men who move to London during the 1980s and live through the crisis brought on by HIV/AIDs. It received critical acclaim for its incredibly powerful scenes and its accurate depiction of the epidemic. The show which aired on Channel 4 at the start of 2021, led to an upsurge in HIV testing and has done amazing things to open up the conversation about the virus.

Both Queer as Folk and It’s a Sin are available to stream on both Channel 4 and Netlfix.

On 1st December each year, many people across the globe will stop and remember the millions who have died from an AIDS-related illness. As well as this, World AIDS Day is also a chance for people to support those who are still living with HIV and to raise awareness that much more still needs to be done to fight this illness.

There are currently around 38 million people across the world who have HIV, with more than 100,000 of those in the UK. Since the virus was first identified in 1984, more than 35 million people have died of HIV or an AIDS-related illness, making it one of the most fatal pandemics in human history.

On top of this, people with HIV have had to contend with the stigma of having the virus. This stigma has often arisen because of society’s lack of information on the illness or moral judgements on how someone may have contracted it. HIV is generally transmitted through sex and can also be linked to activities like injecting drugs.

This stigma has often denied so many people a right to talk about their condition and has meant many have died with a sense of shame. However, an organisation in the UK called the National HIV Story Trust is working to give all those who have the virus and those who died from it a voice to share their experience. Chris Sandford from the National HIV Story Trust, spent over four decades campaigning for more support for those living with HIV and he is the guest for this ITV Pridecast.

Liam McConkey recorded this interview with Chris in mid-November 2022, for World AIDS Day on 1st December. Since that recording however, Chris has very sadly passed away. He did not die of HIV but his family and colleagues still wanted this episode to be broadcast on World AIDS Day, as a tribute to the work he did championing the rights of people with HIV across the world.

During the episode Chris discusses what it was like to find out he had contracted HIV and what the stigma was like during the 1980s and 1990s. He also very movingly recalls supporting his partner who also had HIV at the time and shares the fears of a period when there wasn’t any effective treatment available.

Whilst working at the National HIV Story Trust, Chris was the Director of Education and would often go into schools, colleges and universities to create greater awareness and understanding of HIV. By sharing his story so openly, Chris made a huge difference in challenging the stigma around HIV and has undoubtedly improved the lives of so many who still live with the virus.

For more information about HIV and organisations supporting those with the virus, here are some relevant links:

-NHS Overview of HIV & AIDs - https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hiv-and-aids/
The NHS website gives an overview of what HIV is, including the symptoms, treatment and prevention of the virus.

-Terrence Higgins Trust - https://www.tht.org.uk/
The THT provides support to anyone living with HIV and offers information on taking care of your sexual health. THT can also provide details on using PrEP, which is highly effective at reducing the risk of contracting HIV.

-World AIDS Day - https://www.worldaidsday.org/
Since 1988, there has been a World AIDS Day every year. More information on the day and the work being done to help people with HIV can be found on its website.

-National HIV Story Trust - https://www.nhst.org.uk/
The charity shares the stories of those who live and have died of HIV or an AIDS-related illness. They also share the stories of the families who have lost loved ones as well.

-Elton John AIDS Foundation - https://www.eltonjohnaidsfoundation.org/
The charity works to overcome AIDS across the world and focuses on reaching and supporting the most marginalised people affected by HIV.

In recent years the rights of people who identify as transgender have been big talking points. Much of the conversation has been centred upon the extent to which trans people can freely be themselves in a society that is accustomed to a cisgendered outlook. That is an experience which is of course shared by many across the LGBTQ+ community, and it highlights the massive value of safe spaces for people.

This is something espoused by the Leeds First Friday social event which is a monthly gathering of trans, non-binary and gender-fluid people in West Yorkshire. Organisers say around 150 people attend regularly on the 1st Friday of every month, making it one of, if not the biggest trans meet-ups in the UK.

During the event, trans, non-binary and gender-fluid people have the chance to come together and embrace their true identity in some of Leeds’ best known venues. And it’s not just those from the local area who attend. People from up-and-down the country make their way to the city for an event not just open to trans people, but also their partners, allies and friends.

To highlight the importance of Leeds First Friday to the trans community, Sophie Scott co-hosts this episode of the ITV Pridecast from one of the recent socials. Alongside her is Ash Palmisciano, and as a regular attendee of LFF, Sophie invites Ash to meet some of those who play a vital role in running the event and discover the huge benefits it has on the trans community.

During the episode, Sophie and Ash also share their own stories of being trans. Ash, who featured on the Pridecast earlier this year, reflects on his career as one of the most recognisable faces in the trans community, playing Emmerdale’s, Matty Barton. Sophie, who started working for ITV in September 2021, is part of the Content Services team and helps share some of ITV’s best content around the UK and across the world. She also talks about what it means to embrace her true identity and how LFF has played a part in that.

Both also discuss the importance of Transgender Awareness Week and Transgender Day of Remembrance which takes place in November. They chat about the value of both occasions in reminding people of the struggles and also the achievements of the trans community and how much progress is still needed in society.

Support organisations:
-Gires.co.uk has a comprehensive list of transgender support groups and websites.
-Mermaids.co.uk offers transgender support for children and young adults.
Mindlinetrans.org.uk provides an emotional support helpline for anyone identifying as transgender, non-binary and gender-fluid. It is also there to support family members, friends, colleagues and carers.
-Genderedintelligence.co.uk works to increase the understanding of gender diversity and improve the lives of trans people.

Dame Kelly Holmes MBE is one of the most respected and recognisable athletes the UK has ever produced. Many will remember when she triumphed at the 2004 Olympics in Athens to bring home two gold medals, and scenes of sheer joy following her incredible achievement.

Kelly has won an array of medals during her sporting career, making her an Olympic, Commonwealth and European Champion and she continues to hold British records in the 800m and 1000m. Undoubtedly, to reach such sporting heights Kelly needed to have a great deal of determination and discipline. In many ways, that discipline came from her military career, when she joined the British Army aged 18. Whilst serving, she became a HGV driver and then a Physical Training Instructor and in 1998 she was awarded an MBE for her services to the British Army. It was in 2018 that she was made Honorary Colonel of the Royal Armoured Corps.

Despite all her sporting and military success though, Kelly was having to hide a very important part of her life. Before the year 2000, LGBTQ+ people were banned from serving in the British Armed Forces - a rule that existed even after homosexuality had been decriminalised in the UK in 1967. Those who were found out or assumed to be LGBTQ+ in the military, were ‘discharged with disgrace’, losing all their medals and their pension.

Living in fear that someone might find out that she’s a gay woman, Kelly kept part of her life secret and only her closest friends and family knew her story. However this year, Kelly decided to let the world in. In a documentary on ITV called Kelly Holmes: Being Me, Kelly came out and discussed her struggle in telling people about who she is and her deep concerns about being found out in the military.

Now she is working tirelessly to support ex-service people who may have been discharged from the military, just because they’re LGBTQ+. The UK Government is currently gathering evidence from people who may have served up until 2000, for the LGBT Veterans Independent Review. The aim is for the government to understand, acknowledge and, where appropriate, address the impact the ban has had on veterans today, which Kelly is a massive champion of.

Following her documentary, the ITV Embrace, Pride, and Women’s Network came together to chat with Kelly about her story and how she has become so much more aware of her own intersectionality. The event which was held early in October, was also a celebration of Black History Month and a chance to find out how race has impacted on Kelly’s life as well. The talk was also recorded as an episode for the ITV Pridecast and alongside Liam McConkey to host it was Simmone Gardiner, from the Women’s Network and Sonny Hanley from the Embrace Network.

Kelly Holmes’s documentary, Kelly Holmes: Being Me, is still available to watch on the ITV Hub.
More information on the LGBT Veterans Independent Review, can be found on the UK Government website.

The transcript of this episode is available here: ITV Pridecast with Dame Kelly Holmes - transcript