New Resource: Queer Sex Work

Nicki Smith at Birmingham University has launched a new website:  Queer Sex Work. It's for anyone and everyone who is interested in issues about being and doing ‘queer’ in the sex industry: sex workers, activists, researchers, students, practitioners and anyone else who is interested in exploring, discussing, debating, or learning more about the diversity of queer identities, practices, politics and scholarship in and about the sex industry. The site is designed to be as inclusive as possible of different voices, experiences and identities, and to be a space for dialogue and of mutual respect. It includes research resources, policy and activism links, and links to support services, together with regular posts on projects, publications, people and events.

Check it out here.

The concelebration of pure, raw, priapic manhood

At a recent book launch, I feel into conversation with somebody who asked if I was familiar with the work of Jack Fritscher.  I confessed that whilst the name sounded vaguely familiar, I wasn't.  Fritscher is an influential novelist and the founding editor-in-chief of the landmark publication, Drummer magazine.  He has been described as a queer theorist, decades before queer theory was conceived and congregated around by activists and academics in the 1990s.  His memoir-novel 'Some Dance to Remember' chronicles the years 1970 - 1982 in San Francisco, and can be downloaded for free here or if you prefer (as I did), you can purchase an old fashioned hard-copy here.  I'm hoping to finish the text by the end of the week, but I'm already incredibly moved and inspired by the text.  At times, it's a challenging read with a chaotic style that itself summons a previous age.  Yet, it's also a remarkable time-portal to a period of queer history sometimes forgotten and frequently edited.

Here's one wonderful passage that I just read and want to share:

'I have no father, no brother, no son more than these men gathered here in this time, in this flesh, in tis space more auspiciously than any of us realized at first.  Never on this planet have so many men of such similar mind gathered together to fuck in the concelebration of pure, raw, priapic manhood.  If the mythic Saint Priapus has never been canonised by the Catholic Church, then he has been made a saint in  San Francisco in these halls, in the temples of our conjoined bodies, tangled in passion, slick with sweat, and glazed with seed'.

Priapus is a fertility god from Greek mythology, blessed with an exceptionally large penis.  Saint Priapus (and I had to Google this) was a North American religion founded in the 1980s (and strong in San Francisco) which worships the phallus.  Worship takes the form of a variety of sexual acts.

For me, the extract above is a passage of raw desire, evoking not only that spirt of the 70s, now constructed as 'dangerous', as a congregation of men inevitably cruising towards the vengeful iceberg of AIDS, but also of contemporary queer theory, and radical sexuality.  Amazing stuff.

Law, Culture and Queer Politics in Neoliberal Times

Jindal Global Law Review has published the first of a two volume special issue addressing 'Law, Culture and Queer Politics in Neoliberal Times'.  Check it out here.

I've not yet read the full issue, but heartily recommend an excellent article by Neil Cobb (latterly of Durham Law School, and now at Manchester University).  His article can be downloaded here.

Watch out for Part II of this special double issue due to be out in December 2012! It will, among others, address concerns around homonationalism, queer imperialism and pinkwashing with reflections on queer politics in Africa, Europe and North America. It will also address the politics around the representations and constructions of queer sexualities within familial contexts of intimacy. The issue will feature articles by Jasbir K. Puar, Neville Hoad, Jin Haritaworn, Dianne Otto, Fiona Campbell, Aeyal Gross, Marc Epprecht and many others.

Pride in Conversation

The Guardian carried a really interesting piece on Saturday featuring a conversation between Peter Tatchell and Julie Bindel on pride. There was much in what both said that I found myself agreeing with, but I probably came down supporting Tatchell overall.  I was particularly struck b his comments in relation to marriage. There are some who have been puzzled by his support for same-sex marriage given his queer philosophical roots - and his comments here reflect my own squaring of queer theory and a pro-same-sex marriage rights stance.  Check out the piece here.

Puzzlingly, the Guardian also featured a World Power List 100:  The Most Influential LGBT People in 2012, but it doesn't appear to be on their website.  Number 1 was Jane Lynch, Lord Alli comes in at number 2, Gok Wan at 3, Barney Frank at 4, Tammy Baldwin at 5, Tim Cook at 6, Ian McKellen at 7, Martina Navratilova at 8, Ellen DeGeneres at 9 and Clare Balding at 10.  The whole list is celeb-heavy with no academics featured.  One current lawyer - Daniel Winterfeldt - makes it to the list.   Although I'm not sure this is a fair list, it probably does say about the visibility of power - and our collective understanding of influence.  For me, the teacher out in the classroom influencing the lives of countless children through their simple existence is more influential on those children than a distant celebrity.  Those fearful of queer power have long recognised this.  Meanwhile, gay activists are all too often seduced by the glitz, glamour and illusion of power and influence which celebrity often offers.

Archive Q&A with Gayle Rubin

The GLBT Archives have a really interesting short section in their new newsletter, featuring Gayle Rubin. A pioneer of feminist theory, queer theory and leather history, Gayle S. Rubin is a founding member of the GLBT Historical Society and an associate professor of anthropology, women's studies and comparative literature at the University of Michigan.  Her work is essential reading for my law and sexuality students and students of sexuality around the world.

The short piece asks three questions about archives:

How do archival collections like those held by the GLBT Historical Society support the production of knowledge about queer cultures? 

Without primary source material, we are "people without a history." Our knowledge tends to be mired at the level of anecdote and circulating assumptions that can't be checked against evidence. We are stuck with mythologies, some positive and some negative, whose veracity cannot be ascertained. There are so many things that one hears, things that "everyone knows," that actually turn out to be superficial, misleading or wrong. Only primary sources allow us to assess such ideas and claims. In addition, there are important stories that have been lost or buried or forgotten that can be resurrected through archival collections and oral histories.

University libraries have started developing GLBT special collections. Does that mean we no longer need community-based GLBT archives? 

 I welcome the entry of university libraries into these fields, but they have limitations. Focused topical collections often depend on some individual within the library system and do not always continue if that person leaves. In addition, university libraries may not be as comfortable about collecting certain materials or making them accessible -- for example, sexually explicit materials or those pertaining to various queer subcultures. Moreover, public institutions may be subject to political pressures. So a certain amount of redundancy is a very good thing: Having material dispersed among different kinds of institutions and in different locations makes it more likely to survive unpredictable events and unknown futures.

What can we do to ensure that community-based GLBT archives continue to grow and thrive? 

There is sometimes a lack of appreciation for what a Herculean task it is to develop and maintain institutions such as the GLBT Historical Society and its museum. They are often taken for granted, or treated as if they are as stable, well funded and well staffed as mainstream institutions. When I am in the museum or at the archives, I can only marvel at their existence and be grateful for all the work that has gone into the fact that they are here. Perhaps this is particularly poignant for me because I remember when we did not have them and I know what it has taken to get to this point. The GLBT Historical Society and The GLBT History Museum are among the most important accomplishments of the LGBT movement in San Francisco -- but they are works in progress. To continue to grow and thrive, they need volunteer energy, money to operate, and donations of research materials. At a minimum, please understand what these places are, what it takes to have them, and give them the recognition and appreciation that they so richly deserve. The Historical Society is a queer public good and a community treasure, but like all such institutions, it requires maintenance and cultivation. As I recently wrote, those who fail to secure the transmission of their histories are doomed to lose them.

Read more about the wonderful San Francisco museum and archive here.

Nice Gays, Bad Gays

Home Secretary Teresa May has 'come out' today via the Out4Marriage campaign site in favour of same-sex marriage.  However, it's still only the 'good' gays that she likes.  Not those nasty gay men who you know, have like gay sex and stuff.  'Cos that's bad.

Wearing her Maidenhead hat (no sniggers at the back), she condemned men show ere having sex in Maidenhead thicket.  This increase in a captivity follows the removal of hedges from a nearby lay-by which had been sued for public sex.  As happens in so many parts of the country, the problem had been moved from one place to another.   May therefore concluded that the behaviour had to be stopped all together.  Quite how this is panning out in reality will be interesting to see.

Although cruising sites do make reference to the story, the general concern of cruiser appears to be about the dominance of 'old' men rather than the forceful words of the Home Secretary.

Check out the full story here.

Civil Partnerships? Tate Modern, 19th May, 2012

This looks a great event for those of you lucky enough to be in London...

Reflecting on the politics and practices of queer and feminist art curating, this symposium invites presentations from an international line-up of artists, curators and critics to address a set of key questions: how do feminist and queer projects emerge as art exhibitions? Can queers and feminists get along with the institutional art world? And can they get along with each other? Your conference ticket also allows free entry to the Axe Grinding Workshop and David Hoyle’s Queer Tate Tour on the evening of the 18^th May. Workshop places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

More info here.

Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots? The Event

I previously blogged on a new book, Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots? and now you can watch video of an event involving authors from the book.  It took place at the wonderful City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco and I was going to embed the video for you to make life easier but it seems the video producers don't want that so you'll need to click here for the first video, and then pick the second, third and fourth videos from the right hand side.

There was also an event at the City Library in San Francisco and that can be viewed here (you'll notice the opening is the same as City Lights) and again you'll need to pick the following bits from the right hand side.  Both events feel very 'San Francisco' and very familiar for these sort of sexuality events.  It's hard to put into words but hopefully after watching the videos, you might know a little of what I mean.

Why Are Faggots So Afraid of Faggots?

This is the name of a new book from Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore which will be available in the UK alter in the year.  I managed to get a copy sent over from the States last myth but other than a quick skim, I've not yet managed to read it properly.  However, it's already got many academics and folks interested in sexuality chatting about the ideas in this radical collection.  SF Weekly carries an interview with Sycamore in which she talks about her ideas and this new edited collection.

You can check it out here.

Queer Pedagogy: Queering Our Teaching, Queering our Learning

This looks brilliant! A free online course on queer pedagogy through Peer-To-Peer University (P2PU) has kicked off this week. Although they are in the first week, they are looking for a few more participants. Details @ http://www.p2pu.org/en/groups/queer-pedagogy

If you've got the time, it looks a terrific opportunity.

Centre for Sex, Gender and Sexualities: Inaugural Lecture

North East based students, scholars and thinkers will be interested in attending this.  I would encourage my own students to attend - it will be relevant to your assessment!  I'll also be going along so hope to see some of you there.

Thursday 17th November
6:15 – 7.30pm Appleby Lecture Theatre
Durham University Science Site, South Road, DH1 3LE

We know that Durham has sometimes had the image of being something of a blue stocking among universities – well, not any more. On 17th November in Durham, the University’s new Centre for Sex, Gender and Sexualities is holding its inaugural lecture.

Titled ‘Equality, Diversity, Queer Theory and Children in the Modern Age’, the lecture will explore the issue of sexuality, queerness and children. It is being given by celebrated queer theorist, Professor Kathryn Bond-Stockton of the University of Utah. 

Professor Jo Phoenix is the Director of the new Durham-based Centre. She says: ‘The Centre for Sex, Gender, and Sexualities will be unique in the UK, so its creation is a break-through moment both for queer studies nationally and for the University. The Centre is going to shape, inform and influence the often contentious debates surrounding sexuality, gender, identity, equality and politics, while the fact that it is being created by what some might regard as a more traditional, establishment university shows how forward-thinking Durham really is.’

 Please arrive from 6.00 pm for registration. The lecture will start at 6.30 pm and will be followed by a drinks reception and nibbles from 7.30 pm. If you have colleagues or associates you think would be interested in attending, please let us know via your RSVP and we will be happy to include them on the guest list. Please note that places are limited and it is wise to reserve your place. RSVP to

JoPhoenix.csgs@durham.ac.uk by 10th November.

(Homo)normative legal discourses and the queer challenge

I promised in the Summer that I would publish my my most recent article on here once it was available.  It's not yet available on Hein but it is here.  I'd appreciate any feedback/thoughts.  I'm aiming to speak further about this work at conferences over the next 9 months but funding is rather tight at the moment.You can make the Slideshare viewer full screen (the arrow icon, bottom right corner of the pane) or if you click the underlined title/link below you will have the option to 'download' (and then print, read more easily) from the Slideshare site.(Homo)normative legal discourses and the queer challenge

View more documents from Chris Ashford

Call for Papers: Queer Radicalism(s) (Deadline Due)

Readers may be interested in this CFP reminder.  It sounds a great issue.

Radicalism is in a state of crisis, as it perhaps must be in an age of economic and political precariousness. The various ways of thinking and forms of activism that have traditionally defined themselves as "radical" (or radically progressive) are losing ground as the criteria for radicalism become increasingly dubious and unstable. Radicalism seems to oscillate between the apparent opposites of negativity and utopia, represented in the queer context by Lee Edelman and José Esteban Munoz, but isn't this oscillation itself too radical, paradoxically rendering the radical impulse impotent?

Queer theory and activism have long posed as "cutting edge" or avant-garde positions, directed against both the heteronormative society at large and the assimilationist (or homonormative) practices within the LG(BTI) movements. But aren't these claims to radicalism in themselves reproducing an elitist self-elevation that simultaneously degrades or abjects all those who "lag behind"? Who can afford (materially, symbolically, or even psychologically) subversion, transgression and radical opposition as long-term life- and political strategies? How can we prevent their deteriorating to mere rote? Who at all has access to articulations of "a radical position"? In short, is it even radical anymore to have a radical position? On the other hand, in the face of an expansion and solidification of capitalism's neoliberal regime that invades deep into our everyday lives, coupled with a revival of (neo)conservative authoritarianisms that effectively use populist rhetoric to mobilize social discontent, we (radicals?) are in dire need of decisive actions and clear visions for an alternative. (The popular protest movements across the world, such as the street fights in some European countries or the Arab revolutions, seem to suggest that the world-system is on the verge of a profound transformation.)

One such alternative, and a possible ally of queer, seems to come from critical postanarchism; but then again, could this alliance (or other similar alliances) offer an effective means of resistance (if resistance is what we want, after all), beyond a purely theoretical proposition? Other questions for consideration include (but are not limited to): -- re-inventing viable queer radicalisms while deconstructing the traditional radicalism vs conservatism binary and recognizing the dangers of fetishizing radicalism or making it into a normative rule -- queer and radical political theories/movements: (post)anarchism, (post)Marxism, situationism, etc. -- how is queerness being deployed in the moulding of societies and populations into classes, races, ethnicities, nations, genders, sexual orientations? how could it implicitly comply with systems of biopolitical control and various neocolonial enterprises? (cf. Jasbir Puar's work on homonationalism); how does the "queer cause" relate to other "progressive" causes? -- radicalism *versus* or *as* institutionalization (a case in point: is gay marriage a transgressive and radical gesture of symbolic and structural re-appropriation or rather a reinforcement of the conservative agenda?) *The deadline for abstracts is 30/09/2011. For further information see: http://interalia.org.pl/en/artykuly/next_issue.htm

Blendr Benders?

I watched the launch of Blendr - the 'straight' version of the popular App Grindr with interest (read more on the launch here).  I confess that I am a long standing Grindr user (is there some sort of help group?) but it's fascinating to see how this app  - which is, let's be honest, about hunting for sex, be re-marketed for a straight audience.  Heterosexuals it seems, want to 'network' and 'date' rather than seek out the nearest available sexual outlet.  It would have been interesting to see it launched as a genuine 'straight' version of Grindr rather than this spin, although it will be interesting to see how it is actually used and what the gender split of users is.  A whole new app for students to play with during workshops, tutorials and lectures.

Quiet Riot Girl offers a really interesting insight into this development.  Coming from a queer perspective, QRG challenges some of the assumptions that we might have regarding potential users.  Check out the post in full here.

The Barebacking Apprentice

I should begin with a warning that the links in this post will be of an adult nature, so please don't click through if you're of a sensitive disposition!

So, there's yet another new bareback blog that's caught my attention. This one is entitled 'Raw Lad London 1984' and is written by a twenty-seven year old Londoner and reveals via his various profile links that he is HIV positive. His blog celebrates slutdom, semen and bareback sex and he states that 'The Guy I’m Aiming To Be Like!' is Josh (Confessions of a Bareback Sauna Slut) who I've previously blogged about.

However, whilst Josh has been unusual in revealing his life - and face - on the Internet, providing a visual context to his barebacking, he remains (perhaps surprisingly) HIV negative. In contrast, RLW84 or 'Jay' sets out his positive status but choosing to define himself by a raw barebacker identity rather than as 'positive'. These labels are defined separately, although they clearly overlap. He writes:

'1. Yes, Im HIV Positive. I am open about it and its not a problem, not on meds, and still healthy. I do not want to discuss my HIV status here tho and I do not see it having a place in this blog. You’re status is not important to me, but it’s important for you to know that I’m Poz'

There will be many upset at someone openly HIV positive continuing to engage in unsafe sex but his positions trikes me as a fundamentally honest one. It is a very clear caveat emptor philosophy that arguably enables Jay to navigate the English criminal law in this area and the focus upon 'recklessness' (see more here).

Jay's blog is also interesting in that it situates itself against the earlier established blog written by Josh. For those who fear that these blogs might encourage other people to act, there is perhaps something of the 'performance' that is encouraged. Jay is posting photographs and will - as his blog develops - no doubt recount his experiences. However, I suspect many of these would have happened anyway. What is perhaps different is the way that these actions are constructed by the self, and their contribution to the formation of a queer community that challenges the normative approach of society.

For those wanting to understand the beating heart of today's queer radicalism, a radicalism that directly challenges current socio-legal norms, they need to read this blog and others like it.

Cottaging and the (Homo)normative

The September issue of Gay Times is 'The Sex Issue' featuring the often constructed dumb but rather sweet Alex Reid on the cover. For my money, it's a horribly unflattering picture of him, leaving you wanting to prescribe a new skin-care regime for him (mine is terrible but then I'm not a celebrity on the front a of a national magazine).

Anyway, beyond these superficial issues, the issue includes a welcome piece on dogging covering several pages and written by Jack Cullen. He also blogs here and his blog reveals he is a very young journalist. This is perhaps evident in the disappointingly superficial piece. It has lots of great bits and he is brave enough to reveal his own experiments with cottaging for the piece (although whether this is his normal pattern of behaviour is left unclear). Although much of the piece makes reference to gay men, the piece concludes with: '[cottaging] hasn't fully died, and will forever remain a window of opportunity for straight men looking to cross the borderline'. Where does this come from? How does it fit with the piece? What of the young guys using cottages? What of the way these places are still policed? What impact does that have? This feels a real missed opportunity.

I know, I know, I'm an academic and not a journalist. My take on a subject

I've studied for years is going to be different but it seems a shame that when a subject is examined, it misses out some key and interesting issues. It's also a shame that they don't mention the ongoing documentary project The Strange Decline of the English Cottage. There are also a number of living academics - Paul Johnson, Les Moran, Matt Houlbrook and myself - who could have provided Jack with a better understanding of this issue. The piece is therefore more important for telling us what a young gay journalist in their early twenties will say about cottaging rather than as a piece about cottaging.

Finally, Gay Times flags up (repeatedly) that 'cottaging is illegal' - which it is - although no indication of how it's policed (lots of things are illegal, the question is if you can get away with it, and what happens if you're caught). GT provides a 'top tips' for cottaging but then off-sets this with the statement: 'Under no circumstances does GT think you should go cottaging'. Wow, prissy little GT. If ever there was an example of the emergent (homo) normative narrative it was this anti-public sex stance. Along with bareback sex and drugs, we put cottaging in the new anti-gay bucket. In reality of course, many gay men (and journalists) do, I would suggest, cottage, bareback and take drugs, but these are increasingly the censored aspects of modern gay men's lives. This is a sex issue that tells gay men to stop having the 'wrong' sort of sex. It's an interesting development.

I discuss this idea of the (homo)normative in a piece just published in Durham Law Review (when I get a PDF of it I'll stick it up on here and SSRN). It should also be available on Heinonline at some point. I also pick up these issues in the media context in a recent webzine piece that you can read here.

Event: Jasbir Puar Lecture, Berlin

A nice treat for Europeans, able to pop along to Berlin next week:

Jasbir Puar
The Cost of Getting Better
Ecologies of Race, Sex, and Disability

This lecture examines the potential for affective connectivities and conviviality to rethink neoliberal stratification. Noting that discourses surrounding queer suicide reproduce problematic assumptions not only about race, class, and gender, but also bodily health, debility, and capacity, Jasbir Puar will be linking Dan Savage’s “It Gets Better” project and related discussions about the recent spate of queer suicides to broader social justice issues about disability as well as theoretical concerns in animal studies and post-humanist studies.

Jasbir Puar is professor and core faculty member in the department of Women’s & Gender Studies at Rutgers University, USA. She is the author of Terrorist Assemblages: Homonationalism in Queer Times (Duke University Press 2007), which won the 2007 Cultural Studies Book Award from the Association for Asian American Studies. Her edited volumes include a special issue of GLQ entitled “Queer Tourism: Geographies of Globalization” and she co-edited a volume of Society and Space entitled “Sexuality and Space”.

Tuesday
7 June 2011
7:30 pm
In English
Location:
ICI Kulturlabor Berlin
ICI Berlin Institute for Cultural Inquiry
Christinenstr. 18/19, Haus 8
U-Bhf Senefelder Platz (U2)
www.ici-berlin.org

Wednesday 8 June, 11am-2pm there will be a workshop with Jasbir Puar for those who like to discuss the lecture in more detail.
Location: Institut für Queer Theory, Werbellinstr. 50, Haus 1a (U8 Boddinstr.)
Please register: mail@queer-institut.de

The lecture is part of the series
The Subtle Racializations of Sexuality: Queer Theory, the Aftermath of Colonial History, and the Late-Modern State
organized by Antke Engel, Institute for Queer Theory, in cooperation with the ICI Berlin.

Western states happily turn to gender and sexual politics in order to demonstrate their presumed progressiveness. They find support from some parts of feminist and LGBTI activism that regard (neo)liberal state and diversity policies as instrumental for achieving integration and recognition. Such alliances have recently been criticized for fostering new social divisions and endorsing occidentalist and sometimes racist premises. Interested in the nuances of this critique, the lecture series brings together theoretical and political considerations developed from Queers of Color and/or migrant perspectives on late-modern and neoliberal state policies. The speakers will analyze the sexual imaginaries that organize Western publics and develop queer counter narratives. Sara Ahmed, Fatima El Tayeb, Antonia Chao, Drucilla Cornell and Cathy Cohen will be among the next speakers.

More: http://www.ici-berlin.org/series/series-description/392/

The lecture series is organized by Antke Engel, Institute for Queer Theory (www.queer-institut.de) in cooperation with the ICI Berlin Institute for Cultural Inquiry (www.ici-berlin.org), which hosts the series. It is supported by other academic institutions and political organizations in Berlin who co-organize and sponsor individual lectures in the series.

Let's Talk About Sex: Paul Morris

Earlier this month, Let's Talk About Sex posted two wonderful and important pieces - extended 'interviews' with Treasure Island Media head-honcho, Paul Morris. Porn's quintessential bête noire for his advocacy of bareback sex, and his recent move into openly HIV positive porn.

I'm speaking about Morris, queer theory and treasure Island Media next week in San Francisco (the city the company is based in) at the Law and Society Annual Conference. If anyone fancies a chat over a beer or cup of tea while I'm in town, give me a shout on email or via twitter.

Anyhow, I was also interested to see him champion FTM queer porn performer, James Darling who I've previously mentioned, and how very kindly did a Q&A with my students last year (check that video out here).

The first part of the interview can be read here and the second part here. The interview was also reproduced on the Treasure Island Media blog with a Q&A for fans/readers, asking:

'What books does Paul suggest reading for those interested in the “extremely complex psycho-social functions and meanings of queer sex”?'

The answer was:

Foucault’s History of Sexuality, Lee Edelman’s No Future, and Bersani/Phillips’ Intimacies.

This reveals the depth and intellect of the man and the importance of scholarly theoretical development in the existence of Treasure Island Media. My students will be very familiar with Foucault's three volumes of Sexuality and (if they did well in my first assignment), also Lee Edelman's text which influenced my own writing on bareback sex. Finally, Bersani and Phillips' although less familiar to my students, is of course, an important text. It's striking that the very ideas that flow through an English undergraduate law degree module ('class') are also the ideas that powerfully influence Treasure Island Media.

Queer Truth(s) and the Gay Media

I've just had another webzine published on the brilliant FIAPA site. It's called 'Queer Truth(s) and the Gay Media' and you can read it here. As ever, please comment/forward the link on etc.

Portas on Sexuality

Today, the Guardian carries a fabulous interview with the kick-ass Business guru Mary Portas. The memorable bit of the interview for me was her observation about Homebase. Oh I hear you Mary. However, the more important aspect for the purpose of this blog are her comments about her sexual identity. Portas is in a Civil Partnership - having previously being married to a man. She is regularly held up as a lesbian icon but she challenges these fixed labels in her interview with a rather brilliant quote:

"Errrr . . . when you look at female sexuality it's very different. Lots of women have been in love with men and then women and vice versa, it's just not so defined and I couldn't explain it in black and white. Have I loved men? Yes. Have I loved more than one woman? No. But did I know that I'd had crushes on men and women in the past? Yes. So it was never like, oooh! But was I happy in my heterosexual relationships? Yes. That's the way it just happened. I certainly wasn't a suppressed lesbian thinking, 'God, I can't wait to get out of this marriage', cos that would be just awful, awful, awful. No, my ex-husband and I know what we had, and it was great, some of the best years of my life, really some of the best. We just grew apart, and that happens. And I happened to fall in love with a woman."

Read the original Guardian story here and see Pink News' take on the story here.