Never pretending | Episode 10

Tash and Adam hear from Richard Desmond, aka Switchboard’s once resident leather queen. Richard reflects on a life in the LGBTQ+ community, as a leatherman, a volunteer, a friend and lover. We love you, Richard. Buy our book or see our events listings: The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened. Hosted and produced by Tash Walker and Adam Zmith The voice of the log books: Serena James Assistant producer: Marnie Woodmeade  Engineer: David Pye Music: Tom Fosket-Barnes Original artwork: Natalie Doto Thanks to the Bishopsgate Institute; our publisher, Faber Books; the dreamboats at Acast; the staff and volunteers at Switchboard, and all the contributors who shared their stories. Episode transcripts available here. Call Switchboard on 0800 0119 100, email [email protected] or instant message via www.switchboard.lgbt. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/thelogbooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tash and Adam listen to Graham McKerrow, who was editor of the newspaper Capital Gay in the 80s. Graham reflects on his gay adolescence in the 70s, and how he and his partner transformed a South London house into a communal queer home. Buy our book or see our events listings: The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened. Hosted and produced by Tash Walker and Adam Zmith The voice of the log books: Serena James Assistant producer: Marnie Woodmeade  Engineer: David Pye Music: Tom Fosket-Barnes Original artwork: Natalie Doto Thanks to the Bishopsgate Institute; our publisher, Faber Books; the dreamboats at Acast; the staff and volunteers at Switchboard, and all the contributors who shared their stories. Episode transcripts available here. Call Switchboard on 0800 0119 100, email [email protected] or instant message via www.switchboard.lgbt. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/thelogbooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adam and Tash hear from Andy Piccos, whose memories of Switchboard stretch back to 1977.  Andy remembers the queer family he met through volunteering and living the gay life, and what it was like to come out to his biological, Greek Cypriot family. Buy our book or see our events listings: The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened. Hosted and produced by Tash Walker and Adam Zmith The voice of the log books: Serena James Assistant producer: Marnie Woodmeade  Engineer: David Pye Music: Tom Fosket-Barnes Original artwork: Natalie Doto Thanks to the Bishopsgate Institute; our publisher, Faber Books; the dreamboats at Acast; the staff and volunteers at Switchboard, and all the contributors who shared their stories. Episode transcripts available here. Call Switchboard on 0800 0119 100, email [email protected] or instant message via www.switchboard.lgbt. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/thelogbooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tash and Adam catch-up with Femi Otitoju, one of the original contributors of The Log Books podcast, and one of Switchboard’s most valuable volunteers. Femi reflects on what it meant to have her memories recorded, and how she and others made sure that Switchboard served Black people and women. You can also listen to Femi speaking on the podcast Black And Gay, Back In The Day on Apple and Spotify. Buy our book or see our events listings: The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened. Hosted and produced by Tash Walker and Adam Zmith The voice of the log books: Serena James Assistant producer: Marnie Woodmeade  Engineer: David Pye Music: Tom Fosket-Barnes Original artwork: Natalie Doto Thanks to the Bishopsgate Institute; our publisher, Faber Books; the dreamboats at Acast; the staff and volunteers at Switchboard, and all the contributors who shared their stories. Episode transcripts available here. Call Switchboard on 0800 0119 100, email [email protected] or instant message via www.switchboard.lgbt. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/thelogbooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our book is published TODAY! In this special episode, Tash and Adam read an exclusive excerpt from The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened, published by Faber & Faber. This is a huge milestone for The Log Books project, which started when Tash found the log books over ten years ago. If you listened to our first three seasons, we thank you for sticking with us. If you’re a newcomer: welcome to your queer history! Buy our book or see our events listings: The Log Books: Voices of Queer Britain and the Helpline that Listened. Hosted and produced by Tash Walker and Adam Zmith The voice of the log books: Serena James Assistant producer: Marnie Woodmeade  Engineer: David Pye Music: Tom Fosket-Barnes Original artwork: Natalie Doto Thanks to the Bishopsgate Institute; our publisher, Faber Books; the dreamboats at Acast; the staff and volunteers at Switchboard, and all the contributors who shared their stories. Episode transcripts available here. Call Switchboard on 0800 0119 100, email [email protected] or instant message via www.switchboard.lgbt. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/thelogbooks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.