The British Broadcasting Century with Paul Kerensa
#117 The BBC's First Homosexual: a new play - with Dr Stephen Hornby and Professor Marcus Collins
Published: 26 April 2026 at 09:49 Europe/London
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Episode notes
#117 The BBC's First Homosexual: a new play - with Dr Stephen Hornby and Professor Marcus Collins
A special episode about a new play about on the true tale of Britain's first broadcast debate on homosexuality. We're outside of our moment-by-moment timeline (currently anchored in November 1923 - we return there soon) to highlight this under-appreciated moment at the 1950s BBC.
After much deliberation, BBC producers planned and recorded an experimental discussion programme, but it wasn't broadcast until three years later, as an edited version called 'The Homosexual Condition'. The content may be rather shocking to today's ears, but progressive as far as its producers were concerned.
The recordings are long lost, but the transcript survives and was discovered by Professor Marcus Collins (Professor of British History at Loughborough University) at the BBC Written Archives Centre.
Marcus brought it to Dr Stephen Hornby (Lecturer in Drama and Theatre Practice at the University of Salford) who put pen to paper. They both join us this episode tell us how history met drama in this new play: The BBC's First Homosexual.
It's on tour this year to Dublin and Edinburgh after a sell-out five-star-reviewed tour of England. Find it at:
11-16 May - Teachers Club, Dublin
5-16 August - Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh
Details: linktr.ee/inkbrewtheatre
SHOWNOTES:
- Original podcast music is by Will Farmer.
- See Paul on tour in An Evening of (Very) Old Radio - next stops Corsham (Wilts), Weston-super-Mare, Gloucester... paulkerensa.com/tour
- Read Paul's Substack - the latest one is on early media predictions - paulkerensa.substack.com
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- Find us on BlueSky: bsky.bbcentury.social
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- Join Paul's mailing list
- This podcast is not made by today's BBC. It's just about the old BBC.
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Next time, Episode 118: The BBC and the General Strike: Reith v Churchill v PM v TUC... A centenary special!
More on this broadcasting history project at paulkerensa.com/oldradio
