JUNE is Pride Month, marking the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York in June 1969, which raised the profile of the LGBT+ rights movement worldwide.
Following the format of our Q&As with our Patrons in recent months, in June we're speaking with Nathaniel Hall, a theatre-maker, actor, writer and HIV activist from Manchester.
Nathaniel’s story is also his mother’s story. It is a story about their relationship with each other, about Nat’s feelings about himself, about Chris’s feelings and a little about her church. The film invites us to reflect upon our own assumptions, prejudices and experiences about the issues raised. [7 mins]
In 2019 his award-winning autobiographical solo-show, about his life living with HIV after diagnosis just aged 16, took the Edinburgh Fringe Festival by storm with audience and critical acclaim in equal measure. In 2021, Nathaniel appeared as Donald Bassett in It's a Sin, Channel 4's hit drama written by Russell T Davies about the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on gay men in 1980s Britain. Now Nathaniel is campaigning for a future where other people living with HIV can live openly, boldly and with pride.
Nathaniel will be speaking with Steve Hilton, Assistant Curate at Manchester Cathedral. Steve wrote his MTh thesis on the lived experiences of gay men living with HIV wherein themes of stigma, shame, growth, community, vulnerability and rejection all emerged. Steve says,
“The Church needs to hear the voices speaking loudly to it from It’s A Sin - we have much work to do. The Church’s role in fostering toxic shame (itself a culture where abuse thrives) simply cannot be ignored. We must now act to become a community where dignity is restored by the sharing of, and listening to, these stories and experiences. We need to hear Nathaniel’s message to the Church.”