He recalled: \u201cI remember the excitement when you heard in the bars and clubs that I went to in these back streets of stairs, probably heard rumours about someone who was famous who might be gay. For us, we then said Queer, yeah. And somehow you belong with that rank of people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cashman later added: \u201cMost of my life, my history has been given to me through the darker pages, the scandal sheets through the tabloids to the court cases that were reported. The people who hung themselves. My history wasn\u2019t up there in lights.\u201d<\/p>\n
He went on to note: \u201cThe empowering thing about coming out \u2013 all my people who are successful and come out \u2013 is because you empower others, you make other lives lighter and brighter.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s why I find those still trying to depict LGBT people as a threat, I find that deeply depressing because they won\u2019t accept experts that we are as ordinary and extraordinary as them.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I lived through that part of the AIDS pandemic, where arguably, we lost nearly a generation \u2013 a generation of mentors, of teachers, of lovers, of creatives. And people have forgotten that\u2026 instead of support and empathy being piled on to our community, hatred was piled on \u2013 Section 28.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018There they are, vulnerable, push them down.\u2019 So somebody said, in the inaugural Jonathan Cooper lecture, \u2018Don\u2019t forget, remember\u2019, because it\u2019s happening again, now.\u201d<\/p>\n
After his already colourful acting career in his youth, Cashman\u2019s life would change forever when he made his debut in the fresh new soap opera EastEnders<\/a> in 1986, portraying a sweet-natured yuppie graphic designer Colin Russell<\/a>, who would later be revealed to be the first on-screen gay resident in a UK soap opera.<\/p>\n Taboos were broken during Colin\u2019s time on the soap, including the first gay kiss in a UK soap opera in 1987 and then the first mouth-to-mouth gay kiss in 1988.<\/p>\n Colin was a popular resident and his presence on British television and romances with the likes of Barry Clark (Gary Hailes) and Guido Smith (Nicholas Donovan) provided a slither of representation in a time when positive role models for the LGBTQ+ community were scarce.<\/p>\n However, Cashman was aware of the controversy he would face going into the role due to his understanding of the media.<\/p>\n He recalled: \u201cI suppose the honest answer is that when I took the job, I knew that there\u2019d be trouble because I asked the producers how I deal with the tabloids, because the depiction of gay men particularly at the times was synonymous with being HIV positive, of dying of AIDS, synonymous with being represented as paedophiles.<\/p>\n \u201cThat was the whole notion behind Section 28 that came in during that period. Yeah. So I knew they\u2019d go for me.<\/p>\n \u201cDid I know that the public would react to him that way? No, but I trusted Julia Smith, producer, and Tony Holland because I\u2019ve worked with them before, well enough to know that they would do it properly.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that was my catch, you have to do this properly. No stereotypes, it\u2019s about the man, and they were clever because you got to know him initially through other characters in the show that they liked, like Pauline Fowler, Dot Cotton, and Angie in the pub \u2013 major characters.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were interested in what his life was like and so it was three months before the public actually were aware that he was gay, even though he\u2019d been on the front page of The Sun and other newspapers before I went in.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I think the quality of the writing was such that him going into their homes twice a week, repeating it on Sunday, they began to see that actually Colin was very ordinary.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, some of the criticism I took from the gay press and some of the gay critics \u2013 \u2018he was boring.\u2019 Boring to them, but he was ordinary, he got on with his job, and he had a beautiful boyfriend. I think that was part of the social change.\u201d<\/p>\n While Cashman left the soap in 1989, his work did not stop there as he continued his activism fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and founded the revolutionary UK charity Stonewall in 1989 alongside close friends including Sir Ian McKellen and Cashman\u2019s EastEnders co-star Pam St Clement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe currents of me being in the show, then the government introducing Section 28, me being on the campaign against that and Stonewall coming out of that \u2013 that was kind of a coalescing of crisis points that actually brought about something strong, positive,\u201d revealed Cashman.<\/p>\n \u201cWhich is we\u2019ve lost the battle to get rid of Section 28, we\u2019ve won the argument. So let\u2019s now go and win the argument for change, to stop another Section 28 ever again.\u201d<\/p>\n His lordship has also worked as an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society, along with being a patron of The Food Chain, a London-based HIV charity.<\/p>\n Moving further into politics, Cashman became a patron of LGBT Labour and joined the European Parliament as an MEP for the West Midlands from 1999 to 2014.<\/p>\n In 2013, he received a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for his work in public and political service, followed by a life peerage as Baron Cashman of Limehouse in 2014.<\/p>\n Cashman resigned from the Labour Party in 2019 due to his staunch criticism of Brexit but rejoined the party in January 2022.<\/p>\n In our conversation, the veteran activist pondered the passivity of some today who seem unwilling to go out and protest the treatment that the vulnerable are receiving.<\/p>\n A grave Cashman questioned: \u201cWhere is your anger? Is our anger that we go on social media, and we tweet, or we retweet? So we don\u2019t have to go on that demo that we just tweeted about?\u201d<\/p>\n Lord Cashman is particularly mindful of the toxic discourse surrounding trans rights, which has become especially prevalent in the media in recent years.<\/p>\n On what he hopes to see in the media, he called for news organisations to move away from the need to \u201calways have the opposing voice to LGBT issues represented, giving space to the other side\u201d, and explained that going on marches for social change should never be seen as controversial.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only thing that is controversial is being high in favour of racism, homophobia and transphobia,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is the biggest thing I\u2019d love to see, a leap forward. With fame comes responsibility \u2013 on how you use or misuse it. But you should never compromise your principles.\u201d<\/p>\n Cashman also spoke to his views on how the Director General of the BBC should be selected \u2013 and not by the government of the day, which he argues would also avoid scandal.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it should be what we also want to do with the House of Lords \u2013 that you have the names go forward, and then the commission decides who it is,\u201d concluded the Labour politician.<\/p>\n Cashman continues to fight for causes he believes in \u2013 including LGBTQ+ and the current Illegal Migration Bill\u00a0\u2013 but he is also exploring his creative side through writing.<\/p>\n After publishing his moving and stellar autobiography One of Them<\/a> in 2020, Cashman is now turning his attention to writing his first fiction novel.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s set in the East End of London from 1959 to a 2001 funeral,\u201d teased Cashman. \u201cIt\u2019s a story about women, what women did to survive, what women did for their children.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite throwing himself into writing \u2013 sometimes with a cheeky alcoholic beverage \u2013 and continuing his vital work in the House of Lords, Cashman was able to return for the emotional funeral episodes of Dot Branning in EastEnders last year following the death of his friend June Brown.<\/p>\n Cashman felt that Colin had\u00a0<\/em>to be there to say goodbye to Dot and the episodes also revealed that Colin had romantically reconciled with his old boyfriend Barry<\/a>.<\/p>\n He recalled: \u201cBryan Kirkwood wrote the episode where Colin and Barry got their kiss on the lips, which they were denied for 37 years, and he said \u2013 I\u2019m sure he won\u2019t mind me saying this \u2013 but when he wrote that scene he cried.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite no longer being a regular in the soap, Cashman still has strong friendships in Albert Square \u2013 including with the recently returned Michelle Collins<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cMichelle is a very close friend,\u201d he noted. \u201cShe and Paul were great friends.\u201d<\/p>\n Other friends included: \u201cOf course, Barbara [Windsor] was [and her husband] Scott [Mitchell]. Tish Dean, of course. Gilly Taylforth. I enjoyed meeting Scott Maslen, you know, Scott\u2019s become a friend. Adam Woodyatt is a great friend and wonderful, always been there for me.\u201d<\/p>\n One thing that truly comes through from speaking to Lord Cashman and from reading his autobiography is his enduring love for his late husband Paul Cottingham, who he was in an epic romance with for 31 years after being introduced to each other in 1983 by the late Dame Barbara Windsor.<\/p>\n Cottingham was also an actor and humanitarian activist who went on to work with the Labour Party and alongside his husband as a researcher in the European Parliament.<\/p>\n Sadly, Cottingham passed away in 2014 after receiving treatment for the rare cancer angiosarcoma in 2011.<\/p>\n Cashman revealed that his husband had always encouraged him to write his memoir and so when he did write One of Them, he knew it would be for him: \u201cI wanted to write a love letter to him about our life, and how love changes you forever and in times of great strain, be the only thing that sustains you.\u201d<\/p>\n Lastly, our conversation ended with a discussion about something which has become almost like Cashman\u2019s catchphrase, especially in his activism: \u201cTogether, only together.\u201d<\/p>\n He explained: \u201cFor me, well, it\u2019s multi-dimensional. No one, no one achieves alone. People are often vulnerable. Other people\u2019s rights are under threat, other people\u2019s rights are \u2018inessential\u2019. Make sure you are always good. Align yourself with the most defamed, the most misrepresented, because you\u2019ll be next.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s selfish and it\u2019s principled. Selfish in that you have everything to gain by working with others. Principle I felt really good. Imagine what is happening to somebody else. Principled, I hope, because you should imagine what is happening to somebody else, as if it\u2019s happening to you and if you wouldn\u2019t want it to happen to you, you shouldn\u2019t let it happen to somebody else.<\/p>\n \u201cThat for me is the concept of together. Stand in the shoes of the \u2018other\u2019. Ask someone to stand in your shoes. And it\u2019s terrifying, it\u2019s empowering and it means fewer casualties in societies because it means the bullies will back away.<\/p>\n \u201cTogether, only together.\u201d<\/p> If you\u2019re looking for more to watch, check out our\u00a0<\/strong>TV Guide<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Streaming Guide<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Take part in\u00a0the Screen Test<\/a>, a project from Radio Times and the Universities of Sussex and Brighton, to explore the role of television and audio in our lives.<\/strong><\/p>\n Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only \u00a31 with delivery to your home \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>subscribe now<\/strong><\/a>. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to\u00a0<\/strong>The Radio Times Podcast<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n The LGBTQ+ icon speaks with RadioTimes.com for Pride Month 2023 – discussing representation, EastEnders, and writing. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":34233,"template":"","categories":[1,2,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles.jpg",620,413,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles.jpg",620,413,false],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles.jpg",620,413,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles.jpg",620,413,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2023\/06\/rt-pride-icon-lord-michael-cashman-you-should-never-compromise-your-principles.jpg",620,413,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"The LGBTQ+ icon speaks with RadioTimes.com for Pride Month 2023 - discussing representation, EastEnders, and writing.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/34231"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\""Gary\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/12\/EastEnders-Barry-Colin-222d992.jpg?quality=90&crop=4px%2C5px%2C613px%2C408px&resize=613%2C408"\" "\\"\"EastEnders\\"\/")
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