1960s gay icons
1965
“Dusty Springfield was the big gay icon. She had
actually come out in the sixties on a radio programme. She didn’t use
the word lesbian, but it was what she meant. She said she ‘would have a
relationship with whoever, it depended on the person’ which was
cleverly put in those days, but she always ended up having a
relationship with a woman. There was always a question mark with Shirley Bassey.” Pam couldn’t think of anyone else in the sixties who
was categorically lesbian, and no outrageous queens. It wouldn’t be
tolerated and it was still illegal. “With the women it was never
illegal, because Queen Victoria said it would never happen, which was
very good of her, but I don’t know what would have happened if you’d
done something in public, I think there would have been the same
intolerance. I personally have never had any problem at all but I’ve
never been very pushy. If people ask me I’ll tell them. I know men that
did, but not any women who had bad homophobic reactions.”
Contributed by: Pam Hudson, 63