A mixed bunch on Lesbian Line
1987
Catherine volunteered on the second incarnation of Lesbian Line. “Pat Howie got us a room in
the Custard Factory. There were 8 volunteers, a mix of people, with no
budget, it was a bit of a mess, but we kept going for a couple of
years. We didn’t get that many calls but a separate Lesbian Line was
important as quite a lot of separatists didn’t want to talk to a man,
they wanted a lesbian to talk to. Switchboard was more male orientated,
with few lesbians working there”.
80 Catherine had previously
been on Lincoln Switchboard, which was very important for isolated LGBs
living in the countryside, with nothing happening. “It wasn’t quite the
same in Birmingham as there were women's events such as Sheila's Bar at the
Station Pub in Kings Heath, Tuesday night Peacocks discos, ‘Henrietta's
Out’ and various sporadic events”.
Contributed by: Catherine M, 47