Tales of the Suburbs

My next book is looking at the stories of LGBTQ people in suburbia in the UK in the twentieth century. While much valuable work has gone on to produce books on the urban experience of queer people, much of the suburban story, particularly from the pre-internet age is either hidden or fading from view. I’d like to capture the strange collision of sexuality and suburbia in this book. Certainly my own experience of Croydon in the 1970s-90s and Milton Keynes today has given me an enormous amount of curious tales, many seemingly inexplicable, and I’m sure I’m not the only one with stories to tell.

I’m looking for interviewees – gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans or queer people who experienced British suburbia and would like to share their stories.

Interviews usually take about an hour or so, and can either be conducted in person or over a video call. Your interview can be anonymised if you so wish.

Once I have conducted all of the interviews I’ll be donating the transcripts to the Bishopsgate Institute whose LGBTQ cultural collections are second to none. The book, Tales of the Suburbs, will be published by Faber and Faber in 2025.

Please do get in touch if you’d like to be interviewed for this project – your help is massively appreciated x