IN PRIVATE

1967 and the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality,
remembered by LGBTQ+ people who were there.

2027 marks 60 years since the partial decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales. We are producing a collaborative portrait and testimony project that records what that moment meant to the older LGBTQ+ people who lived through it, and to those who grew up in its shadow.

Each participant is invited to sit for a portrait session and a recorded conversation built around a short set of questions. These include where they were and how old they were when the law changed, whether they noticed any press coverage, whether anything changed for them before and after.

The finished work will be shown during LGBT History Month in February 2027, with other pop-up exhibitions during the month being explored.

Why now
Sixty years on, there are still many people who remember 1967 first-hand, and this anniversary is a chance to hear from them. Many were adults then and are now over 80. Many more were children or teenagers, growing up with the law’s limits and silences. Their memories of what they read, what they were told and what changed in daily life are rarely recorded, and rarely recorded alongside the face of the person who remembers them.

The Act applied to England and Wales only, covered men over 21 in private (hence the title), and left a great deal of criminal law and social hostility in place. Women, trans people and those living elsewhere in the UK experienced the period differently but still potentially experienced its fallout and stigma.

Who we are looking for
Anyone who identifies as LGBTQ+ and was alive in 1967, whether you were an adult or a teenager. We want a real spread of lives: men, women, trans and non-binary people, bisexual people, people of colour, people who lived outside England and Wales, people who were married or not out, people who were threatened or arrested, and people who simply carried on. You do not need to have been an activist or to have a dramatic story.

Sessions will take place November to December 2026, at your home, in a community space or at the studio in Hove, whichever suits you. You can choose to be named, to use your first name only, or to remain anonymous. Images and edited text are sent to you for approval, and you can withdraw up to an agreed date before anything goes to print.

“Sixty years is a long time, and 1967 is still living memory for many people. I want to honour our queer elders and their stories, and these portraits and testimonies give younger generations a chance to hear first hand what they went through, in their own words, and to learn from it.”
– Chris Jepson, photographer and founder, Proud Studios CIC