In this very special eisode, we're sharing an intervew we did with Brad Shreve on his excellent podcast Queer We Are, a show where Brad talks to  entertainers, activists, politicians, artists, athletes, and more of the most interesting LGBTQ people from diverse backgrounds. We hope you enjoy it! Find out more about Brad and Queer We Are  Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter...

Brad: For more than 30 years I convinced myself "I can't be gay. I will change someday" In this episode, we're back in the United States, to the Californian desert to meet Brad. Brad didn’t come out until his 30s, by which stage he had married a woman and had had a child. Brad also came out in a way that we've never  spoken about on this podcast before... Find out more about Brad and his podcast Queer We Are  You can find out more about The Trevor Project here Presented by Emma Goswell ...

EJ: I’ve had quite the internal war about how I identify. I don’t want to use the labels that society gives us! EJ is a young person who lives in a small  town in Ohio, USA.  They identify as a gender queer masc lesbian. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a book! Coming Out Stories is available at all major shops...

Andrew:  I told myself that being bisexual was just a phase.  It was not! Andrew identifies as bisexual.  He hails from Scotland and is behind the LGBTQ+ sports website Pride of the Terraces. Although he is now very  open about his sexuality, it was a big decision for him to come out in a newspaper. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram...

Grady Grady Throneberry  is the first openly gay police chief in Kentucky. He didn't come out until his sixties and what a story he has to tell! Married to a woman, with grown up daughters, he lived in his words as a "straight, conservative man" until 2018.  Until he was outed, very publicly, which led to him being called into the Mayor's office for a meeting... Find out more about Grady and his book My Journey to the Rainbow on his website gayandgray.net Presented by Emma Goswell ...

Lucy Lou The moment I put that dress on, I thought "I'm here!" Lucy Lou is a trans woman who waited nearly 40 years to become the person she always was. Smells Like HumansLike listening to funny friends discuss curious human behavior.Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a book!...

Day It took me all night to garner the courage but at sunrise, I came out to her Day is an artist and writer from California. He identifies as a gay man and is passionate about the power of rituals. You can find out more about Day here and more about his book Hello, goodbye. 75 rituals for times of loss, celebration and change. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter...

Mark Because I only heard the term in the playground,  I used to think "gay" meant someone who was bad at sports. Mark Chesnut is an award-winning travel writer based in New York City. He is also the author of the memoir Prepare for Departure: Notes on a Single Mother, a Misfit Son, Inevitable Mortality and the Enduring Allure of Frequent Flyer Miles Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find...

Yo Yo I grew up where it was illegal to be gay.  I had to write love letters to my girlfriend in code Meet Yo Yo,  a lesbian from Malaysia, where it's illegal to be gay.  She nearly got caught when a love letter she wrote to her girlfriend was opened. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a book! Coming Out...

Andrew I don't want to be hemmed into a box.  I've done that for so many years. Meet Andrew from Brighton, who once considered himself a "gay man" and now identifies as a "queer person".     Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a book! Coming Out Stories is available at all major shops now! JKP.com | Queerlit...

Jennie "So many people knew they were gay from a young age, but that's just not my story"" Jennie Guay is an author who had only ever dated men when she moved from Canada to England in her late 20s. After deciding to explore her sexuality, she set her dating profile to "seeking women" and changed her life. Jennie's book "Howie Blend: Playdate Adventures with Family and Friends" is available here and at all good bookshops. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear...

Jaxon  My Dad joked "What's wrong?  Are you pregnant? Are you getting a puppy?  You're not trans are you...?" Happy Trans Awareness Week!  To celebrate, we'd love you to meet Prison Officer Jaxon, a trans man from Wigan in the north of England, and hear his uplifting story. Please note:  Jaxon is very honest about his mental health and this episode contains discussions of suicide. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch...

Rob  “I tried so hard to change who I was.  I changed the way I dressed, the way I spoke and even the way I walked.  I didn’t feel safe being myself.” Rob is a travel expert, who you may well have seen on TV in the UK, on shows like Rip Off Britain and Morning Live.   He identifies as gay and despite choosing to wear dresses and asking to be called “Sally” for much of his childhood, his mum still told him she had ‘no idea’ when he came out. The Most Interesting & Successful LGBTQ PeopleOn...

Serena When I came out to my 9 year old son, he said “Mammy, that’s very brave of you” Meet Serena, from Ireland, who came out as a lesbian later in life, just before she was due to marry the father of her two children. Serena’s story comes with a pretty big twist at the end… Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story. Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a...

Happy National Coming Out Day! October 11 is National Coming Out Day in the UK and to celebrate, we've put together a very special episode just for you! In this instalment hear from three of our previous guests talk about how their lives have changed and moved on since we last spoke and we also discuss questions like; Why do we still need to come out?  (Straight people don't do it!) Is there ever an argument for not coming out? How important  are allies from outside the LGBTQ+ community...

“From the time I was a young kid, I always felt really connected to being both male and female”  The first episode of our brand-new season belongs to a non-binary icon!  Broadcaster Paris Munro actually has a couple of coming out stories, firstly as a lesbian, then as non-binary. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have...

It's been a long busy summer, but we're back with a brand new season of Coming Out Stories!   We can't wait to share new stories with you, from fabulous folk from all over the world. We've spoken to  people from England, Ireland, Malaysia, India, Australia, America and more! Do follow now, to make sure you don't miss an episode and we'd love to hear from you! Get in touch with your story or just to say hi! [email protected] New season launches October 5 Emma and...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! Oskar “I take the view with my trans identity, that unless you’re going to get into my pants, I’m not really interested in coming out to you”   Oskar grew up in Trinidad and identifies as trans masculine, but non binary.  In terms of their sexuality, they identify as pansexual.  Suppressing the urge to transition for 20 years had a huge impact on their mental health. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! Divina de Campo “If ever there was a little queerdo kid – it was me” Star of The Voice and runner-up in the first ever Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, Divina de Campo talks about coming out as gay and then non-binary and offers some great advice on WHEN to come out. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! Angela and Lucia  “Doctors tried to give me a lobotomy because I was gay”   Two absolutely incredible women tell their coming out stories and also stories of being lesbian activists in Manchester in the 1970s and how the Gay Liberation Front changed the lives of LGBT people across the country. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch...

Jacob “Before I go into a public toilet I have to think: is there anyone in there who could hurt me?”   In a beautifully honest interview Jacob talks about coming out to themselves and then to their family, just four weeks before this interview. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We have a book!  Coming Out Stories is...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! Asad “Before you come out, you assume the worst of the people you love.  That’s really hard”  Asad grew up in a British Pakistani Muslim household and feared the worst when coming out to his parents.  So much so, he packed a bag and had a friend wait outside in his car, ready to escape. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! JJ “I was scared to tell my wife how good it felt to wear a dress”  JJ, or Jessie, is a gas fitter from Manchester who is happily married to a woman and has two children. But they identify as non-binary or gender fluid and were terrified they would lose their family when they came out. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com...

Ahead of a brand new season, we’re celebrating some of our favourite episodes! Dean “I remember regularly being called a fa**ot at just 9 years old”  In this episode, actor and BBC Radio 1 presenter Dean McCullough talks about growing up as "Gay Dean" in Belfast in the 90s and 00s  Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam Walker We'd love to hear YOUR story.  Please get in touch www.comingoutstoriespodcast.com or find us on twitter @ComeOutStories and on Instagram @ComingOutStoriesPod We...

Tracey “I came home to find my son on the sofa with his school friend.  I could feel the chemistry between them.  It was a real lightbulb moment for me” It’s the final episode of our “Meet the Parents” season, where you’ve been hearing from the families of LGBTQIA+ folks about their experiences of having a child come out to them. On this episode, meet Tracey, mum to Jake, who came out to her at 12, although he wasn’t sure how to identify. Presented by Emma Goswell Produced by Sam...