Criminally Queer: The Bolton 7

The Bolton 7 take their fight for justice to the foremost arena of law.  

The significance of this case extends far beyond the fate of the seven men involved. But how far have we come?

Criminally Queer: The Bolton 7 looks back at one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in recent British LGBTQ+ history, and examines how this scarcely-known legal case played a significant role in the fight for gay rights.

Hugh Sheehan speaks to author Shon Faye; author and host of the podcast Bad Gays Huw Lemmey; author and queer scholar Jack Parlett; and queer historian Justin Bengry.

Criminally Queer is a Reduced Listening Production for BBC Sounds Audio Lab.

Producer and Presenter: Hugh Sheehan Original Music and Sound Design: Hugh Sheehan Executive Producer: Anishka Sharma Mix Engineer: Tom Brignell Artwork: Tom Cunningham Commissioning Editor: Khaliq Meer Archive material courtesy of Roger Bolton Productions.

Criminally Queer: The Bolton 7 looks back at one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in recent British LGBTQ+ history, and examines how this scarcely-known legal case played a significant role in the fight for gay rights.

The men’s ordeal had tragic and abhorrent consequences. And they weren’t alone.

But in the wake of their legal battle the Bolton 7 were defiant and fervent in their desire to fight back.

Hugh Sheehan also hears directly from former Home Secretary Jack Straw and Liberal Democrat MP Evan Harris; politicians who were trying to change laws regarding sex between men at the time.

Criminally Queer is a Reduced Listening Production for BBC Sounds Audio Lab.

Producer and Presenter: Hugh Sheehan Original Music and Sound Design: Hugh Sheehan Executive Producer: Anishka Sharma Mix Engineer: Arlie Addlington Artwork: Tom Cunningham Commissioning Editor: Khaliq Meer

Archive material courtesy of Roger Bolton Productions.

Criminally Queer: The Bolton 7 looks back at one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in recent British LGBTQ+ history, and examines how this scarcely-known legal case played a significant role in the fight for gay rights.

The men’s futures hung in the balance. It was a battle fought bitterly, rooted in archaic laws with complex histories. Hugh Sheehan also examines other similar legal cases from the time.

Hugh speaks to Booker Prize-winning author Douglas Stuart; author and host of the podcast Bad Gays Huw Lemmey; author and queer scholar Jack Parlett; founder and former chair of Greater Manchester Lesbian and Gay Policing Initiative Ian Wilmott; writer Robin Craig; Bolton 7 solicitor Nicola Hall; and gay activist and Bolton 7 barrister Terry Munyard.

Criminally Queer is a Reduced Listening Production for BBC Sounds Audio Lab.

Producer and Presenter: Hugh Sheehan Original Music and Sound Design: Hugh Sheehan Executive Producer: Anishka Sharma Mix Engineer: Arlie Addlington Artwork: Tom Cunningham Commissioning Editor: Khaliq Meer Archive material courtesy of Roger Bolton Productions.