The theme for this year's LGBTQ+ History Month is 'Politics in Art', and 2022 also sees the 50th anniversary of the very first Pride March in the UK, in 1972. Here's our guide to film related events and activities happening in celebration, in and around Leeds and online.


BFI Flare x BAFTA Mentoring
Are you a UK-based LGBTQIA+ filmmaker working towards a debut project in film or TV? Applications are open for BFI Flare x BAFTA Mentoring in partnership with BFI Network until Thu 10 February. Find more information at bafta.org

Riot Act
Direct from the West End and touring the UK, Riot Act is a theatre production created entirely from interviews with a Stonewall survivor, a 1970s radical drag artist, and a 1990s AIDS activist. This online ‘reimagining’ of the critically acclaimed, audience favourite, solo show is filmed at the beautiful Hackney Empire. Breath-taking and rip-roaring, it's a wild white-knuckle ride through six decades of queer history, right up to the present day. Available to watch online Tue 1 February - Mon 28 February 2022

Dark Sublime
The Huddersfield Thespians present a theatre performance of Michael Dennis' bold comedy Dark Sublime. An obsessed fan arrives at the door of an actress from an old cult TV show, forcing her back into the past, and a strange, outrageous world she hasn't visited in almost 40 years. Together they discover what every good relationship needs is time and space. Wed 2 February - Sat 5 February. Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield

Steel City Queer History Film Screening + Q&A
Steel City Queer History have developed a podcast and walking tour film looking at Sheffield City Centre’s hidden LGBTQ+ history. Join them on Zoom for a screening of the film which includes historic characters, lost venues, personal reminiscences, and a unicorn! The film will be followed by a Q&A session with Suzie and Sandra from SCQH. Online - Wed 9 February, 6pm - The event is free, but booking through Eventbrite is required

Iconic Presents: Sister Act (12A)
Iconic presents the soulful and feel-good classic starring Whoopi Goldberg, Sister Act! When lounge singer Deloris witnesses a murder she is placed into protective custody at a Californian convent. Iconic are offering tickets on a sliding scale, as they do not want finances to be a barrier to attendance. Please book tickets in advance via Eventbrite - Thu 10 February, 7pm. CLAY, Leeds

LGBTQ+ Film & Media Club
Join the LGBTQ+ Community Consortium as they watch and discuss Céline Sciamma's acclaimed romantic period drama Portrait of a Lady on Fire. The film is available to watch for free on BBC iPlayer, however you must register a place through Eventbrite to join in! Thu 10 February, 6pm - online & Free to register

Leeds' Hidden Queer History - presented by The Bookish Type
A one-off walking tour of Leeds city centre for LGBTQIA+ History Month. As part of West Yorkshire Queer Stories, the interactive queer history trail app will guide you around 13 points in Leeds city centre with hidden stories of our local queer past - each one brought to life by the voices of the West Yorkshire queer community. On this walking tour, historian Kit Heyam - co-creator of the history trail - will use the app, taking you on a tour of its highlights. From Pride to squats, from 1840s court cases to 1990s raves, you'll see the city and its past in a new light (Running time approx. 2 hours). Book via Eventbrite, ticket £5 - Sun 13 February, 2pm

The Naked Civil Servant (12A)
The BAFTA-winning biopic of LGBT+ icon Quentin Crisp is based on his published memoirs, documenting his life as a fearless crusader for gay visibility since the 1920s. In a time when very few men were outwardly open about their sexuality, he suffered prejudice and abuse at the hands of most of society. Controversial and independent throughout his life, he and his work continue to have huge influence today. Tickets available to book online or buy on the door (£3) - Fri 18 February, 7pm. New Earswick Folk Hall, York

Rebel Dykes
Rebel Dykes is a rabble-rousing documentary set in 1980s post-punk London. The unheard story of a community of dykes who met doing art, music, politics and sex, and how they went on to change their world. The film follows a tight-knit group of friends who met at Greenham Common peace camp and went on to become artists, performers, musicians and activists in London. A heady mash-up of animation, archive footage and interviews tells the story of a radical scene: squatters, BDSM nightclubs, anti-Thatcher rallies, protests demanding action around AIDS and the fierce ties of chosen family. Tickets available through Eventbrite (FREE) - Sat 19 February, 6pm. 1 in 12 Club, Bradford

LIFF Presents: Great Freedom
Unfolding across three decades, this drama traces the repeated imprisonment of one man under Paragraph 175 - a law criminalizing homosexual activity. After being “liberated” by Allied forces in 1945, Hans is transferred directly from a concentration camp to prison to finish out his sentence. There, he forms an unlikely connection with his cellmate Viktor, a convicted murderer. Tickets available through leedsfilm.com (£8/£7) - Wed 23 February, 8.15pm. Vue in The Light

For more events in celebration of LGBTQ+ History Month, visit Leeds Inspired 

LGBTQ+ Resources

LGBTQ+ History Month 2022
Yorkshire MESMAC
Mermaids
Non-Binary Leeds
AKT

We have used the acronym LGBTQ+ in all instances, except where we have mirrored organisations' use of LGBTQIA+, which we also support.