Comments on: Britain has had "one or two" gay Prime Ministers claims actor

By: David

David — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:44:49 +0000

Yes, we all knew that Edward Heath was gay but who the other (s) were as prime ministers I would not know. Sexuality should not be a 'bar' to any official position as long as that person has the ability to do the job

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By: Kate

Kate — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 11:08:12 +0000

Neil McKenna's 'The Secret Life of Oscar Wilde' has a lot to say about the sexuality of Lord Rosebery – who according to him was sleeping with Lord Alfred Douglas' brother. And I seem to remember reading a strong case for William Pitt the Younger (Pink Plaque Guide to London??) It could be that Sir Ian is underestimating a bit…

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By: Barry

Barry — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 09:49:44 +0000

I heard a rumour that Disraeli was gay….

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By: rjb

rjb — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:08:06 +0000

Arthur Balfour (known to his Cambridge contemporaries as "Pretty Fanny") was widely regarded as a 'confirmed bachelor'. Sir Ian may be alluding to him. Benjamin Disraeli was also pretty sexually ambivalent, even by Victorian standards.

I do wonder what it means to say that these people were "gay," however. If they did not self-identify as homosexual, then clearly they were not "gay" in any meaningful sense of the word. I suspect McKellen is just being mischievous.

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By: Darrien

Darrien — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:42:21 +0000

I think Pitt the Younger was a big ole' mo. He was certainly a party boy in his time.

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By: BrockleyBoi

BrockleyBoi — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:52:10 +0000

Its gotta be Margaret Thatcher hasn't it? She had more balls than any of the men who surrounded her!

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By: Rehan

Rehan — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:31:34 +0000

Lord Rosebery, perhaps?

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By: flapjack

flapjack — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:42:05 +0000

I knew the rumours about Ted Heath, but does anyone have any idea who the other Gay Prime Minister Ian McKellen is alluding to was? I'm drawing a blank on that one…

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By: Simon Murphy

Simon Murphy — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:25:12 +0000

"Married to his job" – I don't think so. It is widely knowsn that Ted Heath was a homosexual and people who pretend he was asexual or 'married to his job' are being foolish. I think however that gay people should not be hesitant in assuming he was gay and mentioning it in public. I mean no-one gets offended by the assumption of heterosexuality in unmarried politicians. There's also no reason to be offended by the presumption of homosexuality.

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By: Peter Symies

Peter Symies — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:29:39 +0000

A small point about women be more accepting of a gay PM. This statistic is often presented as women being less prejudiced than men. However, things change if the question refers to "gay or lesbian," when men are shown to be less prejudiced than women.

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