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HBO and The Ringer's Bill Simmons hosts the most downloaded sports podcast of all time, with a rotating crew of celebrities, athletes, and media staples, as well as mainstays like Cousin Sal, Joe House, and a slew of other friends and family members who always happen to be suspiciously available.
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A boy from Limehouse learns to disappear to survive. Decades later, he chooses the opposite—and everything changes. Michael Cashman joins us for a vivid, unflinching journey from dockside childhood to EastEnders fame, from the terror and tenderness of the AIDS years to the kitchen-table founding of Stonewall. He shares how art, politics and everyday compassion forged a life of showing up when silence was safer.
Michael dissects the tabloid machine, Thatcher-era fearmongering, and the “double helix of hatred” that braided homophobia with AIDS panic. Then he walks us through Section 28: the strategy behind inserting “intentionally,” the coalition that grew beyond identity, and how a law designed to erase visibility sparked a generation to come out and organise.
From living rooms stacked with wine racks to a one-night revival of Bent that funded a movement, we trace how Stonewall took shape and why rights remain fragile without relentless solidarity. Michael is clear: equality means the right to opt in or out—and it strengthens everyone’s freedoms. We close with a call to reject complacency, stand with trans people and migrants, and demand politics that allows honesty, course-correction and courage.
If this conversation moved you, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with someone. Your support keeps these stories alive—and keeps the door open for the next person to walk through.
This episode was hosted by Jonathan Chambers and James Alexander
Editing by Hannah Stewart
Music: Mystify created by AlterEgo
Visit our website, https://tvfh.co.uk
Follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/theviewfromherepodcast
Chapters
1. Opening And Guest Introduction (00:00:00)
2. Childhood In Limehouse And Difference (00:01:06)
3. Learning To Disappear And First Desire (00:04:18)
4. Coming Out, Language, And Safeguarding (00:06:36)
5. Daily Coming Out And Ageing (00:09:20)
6. Early Activism And First Pride Marches (00:11:02)
7. Media, Thatcherism, And Tabloid Power (00:14:10)
8. Family Coming Out And Expectations (00:16:42)
9. Inclusive Education And Belonging (00:19:12)
10. HIV Emerges And Community Memory (00:21:07)
11. Nightlife, Community, And Loss (00:23:20)
12. Homophobia, AIDS Panic, And Violence (00:25:50)
13. Section 28 And Public Protest (00:27:53)
14. Integrity, Visibility, And Costs (00:30:05)
15. Strategy, “Intentionally Promote,” And Culture (00:32:06)
16. Rights Won And Movement Complacency (00:35:05)
17. Solidarity Across Differences (00:37:12)
18. Founding Stonewall: Kitchens To Campaigns (00:39:06)
19. Building Power And Funding The Fight (00:42:20)
20. Today’s Backlash And What To Do (00:45:06)
21. Story, Responsibility, And Closing Call (00:48:00)
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