Last night in London, authors Stella Duffy (Theodora-Actress, Empress, Whore)
and Rupert Smith (Man's World) tied to win the Stonewall award for writer of the year, besting 2010's two queer Man Booker shortlisted writers, Emma Donoghue and Damon Galgut, and the always marvelous Jackie Kay. The unstoppable Mr. Smith is also the commercial fiction writer Rupert James (Silk) and the prolific, bestselling erotic writer James Lear (The Back Passage).
As it happens, the heterosexual writer Frederick Forsyth also was a nominee, in the category Bigot of the Year. He "mocked the persecution facing lesbian and gay asylum seekers in a sneering piece in the Daily Express." Ultimately, he lost to Tory MP Chris Grayling, who "was secretly recorded in May saying that bed and breakfasts should have the right to bar gay couples."
Patrick Strudwick won the journalism award for his undercover expose of fraudulent "gay cure" therapists, and Coronation Street won tv show of the year for its first ever lesbian storyline. Openly gay actor John Partridge [right] won entertainer of the year for his role as a gay character on EastEnders and for judging the BBC talent show Over the Rainbow. Glee's Jane Lynch, A Single Man's Colin Firth, comedian Simon Amstell, and Bloc Party singer Kele Okereke were the other contenders.
Rugby player Gareth Thomas, who came out last December, won the Hero of the Year award. Gareth attended the 450-person gala event with his parents. Accepting his award he said, “I don’t really know what denotes a hero. I’m just myself. But when you live in a world that tries to make different a wrong thing, to me, being a hero is just being honest...To be a hero, you have to follow in a hero’s footsteps. And there’s people here tonight who’ve been my heroes all my life and will be forever – that’s my mother and father.”
Martina Navratilova could not collect her sports award in person because she's in Colorado training to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro.
The winners are below, with the complete list of nominees after the jump:
Hero of the Year: Gareth Thomas
Entertainer of the Year: John Partridge
Broadcast of the Year: Coronation Street
Journalist of the Year: Patrick Strudwick
Politician of the Year: Rt Hon John Bercow MPWriter of the Year (tie): Stella Duffy, Theodora: Actress, Empress, Whore
Rupert Smith, Man’s World
Publication of the Year: The Times
Sports Award of the Year: Martina NavratilovaCommunity Group of the Year: Mind Out
Bigot of the Year: Chris Grayling
Hero of the Year
Clare Balding
Kath Gillespie Sells
Dr Jeffrey John
Joe McElderry
* Gareth Thomas
Entertainer of the Year
Simon Amstell
Colin Firth
Jane Lynch
Kele Okereke
* John Partridge
Broadcast of the Year
* Coronation Street (ITV)
Dispatches-Africa’s Last Taboo (Channel 4)
EastEnders (BBC)
Emmerdale (ITV)
The Sex Education Show (Channel 4)
Journalist of the Year
John Cross
Caitlin Moran
Martin Popplewell
* Patrick Strudwick
Politician of the Year
Lord Avebury
* Rt Hon John Bercow MP
Baroness Campbell of Surbiton
Councillor Steve Reed
Writer of the Year (tie)
Emma Donoghue, Room
* Stella Duffy, Theodora: Actress, Empress, Whore
Damon Galgut, In a Strange Room
Jackie Kay, Red Dust Road
* Rupert Smith, Man’s World
Publication of the Year
Attitude
The Lawyer
Midlands Zone
Radio Times
* The Times
Sports Award of the Year
The Caledonian Thebans
Daniel Kowalski
* Martina Navratilova
Lee Pearson
Cristiano Ronaldo
Bigot of the Year
Frederick Forsyth
A.A. Gill
* Chris Grayling
Rt Rev Arthur Roche
Susanne Wilkinson
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