"The one thing that was obvious from the start which is obvious in all LGBTQ+ history is that it's compeletely male dominated." These are the reflections of Norena Shopland, a leading historian who wrote Forbidden Lives, a book which aims to fill the many gaps in Wales' LGBTQ+ history.
When she set out to write her book, Norena wanted to make sure that Welsh women featured in her collection of important people in our history. But there was one catch. It's a lot harder to write about LGBTQ+ women from the past as there is little public record of them.
"A lot of what we know about gay men's history is taken from the criminal record, but with women they just got on with life," explained Norena. "Homosexuality was not criminalised for women in the same way it was for men. Women lived together and one would pretend to be the housemaid or that they were sisters or something. Historically, we are very short of women's histories." You can get more news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
