These Old Queers

these old queers

Megan and Thomas are two middle-aged, self-identified queer people. In each episode, they delve into historical events and people who are part of queer history, as well as take a look at aging in the LGBTQIA+ community

  1. Episode 3: Gladys Bentley

    25 FEB

    Episode 3: Gladys Bentley

    In this episode, Thomas tells us about the life of Black, lesbian blues singer, pianist and entertainer: Gladys Bentley. A star of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s, Bentley seemed in every way someone living their life on their terms. Until, that is, her star power began to dim and Bentley began to doubt her identity. Content Warning:This episode contains discussion of medical abuse and fatphobia. Listeners are strongly encouraged to consider to exercise caution.  Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon⁠ Sources: Bentley, Gladys. "I am a Woman Again." Ebony Magazine, August of 1952, pp. 93-98. Available courtesy of Queer Music Heritage, at https://www.queermusicheritage.com. Bentley, Gladys. "Worried Blues/Ground Hog Blues." Lyrics attributed to Bentley, Bentley/J.C. Johnson on piano. Okeh Records,1928. Available courtesy of NYFOS: New York Festival of Song, at https://nyfos.org.  Delaney, Anthony and Maddy Pelling."Who was the 'Man-Monster' of New York?" After Dark Classics from the After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds and the Paranormal  podcast. 29.12.2025. Hurwitt, Elliott. "Gladys Bentley: Worried Blues." Song of Day blog post. NYFOS: New York Festival of Song. Originally published on 26.10.2015. Available at https://nyfos.org.  Jones, Regina. "How does a Bulldagger Get Out of the Footnote? Or Gladys Bentley's Blues." Ninepatch: A Creative Journal for Women and Gender Studies 1, nr. 1 (2012). Torres, Bianki. Lay it on the Line: The Life and Music of Gladys Bentley. (PhD dissertation, University of Massachusetts, 2024.) Available via https://scholarworks.umass.edu. Wilson, James. Bulldaggers, Pansies, and Chocolate Babies. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2010. LEGAL NO THESE OLD QUEERS CONTENT MAY BE USED FOR TRAINING, TESTING, OR DEVELOPING MACHINE LEARNING OR AI SYSTEMS WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION - TO SAVE YOU THE TROUBLE OF ASKING: WE WON'T GIVE IT TO YOU ANYWAY.

    1h 42m
  2. Episode 2: Fanny and Stella Part 2

    17 FEB

    Episode 2: Fanny and Stella Part 2

    In this second part of our two part story about the lives of AMAB femmes, Fanny and Stella, we dive into the trial that shocked Victorian England, its outcome, and what became of the bold Stella and Fanny in the remainder of their lives. Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon Sources: Boyd, Jason. Who’s Who in Gay and Lesbian History: From Antiquity to World War II. London: Psychology Press. 2002 McKenna, Neil. Fanny and Stella: The Young Men Who Shocked Victorian England. London: Faber & Faber. 2014 Joyce, Simon. “Two Women Walk into a Theatre Bathroom: The Fanny and Stella Trials as Trans Narrative”. Victorian Review. 44, nr. 1 (2018): 83-98. Kaplan, Morris. “Who’s Afraid of John Saul?: Urban Culture and the Politics of Desire in Late Victorian London”. GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. 5, nr. 3 (1999): 267-314 Rowbotham, Judith. “A Deception on the Public: The Real Scandal of Boulton and Park”. Liverpool Law Review. 36, nr. 2 (27 March 2015): 123-145 LEGAL NO THESE OLD QUEERS CONTENT MAY BE USED FOR TRAINING, TESTING, OR DEVELOPING MACHINE LEARNING OR AI SYSTEMS WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION - TO SAVE YOU THE TROUBLE OF ASKING: WE WON'T GIVE IT TO YOU ANYWAY.

    1h 21m
  3. Episode 1: Fanny and Stella Part 1

    28 JAN

    Episode 1: Fanny and Stella Part 1

    In the first episode of our second season, Megan shares the story of Fanny and Stella: two gender non-conforming young people from Victorian England who presented female (and sometimes male) while carousing the exciting streets of 1860s/70s London. That is, until their antics got them in hot water with the law in what would be one of the most significant trials in British queer history. In this first part of our two part episode we learn about their lives leading up to their arrest. Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon⁠ Sources: Boyd, Jason. Who’s Who in Gay and Lesbian History: From Antiquity to World War II. London: Psychology Press. 2002 McKenna, Neil. Fanny and Stella: The Young Men Who Shocked Victorian England. London: Faber & Faber. 2014 Joyce, Simon. “Two Women Walk into a Theatre Bathroom: The Fanny and Stella Trials as Trans Narrative”. Victorian Review. 44, nr. 1 (2018): 83-98. Kaplan, Morris. “Who’s Afraid of John Saul?: Urban Culture and the Politics of Desire in Late Victorian London”. GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies. 5, nr. 3 (1999): 267-314 Rowbotham, Judith. “A Deception on the Public: The Real Scandal of Boulton and Park”. Liverpool Law Review. 36, nr. 2 (27 March 2015): 123-145

    1h 27m
  4. Episode 20: Colonel Barker

    17/12/2025

    Episode 20: Colonel Barker

    In this episode, Thomas takes us through the life and times of convicted swindler, Victor Barker. From his time in Holloway Prison to the sideshows of Blackpool and beyond, Barker insisted on maintaining a male identity throughout his adultlife despite often being described as a cross-dresser. This early-twentieth century trans-man was not an admirable character, but he was definitely an interesting one. CW: This episode contains a brief mention of SA and domestic violence.  Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon If you're into what we do, please share/like/subscribe/contact us and share! It really helps us out. Sources: Collis, Rose. Colonel Barker's Monstrous Regiment. A Tale of Female Husbandry. London: Virago, 2001. Gottlieb, Julie V. Feminine Fascism: Women in Britain's Fascist Movement, 1923- 1945. London: Tauris Publishers, 2000. Lemmey, Huw and Juliette Jacks. "Christmas Special: Colonel Victor Barker.” Bad Gays podcast. 25.12.2019. Manion, Jen. "Female Husbands.A Trans History." Presentation for Cary Memorial Library. 2.9.21. Available on YouTube. Pavda, Gilad. "Joseph/Josephine's Angst: Sensational Hermaphroditism in Tod Browning's Freaks." Social Semiotics 28, nr. 1 (2017): 1-17. Portnoy, Edward A. "Freaks, Geeks, and Strongmen: Warsaw Jews and Popular Performance, 1912-1930." TDR: The Drama Review 50, nr. 2 (2006): 117-135. Pugh,Vicki. “Problem Bodies and Sideshow Space: A Study of the Twentieth Century Sideshow in Blackpool. 1930-1940.” (PhD. diss., University of Sheffield, 2020). Szoradova, P.E. “LGBTQ+ History: The Red Rose of Colonel Barker.” Blog post from The National Archives. 2.25.2029.

    1h 52m
  5. Episode 19: The Pansy Craze

    20/11/2025

    Episode 19: The Pansy Craze

    In this episode, Megan talks about The Pansy Craze - a period of increased LGBT visibility in popular culture from the late 1920s until the mid-1930s, that came to an end following the Great Depression, The Hays Code and the rise of World War Two. During the "craze," drag queens, drag kings, masculine women and femme queer men — known as "pansy performers" — experienced a surge in underground popularity, especially in US cities such as New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠patreon If you're into what we do, please share/like/subscribe/contact us and share! It really helps us out. Sources: Music: Harry Macdonough and the Orpheus Quartet, “Pretty Baby,” written by Egbert Van Alstyne, Tony Jackson and Gus Kahn. 1916. The Library of Congress. Bunyon, Patrick (1999). All Around the Town: The Amazing Manhattan Facts and Curiosities. Fordham University Press. Wilson, James (June 16, 2010). Bulldaggers, Pansies, and Chocolate Babies. University of Michigan Press. Starr, Kevin (2002). The Dream Endures: California Enters the 1940s. Oxford University Press. Ames, Jack. “Remembering Ray.”RaeBourbon.com. https://raebourbon.com/remembering-ray/ Bullock, Darryl W. “Pansy Craze: the wild 1930s drag parties that kickstarted gay nightlife.” The Guardian, Thu 14 Sep 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/sep/14/pansy-craze-the-wild-1930s-drag-parties-that-kickstarted-gay-nightlife Doyle, Dave. “The ‘Pansy Craze’ Pioneered LGBT Acceptance in America.” The Syncopated Times, 30 Dec 2023.https://syncopatedtimes.com/the-pansy-craze-pioneered-lgbt-acceptance-in-america/ Vandenburg, Margaret. “Rise and Fall of the ‘Pansy Craze.’” The Gay & Lesbian Review, January – February 2025 issue,https://glreview.org/article/rise-and-fall-of-the-pansy-craze/

    1h 25m
  6. Episode 18: Bog Bodies

    22/10/2025

    Episode 18: Bog Bodies

    In this episode, Thomas talks about the discovery, investigation, and historiography of the “Weerdinge Couple” bog bodies. Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠insta⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon Sources: Music: Harry Macdonough and the Orpheus Quartet, “Pretty Baby,” written by Egbert Van Alstyne, Tony Jackson and Gus Kahn. 1916. The Library of Congress. Aerts-Bijma, A.T., Wijnand Sanden, Johannes Plicht, and H.J. Streurman. “Dating bog bodies by means of 14C-AMS.” Journal of Archaeological Science. 2004. Nr. 31.   Bianucci, Raffaella, Wijnand Sanden, Grazia Mattutino, Andreas Nerlich, and Bob Loynes. “Unravelling the Weerdinge Couple.” Presentation for the Drents Museum, The Netherlands. 2003.   Black, Sue. All that Remains. A Life in Death. New York City: Doubleday Press, 2018.   Miller, Kristyn. J. “Displaying the Lindow Man. A Case Study.”Blog Post. 1.11.2023. Available at BogBodyResource.com.   National Geographic. "Mysterius Double Murder." Ancent Bodies, Secrets Revealed. 2024. Season 1,  Episode 3.   Sanders, Karin. Bodies in the Bog and the Archaeological Imagination. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009.

    1h 53m
  7. Episode 17: Queer Kansas City

    25/09/2025

    Episode 17: Queer Kansas City

    In this episode, Megan shares the secret-not-so-secret queer history of their hometown, Kansas City. Whether on the Missouri or the Kansas side, you might be quite surprised at just how much queer history can be found in this mid-size Midwestern city in what a lot of people consider a "flyover state." Check us out across the web! ⁠⁠website⁠⁠ ⁠⁠pixelfed⁠⁠ ⁠⁠bsky⁠⁠ ⁠⁠insta⁠⁠ ⁠⁠patreon If you're into what we do, please share/like/subscribe/contact us and share! It really helps us out. Sources: Bailey, Hannah. March 8, 2022. Womontown: How 12 city blocks in Kansas City became a radical enclave by and for women. ⁠www.kcur.org⁠. ⁠https://www.kcur.org/history/2022-03-08/womontown-how-12-city-blocks-in-kansas-city-became-a-radical-enclave-by-and-for-women⁠ Curators: Cantwell, Christopher D. Carpenter, Kathryn B., Hinds, Stuart. Making History: Kansas City and the Rise of Gay Rights. https://info.umkc.edu/makinghistory/ Hawley-Bates, Savannah. April 2, 2023. Kansas City has a long history of drag shows, drawing performers from around the U.S. ⁠www.kcur.org⁠. ⁠https://www.kcur.org/arts-life/2023-04-02/kansas-city-drag-shows-gay-history-queer-performance-prohibition-bans⁠ Our Community Roots. July 30, 2015. InLoving Memory of Edye Gregory. https://ourcommunityroots.com/?p=379 Mid-America Regional Council. March 2, 2023. The history of racial discrimination in housing still impacts the Kansas City region today. www.marc.org. https://www.marc.org/news/economy/history-racial-discrimination-housing-still-impacts-kansas-city-region-today Montalvo, Nasir. May 17, 2022. Remembering Edye and Ray: The First (Well-Documented) Black Drag Queens of Kansas City. www.kansascitydefender.com. https://kansascitydefender.com/lgbtqia2/black-drag-queens-kansas-city/ Szczepanski, Carolyn. June 3, 2010. KC’s new Gay and Lesbian Archive of Mid-America remembers a pioneer town. www.thepitch.com. https://www.thepitchkc.com/kcs-new-gay-and-lesbian-archive-of-midamerica-remembers-a-pioneer-town/ A People’s History of Kansas City. How Kansas City blazed a path for gay liberation. May 30, 2022.https://open.spotify.com/episode/0aeHC3zZ85Z0R7OBVZtuGU?si=EZyX9RpVS2SeqEegNB5lQw

    1h 60m
  8. Episode 16: Two-Spirit Identities

    20/08/2025

    Episode 16: Two-Spirit Identities

    In this episode, Thomas discusses the history and complexity of Two-Spirit identities. Check us out across the web! ⁠website⁠ ⁠pixelfed⁠ ⁠bsky⁠ ⁠insta⁠ ⁠patreon If you're into what we do, please share/like/subscribe/contact us and share! It really helps us out. Sources: Chrystos. Not Vanishing. Vancouver: Press Gang Publishing, 1988. Driskill, Qwo-Li. Asegi Stories. Cherokee Queer and Two Spirit Memory. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2016. Driskill, Qwo-Li, Chris Finley, Brian JosephGilley, and Scott Lauria Morgensen, eds. Queer Indigenous Studies. Critical Interventions in Theory, Politics, and Literature. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2011. Driskill, Qwo-Li, Daniel Heath Justice, Deborah Miranda, and Lisa Tatonetti, eds. Sovereign Erotics. A collection of Two-Spirit Literature. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2011. Jacobs, Sue-Ellen, Wesley Thomas, and Sabine Lang, eds. Two-Spirit People. Native American Gender Identity, Sexuality, and Spirituality. Champaign: University of IllinoisPress, 1997. Roscoe, Will. Changing Ones: Third and Fourth Genders in Native North America. London: Macmillan, 1998. Sigal, Pete, ed. Infamous Desire. Male Homosexuality in Colonial Latin America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. Smith, Merril, ed. Sex and Sexuality in Early America. NewYork: New York University Press, 1998. image: A widely used Two-Spirit flag

    1h 52m
See All (23)

About

Megan and Thomas are two middle-aged, self-identified queer people. In each episode, they delve into historical events and people who are part of queer history, as well as take a look at aging in the LGBTQIA+ community

Information

  • Creator
    these old queers
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    23
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © these old queers
  • Show Website
    These Old Queers

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