{"product_id":"the-light-of-day-the-first-man-to-come-out-at-the-dawn-of-gay-liberation-9781035421527","title":"The Light of Day: The First Man to Come Out at the Dawn of Gay Liberation","description":"\u003cb\u003e'Your book is the \"really good book. Just one\" that Roger Butler would have wanted' - Sir Ian McKellen\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e'Absorbing and often very moving' - Peter Parker, \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e'Sir, we are homosexuals . . .'\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003eSo began the letter penned by Roger Butler and sent to several British newspaper editors - some of whom were so shocked they thought it was a hoax - in June 1960. Writing such a letter seven years before the decriminalisation of homosexuality was a radical and dangerous move. \u003cb\u003eIt was a risk that set a major milestone in the fight for gay rights - one that has been almost entirely forgotten.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis is the story of the first man to come out voluntarily, using his own name, to the entire British public\u003c\/b\u003e, a decade before activists started petitioning gay people everywhere to 'come out proud'. Taking us through a criminalised underworld of gay pubs, parties and activist meetings, \u003ci\u003eThe Light of Day\u003c\/i\u003e charts how Roger helped bring about the legalisation of homosexuality, but soon found himself marginalised from the movement he kickstarted after losing his sight in his early 30s. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEnter Christopher - a student asked to visit and read to an old, blind man at the beginning of a new century. As their intergenerational friendship bloomed, Roger came to trust Christopher with his most precious possession: memoirs of his revolutionary past, locked away in his home. After Roger's death, Christopher opened a series of unsent letters, left in a pink folder, addressed to him. They contained Roger's final wish, for Christopher finally to bring his remarkable, hidden story into the light of day. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'\u003c\/i\u003eRemarkable . . . a splendidly sprawling part biography, part autobiography, part history and part social commentary . . . the result, a true account, benefits greatly from a lightness, a candour untethered to any agenda or argument' -\u003ci\u003e Times Literary Supplement\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Faithfully and beautifully told' - \u003ci\u003eMail on Sunday\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Louise Radnofsky,Christopher Stephens\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Headline\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/06\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 400\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.45lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.30h x 5.92w x 1.43d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781035421527\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eChristopher Stephens (Author) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Christopher Stephens is an academic based in south west London. He is also CEO of an educational charity that promotes research into issues of importance to contemporary society. He has published on a range of topics, from ancient church history to language and practices relating to diversity and inclusion. Christopher's book \u003ci\u003eThe Light of Day\u003c\/i\u003e made use of the extensive materials left to him by Roger Butler, the first man to come out as gay as a political act, and reflects on his shared life and friendship with Roger. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eLouise Radnofsky (Author) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Louise Radnofsky is a reporter for \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e in Washington, D.C., where she has covered healthcare, the White House, immigration and, currently, sports. She holds two degrees in modern history from Oxford, where she attended University College, and one from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She and Christopher have been friends for more than 20 years. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Ingram","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":52152061559067,"sku":"9781035421527","price":28.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0723\/8392\/2459\/files\/img_4f51c36f-4543-4641-a736-35afa67d144f.jpg?v=1777743344","url":"https:\/\/sapphicsociety.com\/products\/the-light-of-day-the-first-man-to-come-out-at-the-dawn-of-gay-liberation-9781035421527","provider":"Sapphic Society","version":"1.0","type":"link"}