In the lead up to Pride Month, which takes place in June, the EDI team have organised an online event for all staff and students: The Log Books: Archives of Queer History, for Today and the Future, Wednesday 20 May, 1-2pm.
Adam Zmith and Tash Walker are the authors of The Log Books: Voices from Queer Britain and the Helpline That Listened (Faber, Jan 2026) and the producers of The Log Books podcast. These projects are based on extensive research in the unique archive at Switchboard, the LGBTQ+ Helpline, where volunteers started taking anonymous phone calls about sexuality and gender identity in 1974. As Adam and Tash collected stories from Switchboard’s archive covering nightlife, housing, discrimination, HIV/AIDS and migration, they also began work on thinking about archives more broadly — the memories of the queer elders they interviewed, and even their own experiences and stories. In this talk, Adam will share queer histories from their work while also discussing the nature of ‘history’ in the context of LGBTQ+ life, and the strong links between the 70s, 80s, 90s and today.
To sign up and receive joining details for this event, please complete our sign up form. If you have any questions, please email equalityanddiversity@kent.ac.uk. We hope to see you there!