Suffolk Pride anthology celebrates anniversary of rainbow flag

Fran Mulvey and Robert Sadler are among the authors of the anthology of writing

Writing "inspired by this need for queer visibility" is being showcased in a book celebrating the 45th anniversary of the rainbow flag.

The anthology has been written by current and former students of the University of Suffolk, Ipswich.

As well as subjects such as living with HIV, it covers "the sweetness" of love, said editor Charlie Brodie.

Suffolk Pride: We are the One in Five also "emphasises the importance of queer voices in rural settings".

Charlie Brodie, the book's editor, is also the founder of the group Suffolk Queer Voices

The book includes prose, poetry and non-fiction writing and every piece is influenced by themes the flag's creator, Gilbert Baker, associated with each colour.

Mr Brodie, who also contributed to the anthology, said his writing was "inspired by this need for queer visibility".

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That visibility was spotted by fellow contributor Fran Mulvey in Alice Oseman's graphic novel series Heartstopper, about teenagers Charlie and Nick navigating school and falling in love.

It helped Ms Mulvey, who received her BA and her MA from the university, realise she is bisexual.

"I was finally fully myself," she said, having read all the books by the time the Netflix series came out.

"Love doesn't care what you look like, it doesn't care who it is that you love, it's a natural feeling, you can't control it - and that fed into my story."

Gilbert Baker created the rainbow flag as a symbol of pride and gay visibility in 1978

Rob Sadler chose the green part of the flag - "for nature, being a Suffolk boy born and bred in north Ipswich, where we were only five minutes from the countryside".

"If you grow up in the biggest town in Suffolk, and you go to a comprehensive school like I did, to come out in the 80s or the 90s would've been like a death sentence and extremely brave, and so I was a coward and didn't."

Mr Sadler, who is studying a masters in English literature, said his poem reflected on the many different shades of green and how, unlike "most of the rest of the world", same sex relationships are legal in the UK.

He said: "But that raised the question for me whether in this large town in Suffolk, two men can still walk down the road holding hands.

"I've done it when I'm in London, but would I do in Ipswich? Probably not - and I think that's the stigma we still face."

Suffolk Pride: We are the One in Five is being launched at the Hold, Ipswich later.