Bodies that Matter (2011) by Judith Butler
Homographesis: Essays in Gay Literary and Cultural Theory (1994) by Lee Edelman
In a Queer Time and Place: Transgender Bodies, Subcultural Times (2005) by Jack Halberstam
Another Country: Queer Anti-Urbanism (2010) by Scott Herring
Black Performance on the Outskirts of the Left: A History of the Impossible (2017) by Malik Gaines
Global Divas: Filipino Men in the Diaspora (2003) by Martin F. Manalansan
Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation (2015) by Eli Claire
An Archive of Feelings: Trauma, Sexuality and Lesbian Public Cultures (2003) by Ann Cvetkovich
Trumpet (1998) by Jackie Kay
Jam on the Vine (2016) by LaShonda Barnett
Written on the Body (2018) edited by Lexie Bean
Little Fish (2018) by Casey Plett
Speak No Evil (2018) by Uzodinma Iweala
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel (2018) by Alexander Chee
In the Dream House (2019) by Carmen Maria Machado
Disoriental (2018) by Négar Djavadi
The Price of Salt (1952) by Patricia Highsmith (originally under a pseudonym)
Rubyfruit Jungle by (1973) Rita Mae Brown
On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous (2019) by Ocean Vuong
Less (2017) by Andrew Sean Greer
Tipping the Velvet (1998) by Sarah Waters
Under the Udala Trees (2015) by Cinelo Okparahta
Beautiful Thing (1993) by Jonathan Harvey
Neaptide (1982) by Sarah Daniels
A Strange Loop (2019) by Micheal R. Jackson
Fun Home (2012) by Lisa Kron and Jeanie Tesori
The Captive (1926) by Édouard Bourdet
Bent (1979) by Martin Sherman
Angels in America (1991) by Tony Kushner
5 Guys Chillin’ (2016) by Peter Darney
Queering the Script – A documentary which explores the issues of LGBTQ+ representation in media, including the ways that social media activism has influenced the telling of queer women’s stories in entertainment.
End of the Century – An Argentine romantic drama which follows Ocho, an Argentinian man on vacation in Barcelona, who accidentally reconnects with Javi, a man he met twenty years earlier.
The Garden Left Behind – The story centers around the life of Tina carrera, a Mexican trans women struggling to make a life as an undocumented immagrant in New York City.
Rafiki – A Kenyan drama film, Rafiki is the story of a romance between two young women which blossoms amidst family and political pressures.
And Then We Danced – A Georgian drama about a young man, Merab, who is a dedicated dancer training at the National Georgian Ensemble. His life is upended with the arrival of Irakli, a replacement dancer.
The Wound – About a closeted relationship between two men in the context of the Xhosa initiation ritual of Ulwaluko.
The Handmaiden – Inspired by the novel Fingersmith, The Handmaiden is a psychological thriller where a pickpocket Sook-hee is hired by a con man to aid his plans to seduce Lady Hideko, a Japanese heiress.
God’s Own Country – A young sheep farmer from Yorkshire has his life upended by the arrival of Gheorghe, a Romanian migrant worker.
BPM (Beats per Minute) – A French film about the AIDS activism of ACT UP Paris in 1990s France.
Spa Night – A drama film about David, an eighteen year-old living in Koreatown, Los Angeles, who struggles to reconcile his newly discovered sexuality with his conservative family.
Tangerine – Follows Sin-Dee Rella, a trans sex worker who discovers that her boyfriend, and pimp, has been cheating on her. The film received numerous accolades and was even more impressive due to the fact it was shot on three iPhone 5S’s.
Appropriate Behavior – Revolves around Shirin, a bisexusal Persian-American woman who struggles to rebuild her life in Brooklyn after breaking up with her girlfriend.
Queer As Folk – A 1999 British television series which follows the lives of three gay men living in Manchester. Also inspired an American-Canadian version that ran from 2000-2005, set in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Pose – An American drama about New York City’s drag ball scene in the 1980s and early 1990s. Both a heartfelt and stylish look into the underground culture, it has achieved critical acclaim with multiple award nominations, such as at the Golden Globes and the Emmys.
Tales of the City – First a 1993 television miniseries based on a series of books by Armistead Maupin, Netflix then produced a sequel series under the same name in 2019.
Lost Girl – If you’re looking for more of a Supernatural fix, then look no further than Lost Girl. Lost Girl follows the life of a bisexual succubus named Bo as she learns to control her abilities and find the truth about her origins.
Feel Good – A semi-autobiographical British series created by Mae Martin. The show follows Mae, a Canadian comedian, after she meets George, a middle-class English woman, at the comedy club where she performs.
Sense8 – A Netflix cult hit, Sense8 follows the lives of eight strangers who find that they suddenly form a cluster of ‘sensates’: human beings who are mentally and emotionally linked, and can also control each other’s bodies. Honestly, it’s impossible to give it the synopsis it deserves, give the first two episodes a watch on Netflix to see the show that has captured the heart of millions.
Special – An American comedy which is based on the memoir I’m Special: And the Other Lies We Tell Ourselves by Ryan O’Connell. It follows the life of a Ryan, a gay man with mild cerebral palsy, who decides to rewrite his identity.
Work in Progress – Another semi-autobiographical comedy, Work in Progress stars and follows the life of Abby, a self described ‘fat, queer dyke.’
One Day at a Time – A sitcom which stars a Cuban-American family in Los Angeles. It’s been praised for the breadth of topics it tackles, such as PTSD and homophobia.
The Fosters – An American family drama which focuses on the lives of the members of the Foster family led by the lesbian couplt Stef and Lena, a cop and vice principal.
Gentefied– About three Mexican-American cousins and their struggle to chase the American dream even when that dream threatens their neighbourhood, their immigrant grandfather, and the family taco shop.
Vida – Two sisters, Emma and Lyn, return to their old neighbourhood after the death of their mother which forces them to confront the past and the shocking truth about their mother’s identity.
Gentleman Jack – Set in the year 1832, Gentleman Jack focuses on Anne Lister, a landowner and instrustalist in Yorkshire. The show is based off of the real de-coded collected diaries of Anne Lister.
For all those who are looking for a way to diversify their feeds
I’m Grand Mam
In I’m Grand Mam co-hosts Kevin Twomey and PJ Kirby call each other weekly to catch up on their lives. Originally from Cork, Ireland, the two now live in London and use their free flowing podcast to chat about Tinder dating, pop culture, to the latest news and everything in between. However, throughout these topics the two interweave heartfelt discussions on their own experiences navigating the London LGBTIA+ scene and growing up gay.
Instagram Available on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher
Busy Being Black
Busy Being Black is an oral history project which explores how ‘we live in the fullness of our queer Black lives.’ In each episode Josh Rivers interviews a guest (ranging from activists such as Lady Phyll to artists like Sea Sharp) to paint a vast, multifaceted picture of what it means to be queer and Black.
Available on: Apple Podcast, Spotify, Stitcher, and acast
Making Gay History
As it says on the tin, Making Gay History, delves into Eric Marcus’s (known for his award-winning oral history of the LGBT+ civil rights movement) audio archive of rare interviews in order to bring to light the voices of LGBT+ history. Episodes typically focus on a particular individual, and as Making Gay History currently has eight seasons (and counting!), listeners can dive into a vast ocean of fantastic and historic LGBT+ stories.
Website/Instagram Available on: Apple Podcast, Spotify, and Stitcher
MOONFACE
In MOONFACE, a fiction podcast by James Kim, listeners meet Paul. A first-generation Korean immigrant, we follow Paul throughout his days waiting tables, hanging out with friends, and his attempts to come out to his mother. Ultimately, MOONFACE is a podcast about identity and connection, as while Paul and his mother share the same roof they remain separated by their inability to speak the same language.
Available on: Apple Podcast, Spotify, and Stitcher
Call Me By My Name
Not to be confused with the bestselling book and movie, the podcast Call Me By My Name is a Melbourne-based oral history project. The project interviews trans and gender diverse guests to create an archive of their lived experiences and their stories as told through their own voices.
Available on: Apple Podcast, acast, and Listen Notes
Gender Reveal
Created by Tuck Woodstock, a journalist and educator, Gender Reveal is a podcast ‘for nonbinary folks, for people who don’t know what “nonbinary” means, and everyone in between.”
Available on: Apple Podcast, Spotify, and Stitcher
Horror Queers
And for all the horror fans, look no further than Horror Queers by Joe Lipsett and Trace Thurman. Each week the two tackle a horror film with either LGBTQ+ themes or a high camp quotient (or both!) – and with a wide range of topics, from Rebecca (1940) to the short film Old MacDonald (2017), you’ll never get bored.
Available on: Apple Podcast, acast, Spotify and Stitcher