THE letter from Christine Holt (Jan 7) brought back many memories for me, as an old Gay of 69 years.

At school, and during the early part of my career, I managed to hide my sexuality from parents, church, school-mates and others.

When I met my first partner I was 14, and continued with him until his death at the age of 26 in 1956.

When I became a professional organist in 1957, I threw caution to the winds, and became "myself". What a relief! So throughout my career - which is now 42 years long - being Gay has been a plus. Because of my work, and my lifetime contract with a major film company in America, I have travelled the world playing all sorts of organs, from the one in St Paul's in London to the Museum of Culture in Chernovtsy in the Ukraine. I have had a very good life. Being open about my sexuality has not been a hindrance.

But other Gays of my acquaintance have had horrendous lives, mainly through the ignorance and homophobia taught to them by their peers and family. It is dirty to be a "queer", they are told.

Nowadays, as a season ticket holder at Bury FC I sit in the South Stand and around me are folk from all walks of life. They have no anti-Gay prejudices. I am accepted as myself.

Perhaps those people from High Bank Care Ltd., who treated that doctor so appallingly, should have been with me during the past years when their obvious malice and bigotry would have been knocked out of them. Their attitude was disgraceful.

BEAU (MR),

staff organist,

Metro-Goldwyn -Mayer.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.