Education
In the late 1960s he studied American Literature at Nottingham University, where he first came out as an openly gay man and founded the University’s first Gay Liberation Society.
- Photos
- Works
- Photos
- Works
Kris Kirk
Edit ProfileCareer
He was brought up in the northeast of England by Catholic parents. He performed in several student drama productions, (on one notable occasion appearing as the Devil in Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus, completely naked apart from a large leather phallus), and after graduating he obtained a number of theatre jobs, including working as a theatrical dresser for Tommy Steele and Benny Hill. In the early 1980s he moved to London, and changed the spelling of his name to "Kristopher", writing under the byline of "Kris Kirk".
He worked as a journalist for Gay News and Gay Times and in 1984 he also began writing about the popular scene for Melody Maker, becoming the first openly gay music journalist in the United Kingdom. He also wrote numerous freelance articles for music publications, including Smash Hits and The Face and for other publications such as The Guardian and City Limits.
In 1988, Kris Kirk moved to rural Wales to open a secondhand book shop with his boyfriend, photographer Editor Heath. In 1991 he was diagnosed with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome and reluctantly returned to London for treatment.
He went blind the following year. With equipment supplied by the RNIB, he was able to carry on writing, and in June 1992, he wrote an article on his condition for Gay Times, "Descent Into Darkness".
Becoming one of the first people with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome to come out publicly.
"As long as I have my friends, my family, my fags, my coffee, my opera tapes and my writing I guess I shall tootle along, even though I may not have all my coat buttons done up properly. Life is for living and I am trying to live it as well as I can. But I suppose that I feel that when death finally comes I shall be ready for lieutenant
Perhaps that is what life is all about.".
Politics
"The confluence of his pink socialist politics with the emerging likes of Boy George, Bronski Beat and The Pet Shop Boys makes for fascinating and historic reading, but he wasn"t only interested in those involved in perverting the Top Ten.
