‘Queer As Folk’ cast reunites for LGBTQ fundraiser
Scott Lowell hosts "May Day Home Stay Gay Play" to raise funds for CenterLink
The cast of Queer As Folk will reunite for an LGBTQ fundraiser almost 20 years after the groundbreaking drama first premiered.
The Showtime series, based on the British show of the same name, ran for five seasons between 2000 and 2005. It followed the lives of five gay men and a lesbian couple, and — in addition to its frank depictions of gay sex, a first for American television — dealt with a number of issues including conversion therapy, same-sex marriage, adoption, gay-bashing, HIV, and workplace discrimination.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, most of the main cast will reunite to participate in “May Day Home Stay Gay Play” on May 1, to raise funds for CenterLink, a coalition of LGBTQ community centers.
Queer As Folk star Scott Lowell, who portrayed Ted, will host the event, and will be joined virtually by Michelle Clunie, Robert Gant, Sharon Gless, Randy Harrison, Peter Paige, and Hal Sparks, as well as creators Ron Cowen and Dan Lipman.
While Thea Gill and Gale Harold aren’t yet confirmed, THR reports that “[other] names are expected to be announced shortly.”
As well as an auction of Queer As Folk memorabilia, the livestream will feature conversations with the cast about the show and its impact on LGBTQ people and wider society.
The event kicks off at 2 p.m. ET on May 1 on Lowell’s YouTube page.
The Queer As Folk cast previously reunited in 2018 for a feature in Entertainment Weekly, where Cowen noted the different world that the show debuted in compared with today.
“We saw it as an opportunity to address a lot of issues that had never been shown on American TV before,” Cowen said. “That was very important to us because we, gay people, didn’t really see a true reflection of ourselves on TV very often. Back then, you couldn’t get married. There was Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell in the Army. In 14 states, there were still sodomy laws on the books. It was a very hostile atmosphere.”
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