Authors and broadcasters Tash Walker and Adam Zmith discuss The Log Books, an intimate history of queer British voices and the helpline that listened

7:00pm-9:00pm CAMP

An extraordinary archive of LGBTQ+ life in Britain, The Log Books began as a stash of handwritten notes discovered, by chance, in a crawlspace at the offices of queer helpline Switchboard. These records, kept by volunteers, contain vital traces of thousands of queer lives dating back to 1974, from teenagers exiled by their families to the people deemed criminals for simply embodying their sexuality. In collecting these stories, co-authors Tash Walker and Adam Zmith spoke to people at either end of the phone to create a rich, joyful, gossipy cacophony of voices that both echoes Britain's past and resonates with its present moment.

Tash Walker is a writer, podcast producer, archivist and community organiser with a special interest in bringing forgotten archival stories to life with audio. A founding director of Aunt Nell production company and a queer historian, they have worked with the likes of the Barbican, BBC, The National Archives, Bishopsgate Institute and Queer Britain. A co-director at Aunt Nell whose work centres on sex, queer identity, art and desire, Adam Zmith is an editor, podcast producer and the author of Deep Sniff: A History of Poppers and Queer Futures. Tash and Adam will be discussing The Log Books in conversation with the excellent Ellen Jones, whose own book Outrage: How to Fight for LGBTQ+ Lives is out (and proud) now.