Our Stories: Queer in the Countryside
LGBTQIA+ artists, performers and workshops in West Dorset
Bridport Arts Centre, May-August 2025
Wednesday 14 May 2025
Today Bridport Arts Centre announces the full programme of events comprising our groundbreaking season Our Stories: Queer in the Countryside.
LGBTQIA+ people don’t just live in cities!
This May-August Bridport Arts Centre celebrates LGBTQIA+ lives and creativity in rural West Dorset with a season of performances, workshops and artworks.
The season profiles work by local LGBTQIA+ artists and performers – some of whom will be returning to their Dorset roots to join the celebration. We are also running a series of events that aim to develop emerging local LGBTQIA+ writing talent.
The season provides a space for dialogue about what it means to be queer in rural Britain. Why do some LGBTQIA+ people choose to live in the countryside? And why do others feel the need to leave at the first opportunity? Above all, we aim to celebrate and engage a true diversity of people in our communities. We hope that Our Stories: Queer in the Countryside is a small step towards celebrating the true diversity of West Dorset, making our rural community feel more inclusive – and making it visible.
Among the performers returning to Bridport (the town where they grew up) are singer Douglas Dare (Saturday 21 June, 7.30pm) and performer Kit Ford (Narcissistic Reflections on a Queer Childhood, Friday 20 June, 8pm).
West Dorset-based literary organisation The Jawbone Collective will be presenting ‘OmniVerse’, a series of workshops designed to nurture and amplify local poetic voices. They will be led by queer performance poets and educators, Polari Prize-winner John McCullough and Bridport-raised UK Poetry Slam champion Kathryn O’Driscoll.
Artist, quilter and baker Matt Wilding’s Wings of Pride are on display throughout May and visitors are encouraged to share photos of themselves ‘wearing’ the wings. And artist and curator Paul Sammut will create a new illustrated work – Lisom Rum: Tales of Queer Joy – drawing on the memories and experiences shared by local LGBTQIA+ people.
Claire Tudge, director of Bridport Arts Centre said: “When I first moved to Dorset, a gay friend’s husband told me he was uncomfortable to visit me in the countryside because it was not a place that he felt seen or safe. His comment has stayed with me as it was so at odds with my own experience as a straight cis person and with many of the LGBTQIA+ people I have met and friends that I have made in West Dorset. Was I missing something and did I need to educate myself more? Bridport Art Centre is a space where we share the stories of our community and has a proud history of programming diverse voices, which we will continue to do in perpetuity. We want to take a moment to curiously and respectfully explore whether is there is a juxtaposition between LGBTQIA+ identity in the heteronormative green and pleasant land of the English countryside, while also highlight and celebrate the many stories of queer joy in West Dorset that it has been my pleasure and honour to encounter.”
Performer Kit Ford said: “I have loved performing for as long as I can remember. I spent a lot of my childhood not really performing to other people, however — growing up in the countryside, especially the very rural countryside of West Dorset (which is what I did), you could make a lot of noise and you wouldn’t disturb too much, apart from the cows in the field next door. I think growing up there also kept me a child for a little longer – there was so much space to dream and to play in. I feel very grateful for that. I also think lots about coming into town when I was a teenager on a Wednesday night, for BACstage youth theatre at Bridport Arts Centre. How much bigger and connected and (open and excitingly) grown up it made the world feel. I am so grateful to the Arts Centre for that.”
Singer Douglas Dare said: “Growing up in the quiet of rural West Dorset gave me a deep sense of self-reflection, but it was moving to London – vibrant, loud, and full of possibility – that allowed me to fully embrace and celebrate my queerness. Returning home with that sense of freedom feels both like a privilege and a celebration—a way to share all the parts of myself with the place that shaped me.”
Season curated by Michael Armstrong (ArtsCultureMusic Consultancy) and Claire Tudge (director, Bridport Arts Centre).
PROGRAMME
Wings of Pride
Until 31 May, Bridport Arts Centre Foyer
These wonderful, quilted wings are by Dorset-based artist Matt Wilding. They celebrate and represent power and pride in the LGBTQIA+ community. We encourage visitors to share their photos of themselves ‘wearing’ the #wingsofpride
OmniVerse Launch Event: Open Mic Night
Wednesday 28 May, 7pm, Bridport Arts Centre
Our OmniVerse launch spotlights LGBTQIA+, neurodivergent, and disabled voices from our vibrant community. Join us for an evening of poetry and spoken word as we kick off an inspiring series of workshops and performances designed to nurture and amplify under-represented voices. An ‘OmniVerse’ event presented by Bridport’s Jawbone Collective.
Layla (2024)
Thursday 12 June, 7.30pm, Bridport Arts Centre
Screening of Amrou Al-Kadhi’s acclaimed film about a queer British Palestinian drag queen.
Kit Ford: Narcissistic Reflections on a Queer Childhood
Friday 20 June, 8pm, Bridport Arts Centre
It’s classic, really. Kit wanted to be an actor. Kit also wanted to dress up as boys. This hour-long solo (deep breath) musical-comedy-poetry-monologue-cabaret-performance asks the question, what happens when playing and becoming others makes you feel more yourself? This is the first time this sell-out show will be performed in Bridport, Kit’s hometown!
Douglas Dare
Saturday 21 June, 7.30pm, Bridport Arts Centre
As a proud queer artist from Bridport, Douglas brings his distinctive sound and heartfelt storytelling back to his roots for an evening of music that promises to be both powerful and deeply personal. Douglas crafts intimate, cinematic music that blurs the lines between art-pop, modern classical, and electronic minimalism. With his arresting voice and evocative storytelling, he has drawn comparisons to James Blake and Anohni, yet his sound is uniquely his own: melancholic, raw, and deeply affecting.
P. Burton-Morgan: Explaining Being Pan to Nan
Saturday 5 July, 8pm, Bridport Arts Centre
This no-holes-barred stand up-comedy show unpacks explaining your queer identity (non-binary, pansexual) to your 86-year-old nan. Expect sexting in your 80s, knitting kinks and discovering Grandad’s predilections. Wildly explicit, yet unexpectedly tender, this solo show explores the differences and understanding between the generations. P is Wiltshire born and Somerset based.
Beyond the Page: Poetry Writing Workshop with John McCullough
Saturday 12 July, 10am, Bridport Arts Centre
Explore the powerful intersection of identity and artistry in this transformative 2-hour workshop led by Polari and Hawthornden Prize winner John McCullough. Through guided writing prompts and exercises, you will draw out your unique perspective and craft words that gain unexpected momentum and channel that energy into your poetic voice. An ‘OmniVerse’ event presented by Bridport’s Jawbone Collective.
Page to Stage: Poetry and Spoken Word Performance Workshop with Kathryn O’Driscoll
Saturday 12 July, 2.30pm, Bridport Arts Centre
A 2-hour workshop designed to empower LGBTQIA+ and marginalised voices in performance poetry. Award-winning queer, disabled poet and UK Slam champion Kathryn O’Driscoll creates an inspiring space where you’ll learn to amplify your voice from page to stage. Explore how performance elements can enhance your story. An ‘OmniVerse’ event presented by Bridport’s Jawbone Collective.
OmniVerse Showcase: Poetry and Performance from John McCullough, Kathryn O’Driscoll and West Dorset Poets
Saturday 12 July, 7pm, Bridport Arts Centre
Exploring the richness of queer identity and the ongoing journey of self-discovery. Headlined by award-winning poet John McCullough alongside Bridport-raised spoken word artist Kathryn O’Driscoll. We are also pleased to bring you some fantastic new voices from our local queer community to support our headliners. An ‘OmniVerse’ event presented by Bridport’s Jawbone Collective.
Lisome Rum: Tales of Queer Joy
Wednesday 23 July – Saturday 30 August, Bridport Arts Centre
Taking inspiration from the old Dorset words for cheery/happy and queer – Lisome Rum – artist Paul Sammut will collect stories from LGBTQIA+ residents in West Dorset to explore their experiences of living in rural locations and how their lives are impacted and improved by this environment. The new, illustrated artwork will create an archive of rural queer experience.
Please consider contributing a short story, memory or anecdote (ideally under 500 words) and, if possible, a visual reminder or symbol relating to the story which Paul can respond to. Please be aware that we can’t guarantee that all the stories donated will be used. Feel free to share this invitation with someone you know and email your contributions to [email protected] by 7 June.
