Britain’s biggest LGBT charity Stonewall has said that it will no longer be holding its annual awards.
Stonewall, Britain’s biggest LGBT charity has said that it plans to cancel its annual awards after 10 years of the ceremony. The £240 per ticket awards which have courted controversy over the decade, most notably with its bigot of the year award, are bowing out with Sir Ian McKellen hosting the final ceremony.
Ruth Hunt, Stonewall’s Chief Exec spoke about the decision to step back saying,
“Ten years ago, a peck on the lips between two men on TV would have caused uproar, and books featuring lesbian characters rarely made the best-seller list. And this was one of the only award ceremonies to celebrate the achievements of the lesbian, gay and bi community. That simply isn’t the case today, and ceremonies and awards that recognise the success and diversity of our wonderful community have blossomed.
“We have therefore decided that now is the time for us to step back, making this year’s awards the final Stonewall Awards.”
Tickets for the event have increased from £155 + VAT in 2012 to £198 + VAT in 2015. Guests will be treated to a champagne and canapé reception on the 5th November in the magnificent Raphael Gallery of the Victoria & Albert Museum.
Judging this year’s competition are past presenter of the awards, Gok Wan, Bethany Black, Lord Browne, Sandi Toksvig, who is due to take over from Stephen Fry on QI, Russell T Davies and Kevin Jenkins.
