English writer, broadcaster and activist Simon Fanshawe was BOTD in 1956. Born in Devises, Wiltshire, he was educated at private schools and attended the University of Sussex. After graduation, he pursued a career as a stand-up comedian, coming to public attention in the 1984 TV sketch comedy series The Entertainers. In 1989, he won Perrier Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, leading to further work with the BBC as a radio and TV presenter. He helped co-found the gay activist group Stonewall, formed in 1989 to protest Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher‘s Section 28 law, which prohibited local authorities from “promoting” homosexuality. Stonewall became the most visible and powerful gay rights organisation in Britain, campaigning successfully for the repeal of Section 28, the ban on LGBTQ people serving in the armed forces, equalising the age of consent for gay sex, the inclusion of sexuality in anti-discrimination and equality laws, and the introduction of same-sex civil partnerships. He left Stonewall in 2019, citing the organisation’s “intolerance of disagreement and discussion” over transgender issues, which he claimed threatened the rights of women, gay men and lesbians. He joined the LGB Alliance later that year, a trans-exclusionary group that has publicly opposed puberty blockers for children, conversion therapy for trans youth and legislation allowing trans people to legally change their gender. In 2024, Fanshawe was appointed Rector of the University of Edinburgh, prompting widespread criticism from staff and student LGBTQ groups over his trans-exclusionary views. He lives in Brighton with his husband Adam.