KING EDWARD II OF ENGLAND (d. 1327); By the 14th century, as John Boswell illuminated in the brilliant Christianity, Social Tolerance and Homosexuality, the Church had radically altered its attitude towards “sodomy.” If, in the 12th century, the king of France could elevate his lover to high office and live to tell the tale, such was more than impossible two centuries later. Among the earliest victims of this changed attitude, and certainly the most important, was Edward II, King of England.

His love affair with Piers Gaveston, which had begun ten years before his marriage and lasted for thirteen years, ended in the death of Gaveston at the hands of hostile barons. It is now believed that Gaveston, who appears in literature in Marlowe’s play Edward II (and, no surprise, wildly inaccurately in homophobe Mel Gibson's execrable Braveheart) was in actuality a composite character of many of the king’s “favorites” a term which implied intimacy at the time.

Edward’s next friendship, with Hugh le Despenser, resulted in the murder of both lovers. In a grisly application of the punishment fitting the crime, and in a manner clearly revealing the sexual roles of the king and his friend “Hugh’s genitals were cut off and burned publicly, and Edward was murdered by the insertion into his anus of a red-hot poker.”

ANDY BELL, British singer and songwriter (band Erasure); Apart from his work with Erasure, he has taken part in numerous charities including the Ferry Aid version of "Let It Be" in 1987, a cover of Cole Porter's "Too Darn Hot" that was included in 1990s Red Hot + Blue album to raise funds for AIDS and HIV research, re-making Lene Lovich’s "Rage" alongside her to be included in PETA's album in 1991 in favor of a wildlife campaign and performing twice on Big Spender's Red Hot and Dance events to support various AIDS projects (in December 1994 and November 2004). Bell sang the role of Montresor in Peter Hammill’s opera The Fall of the House of Usher, released in 1991 and reissued with a new recording in 1999. In December 2004, Bell announced he was HIV-positive and has known since 1998.

BEA ARTHUR, American actress, dies (b: 1922); A long time ally of the LGBT community, Bea Arthur, was famous for her title role in the sitcom Maude and later for The Golden Girls and many Broadway appearances and film.

She was an early opponent of Proposition 6 in California that would have forbidden Gay people and their allies from being teachers. It was called The Briggs Initiative after the state senator John Briggs who sponsored the ballot initiative. When this writer approached Arthur to request that she appear before the Morals and Ethics Committee of the Screen Actor’s Guild. I asked her if she would help and the first thing she said was "I will do anything you want me to do." As a result, the SAG union would be among the first to speak out against the broadly discriminatory proposition. 

In November of 2005, Bea flew to New York City from her home in Los Angeles to give a special benefit performance of her one-woman show. The performance raised over $40,000 for the Ali Forney Center. In an interview for Next Magazine Bea explained her decision to offer her support "I'm very, very involved in charities involving youth and the plight of foster children. But these kids at the Ali Forney Center are literally dumped by their families because of the fact that they are lesbian, gay, or transgender - this organization really is saving lives."

Bea continued to offer her support, both as a donor and as an advocate. In one of her very last interviews, published in the New York Blade in May 2008, Bea spoke with pride of having done the benefit for AFC, and indicated that she would do anything to help gay kids disowned by their parents.