This is your full list of who took home an Honour at this year’s ceremony.
GAY TIMES Honours sponsored by Meta Quest celebrates the individuals and organisations who have had a profound effect on the lives of LGBTQ+ people over the past 12 months.
Presented by Drag Race royalty Violet Chachki and Gottmik, the biggest night in the queer calendar returned in style for its sixth year.
Back and better than ever, more than 1,500 LGBTQ+ community members and allies packed out Magazine London on 25 November in the biggest event held by GAY TIMES to date.
Tove Lo delivered a special show-stopping performance with Cat Burns and Keanan also taking to the stage before DJ sets from Princess Julia, Glitterbox and Hungama.
Grag Queen delivered her debut performance of Future Is Queer, the anthem she recorded especially for the ceremony.
From community trailblazers to highly-visible queer stars, the star-studded ceremony saw appearances from the likes of Munroe Bergdorf, Bimini and Oliver Sim.
See the full list of Honours recipients below:
Future Fighter presented by Hinge – London Trans+ Pride
With trans rights under threat more than ever in both the UK and abroad, London Trans+ Pride was created in response to the injustices trans+ people continue to face.
Its peaceful protest through London this year saw more than 20,000 people attend, marking London Trans+ Pride’s largest-ever turnout as trans+ people and their allies march in solidarity through the capital together.
“We still feel that more needs to be done to include and show solidarity with trans+ people in the wider LGBTQ+ community,” the collective told GAY TIMES Magazine this month. “Whilst this award is important and a sign of progress, we still need to be embraced further into the structure of LGBTQ+ organisations.”
Rising Star in Music presented by C0ca-Cola – Cat Burns
Cat has had an undeniable impact on the music industry this year, dominating the charts with hit single Go as she championed a variety of marginalised communities in the process.
“If you’re a Black woman, I want you to feel heard and seen,” she previously told GAY TIMES Magazine. “We are vulnerable people who are capable of having lots of emotions. And, being a Black queer woman adds a layer to that.”
Latin American Icon – Grag Queen
The performer behind Future Is Queer, the anthem for this year’s ceremony, Grag Queen has had an unforgettable year.
She recently brought the “Brazility” to the first-ever season of Queen of the Universe, World of Wonder’s new competition series that collects some of the world’s fiercest drag vocalists to compete for a cash prize of $250,000, which she emerged victorious from.
Since then, she has developed a cult following and become an undeniable force in both the world of drag and beyond.
On Screen Trailblazer presented by CUPRA – Cast of Heartstopper
The cast of Heartstopper memorably skyrocketed to fame earlier this year on the first season of Heartstopper.
Based on Alice Oseman’s webcomic and graphic novel of the same name, Netflix’s coming-of-age series following the blossoming romance between high schoolers Charlie Spring (Locke) and Nick Nelson (Connor).
Upon release, the show received overwhelming acclaim – boasting a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes – with praise aimed at the vibrant and positive depiction of young queer love and its normalisation of the trans experience with Yasmin Finney’s trailblazing character Elle Argent.
International Community Trailblazer – Amir Ashour
Since founding IraQueer, an organisation which has fought for LGBTQ+ rights in Iraq for the last seven years, Amir has worked tirelessly to help queer people facing persecution in the country.
Sadly, things have not improved for LGBTQ+ people in Iraq since the inception of IraQueer and members of the community continue to face discrimination in the country.
The work Amir started is therefore as important as ever and functions across education, advocacy and direct services by sharing multilingual resources, providing safe housing and engaging with international bodies to advance LGBTQ+ rights.
Drag Hero – Rani KoHEnur
Last year, Rani reached the top five of Queen of the Universe, World of Wonder’s acclaimed singing competition that collects some of the world’s most talented drag vocalists.
With over 1.5 million followers under their belt, they are making it their mission to authentically represent their country, campaign for LGBTQ+ equality and break even more boundaries for Indian performers in mainstream media.
In January, Rani is scheduled to appear at RuPaul’s DragCon UK, making her – again – the first-ever Indian drag queen to do so.
GAY TIMES en ESPAÑOL Honour for LGBTQ+ Visibility – Omar Ayuso
The actor is best known for his role as Omar Shanaa on the hit Spanish drama Elité and his character is popular amongst fans, especially for his on-screen relationship with Áron Piper (Ander).
He has brought LGBTQ+ visibility to the mainstream through his acting and fearlessness in depicting queer storylines.
British Community Trailblazer presented by Jean Paul Gaultier – Kai-Isaiah Jamal
The poet, model and vocal visibility activist has dedicated their platform to authentically advocating for important causes in environments that are often hostile to those they are fightig for.
Gracing the cover of the December 2022 issue of GAY TIMES Magazine, Kai explained that they are “mindful of how impactful words can be for those that are struggling to find them.”
They added that their work began to shift when they realised they could use their voice for good, adding: “There are children who use my words to come out to their parents and people older than me working out their gender for the first time because they now finally have the space to unpack it. This makes it impossible for me not to share my work.”
International Excellence in Music presented by SKITTLES® – Tove Lo
One of pop music’s most exciting and innovative artists, the Swedish singer has never been afraid to address topics that have, historically, been declared “taboo” such as female sexuality, mental health and drug use.
Throughout her decade-long career, Tove has released hits such as Habits (Stay High), which received quintuple platinum status in the United States, Talking Body, Cool Girl and Glad He’s Gone, the latter of which received a Grammy nomination for Best Music Video.
She’s also collaborated with artists like Lorde, Ava Max, Coldplay, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue and Duran Duran, garnering a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song for co-writing Ellie Goulding’s chart-topping smasher Love Me Like You Do.
Changemaker presented by Meta Quest – Tom Daley
Daley being given the Honour for Changemaker will come as no surprise, as the Olympian has tirelessly used his platform to advocate for and represent LGBTQ+ people across the world.
As 1.5 billion people tuned into the Commonwealth Games 2022 Opening Ceremony this summer, they were witness to LGBTQ+ history being made as Daley jogged into the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham as part of the Queen’s Baton Relay flanked by four flag bearers waving the Intersex-incluisve Progress Pride Flag to huge cheers from the tens of thousands packed into the stands.
Through this visible moment of solidarity to his BBC documentary, Illegal to Be Me, and by creating a first-of-its-kind manifesto with activists from across the globe, he has put into motion a plan to hopefully start driving positive and progressive change via sporting bodies.
GAY TIMES Honours sponsored by Meta Quest celebrates the individuals and organisations who have had a profound effect on the lives of LGBTQ+ people over the past 12 months.
This year’s event saw a star-studded lineup of performers including Tove Lo, Cat Burns, Grag Queen, Kai-Isaiah Jamal and Keanan, as well as a DJ set from Princess Julia.
The new digital edition of GAY TIMES magazine spotlights this year’s winners and is available to read now on the GAY TIMES app, Apple News +, Readly and Flipster.
To follow all of the action from GAY TIMES Honours sponsored by Meta Quest, check out our Instagram @GAYTIMES. For the latest winners, performances and special moments from the night click here.
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