Stonewall to Sydney Mardi Gras: Noel Tovey's lifetime of LGBTQI+ activism

Stolen Generations survivor and ballet legend Noel Tovey AM was jailed for homosexual activity and among the first marchers of London’s Pride. In his 80s, he is still campaigning for gay rights.

Noel Tovey

Noel Tovey AM is still campaigning for gay rights. Source: SBS

At 86, Noel Tovey AM moves carefully, but with considered grace, around his small Hawthorn flat in Melbourne. He is surrounded by artworks and mementos of a stellar career in the arts.

For a man whose passion for dance and movement led him to the world stage, to be now reliant on a wheelchair — the result of an amputated leg due to cancer — must prove frustrating. But Noel is also a survivor, and his life demonstrates the character of a man who has managed to overcome extreme hardship time and again.


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