LGBTQ+ Campfire Heritage Stories

(L-R) Waz Arfan, Connor Walsh, Jacqui Gellman, TJ Richards and Sue Shave at Campfire Heritage Stories in October 2025

In front of a warm and welcoming crowd, representatives from the local LGBTQ+ community shared their stories of challenges and triumphs at the Campfire Heritage Stories event at the Museum last Sunday (12 October 2025).

Inspired by a basket of Museum objects and facilitated by the Museum’s Outreach Programmer Jacqui Gellman, our storytellers shared their memories along with members of the audience. The event was recorded by oral historian Jonathan Kempster and will form part of the Museum archives, making their heritage stories accessible to Museum visitors for years to come.

Our storytellers were former director of Chiltern Open Air Museum Sue Shave, a queer heritage professional and lesbian mum on a mission to discover and share LGBTQ+ stories to make our community visible and proud, TJ Richards who went from being a US Air Force Sergeant to a UK LGBTQ+ activist, Conor Walsh who splits his time being a barista, baker, music-lover, concert-goer and the Social Media Manager for Aylesbury Community Pride, and Waz Arfan who describes himself as a queer Muslim on a quest to challenge preconceptions and celebrate the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community.

Museum objects picked by the audience as conversation starters included a Marlene Dietrich record, an RAF cap, a wooden tennis racquet and a knitted teddy bear.

After the storytelling, visitors joined in with some marshmallow toasting around the campfire, and Buckinghamshire’s County and Diocesan Archivist, Daniel Williams introduced their exhibition “Lost Victorian Voices” which is about Victorian identity and sexuality. Part of the exhibition was available to view in the Museum’s Northolt Barn during the Campfire Heritage Stories event.

Since 2021 Chiltern Open Air Museum’s Campfire Heritage Stories have created a rich tapestry of cultural narratives. To preserve these treasured memories, an oral historian has meticulously recorded them, allowing Chiltern Open Air Museum to share these cultural gems across their digital channels and contribute to the Museum’s growing collection.

Recordings from the LGBTQ+ Campfire Heritage Stories event will be available to listen to on the Museum website and on the Bloomberg Connects app very soon. This is where you can listen to all of the previous Campfire Heritage Stories events featuring representatives of diverse communities across Buckinghamshire.

The Campfire Heritage Stories project is kindly supported by The Rothschild Foundation.