Alan Bray (13 October 1948 – 25 November 2001) was a British historian and gay rights activist. He was a Roman Catholic and had a particular interest in Christianity's relationship to homosexuality.
Early life
Bray was born in Hunslet, Leeds, to a working-class family. His mother died when he was 12, an event that profoundly affected his relationships. He attended Leeds Central High School, where he met his lifelong friend Graham Wilson. He attended Bangor University and spent a year at an Anglican seminary before beginning a career in civil service.
Gay rights activism
He became involved with the Gay Liberation Front in the 1970s and actively campaigned for gay rights. Nick Rumens' Queer Company: The Role and Meaning of Friendship in Gay Men's Work Lives (Ashgate, 2011), is also inspired by Alan Bray's scholarship. Valerie Traub (Thinking Sex with the Early Moderns) is amongst many subsequent LGBTQ scholars who have engaged with and been inspired by Bray's scholarship.
Bibliography
- Homosexuality in Renaissance England (Gay Men's Press, 1982)
- The Friend (University of Chicago Press, 2002)
- The Clandestine Reformer: A Study Of The Rayner Scrutinies (1988)