Paul O'Grady's quick-witted response to 'rubber gloves' police raid on gay bars in London and Manchester
29.03.2023 - 15:31
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Paul O’Grady famously snapped back at police officers who conducted ‘homophobic’ raids at gay bars in London and Manchester during the AIDS epidemic.
The beloved comedian, who regularly performed in the 80s and 90s as drag queen Lily Savage, died unexpectedly on Tuesday (March 28) at the age of 67.
Elton John, Queen Consort Camilla, Lorraine Kelly and RuPaul’s Drag Race star Divina de Campo were just some of the many to lead tributes to the ‘much admired’ entertainer.
READ MORE: Paul O'Grady was 'laughing and so full of life' hours before sudden death, devastated friend says
O’Grady debuted the persona of Lily in the 1970s before rising to fame in the 1980s with a residency at London’s Royal Vauxhall Tavern. One evening in 1987 - during the height of the AIDS pandemic - police raided the venue just as the performer was about to take to the stage.
Wearing rubber gloves at the time - in a deeply misguided attempt to avoid getting ‘HIV by touching a gay person’ - 35 officers caused ‘pandemonium’ to a packed out crowd. Quick to respond, O’Grady tried to make light of the 'scary' situation.
“I was doing the late show and within seconds the place was heaving with coppers, all wearing rubber gloves,” O’Grady recalled. “I remember saying something like, ‘Well well, it looks like we’ve got help with the washing up."
O’Grady was later one of ten people to be arrested during the raid, before being released without charge. A week after the incident, he recalled visiting Manchester to perform in a club where yet another raid took place.
"Funnily enough, I went up to Manchester to work at another club and there was another raid in the same week,” he recalled to the Royal Vauxhall Tavern in 2001. “It seemed to be the fashion at the