Gay Timeline
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Julian, the narrator of Gay Timeline, at his microphone in a book-lined study
Julian · your narrator
For most of history, these men were left out of the record. Now their stories are told in full.
Why the collections exist

Researched from the real record

Every story is built from real historians, real archives and real sources: letters, court files, ship logs and diaries.

Gay Timeline is an independent channel. Every purchase pays for the research, the narration and the next collection. When you buy one, you are not only getting new stories. You are helping keep these names spoken.

600,000+ views on the most-loved stories · listeners from Tennessee to Vladivostok

See the new collectionAll collections
Cover of After Lights Out at the Y, Gay Timeline members-only collection No. 1
New collectionMembers-only · No. 1

After Lights Out at the Y

25 true stories of the men who found each other in the YMCAs, bathhouses, gyms and quiet corners of a world that told them to hide. Never on YouTube.

25 stories · about 25 hours · read by Julian · MP3s to keep

$49for all 25 stories · about $1.96 each · paid once
Get the collection · $49 Open the collection
“These stories are priceless.”
gene978, a listener
The library

All collections

Each collection is a set of members-only stories around one theme. Pay once for the ones you want.

Collection No. 4

More collections are on the way

Each one is a new set of members-only stories around a theme. They will appear here as they are released.

Listening in three minutes

  1. Pick a collection

    Play a sample first if you like. You pay once.

  2. Pay securely

    With PayPal or a card at Payhip’s secure checkout. It takes about a minute.

  3. Press play

    Your download link arrives by email straight away. Save the MP3s and listen anywhere.

Inside every story

In our listeners' own words
“These stories are priceless.”
gene978

Some listeners lived this history. Others are hearing it for the first time.

“It made me remember being 19… Now at 64 I have a lifetime of memories to look back on, and even though I’m alone, I too am still here, a survivor of my generation.”

Manuel, 64

“Had a boyfriend who dressed windows at Franklin Simon, NYC, in the late ’60s. Nostalgic trip for me. Thank you for this memory. I am 80 years old now.”

Listener, 80Tennessee

“Sad story, but they found each other at the end. I spent 45 years alone, but now I have found the man of my dreams… Thank you for a sad but wonderful video.”

Johnny

“Breaks my heart… I knew so many guys had it so different. All the boys who fled the Midwest and the South… thrown out at 14.”

MarkCalifornia

“Another captivating Gay Timeline video… In a sensitive, caring way, it introduced me to gay life in Japan I never knew existed.”

TracyToronto

“I loved this story… This one captivated me for a number of reasons. So much of this was familiar.”

Brian

“Thank you for this beautiful commentary… Ceylon was an escape for gay planters. Some never returned, others returned but never got over it.”

David

“This actually happened in England too… Two gay men lived in my village of Corfe Castle in the 1920s. The locals just called them ‘the boys’.”

Corfe CastleEngland

“A beautiful love story.”

AlexanderRussia

“Awesome histories. Watching from France, 9 AM. Thanks.”

VincentFrance

These are only a few. Every new story brings more, many of them too long and too personal to share in full here.

Somewhere in these stories is a life like yours.

Every story here is about a man the world almost forgot. Your memories keep them alive. Share yours, and one day your words could sit here too.

See the first collection

Questions

How do I listen?

After you pay, a download link arrives by email. Save the MP3s to your phone or computer and play them in any music or podcast app, even with no connection.

Are these stories on YouTube?

No. Every story in a members' collection is new and is never posted on YouTube or any other platform. The channel stories stay free on YouTube.

Are these stories true?

Yes. Each one is built from real historical records, and the sources are listed in the PDF that comes with it. Where a character is a composite of several real men, the story says so.

What do I get for $49?

All 25 stories of After Lights Out at the Y, about an hour each: one ad-free MP3 per story with its cover art, and a one-page PDF of the real men, historians and books behind it. The files are yours to keep.

Is this a subscription?

No. You pay once and nothing renews. New collections are released separately, and you only buy the ones you want.

How do I pay?

With PayPal, or with a card through PayPal, at Payhip’s secure checkout. Prices are in US dollars, and your bank shows the amount in your own currency.

Will there be more collections?

Yes. Each new collection is a new set of members-only stories around a theme. This is the first.

Gay Timeline · Members’ collections

Give them your full attention.

They spent their lives being interrupted, hidden and erased. Hear their stories from beginning to end.

Get After Lights Out at the Y · $49
After Lights Out at the Y
New · 25 members-only stories · $49 See it