David looks back at the past and fears for the future as he criticises the market-driven commercialism of modern-day 'gay culture' .

In this extract, David concludes his interview with a wry comparison between life for gay people in the 70s and the present day. Admitting that life has changed completely since Stonewall, David says that there are some young gay people who know and appreciate what went on before, because they read about the past and talk to those who lived through the period. But he also says there's a substantial majority of young gays and lesbians who remain completely ignorant of gay 'history', even though they can now have sex at 16, go clubbing every night and most importantly be 'out'. He says that the culture they inhabit has been taken over by consumerism - in a very capitalist way.

In the 70s, all the talk was that socialism will liberate us, yet it was capitalism that exploited the new freedoms, especially after seeing their market potential. David thinks it's ironic that capitalism, previously at the forefront of suppression and oppression, now enthusiastically cashes in on the 'Pink Pound'.

He feels that nowadays things are neither good nor bad for gay people. There is still no socialism, though people can have more say in how they can live lives not determined by the market. However, he's also sorry for today's younger gays and lesbians, who he says are being conditioned to believe and participate in a gay lifestyle that has been shaped by the market. This means constantly buying in to a club-culture, fashions and having a good time, all the time.

It's a pressurised life but it has none of the pressures of the past; when walking into the wrong 'cottage' or saying the wrong thing to the wrong person could end in disaster. He ends by hoping that people will look at these interviews and learn something.

Born in 1942, in Crowborough, East Sussex, David enjoyed a rural childhood before being sent to grammar school, where he was treated as a 'pansy' by the teachers because he took no interest in sport, or girls.

Intending to study medicine, David felt, instead, he had a calling to the church, since the priests he knew were 'nice' and 'soft' in contrast to his father and brothers, who were plumbers and builders.

David also had a gay uncle, who had a long-lasting relationship with Sir Frank Carter (the philanthropist and co-founder of the British Empire Leprosy Relief Association) when he posted in Calcutta.

Before studying theology at King's College, London, David spent a year teaching at a boy's reform school in Lymington.

In 1974, David started working for Camden Council, joining the white-collar-worker's union NALGO, the National and Local Government Officer's Association, at the same time.

David 'came out' fully in the 1980s and has had a number of relationships, one of which lasted for more than 20 years.