Paul O'Grady's former home gets rainbow plaque

A rainbow plaque has been unveiled at a block of flats in south London to commemorate the life and legacy of the entertainer and TV presenter Paul O'Grady.

The former drag queen and comedian who died in 2023 lived at Victoria Mansions in Vauxhall between 1985 and 1995.

His widower André Portasio unveiled the plaque in front of dozens of friends, family and fans on Friday 21 June.

He said: "I'm so chuffed that he's been remembered at a grassroots level. He made friends for life here and was part of a community."

O'Grady's best friend for over 50 years Alan Ralph, better known as "Vera", also lived at "Vicky" Mansions and remembers the good times he had there with the star.

"It was a tiny flat. It was like something you'd never seen before. He had all these knick-knacks everywhere including an old gramophone.

"Paul had all these cupboards made in the kitchen and all his drag gear was hanging out of them everywhere."

A new musical based on Lily Savage, O'Grady's drag queen persona, is set to open next year.

Savage is being written by Jonathan Harvey, and Ru Paul's Drag Race UK winner Danny Beard will play the foul-mouthed drag queen.

Beard said the reaction had so far been "amazing".

"I've got big shoes to fill. The play is the funniest script full of 'Lilyisms'."

Harvey worked on the first draft with O'Grady before his death aged 67.

"This block of flats was vital to Lily's development and this is where Paul lived at the height of his drag career, travelling up and down the country," Harvey said.

The rainbow plaque dedicated to O'Grady is the seventh to be erected by the London LGBT Forums Network in London.

Project lead David Robson said: "Visibility like this matters. We've already seen attacks on our rights and the joy of the rainbow plaque project is it brings our community together to remind them of our shared history."

Other areas where plaques have been unveiled include:

• Clapham Junction station - the location where Oscar Wilde was arrested
• Wilcox Road in Vauxhall - the shop where the groundbreaking 1985 gay romantic drama My Beautiful Laundrette was filmed
• The Greenwich Tavern (formerly The Gloucester Arms) - the pub where the film Beautiful Thing was filmed in Greenwich
• London Lighthouse in Ladbroke Grove - a residential centre and hospice for people living with HIV/Aids
• Black Lesbian and Gay Centre in Peckham - Europe's first dedicated advice and community centre for black LGBTQIA+ people
• In Westminster for Jackie Forster - a journalist, activist and founder of the UK's first major lesbian publication, Sappho

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