Original version

BBC World Service South Asia

The Documentary

Documentaries

Factual

The Documentary Podcast

Investigating global developments, issues and affairs.

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

BBC World Service East Asia

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

The Documentary: Ziggy Stardust: Hang on to yourself

Ziggy Stardust: Hang on to yourself

11/06/2022 GMT

BBC World Service - The Documentary, Ziggy Stardust: Hang on to yourself

How David Bowie's creation, Ziggy Stardust, became one of the world's greatest gay icons

How David Bowie's creation, Ziggy Stardust, became one of the world's greatest gay icons and inspired a generation of people to celebrate their own self-actualisation.

When David Bowie stepped onto the stage as Ziggy Stardust in 1972, one of the world's greatest gay icons was born and the rulebooks were forever rewritten. Ziggy liberated the gay, the bisexual and the androgyne. Bowie was not an activist in the traditional sense but he helped give voice to disenfranchised subcultures in society. To mark the 50th anniversary of Bowie's iconic creation, a host of LGBTQ+ voices and campaigners explain how Ziggy Stardust, inspired a generation of people to celebrate their own self-actualisation, redefining sexuality and setting the groundwork for activism that continues today.

(Photo: David Bowie, 1973 final show of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Hammersmith Odeon, London. Credit: Chris Walter/WireImage)

Accessibility links

Programme Index

The Documentary

Ziggy Stardust: Hang on to yourself

Genres

Brand

BBC World Service South Asia

About BBC World Service