Sister recalls how her brother had turned up as a woman with TV crews in tribute to Fylde coast transgender pioneer Julia Grant

Coming out as a transgender is a very difficult thing to do. But Julia Grant made the giant leap as she was the first male-to-female transgender to appear on television and was a pioneer for changing people's perceptions.
Julia Grant with a photo of when she was George RobertsJulia Grant with a photo of when she was George Roberts
Julia Grant with a photo of when she was George Roberts

Julia Grant, who grew up in Fleetwood, was an incredibly brave woman and was influential in developing some of the world’s most celebrated Pride events.

She was the first male-to-female transgender person to appear on television in 1979 and played an active part in running the world-famous Manchester Pride and Benidorm Pride parades.

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Her sister, Shirley Wilson, from Longton, wants people to know about Julia’s inspirational story.

Shirley Wilson with her sister's funeral flowersShirley Wilson with her sister's funeral flowers
Shirley Wilson with her sister's funeral flowers

She says: “Julia was a very special lady. She had so many different sides to her life, and she had such a positive impact on a lot of people, encouraging them to live the life they wanted.

Julia, who was born George William Roberts in Fleetwood, and was known as Billy, had a difficult childhood, and along with her seven siblings was cared for at the Harris Children’s Home in Preston after their mother became ill.

Shirley continues: “She managed to ‘escape’ the care system at 17 by joining the navy for only six weeks.

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“She then moved to London and worked her way up to become the manager of a hospital kitchen by day and a cabaret artist and drag act at night, which was outrageously rude and funny – unless you were the target of her jokes.

The car used for Julia Grant's funeralThe car used for Julia Grant's funeral
The car used for Julia Grant's funeral

“At the age of 24, after making the decision to have transgender surgery, she arranged a family visit and turned up as Julia – with a film crew.

“She told us that she had always felt that something wasn’t quite right; that it dawned on her that she was a woman living in a man’s body, and from then on, I had a sister instead of a brother.

“As a family we supported her decision although we were shocked, especially as she was there with the film crew from the BBC who were making a documentary about her decision and the sex change.”

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The documentary, A Change of Sex, was one of the first programmes to cover transgender issues, and became a multi-part series following Julia for the next 20 years.

Nearly nine million viewers watched the first episode on BBC Two in 1979, titled George and Julia, as she became the first transgender person to share her story on television. The BBC received bags of letters from viewers in support of the show.

Shirley says: “Nobody talked about things like that back then.

“She was so incredibly brave. She had to see a psychiatrist first who thought she had a mental illness. It was just so shocking for people and they didn’t understand. To prove her intent was genuine, Julia had to live as a woman for a year before she would even be considered for any surgery.

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“It was a very difficult time for Julia and in the end, she decided to fund the surgery herself through a private consultant. To pay for the surgery Julia wrote her first book, George and Julia – she got in trouble with the tax man for that! But she managed it and as always did it her way, and a second book Just Julia followed later.”

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Tributes paid to Fylde coast transgender pioneer

Julia went on to live in Yorkshire for a while, working in a ceramic studio during the day and as a DJ at night.

She moved to Manchester in the 1990s and became an activist of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community, helping arrange events such as Mardi Gras to raise money for LGBT charities, which is now known as Manchester Pride.

It was during this time that she met her husband, and the couple moved to France, where they set up a ceramics studio and ran painting sessions.

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Shirley says: “They enjoyed a more sedate lifestyle of coffee mornings and French lessons.

“When they separated, Julia moved to Benidorm in Spain and in 2011 she bought the Queens Hotel, which was known for being a safe space for gay people.”

She was also instrumental in setting up Benidorm Pride with the help of friends, which has developed into a week-long event which now attracts 15,000 revellers.

In 2015, Julia moved back to England to be closer to friends and family after experiencing health problems. She was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2016 and spent the last 12 months in Penwortham.

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She underwent dialysis and suffered a heart attack whilst waiting for a kidney transplant; she decided to stop treatment and spend her final days surrounded by her loved ones at St Catherine’s Hospice.

She died on January 2, aged 64.

Shirley adds: “She was very peaceful and comfortable at St Catherine’s. The staff are so caring and lovely, and she was very settled for the week she was at the hospice. We visited her every day; it’s such a beautiful place.

“Julia helped organise her own funeral, and chose one of her favourite songs, Gloria Gaynor’s I Am What I Am to be played.

“She used to perform it during her cabaret days and it’s the LGBT anthem, so it was very fitting for Julia, after everything she fought for to be who she wanted to be, and was very meaningful to a lot of people who attended her funeral who she had helped and supported throughout her life. It was an incredible turnout, it was standing room only.

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“We covered her coffin with a flag I’d made using the gay pride rainbow colours, and her hearse was in pride colours too.

“Her friends brought a special flower arrangement in the shape of a huge purple Vimto bottle, because that was her favourite drink – which was donated to the hospice with family flowers and donations collected – so the whole occasion was a real celebration of her life and was very colourful. She will be greatly missed.”

Copy supplied by St Catherine's Hospice