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LOTL Lounge S8E6 – Through the Haze with Beccy Cole, Queer Herstory, and Drag King Realness

Sep 14, 2026 Season 8 Episode 6

LOTL Media

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Welcome back to the LOTL Lounge – this is our space, this is our time!

This Episode

Country music powerhouse Beccy Cole on heartbreak, healing, and her brand new album Through the Haze
How Val Eastwood’s daring 1950s Melbourne coffee lounge changed everything for queer community - with writer Mara Lucas
The incredible, overlooked story of Sandra Willson, lesbian activist and the movement that freed her – with historian Tamsin Martin
Emmanuel on taking Drag King theatre global, the power of “Trophy Boys,” and why finding your queer creative crew matters

In This Show

🎤 Beccy Cole: Through the Haze and Out the Other Side

Silke and Beccy dig deep into the raw stories behind her new album: heartbreak (and the broken mind, not just the heart), therapy, and finding the funny in the hard stuff (04:30).
The realities and relief of coming out in the country music world (07:10), surviving public breakups—and why she now calls herself “girl sober” and “do not disturbian” (10:04).
Touring with her all-female, mostly-queer band, giving up drinking, and the power of female support — plus, why sometimes a puppy is the best company of all (12:02).
Special performance: “The Gardener and the Flower” — a song about secure love, learned lessons, and roles we all play in relationships (21:18).

Read the article on lotl.com and listen to the BONUS episode - the full uncut version of the interview

🏳️‍🌈 Queer Herstory

Sandra Wilson: The Forgotten Chapter

Historian Tamsin Martin shares the heartbreaking, inspiring life of Sandra Willson - a lesbian unjustly institutionalised for 18 years, whose case united feminists, gay lib, and abolitionists (24:30).
How activism across communities freed Sandra, led to real-world change, and what her legacy means today (31:20).

Read the article on lotl.com

Val Eastwood: Coffee, Courage, and Queer Futures

Writer Mara Lucas introduces Val Eastwood - glamorous, unapologetically butch, and founder of Melbourne’s first major queer café (63:29).
The magic of coffee lounges in 1950s queer life, cross-city pioneers, and why Val’s legacy is still felt on Swanston Street and beyond.

Read the article on lotl.com

👑 Drag King Corner: The Future Is Now

Artist Emmanuel on why drag kings are finally getting their moment—from “Trophy Boys” on the Victorian curriculum to a new wave of gender-bending theatre sweeping the globe (47:02).
Making work for (and with) your community, turning comedy into healing, and how a DIY, grassroots approach breaks through gatekeepers.
Emmanuel’s advice to emerging queer artists: build your creative family, just do the thing, and yes—slide into those DMs! (57:39)
Shout-out to Minus18, empowering queer youth through events like Queer Formal (01:00:06)

Read the Drag King Corner on lotl.com

Featured Music

“The Gardener and the Flower” – Beccy Cole (21:18)
“Shovel” – Beccy Cole (01:01:25)

Purchase Beccy's new EP and check out her 2026 tour dates here

Why Listen?

Join us for moving queer history, belly laughs, tough truths, amazing women & non-binary creatives, and proof that our community just keeps finding new ways to shine. Whether you’re 15 or 80, you’ll hear voices to relate to, stories you won’t hear elsewhere, and reminders you’re never alone.

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