Culture

LGBT journalist Dean Eastmond to be remembered with evening of his favourite acts

Sep 19 2017
Written by Benjamin Butterworth

A 21-year-old gay man who died after a battle with cancer is to be remembered in a special event.

British journalist Dean Eastmond was fighting with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare bone and soft tissue cancer, until passing away on September 3.

Now his favourite acts, including Years & Years singer Olly Alexander, Will Joseph Cook and Sink The Pink, are taking part in a special celebration of his life.

When @charliehidestv knows you’re pretty much bed bound so comes to chill with you for the day and this OBVIOUSLY ends up happening ❤️ pic.twitter.com/I8II5bFygO

— Dean Eastmond (@deanvictorr) August 28, 2017

Dean was editor and founder of LGBT magazine HISKIND and before his death, he wrote extensively and candidly about living with cancer as a young gay man.

Recalling the moment he was diagnosed, Eastmond wrote: “Fickle and naive, being told there and then that this wasn’t a broken rib, but a cyst or a tumour saw a terrified Dean breaking down in the waiting area, unable to decide whether to call his boyfriend or mother first.

“After a needle biopsy, I was diagnosed.”

He was inundated with supporters after sharing the news of his diagnosis, amassing celebrity followers among those touched by his journey.

Singers Dua Lipa and Olly Alexander, Guardian columnist Owen Jones and a string of Drag Race stars supported him during treatment.

A special night in his memory, HISKIND presents DEAN, will capture “everything Dean stood for and was passionate about, from live bands, vogue dancers, spoken word, drag, live artists and live catwalk/models”.

The event – which still has tickets on sale – is to raise money for his family and his chosen charities, Teenage Cancer Trust, Clic Sargent and Sarcoma UK.

Those who are unable to attend the event can watch a livestream via the HISKIND Facebook page.

LGBT journalist Dean Eastmond to be remembered with evening of his favourite acts