Experience: I went to the same nightclub for 1,000 nights

I only drink tap water when I'm there, but I get a high from the music and dancing

When I was seven, there was something on television about a gay politician. My mum, with great vitriol, said: That's disgusting." I thought, I had better not tell her about my views on the matter because she might reject me. I was too frightened.

I knew I was gay then, but I didn't come out until I was 30. While I kept my sexuality a secret, music meant a lot to me: it had an allure that I felt certain men also had - but in both cases I couldn't quite express it.