Forty-seven personal items belonging to trailblazing transgender activist April Ashley are now on display at the Museum of Liverpool.
Born in Liverpool’s Norris Green district in 1935, Ashley achieved fame as a Vogue model and actress. In 1960, she became only the second Briton to undergo male-to-female gender reassignment surgery.
Personal Possessions
The exhibition features glamorous jewelry alongside keepsakes from Wales and souvenirs from San Diego, California. The collection also displays causes close to Ashley, including her work with Greenpeace and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), alongside a red and gold AIDS ribbon badge.
“It’s really nice to think about the different facets of someone and to see them as a more rounded individual,” said lead curator Kay Jones.
Jones said the display captures both Ashley’s everyday life and the glittering items she was known for wearing.
“There’s the everyday persona and life and objects that she’s kept and cherished that really reflect that, but then there’s also the lovely glittery jewellery which we all love and she is synonymous with,” Jones added.
Estate Clearance Archive
Bev Ayre, executor of Ashley’s estate, explained that clearing the flat required quick decisions about her belongings.
Proceeds from the auction support charities Ashley backed, as well as the maintenance of her personal archive. Ayre described Ashley as self-taught, widely read, and possessing striking beauty and charisma.
“I’d say she was a pioneer in many respects. I think it’s very timely to tell April’s story,” said Ayre.
Cultural Impact and Recognition
Ashley’s career spanned decades across Europe and the United States, including performances at Paris’s Cabaret Le Carousel and modeling work in London. Her social circle included prominent cultural figures such as David Bowie, Boy George, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Omar Sharif, and Peter O’Toole.
Jones said the historical significance of Ashley’s journey gained widespread attention following her 1960 operation in Casablanca, Morocco.
“These things couldn’t be talked about at the time, so it gave so many people a ray of hope. In a way that is still resonant today with the massive challenges faced by the trans and non-binary communities everywhere,” Jones said.
Ashley later obtained identity documents reflecting her female gender and received an MBE in 2012 for her transgender community advocacy. In 2005, she gained legal recognition as female under the Gender Recognition Act, passing away in December 2021 at the age of 86.
The exhibition runs until April 12 in the Museum of Liverpool atrium.
“They were mad, wonderful times. Why not enjoy them? That’s always been my philosophy,” Ashley said in an archived interview.
