Jacqueline Wilson comes out as gay aged 74… as the iconic children’s author reveals she has been living with her partner Trish for 18 years
Iconic children’s author Jacqueline Wilson has come out as gay.
The Girls In Love writer, 74, made the announcement in The Guardian as she admitted it is ‘old news’ to those around her but she wanted to go public ahead of releasing Love Frankie, her new gay love story.
After the dissolution of her marriage to police officer William Millar Wilson, who she wed in 1965 and split from in 2004, Jacqueline met her partner Trish at a party and the couple have lived together for 18 years.
Speaking to the publication, she said: ‘I’ve never really been in any kind of closet. It would be such old news for anybody that has ever known anything much about me. Even the vaguest acquaintance knows perfectly well that we are a couple’.
Jacqueline detailed why she never wrote a book featuring a gay character.
She explained that her books focused on problem children and she never wanted sexuality to be portrayed as ‘a problem’ in her works.
In 2017, typically-private Jacqueline said of her marriage to William: ‘My marriage was OK, but my ex-husband and I didn’t have an enormous amount in common.’
Touching: Iconic children’s author Jacqueline Wilson has come out as gay