The Full Stop

12/12/2025

How can you practice everyday allyship toward LGBTQIA+ childless people so that the emotional labour doesn't rest solely on them? Australian activist Michael Barnett joins us to talk about identity, q***r visibility, childlessness not by choice, and what it means to advocate fiercely for others while holding a private grief.

Listen on your favourite channel and find us on our website (link in the bio)

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10/12/2025

"The biggest thing for me is not that I'm childless, it's that people don't talk to me about it" said Michael in our current episode. He explained that there is an inaccurate assumption that LGBTQ+ people do not want children and therefore it's not discussed. Listen to Michael on the Full Stop podcast on your favourite listening channel. Learn why this hurts and the changes he'd like to see in society.

07/12/2025

Each month we host informal chats in Zoom across time zones for our Full Stop Community members.

We're running a gentle Culture Club chat on Christmas Eve, in which the community share books, podcasts, film or any cultural gems that they enjoyed and felt safe. On Christmas Day, join Michael and Vickie for a friendly chat and support if you need it. On New Year's Day, Sarah is leading reflections and intentions, with support from Michael and Berenice. The time is always flexible and there's space to talk about what's on your mind in a space place with people who get it.

In the New Year, we'll be sharing our new podcast programme which Community members are welcome to join live. We have podcast chat spaces along with wellbeing spaces and space to share your stuff and celebrate wins, and space to grieve.

Join us with your first month free, via our website. Fill in the form, and Michael will send over your personal link where our moderators, us and a group of new friends are waiting to say hello.

04/12/2025

In Memory of Nina Thair

Many of you will have met Nina — in person or online — and will be deeply saddened by the news of her death last month.

Sarah and Berenice first met her through and at in-person meet-ups. She joined all three of us at our post-Storyhouse Childless party in London in 2023, where we shared real hugs at last, and gifted her a Full Stop one — pink, of course.

Nina approached us when we began our podcast series on the hidden stories of childlessness, asking if she could share her voice. As with all our recordings, we wanted the experience to feel safe and comfortable, knowing the courage it takes to speak so openly.

We found a time that worked for her and for Danielle, her dear friend and ours. Having them together was a joy, and many of you have shared how meaningful that episode was.

Recordings of voices always carry a special significance, and now even more so as we remember Nina and all the ways she brought kindness, honesty, and awareness into our lives. We have always vowed to keep these recordings as a legacy, and this episode now holds an extra-special meaning.

You can find Nina’s voice in our podcast library on our website and on your usual listening platforms, where you’ll also find a link to her blog.

On Saturday, we gathered in our Community to raise a glass to Nina and to thank her for being part of our lives. Thank you, dear friend.

03/12/2025

03/12/2025

FREE WEBINAR: GATEWAY ELDERWOMEN: Celebrating our light!
Sunday 14th December, 7am (Sydney time)

We'd love you to join us!

Registration here - https://gateway-women.com/register-now-celebrating-our-light-on-saturday-13th-december-with-the-nomocrones/

03/12/2025

The 2nd-8th December is Grief Awareness Week and in the childless community, we hold grief throughout our lives. It changes, but it doesn't go away. It's the price we pay for the love we had but could not share with the children we longed for.

We can direct some of that love towards ourselves. One of the loving things we can do for ourselves is to plan ceremonies of all sizes and types to mourn our losses, to express how we feel about them.

If I can help you with this, either as a counsellor or as a celebrant, then please do get in touch: [email protected].

And grief can be easier to carry wth the support of others, so do thnk about some of the resources out there for us: https://worldchildlessweek.net/resources-1

Thanks to World Childless Week for creating this list.

01/12/2025

In episode 80 of the Full Stop podcast we are joined by activist Michael Barnett to explore identity, q***r visibility, childlessness not by choice, and what it means to advocate fiercely for others while holding private grief.

Michael talks about his decades of activism, the journey toward self-acceptance, the impact of q***r allyship, and the often-unseen loneliness of being childless within both LGBTQIA+ and wider communities.

Michael Barnett is a Melbourne-based activist, writer and community advocate. He has spent decades campaigning for LGBTQIA+ rights in Australia, supporting multicultural q***r communities, and raising awareness of youth wellbeing and su***de prevention. Michael was awarded an Order of Australia Medal and the Monash LGBT Leadership Award (along with his husband, Gregory) for their extensive community work.

Listen to the podcast on your favourite listening app or via our website. Here's all the information you need to connect with us
https://bio.site/thefullstop

29/11/2025

Dates for your diary from the Full Stop. We will be recording the podcast on 7th December when our Full Stop Community friends are invited to the audience.

Our monthly Culture Club chat takes place on 24th December when our members gather at 5pm GMT to talk about books, films, podcasts or televsion they've enjoyed and we grow our BookShop list. On 25th Michael and Vickie will be holding a holiday chat at 10am GMT (that's evening for Australia) and we'll be back over New Year on USA time zones for more conversations.

It all takes place in our Full Stop Community for childless not by choice people, which costs £10 per month with your first month on us for free and no contracts, just pay as you go.

To join us pop a DM or head to our website: https://bio.site/thefullstop

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21/11/2025

How have assumptions about your identity or circumstances shaped the way people respond, or don’t respond, to your childlessness?

19/11/2025

“I’d like to think that when I say I’m in a relationship with a man that people don’t have to think you’re a gay man in a gay relationship. You know, I’m just married to Gregory.” — Michael Barnett

In our latest episode, activist Michael Barnett opens up about the loneliness, assumptions and invisibility that q***r childless people face — even inside our own community.

Listen to the podcast on your favourite listening app or via our website. Here's all the information you need to connect with us
https://bio.site/thefullstop