Rosie Pentreath

Rosie Pentreath used the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity to move back to her hometown and start a passion project. Pentreath, who had been living in London, left the city for St Just, Cornwall. Growing up in the small town had its challenges: as a teen, she was nervous about how people at home would react to her coming out as a lesbian. Pentreath didn't end up coming out until her 20s, after she had moved to London. Now, however, Pentreath has found support in St Just and has even started a podcast called OUTcast. “It was internalized shame that stopped me from coming out, I prejudged everyone and assumed their response would be negative. But, in fact, everyone has been really supportive. I feel proud to have come full circle and to represent LGBTQ+ people here in St Just,” Pentreath recently told Cornwall Live. Pentreath has previously worked for media outlets such as Classic FM, Reader's Digest UK, and BBC Music Magazine. The inaugural episode of OUTcast Podcast was released in September, 2021. The show, which Pentreath hosts herself, shares “coming out stories from engaging, courageous and inspiring LGBTQ+ people from all over the world.” Since the podcast's inception, Pentreath has interviewed people such as Victor Iringere, a gay man from Nigeria who sought asylum in the United Kingdom and now lives in England. Other guests include transgender Anglican priest Sarah Jones, queer sex worker and author Tilly Lawless, and singer-songwriter Libby Pentreath.