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'Sue Perkins: Perfectly Legal': How comedian dealt with mantle of 'most influential lesbian'

Sue Perkins claims, 'Being lesbian is only about the 47th most interesting thing about me'

They say, the closer you are to death, the more alive you feel. But, with Sue Perkins the case was a bit different, "the closer she was to death, the closer she felt it." Netflix's docuseries 'Sue Perkins: Perfectly Legal' captures Perkins trying to escape her middle-age crisis by doing a bunch of extremes. She hooks up with various people, joins a death cult, gets disgustingly drunk, and goes on in the search of men who have sex with donkeys. 

The miniseries sparked the interest of the viewers in Perkins' personal life, making everyone wonder how she came out as gay to the world and how the comedian handled the pressure of being the most 'influential lesbian'. Keep reading to explore all about Perkins. In the meantime, you can explore more documentaries like, 'The Murder of Gabby Petito: What Really Happened', 'They're freaks', and 'Luckiest Girl Alive'.

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Who is Sue Perkins?

Sue Elizabeth Perkins is famously known as a comedian, actress, writer, TV presenter, and broadcaster. Besides these, she is also a grade 8 level reached musician who has expertise in piano. The comedian is the eldest among all three siblings. She was born in East Dulwich, Croydon London. 

Perkins got a push in her career after she met her comedian partner Mel Giedroyc at the University of Cambridge. They together wrote many pieces for their performance at the Edinburgh Fringe festival. Ever since then, the duo of 'Mel and Sue' became a common name to many comedy lovers. They together hosted 'Light Lunch', 'Late Lunch', and 'Great British Bake Off'. Moreover, the duo's success was documented in 'Sue Perkins Comedy Greats: The Entertainer and Funny Women: The Mel and Sue Story'.

How Sue Perkins came out as a lesbian?

Perkins claims, "Being lesbian is only about the 47th most interesting thing about me." Perkins realized her sexuality when she was in her 20s. Before coming to the realization, Perkins was in a six-year-long relationship with her then-boyfriend Rob, who later admitted to being gay. According to LGBT Health, the comedian came out as a lesbian in 2002 with the help of her ex-girlfriend Rhona Cameron after she revealed Perkins being lesbian on ITV's 'I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here'. Perkins confessed to being confused when she came out. The comedian says, "I just thought 'I just want to throw up', And I was in love." The comedian claims that exploring her sexuality seemed to her like hitting adolescence for the second time. By the time she was 28, she came out to her parents. 

Having a philosophical sense of humor helped Perkins to handle the pressure of coming out to the world. The 53-year-old thought of spreading the message of her sexuality in a funny way, through her comedy, as the comedian thought it to be the best way to get the news across. Perkins is considered to be UK's best-loved TV presenter and most influential lesbian. However, underneath the mask of a happy face, Perkins held struggled with her confidence issues. Well, her relationship with Kate Williams pushed her into depression. However, she overcame the pain with the help of therapy. And, the idea of realizing to be a better and clearer person after therapy helped to pen down 'Heading Out'. Moreover, the comedian wrote down her life story in her memoir 'Spectacles'. 

The comedian became the victim of online harassment in 2015 which led her to leave social media. But, she later returned back on social platforms. Perkins handled the fame of being the most influential lesbian with the help of her humorous skill and grounded personality. As of now, the comedian is in a relationship with TV presenter Anna Richardson.

'Sue Perkins: Perfectly Legal' documentary is available to watch on Netflix.