Rimming, Representation, Queer Art: Russell Tovey Opens Up About Doc on Painter David Robilliard

Still, filling in those gaps is tricky, with the clock running and the pain of decades-old anguish requiring delicacy on the part of those who, like himself, want to know more about the artists working at the peak of the AIDS crisis.

Tovey said, "I feel like we're running out of time to record the stories with people who were there that knew [such artists] and can speak clearly about that time."

"It's such a sensitive thing to approach people who lived through it.... It's still painful, it's still terrifying, and it's still very triggering for so many people."

That said, in other ways the world has progressed to a place that's arguably more open.

"There are artists now that are so out and proud. The imagery within their work is so queer," Tovey observed, whereas "artists from the '70s, '80s, and earlier were making this work, but it was hidden."

"There was also a certain legality with some of these works that were being drawn or photographed. I heard a story about Andy Warhol's dick pics that he was taking. He could have gone to prison if they'd been intercepted. If someone would've seen the fact that he was sharing these images, which were art, he would've been arrested."

"These works just existing in the world is political," Tovey went on to exclaim, "and I fucking love that."

Along with that, Tovey evinced an awareness of history repeating, saying, "I'm of that generation [where] if they thought you were queer, the teachers weren't allowed to discuss it with you" thanks to Section 28, Britain's so-called "no homo promo" law.

"You came out of school feeling already ostracized by society, already not accepted, didn't know where you fit in," Tovey said, reflecting on the effects of the '80s-era law. "All of these things now feel like that could seep back into education."

His passion for art and history are such that Tovey is willing to go "hardcore" in the name of authenticity and honesty – even though, he said, "I think of my mom listening to the podcast. My mom's very open-minded, but if you'd start talking about hardcore stuff on the podcast, which I do, I know that my mom might find it a bit like, 'All right, calm down.'"

"And that's great," the actor said. "That's part of it."

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