Olly Alexander hits out at UK government's anti‑trans rhetoric ahead of huge fundraiser for trans community

Pop star and LGBTQ+ activist Olly Alexander has sharply criticised the UK government’s escalating anti‑trans rhetoric, hours before he is due to lead a star‑studded benefit concert in London tonight. Speaking in interviews ahead of the event, Alexander accused the Labour government of “cowardice” and “spinelessness” over its recent actions affecting trans people, including restricting access to puberty blockers and hormone treatment for trans youth.

The concert, Trans Mission Live, will take place this evening at the OVO Arena Wembley. It brings together an exceptionally high‑profile line‑up of artists and allies, including Sugababes, Wolf Alice, Romy, Sophie Ellis‑Bextor, Christine and the Queens, Beverley Knight, Beth Ditto, Adam Lambert, Kae Tempest, MNEK, Kate Nash, Bimini, Fat Tony, Tom Grennan, Sink the Pink, and many more.

Alongside the musical acts, a host of prominent cultural and political figures are set to appear at the arena tonight, such as Sir Ian McKellen, Zack Polanski, Munroe Bergdorf, Nicola Coughlan, Grace Campbell, Shon Faye, and others, adding significant moral weight to the event. 

Funds raised will support Not A Phase, a trans‑led charity working to improve the lives of trans adults in the UK, and the Good Law Project, known for its strategic legal challenges promoting equality and accountability.

The concert originated after hundreds of musicians and industry professionals signed a public letter supporting the trans community following the UK Supreme Court ruling that the Equality Act’s definition of “woman” refers only to biological sex. Artists including Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, Sam Smith, Florence Welch and many others supported the statement, which later evolved into tonight’s large‑scale fundraising event organised by Alexander in collaboration with Mighty Hoopla. 

Speaking to The Guardian, Alexander said the Labour government had shown “cowardice” by failing to take a principled stance on trans rights, comparing today’s rhetoric to the anti‑LGBTQ+ messaging of the Thatcher era. “Some of the things that are said about trans people are literally lifted from what was said about gay men back in the '80s,” he noted, warning that transphobia is “the cousin of homophobia, which is the cousin of misogyny”. 

As anticipation builds ahead of tonight’s show, Alexander has said he hopes the concert will serve not only as a fundraiser but as a “beacon” for the trans community, sending a clear and celebratory message of solidarity at a time he describes as increasingly hostile. The event is expected to run for several hours and is billed as both a moment of resistance and a celebration of queer joy.