As more young people embrace sex with both men AND women… take our quiz to find out how bisexual you are
Survey reveals bisexuals outnumber gays and lesbians in UK for the first time - we take a closer look at the sexual revolution
KRISTEN STEWART may have been speaking for the majority when she responded to questions about her sexuality.
The 26-year-old declared: “There are going to be a whole lot more people who don’t think it’s necessary to figure out if you’re gay or straight. It’s like, ‘Do your thing’.”
Along with celebrities such as Cara Delevingne, Johnny Depp’s ex Amber Heard and Miley Cyrus, the Twilight actress is one of an increasing number of young people who no longer choose to define their sexuality within what are now seen as “traditional” limits.
The Office for National Statistics said this week the number of people in the UK identifying as bisexual is up from 230,000 in 2012 to 334,000 last year.
Among 16 to 24-year-olds, 1.8 per cent said they were bisexual, compared with 1.5 per cent who said they were gay or lesbian. This is the first time there have been more bisexuals than homosexuals in any age group.
Meanwhile, recent YouGov polls demonstrate that up to half of the young adults in the UK do not claim to be 100 per cent heterosexual, while many who classify themselves as such have nonetheless had same-sex experiences.
Terms such as “gay” or “lesbian” are no longer seen as definitive.
Instead, terms like “pansexual” (attracted to others regardless of sex or gender) or “homoromantic” (enjoy physical relationships with both sexes but reserve emotional relationships for their own) are preferred.
This feels like something to be celebrated.
In the past, when LGBT people suffered oppression under the law, identification as, for example, “gay” was an essential means of claiming membership of a community which was in the process of demanding its rights.
The fact that young people now feel less inclined to label themselves sexually suggests the extent to which those freedoms have been achieved.
Equally, bisexuality has previously been stigmatised as suggesting indecisiveness, cowardice or, simply, GREED.
But perhaps we are seeing a more adventurous generation, whose reluctance to categorise their sexuality indicates a newly liberated spirit.
This might feel like a brave new world but historically gender categorisation was actually a great deal more fluid than we might believe.
In pagan Scandinavia, a woman could choose to live as a man and enjoy the same rights in law, while in 16th Century Rome, same-sex relations between older and younger men were accepted.
Renaissance England saw gender as a function of power, not biology — both Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I referred to themselves as “princes”.
In exploring original ways of understanding sexuality, young people are perhaps responding to the unprecedented amount of information about choices now available online, exploring the possibilities of a highly individualised erotic life as never before.
In the past meeting same-sex partners outside large cities was difficult, if not actively dangerous, but now dating apps make experimentation possible with a swipe of the screen.
When I wrote my thriller Maestra, I wanted to create a female protagonist who was fresh and modern, unapologetic about her sexuality.
But making her “bisexual” was never a conscious choice.
Rather, it just felt entirely natural that she would enjoy sex, sometimes group sex, with both men and women.
She’s a millennial, and along with an increasing number of her peers feels no need to explain why she just wants to “do her thing”.
Maybe we’re seeing a new kind of sexual revolution, in which pleasure is no longer boxed up and labelled — which seems a joyful thing indeed.
Lisa’s erotic best-seller Maestra came out earlier this year under pen-name LS Hilton.
IT'S NOT JUST THE YOUNGSTERS...
OLLY MURS: Split from long-term girlfriend in 2015. Singer told The Sun in March this year he is “maybe 20 per cent” gay.
MEL B: Spice Girl revealed in 2014 she had a four-year relationship with a woman before marrying her husband.
ALAN CUMMING: Actor wed husband in 2012 but says: “I still define myself as a bisexual. I’m attracted to the female form.”
ANGELINA JOLIE: Open about past relationships with women. Says she “probably would have married” ex Jenny Shimizu.
How bi are you? Take the quiz…
MORE young people than ever are identifying as bisexual – but are you still confused about whether you swing both ways?
Take this fun test by website then check the bottom of the page to find out how you have scored – or more to the point, who you should be scoring with.
❶ If you’re watching a love scene in a straight romantic movie, do you focus on either the man or the woman?
A. Yes
B. No, I enjoy watching both
C. I don’t watch romantic movies
❷ What kind of science fiction character would you prefer to be?
A. An android
B. A shapeshifter
C. An alien
❸ Let’s suppose you believe in God. Is God a man or a woman?
A. A man
B. Both a man and a woman
C. Neither
❹ Have you ever cross-dressed, i.e. have you worn clothes that are only considered appropriate for the other gender?
A. Yes, fancy dress
B. Yes, in private
C. No
❺ When you hear people talk about “a love triangle”, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?
A. A relationship consisting of three partners
B. Hot, steamy sex
C. Geometry
❻ What does “polyamory” mean?
A. The same as promiscuity – sleeping around
B. Openly loving more than one person
C. A musical instrument
❼ You catch your roommate sleeping with someone of the same sex – how do you react?
A. I keep watching
B. I ask them if I can join them
C. I freak out and chase the intruder away.
❽ You meet an attractive member of the same sex in a gay bar. What happens next?
A. I ignore that person.
B. I chat up the hottie and we start dancing
C. I never go to gay bars
❾ Two of your best friends get married to each other. How do you congratulate them?
A. I hug both the bride and the groom
B. I kiss both the bride and the groom
C. I shake both the bride and groom’s hands
❿ After a drunken night you wake up next to a good-looking member of the same sex, who is still sleeping. How long do you hang around?
A. I take a shower and stay for breakfast
B. I would stay all day if I could
C. I slide out of bed, put on my clothes and run like hell
⓫ What would you do if a strip club opened across the street from your home?
A. Nothing, I couldn’t care less.
B. I would visit the opening party
C. I would protest
⓬ And finally . . . are you bisexual?
A. No
B. Yes
C. I have no idea
Your results…
MOSTLY As: You’re as straight as they come.
MOSTLY Bs: You’re probably part of the growing bisexual community – congratulations.
MOSTLY Cs: It sounds like you’re not particularly interested in either gender.