John Percy is believed to be the UK's longest surviving HIV patient
The year was 1979. Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister, Sony Walkman players were flying off the shelves and ‘Bright Eyes’ by Art Garfunkel dominated the charts.
“I went home and went straight into my bedroom and I just broke down,” John, now 61, told the Manchester Evening News. “I took all my clothes off and just had a total breakdown. I cried and cried and cried.” Worse was to come. Due to his condition, John would need to have regular blood tests. After one of these, in 1981, he was told he had HIV - one of the first-ever people in Britain to receive such a diagnosis.
The diagnosis blew John's life apart. He claims his family cut him off and he suffered abhorrent abuse over the years, including having his window smashed and his front door set on fire. In spite of the challenges, John, who now lives in Cornwall, went on to have several relationships. He can recall the moment he met a former partner while in a club in Blackpool.“One day, I went to a nightclub and I was just standing on my own. Something from above hit me in the head. I looked up and there was a man standing there asking if I was okay and why I was stood there on my own.
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