Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters and Elton John have a conversation in today’s Observer Music Monthly magazine:

JS: We played a show in Ireland last summer and I had the weirdest experience: this mother, father and [18-year-old] son came backstage … They were asking for my autograph and my boyfriend, Chris, was there and at one point – I can’t remember what we were talking about exactly – I mentioned my boyfriend and they got very indignant and said: ‘Not in front of our son.’ I said: ‘You’re talking to a gay person here and you’re backstage at my concert. It’s not an issue and if you have a problem with it you really shouldn’t be here.’ I looked at the son straight in the face and said: ‘Homosexuality isn’t a crime.’

EJ: What did they do?

JS: I smiled at them and the mother apologised. It totally caught me off-guard but I found it so alarming that I actually looked at the kid and said: ‘Your father is not right.’ It was such a weird moment.

EJ: You are very brave; I probably wouldn’t have had the balls to do that.