Martyn Butler OBE - 30 July 1954-21 February 2026

It is with sadness that HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust announces that sad passing of Martyn Butler, who did so much to serve the dying during the early eighties pandemic.

The pioneering HIV and LGBT rights campaigner Martyn Butler, who co-founded the Terrence Higgins Trust, has died suddenly. Butler, originally from Newport, was instrumental in creating Europe's first HIV-response organisation in 1982 following the death of his friend, Terry Higgins.

Butler moved to London in the 1970s, working in advertising and entertainment. On the capital's gay scene, he met fellow Welshman Terry Higgins, and the pair later worked together at the legendary Heaven nightclub. After Higgins became the first named person to die of an AIDS-related illness in the UK, Butler joined forces with Higgins's partner, Rupert Whitaker, to establish the Terrence Higgins Trust.

His early contributions were foundational. He organised the charity's first fundraiser, raising £400, spoke at the inaugural UK AIDS conference, designed its first leaflet, and in 1983 used his own home telephone number as the nation's first AIDS helpline. For five decades, he remained a dedicated supporter of the trust and a campaigner for LGBT rights.

His immense contribution was recognised with an OBE from Queen Elizabeth II in June 2022, and he received a Rainbow Honours 'Lifetime Achievement Award' the same year. His experiences during the early years of the epidemic were later dramatised in Russell T. Davies's acclaimed television series, It's A Sin.

Paying tribute, his brother, Guy Hewett, said: "He saw it as a duty to inform the country, and in particular the gay community, of what little information there was on HIV and AIDS in the early 1980s. He took great joy in seeing what Terrence Higgins Trust has become and stayed involved to the very end."

Richard Angell OBE, Chief Executive of the Terrence Higgins Trust, said: "Terrence Higgins Trust literally wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Martyn. From our first fundraiser, speaking engagement, and leaflet to marching at Cardiff Pride... Martyn has walked with us every step of the way."

Martyn Butler is survived by his mother, Diane, and his siblings Guy, Andrew, and Jacqueline.

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