What does it mean to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or intersex within social contexts that present simplistic, often banal, definitions of gender and presume heterosexuality as the norm? Various coalitions of lesbian, feminist, gay, and more recently gender ambiguity liberation movements have sought to address these questions from an activist stance. The landscape of psychotherapeutic theory as it applies to gender and sexuality has the chance of being reshaped by over three decades of activism and liberation. This article seeks to contribute to a transactional analytic framework for understanding and working with gender and sexuality by referring to contemporary ideas from outside our discipline, in particular, queer theory. The discussion involves a queer examination and critique of selected transactional analysis literature and a guide to a transactional analytic therapy informed by queer concepts for clients of nonheteronormative sex/gender/desire.

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In November 1987 a bronze highly stylized animal head was shown to me in my capacity as Curator of Newport Museum (figs. 1–3). The head which appeared to be of late Iron Age date is described below. The owner agreed to lend the piece to the Museum for conservation. The investigations included two separate metal analyses, carried out independently by Dr J. P. Northover at the University of Oxford and by R. Jones at the University of Wales, Cardiff. A black bituminous substance from horn cores on the head was analysed by C. Heron also at Cardiff; these analyses are reported below (Appendices 1–3). Additional advice was given by Dr H. N. Savory F.S.A., formerly Keeper of Archaeology at the National Museum of Wales, and by Dr I. M. Stead F.S.A. at the British Museum. Replicas were made for Newport Museum and the British Museum before the head was returned to the owner in August 1988. In July 1989, the head was purchased at auction by the Newport Museum and Art Gallery for £5,800 (Sotheby's: Antiquities,Monday 10 July and Tuesday 11 July 1989, Lot 403).