Bisexual Visibility Day: Where are the bi men? Turns out, they’ve been everywhere

It’s Bisexual Visibility Day, and this time last year, I asked in Attitude: ‘Where are the bi men?’ As someone who runs bi events from dating to speed friending, I’d noticed a consistent gender gap in attendance (way more women, unusual for queer spaces). Today exists because bi people are so often made to feel invisible, and none more so than bi men, only 12 per cent of whom are out.

However, I wasn’t expecting an answer so fast! Fast forward a year, and I’ve never seen so many hot bi boys taking up space on our screens. Let’s run through some of 2026’s biggest bi-lights.

The Bisexual Big Bang: Heated Rivalry

It started, of course, in January with The Bisexual Big Bang: Heated Rivalry fever gripped the world (over 9 million viewers per episode) with the closeted, sexy, slow burn between our bicon, Russian ice hockey player Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), and Canadian rival Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams).

Notably, Ilya’s bisexuality is explicit, and never in question, from episode one. He knows exactly who he is and his experiences with women are never erased to make his feelings for Shane more believable. When he meets Shane’s parents, Shane explains that Ilya “likes both.” Ilya replies, “It’s true I’ve been with many women, but I have only been in love with one person.”

What makes this show so radical isn’t just its mass popularity beyond queer audiences, but its majority female fan base. That is significant given that one study found that 63 per cent of women would not date a man who’d slept with a man. This is thanks to the gendered biphobic stigma which very much still exists: for bi men, it often manifests as emasculation, leading to accusations that they are secretly gay, and fear of spreading STIs (a hangover from the HIV crisis). Another shows that two thirds of straight women and 11 per cent of gay men say they would be unwilling to date a bisexual man.

Benedict in Bridgerton season 4

Then came season 4 of Bridgerton in March, following bad boy brother Benedict (Luke Thompson), whose bisexuality had been previously hinted at with a threesome scene and covert glances. This time, he comes out more explicitly to the woman he’s fallen for, Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha), whose response is a dream: “Love is always something to be proud of.” Uh.

It’s classic that they picked the most rebellious (and, well, slutty) sibling to be bi, but for any closeted bi guy watching, this is a powerful permission slip to open up to the person closest to you – especially in a show with such mainstream appeal.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this is a class-gap romance, either (Sophie is a maid), because being bi liberates you to think and live more creatively, authentically and intentionally outside of the box. And honestly? This is what makes us such great partners. I said it: bi men are a catch!

Kit Connor and his character in Heartstopper

Summer bought us Heartstopper Forever, the final instalment in the wholesome teen series that really is a queer utopia – more a projection of what could be, than what is. It wrapped up the bisexual arc of Nick Nelson (played by Kit Connor, who is also bi) – beloved for that infamous line, “I’m bi, actually” – who finally gets his happily-ever-after with Charlie Spring (Joe Locke), before heading off to uni.

Our appetite doesn’t seem to be waning: the much anticipated series two of Heated Rivalry is out next April, and an (apparently even spicier) sequel to Red, White and Royal Blue, whose lead Alex Claremont-Diaz is bisexual, is on the horizon.

Plus, several celebrities have opened up, too. From singers Harry Styles’ hinting about his fluidity with that SNL kiss and queer-coded release of ‘Dance No More’ (he’s engaged to Zoe Kravitz) to Sam Fischer reclaiming his bisexuality with the release of ‘This City‘.

This stamp of pop culture approval cannot be underestimated. It reframes something that once meant invisibility, shame and rejection as aspirational and, crucially, desirable – something you might want to be, or be with. And, crucially, it models different ways for a bi man to be authentic in a relationship of any gender, without his identity being erased.

For any queer person who grew up lacking positive (or any) representation, you’ll know how game-changing this is, both for internal and external acceptance. I’ve already heard from several bi men at Bi Bitch events, who say they’ve felt more confident attending, as a result of Heated Rivalry alone.

Frankie Taber comes out on Big Brother

However, none of this waves a magic wand: it takes time to unravel decades of harmful, internalised biphobia – even for Gen Z, who’ve grown up empowered by visibility on social media. You only have to look at last week’s episode of Big Brother, when 23-year-old Frankie Taber came out as bisexual in the diary room, in tears, saying he’d “been in pain for so long now… just the guilt and the shame that I’m carrying from it.” And, he’s not alone: according to Stonewall, almost a fifth of bi men have faced discrimination from within the LGBTQ+ community, over half have anxiety, and two-fifths have felt like life wasn’t worth living.

At a time when LGBTQ+ rights and funding are being rolled back, it’s also important to remember that identity should never be a ‘trend’ that can go out of fashion (just look at the recent cancellation of BBC’s I Kissed A Boy). Biphobia doesn’t vanish because Netflix or HBO gave us a good year on screen. Biphobia doesn’t vanish because Netflix or HBO gave us a good year on screen.

It’s as much about what happens, IRL – and, as bi people, we can’t change things on our own. What counts is what YOU do next. Don’t just watch us: date us, believe us and see us as more than a walking biphobic myth. Not just on Bi Visibility Day, but tomorrow and beyond. Yep, I’ll be watching. See you at the cottage…