Founder of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, Ally Van Tillo, dies
Ally died peacefully on 30 August 2026, with his husband and sister by his side
By Aaron Sugg
Founder of the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, Ally Van Tillo, formerly known as Alastair Hume, has died at home surrounded by those closest to him.
Ally’s husband, Ian Van Tillo, announced his death on social media in an emotional tribute, writing: “Utterly broken, I must announce the loss of my beloved husband Ally Van Tillo.”
Ally died peacefully at 1:15pm on 30 August 2026, with his husband, Ally’s sister Vivienne Skey and their partner Tobias Allen by his side.
Ally Van Tillo’s husband pays tribute
Ian also revealed that, in his final days, Ally had been honoured by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, receiving a tongue-in-cheek “sainthood” that reflected his sense of humour and character.
He wrote that Ally was named “Saint Linguine on the Lung,” “Cuntilious Protector of the Dead Faggot Blanket,” and “Patron Saint of the Unholy Trinity: Gin, Spangles and Fags.”
Ian ended his tribute by asking people to share photographs and memories of Ally, and to tag him when doing so. He signed off with the words: “Goodbye my love.”
UK AIDS Memorial Quilt
Van Tillo’s legacy lives on through the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt, a powerful community artwork commemorating people who died from HIV/AIDS. Inspired by the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt in the United States, Van Tillo began coordinating a UK version after returning from San Francisco to Edinburgh in the late 1980s.
The original NAMES Project Quilt began in San Francisco in 1985, when activist Cleve Jones created the project to commemorate people who had died during the AIDS crisis. Van Tillo brought the idea to Britain.
Exhibitions
The Quilt has since been exhibited at venues across the UK. One of its most significant public displays took place in June 1994 at Hyde Park Corner in London, where UK and US panels were shown alongside pieces designed by British fashion creatives as part of an event titled Quilts of Love.
In 2014, seven UK HIV support charities came together to form the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt Partnership, which took responsibility for preserving, caring for and exhibiting the collection, while continuing to honour the lives represented by it.
Most recently, the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt was displayed at Tate Modern in London. The exhibition highlighted the Quilt’s importance as both a memorial and a major work of community art, with panels created to commemorate loved ones who died from AIDS.
Where is the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt?
Next, the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt will return to Scotland, where it will be displayed in full for the first time this September at Glasgow’s Tramway, running from 12 September to 4 October.
Today, the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt commemorates more than 600 people who died from HIV and AIDS and comprises 335 individual panels.