Quotes from Tan France

Being 'out and proud' can feel like a real luxury of Western culture, where people are often white and see existing white gay people in their culture. That's a kind of privilege people don't know they possess.

As a gay man, there are certain places that I avoid. When I go to China, I lie and pretend I'm not married, which is really sad - I leave my ring at home. But I'm not willing to risk my safety in a country that could cause me no end of problems or where it's illegal to be gay. I'm very aware of the places I can travel to safely and where I cannot.

I worked as a receptionist in England for a couple of years whilst I was building up my business. I decided to take a massive pay cut from my full-time job and work as a receptionist so I could make my own business work.

A lot of men and women don't like to prioritize fashion.

My boyfriend dumped me because I let myself go. And not just with my clothing, in every facet of life.

We have the luxury in the West of being able to say, 'Yeah, absolutely, we're progressive, we've moved forward with the gay community.' We haven't in a lot of other countries. My people from Pakistan - I know we haven't moved forward.

I was always fascinated by clothes, and I think I've had clothing in my blood for as long as I can remember.

I hadn't seen any people like me on TV before, and I definitely didn't want to be the first one. I didn't want that responsibility on my head.

If I think something is heinous, but the person feels amazing in it, who am I to critique it? If they think that those bell-bottom, cropped, shredded jeans look good, then good for them!

I love a wild animal print. Not just a leopard print - I'm talking about a tiger or zebra print, too.

I was raised in a very Middle Eastern household, and modesty was very important, and dressing to not be desirable or provocative was very important.

A leather jacket always makes you look cooler, sometimes more chic, and it elevates your look to make you look like you've purchased something expensive to set yourself apart.

It's not called 'Queer Eye For the Straight Guy' now for a reason. We want to be able to help more and more people, and why wouldn't we help women, and why wouldn't we help a trans man? I want to help as many different groups as physically possible with this show.

I thought I wanted to be a machinist. I thought that was the most glamorous job in the world.

As a kid, we got a lot of American shows - usually a New York or L.A.-based show full of glitz and glamour - and I assumed that that was what life was like in the U.S. So, when I was 17, I decided to go to America.

I learned to cook when I was ten, and I could cook a whole meal for my family by thirteen - and I'm talking the chapatis as well.

I think that we in the West expect people to adapt to our culture very, very quickly when they come to our country. But when we go over to someone else's, I don't think we are willing to meet them halfway like we expect them to meet us. I think having cultural sensitivity is a lot more important than we realize.

Each of us is living our own private journey, and the more we know about each other, the healthier and happier the world will be.

If you have items in your closet that you haven't worn in a year, then you're never going to wear them.

I was terrified of being on camera. I was worried that whatever I would say, people would assume I'm speaking for every Muslim, every Pakistani, or every Middle Eastern person. That's a lot of pressure. But it also got me excited about what could be done, because I am a representative for people who are underrepresented.

I love that Tom Daley's talking about surrogacy.

I would have to say Kelly Clarkson's 'Because of You' would be the song I would associate with coming out. It's really emotive, and personally, it reminds me of my father.

When I speak, I don't speak for myself; I don't have the luxury of a Caucasian to be able to speak for myself. I speak for a whole community, and I represent so many different communities that that felt like a lot of pressure.

I believe that our show is hopefully a beacon of hope for certain people who think that they have been forgotten, that they don't have the support or representation. We're there for them and also to remind people that even though we are so divided, just a very open conversation can bridge that divide.