A MAN who changed sex after being born a woman has won his final battle against discrimination by marrying his long-term partner.

For many years marriage seemed an impossible dream for Dr Stephen Whittle OBE and his partner Sarah Rutherford, 45.

Stephen, 50, is a female-to-male transsexual who was born female and has had surgery to become a man.

Now, after years of campaigning, the law has been changed for transgender people, allowing Stephen to be recognised as a man and paving the way for marriage.

He said: "We both thought it would be the one thing they wouldn't change. We thought we would get recognition but being able to marry seemed impossible - you never, ever thought about it as even holding down a job down seemed impossible at times."

Stephen said that as well as being one of the happiest days of his life, his marriage to Sarah may also be the first transsexual wedding in the country.

Family

He added: "Getting married wasn't about politics, it was about family, but without the politics it would never have happened. There was a moment of truth when we finally got our marriage certificate - I held it up and everybody cheered, it was terrific," he said.

Stephen, of Mauldeth Road, Heaton Mersey, Stockport, helped to form the Manchester TVTS Group and launched the Press For Change campaign for equal rights.

"I remember thinking quite early on that I never did anything to hurt anybody else but I was being treated like a criminal and there were alot of people in the same situation."

In 2002, after 10 years of campaigning, the European Courts ruled that transsexuals had the right to privacy and could be registered under their new persona. That meant people like Stephen could get a new birth certificate which, in turn, opened the door to marriage and a new life.

Now the couple, who have been together for 26 years and have four children - all conceived by sperm donor - were able to prove their love on Saturday when they married at Heaton Mersey Methodist Church.

"It was wonderful and it's hard to say how good we felt," said Stephen "We could feel the wave of happiness and positive thought behind us and it was quite overwhelming."

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