You might have seen one of several videos showing what happens when same-sex couples walk hand in hand in public.

It was first conducted in Moscow in July and then in Kiev. The videos shot in both cities ended in physical altercations. In Jerusalem, the same-sex couple were insulted and called ‘faggots’ several times.

So one gay couple, Lorenzo and Pedro, tried it out in Lisbon.

Lorenzo said: ‘What we got is very different from the other experimental videos, because the result was very positive. There was no hate, threats, punches, not a single piece of verbal abuse. Of course we had plenty of people staring at us, but these were not negative stares.

‘These were looks of surprise, or curiosity, or maybe it’s because they were looking at us because I’m 6’5 and Pedro’s 5’7, so that’s quite a big difference.

‘To be honest, we actually don’t walk together holding hands together in public. Don’t ask us why, because maybe we’re a little bit frightened? But to be honest, after filming this video, we felt respected and free. We’re so proud of our city.’

