A young gay couple have been attacked while on the way to perform in an LGBT play.

Lucy Jane Parkinson and Rebecca Banatvala had an object thrown at them from a passing car yesterday in Southampton while they were kissing.

Ms Parkinson, who was knocked to the ground and slightly injured, said she heard ‘young boys laughing’ as the car drove off.

She told the BBC: ‘We’re just two people looking for happiness like everybody else.

‘I don’t really understand why we’re met with aggression, from strangers to strangers.

‘It’s made realise the importance of this play and stories like it.’

The couple were on the way to perform in Rotterdam at the NST Campus theatre in Southampton when the incident happened.

The final performances of the Olivier Award-winning show, which is about a young gay woman, were cancelled following the incident.

The NST Campus theatre described the attack as a ‘hate crime’ and said the couple had been left ‘hugely shaken’.

NST director Sam Hodges tweeted: ‘I am extremely sad that this sort of appalling behaviour is still happening anywhere, let alone in a city where we have worked so hard to promote a culture of tolerance, inclusivity and civic pride.

‘This only makes us more determined to tell these important stories on our stages.’

Police are investigating the incident.

The force issued a statement, saying: ‘We have received a report from a third party relating to an incident which happened on Hill Lane, Southampton on the afternoon of Saturday, 8 June.

‘It has been reported that homophobic abuse was shouted at two women, and stones thrown at them, by a the occupants of a passing car.

‘The matter is under investigation. Anyone with information should call police on 101 quoting 44190196869.’

The incident comes after Melania Geymonat, 28, and her girlfriend Chris were subjected to a homophobic attack and robbery on a London night bus.

The couple were left covered in blood after they refused to kiss, and five teenagers arrested over the incident have been bailed.

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