He was plunged into a morass of depression, fear and hatred.
That was three years ago. Now, encouraged by the new TV series It’s A Sin, the young man from Swindon is hoping to fight the stigma surrounding HIV.
Marlon decided to open up to the Adver about his experience after watching the Channel 4 show in a bid to help other people living with the virus.
It tells the story of a group of friends living in London through the Aids crisis in the 1980s and its impact on the LGBTQ+ community.
He said: “It’s A Sin taught me things I never knew. As much as I knew about HIV from what I’ve been told by doctors or what I studied myself, I never looked at the 80s. So, watching the programme grounded me.