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In Pictures: Fat Of The Land Harvest Festival

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Dr Scales Vegetable monster competition 14697_Vegetables 14697_cake-faces- Cake Carrots Fat embroidery We feared it might be a “wicker man meets village fete” affair but the Queer Chub Harvest Festival was a rip-roaring, face stuffing, carrot grabbing, vegetable monster of a success bursting at the seams with fabulous, colourful harvest produce and overflowing – appropriately – with cake.

Find out more here and feast your eyes on these gorgeous photos.

Photography by Suke Driver


Vigil Against Hate Crimes

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candel.jpg A silent candle-lit vigil will be taking place in Trafalgar Square on 30 October between 8 and 10pm. Although the event is about people registering their dislike of all forms of hate crime, it is being organised following the recent homophobic attack that took place on the Square on 25 September. The victim, 62 year-old Ian Baynham, who had been out celebrating the start of a new job, died this week. The Police are still looking for three teens, including two blonde girls. The organisers of the vigil have set up a Facebook group for the event.

In Pictures: Vigil Against Hate Crime @ Trafalgar Square

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15064_vigil1 15064_vigil2 15064_vigil3 15064_vigil4 15064_vigil5 the mass choir the London Gay Symphony Wind Around 4000 people gathered last night in Trafalgar Square for a vigil prompted by the homophobic attack in that same square on Ian Baynham on 25 September. Ian died of his injuries a few weeks later. A month later, to the day, James Parkes was set upon by a mob of 20 youths in the gay quarter of Liverpool.

Ian and James are sadly not alone. In London only, 1,192 homophobic offences were reported in the year to September 09, up from 1,008 the previous year – a rise of 18.3% and an average of almost 3 per day. Most attacks go unreported.

Speakers at the 2 hour vigil hosted by Sandi Toksvig included friends and relatives of Ian, Richard Barnes (Deputy Mayor of London), a female priest at St Martins in the Field who was vicar of Soho at the time of the 1999 bombings, a campaigner bearing witness of homophobia in eastern and central Europe, Chris Bryant MP (Minister for Europe) and Maria Eagle MP (Minister of State for Equalities and twin of the only out lesbian MP) who read a message from Gordon Brown, and comedian Stephen K Amos. Sue Perkins read the names of some of the victims of homophobic violence over the last 10 years after the 2 min silence at 9pm.

The event also had an international angle with people being invited to take part in the moment of silence wherever they were. A lettre from Stuart Milk, Harvey Milk’s nephew, was read out by the director of the newly open LGBT tourist office.

There were also musical contributions from a mass choir bringing together members of the LGBT choirs of London, Brighton and Hove, Birmingham and Reading as well as the London Gay Symphonic Winds.

More photos of the event can be viewed on flickr here. Images by the author.

Last Chance To See: Public Property @ Trafalgar Studios

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It’s an old story – a celebrity, er, pulls off in a lay-by – maybe loosening some garments to accommodate a painful stomach condition … or, in the case of high-profile newsreader Geoffrey Hammond (Robert Daws) graphically told in newish writer Sam Peter Jackson‘s Private Property at the Trafalgar Studios, triple-fingering a bare-assed rent-boy in full view of the paparazzi.

The damage limitation is in the hands of Nigel Harman as an oily PR with his own agenda, and since nobody does outraged embarrassment as well as Daws, their dialogue crackles with deft sideswipes at media, celebrity and hypocrisy. Add to the triangle a gauche rentboy played with History Boys knowingness by Steven Webb and you have an entertaining black comedy of cleverly three-dimensional gay characters. This in itself is unusual for the West End, but to have them played by actors of this calibre is an even rarer delight.

The piece mostly moves snappily and unpredictably and whilst the interactive TV footage of baying media mob and preening Stephen Fry are somewhat contrived, there’s a plot pivot towards the end of the first act which guarantees you’ll return after the interval.

Hannah Berrigan‘s production deserves a wider audience – with a bit of tightening this should transfer – but despite the intimate 40-seat setting and a short run of less than 30 peformances, it hasn’t attracted Nigel Harman’s EastEnders fanbase to see him undressed, and there are seats available.

Go, definitely, but shop around for available discounts.

Public Property continues at Trafalgar Studios, Whitehall SW1, until 5 December. Tickets from Ambassador Group’s website

February is LGBT History Month

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Lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) History Month, the Schools Out initiative to help fight homophobic bullying that had its pre-launch at the British Museum last November, is back this month for the 6th year. This means that throughout February, a varied selection of (mostly) free events (over 200 of them) will be taking place around the country and, of course, in London. There is a handy calendar on the LGBT History Month website to help you choose between the book launches, talks, quizzes and other exhibitions on offer. Photo by zefrog showing a rainbow flag outside the Bristish Museum at the pre-launch event.

Valentine’s Day Kiss In

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Tapping the smoochy theme of tomorrow, a kiss-in is being organised to complement the planned No Vatican: London for a Secular Europe protest outside Westminster Cathedral. The kiss-in asks “straight and gay couples, religious or not, to come together for a Valentine Day kiss-in to remind the Church what love is really about.” The public lip smacking will last about 5min before the protest moves on to the Italian Embassy. Long enough for proper tongues, then. Gather 1pm outside the Cathedral (Victoria Street) and please bring your own kisses.

Preview: Gay Africa

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gayafrica.jpg On Sunday the socially conscious will get a chance to have their little grey cells both stimulated and entertained at an event organised in partnership with English PEN.

The evening, titled Gay Africa, will offer a chance to discuss some of the issues surrounding human rights on the continent, following a recent rise in institutional homophobia in various countries.

In Cameroon and Ivory Coast, the press has indulged in witch-hunts against prominent suspected gay men; in Uganda and Rwanda, the laws against gay people are being revised and strengthened (to the point of calling for the death penalty); in Malawi and Senegal, they imprison gay men for holding parties; in Nigeria, they ban all meeting and support for LGBT people; even South Africa, where same sex marriage is legal, is not immune to problems.

About twenty activists, campaigners and artists will try, through discussion panels and performance poetry, to answer some of the following questions and more: How far does the American Christian Right support homophobia in Africa? Is South Africa a shinning example of human rights or special case? Do activists and the media in the West help or hinder African lesbians and gays? How does what’s happening in Africa impact on LGBT people throughout the world?

There will also be a screening of two short films: Souljah by Rikki Beadle-Blair and Young Black & Gay by Dean Atta.

The event is free and will take place on Sunday 28 February between 4 and 8pm at Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA. Find out more here and on the facebook event.

Review: Dirty White Boy @ Trafalgar Studios

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Dirty-White-Boy2.jpg Between 2006 and 2008, the ground floor of the building at the corner of Dean Street and Old Compton Street was occupied by the Dirty White Boy clothes shop.

During that time, the owner of the shop, Clayton Littlewood, regularly sat on his little red chair in the window and wrote about the people who had visited during the day. This diary first found its way onto MySpace as a blog, then became a book and is now coming to the stage of the Trafalgar Studios for our relish.

As you would expect from a play about Soho, it shows the usual gallery of colourful chancers (the old queen, the former drag queen or the big-mouthed transexual), all superbly brought to life by David Benson, who puts on the accents and personalities as easily as the costumes.

There is, also, of course, a shirtless pretty boy. Here, that task is given to Your Country Needs You runner-up, Alexis Gerred, whose contribution is to sing throughout the evening.

Sadly those interruptions bring very little to the play. This feeling is not helped by Gerred’s performance, which is incongruously miked for such an intimate space. He gives about as much warmth to his renditions as a Dirty White Boy thong would provide on a wet morning and his voice, on the night we saw him, was at times as meloduous as that of a local barrowboy.

At the opening, Littlewood, who was the author of the Soho Stories in the defunct londonpaper, warns us that he is no actor. He isn’t but his is the un-sophistication of authenticity. He has met and befriended all those characters and he is the one introducing them to us.

There is, on the surface, nothing very original about this play but it remains a very moving, funny and entertaining stroll through a gallery of highly endearing characters. It reminds us of both the transience and perennity of life and human aspirations and emotions. A hymn to the beloved and ruthless palimpsest that is Soho.

Dirty White Boy is at the Trafalgar Studios until 22 May. Tickets: £20. Facebook page. www.dirtywhiteboy.co.uk (image courtesy of Seabright Productions)


Tory Candidate In Gay Demon Claims

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bigben_020510.jpg The Tories really are shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to appealing to the non-homophobic vote. After Chris Grayling’s B&B comments comes an Observer report that Phillippa Stroud, Conservative candidate for Sutton and Cheam and head of thinktank Centre for Social Justice, founded a church that thinks it can ‘cure’ gay people by driving the demons out of them. No, really. According to a former employee, the church seems to think demons cause homosexuality, alcoholism and drug addiction, which shows a heartening regard for the kind of reason and fact-based decision-making we need more of when it comes to the economy, education, health etc. For a list of the many available candidates in Sutton and Cheam, have a look at ukpollingreport. (Photo / kenchie)

Comedy Interview: Scott Capurro

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Behind American comic, Scott Capurro’s fearless and provocative brand of comedy lies a sharp, subtle wit and a warm heart. Not that the latter is obvious mind, as anyone in the front row will tell you! With absolutely no subject off bounds, Scott has a tendency to upset his gay counterparts far more than the rest of the audience, but he tries to include everyone. Going deeper than just shock-value, Scott’s act has earned him a reputation as one of the finest stand-ups around and he is also a respected actor, author and playwright. As we sat nervously at the front of his comedy chat show we found him endearingly shocking, extremely funny and a master of dead-pan. It was with some trepidation that we set about asking him some questions…

Raised in San Francisco, you were originally an actor and appeared in the hit films Mrs Doubtfire (Aunt Jack) and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. How did you end up as a comic living in the East End of London?

There’s a lot of work for comics in London; the East End is the most affordable central London location I could find. And I have a lot of friends living nearby. (Read: poor artists.)

Your material could be seen as pretty controversial and offensive. Has it got you into any scrapes and, if so, how do you deal with the fallout?

Most audiences play along. I guess some people might be offended but then the great thing about comedy is there’s something offensive for everybody! Women get nasty, because it’s a comedy club, and all nastiness is allowed. Or should be. After 20 years in comedy I consider babysitting one of my greatest talents, so I have restrained some people, and I’ve been strangled, but nobody ever said jokes were popular.

Generally, what response can you expect from a London crowd? Do you use the same material here as you do over the pond?

I use the same material everywhere. Comedy, like love, is on TV, so it’s universal. The response I expect is laughter. The English find this embarrassing, I know, so I depend on Polish tourists.

Have you got any particular favourite comedy venues here in London, and where do you head out to after a gig in the capital?

In London, I like the Balham Banana, and the Soho Theatre is a great venue. Of course the RVT in Vauxhall is one of my favorites as well. Headliners in Chiswick is lovely. I’m sure I’ve left some off the list. I really only play venues I like. I’m too old to wrestle with a rotten room. After a gig, I go home. Again, I’m old.

What do you think of London’s gay scene?

I don’t know the scene. I read..

Are you playing any of the fringes this year?

The Camden Fringe is fun. I’m doing that.

Scott Capurros Postion, your live comedy chat show at The Royal Vauxhall Tavern, was a roaring success and with guests such as Vivienne Westwood, Stephen Merchant and Matt Lucas keeping you company. Is their another series coming up and who are you going to be asking along?

We’re just now creating another series, starting September 30 and running every Thursday for 6 shows. We’ve not got a guest list yet, but it should be exciting. I really enjoy the chat show format, and even if i shared the stage with David Mills every week and no one else, that would be enough for me. He’s very funny. The audience might not come along, but we’d have some laughs.

We hear you’re a big yoga fan – do you just like being bendy or is there more to it than that?

I like having a calm mind, and yoga helps with that. I also have old injuries which resurface when I skip my practice, so I try to do at least 90 mins every day. Keeps me sane.

Have you ever been sick on the tube?

I prefer cabs darling. They’re the only public transport I support.

Tell us a London secret?

Less than 2 percent of the population are foreign born.

Scott Capurro plays the Camden Fringe, 13-15 August 2010, Roundhouse, Camden Fringe

Pride London 2010

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Regent Street from Oxford Circus - Image zefrog Image zefrog By hornettennyson By cathiegraphy By sjnewton By ditaa By david.ermellino By anthony_white Members of the armed forces waiting for the start of the parade - Image zefrog Each year, St Martin's in the Fields shows its support by flying the rainbow flag - Image zefrog Trafalgar Square from the front of the main stage - Image zefrog Trafalgar Square in the late afternoon - Image zefrog By cathiegraphy "gay for pay for a day" - hired models - Image zefrog By cathiegraphy By cathiegraphy By cathiegraphy By cathiegraphy By Carlos Del Rey By cathiegraphy By stuart-lee On Saturday, loud music, dancing, singing, bright colours, bare flesh and whistles coming from over 130 walking groups and floats filled the streets of the West End and the eyes and ears of onlookers for a good four hours. An estimated one million people gathered to block the streets and bewilder the unsuspecting tourist and shopper who found themselves caught up in the joyous mayhem that is Pride London.

This explosion of energy and joy, this “gay Christmas”, brings together the most diverse and improbable selection of people; from uniformed members of the forces and other public organisations to hired models wearing as little as possible, drag queens and strange creatures, or more normal-looking people there to have a good time and support their organisation of choice.

The message is clear: “It is our day and we are taking over. Just don’t try to resist and join in the fun. Everyone is welcome.”

The much diluted original aim of Pride marches, one of visibility and affirmation for a beleaguered community, stems directly from the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York and the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. The first ever Pride march took place a year later to mark the anniversary of the riots. London had to wait until 1972.

The theme of this year’s event was “Paint the Town Ruby Red” (not much better than last year’s yawn-inducingly bland “Come Out and Play”) and aimed at commemorating the 40th anniversary of the creation of the Gay Liberation Front in the UK, veterans of which were leading the parade together with Boris and assorted “celebrities” (we don’t think there were actually any this year).

The parade, the culmination of two weeks of cultural events across London, finished with a rally in Trafalgar Square where the serious and the frivolous gaily met. Further entertainment was also available in Leicester Square and in Soho. Speakers on the main stage included a delegation from the Home Office: openly-gay Minister for Police, Nick Herbert, and Minister for Equality, Lynn Featherstone.

Boris, who had reportedly declined to speak for “fear of jeering crowds“, was represented on stage by his deputy, transport advisor Kulveer Ranger. This did not stop him however from making the headlines by apparently lending his support to gay marriage during a chat with human rights activist Peter Tatchell.

The casts of Hair and Wicked, The Freemasons, Kim Mazelle, Living Joy and Sonique were some of the “big names” shepherded by gay standup Stephen K. Amos to entertain the crowds soaking in the balmy July sun and a glowing sense of empowerment.

Although the whole day passed without any reported incident, a stalwart group of vociferous evangelical Christians was corralled at their usual place at the bottom of Lower Regent Street, attracting jeers from the passing crowd (including a forceful rendition of Lily Allen’s song-turned-YouTube-meme Fuck You by the London Gay Men’s Chorus, who will incidentally be performing in Warsaw for Europride in a couple of weeks). Their presence denied by the fact that a record number of Christian walking groups took part in the parade (gay Muslims and Jews were also represented, though we did not spot the Raëlians this year). There was no sign of the National Front and its highly artistic banners.

The day concluded with an official party at Koko in Camden and several other club events around the capital, under a benevolent London Eye turned rainbow for the occasion.

The organisers are already looking towards 8 July 2012, which will see London hosting World Pride. Perhaps you should too.

Thanks to all our Flickrpool photographers who captured Pride this weekend. More pictures of the day are available in the Pride London 2010 flickr pool.

Gay Couple “Removed” From A Soho Pub “For Kissing”

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People smoking outside the John Snow Pub

The John Snow Pub, Broadwick Street, Soho

A popular Soho pub found itself facing accusations of homophobia today after a gay couple claimed they were asked to leave the premises for kissing.

According to reports, the pair were on their first date together, enjoying drinks after a meal at the John Snow on Broadwick Street. But when things took on a more romantic turn, they say they were asked to stop by another customer who claimed to be the landlord. They refused. A couple of hours later a woman claiming to be the landlady asked them to leave the place saying they were being “obscene”. Jonathan Williams adds that the landlord, whose identity was later established by witnesses who were themselves ejected on questioning what happened, grabbed him by his jacket. A plain clothes officer got involved, according to some versions.

The story came to light after Williams used Twitter to share his misadventure. The tweet was reposted dozens of times; celebrity tweeters such as actress Emma Kennedy, Ben Goldacre and journalist Caitlin Moran lent their clout to the story.

The pub’s reaction so far has been less than helpful by refusing to comment to journalists or issuing pithy comments like “I have every right to kick people out if I wish.” or “Can you just stop calling this number please, or we’ll have you done for harassment.”

While landlords do have the right to ask customers to leave, they must also abide with anti-discrimination regulations applying to the provision of goods and services. The police have been contacted and are dealing with the matter.

The John Snow is operated by the independent brewery, Samuel Smiths, who have not commented yet. The couple involved in the incident plan to complain to the company.

Protests in the form of kiss-ins are being organised via Facebook on Friday and next week.

A similar story took place last year at the Greencoat Boy pub in Westminster when a group of LGBT people was asked to leave resulting in a full apology and compensation from owners Punch Taverns.

Picture by Odddutch from the Londonist photopool.

Preview: Gaywise Festival – GFest 2011

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Visit the exhibition at Dreamspace Gallery

The cross-arts Gaywise Festival – GFest 2011 – returns on 7 November with visual artists, film makers, provocateurs, drag acts, lesbian hip hop artists, symphonic wind groups, anarcho electro punks, the cream of the London cabaret scene and performance artists ready to be deployed across the capital to celebrate and promote LGBT and queer arts.

And the line-up’s looking mighty fine:

Dreamspace Gallery, EC1 hosts a visual arts exhibition, featuring work about gender ambiguity, identity, hate, indecency, coming out, individuality, creativity, sub-cultures, absurdity and more – the roll call of artists suggests a totally engaging, challenging and unusual show, open 7-19 November, free entry.

The Cockpit Theatre, NW8 is the place to go for GFest performance: cabaret, spoken word, songs, the gay wind band, comedy, hip hop and experimental performance across 17-19 November, ticket £15/10.

The short film festival at the Prince Charles Cinema covers trends in lesbian culture, amateur boxing, transition in relationships and teenage secrets, plus free entry to a “sensual ‘Erotolalia’ participatory sound installation” on the three evenings, 8-10 November, 6 to 9pm.

Plus there are workshops, talks, social drop-ins and parties throughout the month, notably, the debate on “East London: Homophobia / Transphobia’ Impact on culture and arts” at Rich Mix on 15 November (followed by a free party) and the closing event at The Shadow Lounge, Soho on 20 November.

Find out more at www.gaywisefestival.org.uk

A Look At LGBT Month And Pride House 2012

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Football V Homophobia by the Justin Campaign Tony Fenwick, co-chair of LGBT History Month with LGBT people in Cricket whites at the Oval The rainbow bus flying the flag outside the Kia Oval Cricket Ground Stalls at the pre-launch event Albert Kennedy stall Literature for the bid to bring the Gay Games to London in 2018

LGBT History Month had its pre-launch event at the Oval last week, revealing that in Olympic year, the focus of February’s activities will again be sport, particularly focusing on promoting the visibility and safety of LGBT people in sport.

On which, Minister for Equalities Lynne Featherstone announced the launch of a competition to design a logo for the anti-homophobia Charter for Action campaign to tackle homophobia and transphobia in sport. The competition is open to anyone and the winning design will be used by the 2,000+ sports clubs and individuals who have already signed up to support the campaign.

Thinking about LGBT sport and London 2012, it was also announced that Pride House London will be one of the biggest ‘Olympic Houses’ next year, possibly second only to Holland’s Heineken house at Alexandra Palace. There will be a huge programme of art and sports related events at the venue as well as health information for visitors from less open countries at the venue. Watch this space for announcements coming soon.

Good news also that beyond London 2012 there is a well-supported campaign to bring the Gay Games to the capital in 2018

Many thanks to Zefrog who attended the pre-launch at the Kia Oval and took lots of photos, including these.

LGBT History Month happens in February. Keep an eye on the website for more information about the many events to come.

Preview: Fringe! Gay Film Festival

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Fringe! Gay Film Festival is back with an eclectic weekend of events between 12-15 April. This year’s programme includes more than 30 events from movies and workshops to wild parties at different East End locations.

The first ever screening of the opening film I Want Your Love from Travis Mathews displays the sexual and emotional interactions of a young man, Jesse, who is about to return to his roots after a couple of years in San Francisco. The director will join the screening.

A romantic drama, Private Romeo is about the life of eight cadets left behind in an isolated military school. Other interesting documentaries like (A)sexual, The Berlin Years 1984-1992 and shorts such as Generations Like Us hosted by Girls Like Us magazine will be part of the programme, too.

Alongside the screenings you can see various photo-exhibitions and take part in other queer events. For the full programme, visit the festival’s website. Tickets cost £4-8.


Opera Review: Don Giovanni @ Heaven, Charing Cross

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Production photo by Cleo Pettitt

It’s a weekend night and we’re standing in Heaven cruising the hot bodies on stage and the trendy polysexual crowd below. The only differences from 1987 are that this time we’re not high on a cocktail of coke and poppers, and the music’s by the boy Mozart rather than the Boy George.

It’s only a few days since we were complaining that ‘railway arch opera’ was stuck in a rut, but here it escapes tunnel vision with a compelling and finely-sung production of Don Giovanni, directed at a cracking pace by Dominic Gray.

Where it scores big is in the casting and production values: Duncan Rock isn’t some third-year student from Guildhall in skinny jeans and a sailor tat but has a string of solid opera credentials from Glyndebourne and ENO and his mountainous pecs are candy for the ‘barihunk’ brigade (followers of hotter male singers). Instead of a pub piano there’s a proper 10-piece orchestra suitably string-heavy for the busy Mozart arpeggios, it’s a promenade performance with a main stage and four other set-pieces from Wimpy Bar to sex shop defining the time and place as Soho, 1987.

Best, it has a filthy modern hilarious libretto by Ranjit Bolt that not only hammers home the cruelty and vulgarity – just like the original, really – but makes an easily understandable new story out of the deconstructed and gender-bent opera: apart from the Don all the women’s roles are sung by men and vice-versa, none better than Zoe Bonner’s razor-tongued Leo (Leporello), the PA from hell whose rendition of the ‘catalogue aria’ enumerating his many conquests from Clapham Common to the club’s own toilets is glorious.

Then there’s the audience – instead of 50 faithful followers in the upstairs room of a pub, we’re a proper club crowd of 400 and, that rare thing in any London audience, smiling throughout. It’s true that even the ENO and the Royal Opera House now take liberties with Don Giovanni, right up to full-frontal nudity and simulated sex, and this production doesn’t go quite so far. But if you want to FEEL liberated, this show charting the ambiguous sexual freedoms of the 80s is for you.

It’s unfortunate that technical issues mean they can’t use radio mikes and the impressive sound (and lighting) rig at Heaven – but the solution is to move round with the characters, maybe a bit of ushering could be introduced, and get as close as you can to the action. It’s worth it.

Don Giovanni continues with further performances on 16 April (sold out) then 22, 23, 29 and 30, with a return series during World Pride in July 2012. Tickets from this website cost £25, but look around for offers.

 

JohnnyFox received complimentary tickets and programme from the show’s PR company, Chloe Nelkin Consulting.

Concert Celebrates 21 Years Of The London Gay Men’s Chorus

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Your disco needs YOU. Make Your Own Kind Of Christmas 2010. The chorus circa 1998 On the Chris Evans' show 1999 At the Admiral Duncan Vigil 1999 Piccadilly Theatre, 2002 Singing at Stoke Newington School for Hackney Borough LGBT month celebrations 2011 (photo by Gary Manhine)

The London Gay Men’s Chorus celebrates 21 “glorious years of harmony” with a big gig at the Royal Festival Hall on Sunday night, entitled A Band of Brothers.

Alongside their famous arrangements of power pop songs (expect Lady Gaga and Madonna) is a diverse repertoire spanning classical, folk, jazz, pop, R&B and show tunes with (and without) hand claps, jazz hands and interpretative actions. Sunday’s concert will also see a new composition by composer Conor Mitchell and playwright Mark Ravenhill make its debut. Shadow Time is a trip through the history of the LGMC and the gay community itself and ends with a choral kiss-in, which the audience are welcome to join in with.

LGMC were featured in today’s Guardian and you can expect another in the Independent on Sunday but Londonist is lucky enough to have two LGMC members on its contributor list. We asked our own Johnny Fox and Nicolas Chinardet why they joined the Chorus and what their most memorable moments might be:

Johnny Fox: I actually joined it for a bet: the guys on a ‘life begins at 40′ course I’d joined challenged me to try a new activity and having never sung before, it was a choir. I kept the details secret from my partner, in case it wasn’t a success and I gave it up as a bad job, and the night of our first concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall he was so jealous that he left me. After 8 years.

Johnny led an unforgettable, epic, dangerous, gin and pork-heavy LGMC expedition to Poland in 2010 to sing in the concert hall Joseph Stalin had given to the People of Warsaw and to march in the Pride parade. Read about the group’s adventures here.

Nicolas Chinardet: I joined the Chorus in an attempt to kill two birds with one musical stone. I was new to London and wanted to make gay friends but I had also been part of a small (very) amateur singing group and I missed the opportunity of an artistic expression. Making new friends is, I think, the main reason for people to join, either because they are new to London or after a break-up or even the loss of a partner. I think it works for most people and we’ve even had several couples forming along the years.

The Chorus provides also us with with amazing opportunity that even professional artistes will only dream of. In my first 6 months with the Chorus in 2002, I had sung at the Sydney Opera House, the Aussie Stadium with KD Lang, The Royal Albert Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, and had released a CD (not alone obviously).

Happy 21st birthday London Gay Men’s Chorus, and may there be many more happy returns.

The photos in the gallery show moments from LGMC’s history. You can see more on their Facebook page. And here’s a video of them doing A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square at their Ensemble concert “With a Song in My Heart” at St-Giles-in-the-Fields Parish Church London, March 2012.

Tickets are still available for Sunday night’s concert at the Royal Festival Hall. Starts 7.30pm. Tickets from £20. Visit www.lgmc.co.uk for more info about the choir.

There’s a whole weekend of free singing events happening this bank holiday weekend.

In Pictures: World Pride In London 2012

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The head of the procession by Zefrog By Michael O'Sullivan Photography London Rollergirls mock racing in Regent Street by Zefrog By Jan Bode By Matt Malloy Pride Stewards by Joel Rowbottom By Michael O'Sullivan By SReed99342 By violinconcertono3 By Joel Rowbottom Trafalgar Square crowds by Zefrog By SReed99342

World Pride was celebrated on the streets of central London on Saturday, despite last-minute cuts and timing changes. Crowds were thinner on Oxford Street than in previous years but the lack of floats and presence of rain did little to dampen the party and political spirit of Pride. Around 25,000 joined the procession, tribute was paid to the 40th anniversary of the first gay pride march in the capital and the rainbow flag flew over Whitehall for the first time.

Official Soho parties were cancelled but that didn’t prevent Pride revellers gridlocking the district to party on regardless.

Many thanks to Zefrog for photos and tip offs and to SReed99342 once and twice, violinconcertono3, Michael O’Sullivan once and twice, Jan Bode, Joel Rowbottom once and twice and Matt Malloy for sharing their photos in the Londonist Flickrpool.

Film Review: Leave It On The Floor @ Leicester Square Theatre

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Andre Meyers in Leave it on the Floor

Gay African-American musicals aren’t exactly ten a penny in cinemas, but for two weeks director Sheldon Larry’s Leave It on the Floor will be showing at the Leicester Square Theatre.

When cute, lonely Brad (Ephraim Sykes) is kicked out of his family home by his mother when she discovers that he’s gay, he quickly hitches his wagon to the so-called ‘House of Eminence,’ a gaggle of cross-dressing performance artists with a seemingly endless arsenal of snappy one-liners. Ruled over by rambunctious mother hen, Queef Latina (Barbie-Q), Brad proves irresistible to two members of her crew, sensitive Carter and the more outspoken Princess.

Some of Leave It on the Floor’s story elements feel a little by-the-book, in particularly Brad’s confrontations with his homophobic mother, and a last minute tragedy that is surplus to requirements. But this is easy to forgive when you take into account how worthwhile the story’s messages are, in particular its emphasis on non-nuclear families, performance as a way of self-expression and doing right by the ones you love. And if that makes Leave It on the Floor seem earnest, be aware that it’s as full as finger-snapping comebacks, put-downs and pick-up lines as it is musical numbers.

The songs, written by Glenn Gaylord and Kim Burse, range from soulful gospel to high-energy pop, and the dance moves, by Beyoncé’s choreographer, Frank Gatson, Jnr., ensure that the film rarely flags. These plentiful, finely-tuned numbers lead to a dance-off finale that ends things in appropriately exuberant style, and the sheer uninhibited joy in performance more than papers over the cracks in the story. A message movie this may be, but they don’t come much more gleefully gaudy than this loud, unapologetic blast of a musical.

By Ben Fowler

Leave it on the Floor will be screening at the Leicester Square Theatre from 1–16 August. Tickets £10/8.

Club Watch: Queers In Crisis @ Vogue Fabrics

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Club night Queers in Crisis provides a window onto the flourishing, yet fragile avant-garde art scenes of the two most economically stricken European nations: Greece and Portugal.

Performer and academic Brian Lobel is organising a symposium — in the true sense of the word — on the survival of the avant-garde gay club in the age of austerity. Libation not Libor, then, discotheque not technocrat, c**ts not cuts…or something like that.

To this end, Lobel has invited two of the most innovative exports of the Eurozone’s nightlife scene to make an exhibition of themselves at east London’s Vogue Fabrics, a venue that claims to incite “social revolution through partying”. Triple A-rated, cult clubs — Athens’ Naff Athina and Lisbon’s Add Wood – will defy the downgraded status of their homelands at an after-dark expo for the extrovert.

Tapping into the current discourse of queer activists and theorists such as Judith Halberstam (The Queer Art of Failure, 2011), this provocative cultural exchange can be read as part of the LGBT lobby’s bid to challenge the Neoliberal, Capitalist orthodoxy. It’s a queue jump invitation to a party that wants to blow away the bail-out blues and re-imagine the economy while it’s at it — like the most raucous tent in an Occupy camp.

Lobel says of the clubs: “They are not overtly political but their (their clubbers’) lives are. They are independent groups with no sponsorship, no safety net, no sense of belonging to mainstream culture. Whilst these things flourish in a time of crisis as people are searching for alternatives, they are also vulnerable.”

The coalition of clubs will be putting its money where its mouth is and ploughing all profits back into the support of the “amazing club owners, bartenders, artists, filmmakers, escorts, performers, alcoholics, club kids, porn stars, runaways, faggots, dykes, people down on their luck”.

It’s also about having a damn good time. QIC sits firmly in the rich counter-cultural tradition of hedonism as subversion, from the Bacchae to Pussy Riot, reminiscent of the party-going ethos of mavericks like the late Derek Jarman, Malcolm McLaren and Leigh Bowery. To take the lead from the 1979 essay In Defence of Disco by Richard Dyer, “disco can’t change the world or make the revolution. But partly by opening up experience, partly by changing definitions, art and disco can be used…if it feels good, use it”.

Whether or not Queers in Crisis will succeed where Davos and co. have failed, it promises a double-dip whammy of defiance and gleeful nonconformity. More fun than the IMF, any day.

Queers in Crisis is on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 September at Vogue Fabrics, 66 Stoke Newington Road, Dalston. £5 all night. Doors at 10pm.

By Kirsty McQuire

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