The brand new cast of The Apprentice 2018 has been unveiled and Frank Brooks is of the hopefuls aiming his sights at winning.
(C) BBC
Frank Brooks is one of 16 contestants hoping to win over Sir Alan Sugar in the fourteenth series of the BBC hit reality show, The Apprentice. Brooks who is London based, is 27 years old and openly gay.
The hopeful is a senior marketing manager at Thomson Reuters.
Speaking about his chances in the programme, Brooks said, “There’s no need to watch your back when I’m already two steps in front”. He also said in his audition for the show that he would be a “T-REX” if he was a dinosaur.
He also thinks that to be good in business was like being good at Karaoke, saying you need to be “confident, command the attention of the room and roll over failure”. He also revealed that his favourite karaoke song was the Take That hit ‘Relight My Life’.
During Pride in London this year, Brooks was “one of the faces” of Thomson Reuters marching in the famous parade.
A London-based charity has won an award at this year’s Patient Information Awards.
Compassion in dying was selected as the winner of the BMA equality, diversity and inclusion special award for the resource they produced in collaboration with LGBT charity for the older people, Opening Doors London, and Stonewall. The awards were hosted by the British Medical Association yesterday (Tuesday 25 September) at BMA House in Tavistock Square, London.
‘Your treatment and care: Planning ahead for the LGBT community’ is the first ever resource designed specifically for the LGBT community on end-of-life care planning. It was based on extensive research which found that those in the LGBT community can face specific and significant barriers stopping them from getting the end-of-life care they want. This can include healthcare professionals making assumptions about their preferences for care and a lack of understanding about what or who is important to them. This guide was therefore designed to set out the different ways in which LGBT people may plan ahead.
Accepting the award, Natalie Koussa, Director of partnerships and services at Compassion in Dying, said, “We’re absolutely thrilled to win the diversity and inclusion award. ‘Planning ahead for the LGBT community’ was developed as the first resource of its kind in order to support people from LGBT communities with very specific decision-making processes that they experience towards the end of life, so we’re thrilled to be recognised for this work.”
BMA representative body chair, Dr Anthea Mowat, said, “It is a privilege to be able to recognise the great work of Compassion in Dying as the first-ever winners of the BMA’s special award for equality, diversity and inclusion.
“The LGBT community, particularly older people, can face specific and significant barriers to getting the end-of-life care they need and it’s a sign of progress that there’s now, for the first time, a resource specifically aimed to help gay, lesbian, trans and bisexual people plan ahead for their future treatment and care in case they become unable to communicate their decisions.
“The resource, produced with help from Stonewall and Opening Doors London, will take the complexity out of a decision that’s quite hard to understand but a very important aspect of compassionate healthcare and highlights the diverse concerns of LGBT people.”
Note to readers: This is a press release, published forrecord.
Made in Chelsea star Ollie Locke has announced his forthcoming marriage on Twitter. The former Celebrity Big Brother star is getting married to his boyfriend, Gareth, who he has known for 10 years.
However, the couple has not been going out for 10 years. According to Ollie, the pair has known each other for a decade but had never made their relationship romantic until earlier this year.
The star took to Twitter to announce the good news.
I have known him for 10 years, and at many of my most important life moments he was in the background. Earlier this year we realised that what we had both been looking for was standing in front of us all along.. I have never been happier in my life.. on Saturday I said yes Xx pic.twitter.com/IPCVtbUKj3
The announcement was made formal with a small advert in the paper.
CREDIT: Channel 5
During his time in the Celebrity Big Brother house, Locke, then 29 identified as bisexual and said that he had never slept with a man. However the star became out as gay in 2016.
Before coming out to his teammates, 22-year-old DeVine described his worry on how they would react on hearing the news. He said, “I’m a gay athlete. There aren’t too many of us, so when I came out to my college team, that was a really tough time for me.”
However, to their credit his teammates were nothing but supportive.
He said, “I remember that being a pretty emotional time, and just feeling my whole team wrap around me and feeling that love in a place where I hadn’t really felt it, that was definitely special for me.
“Just seeing them kind of prove me wrong was definitely special, something I’ll never forget.”
DeVine comes from Seattle, Washington and studies at Standford University. He has swum for the US Nations and World Championship.
The openly gay TV doctor won’t be allowed to dance with another man.
(C) BBC
In keeping with tradition, in more ways that one, Doctor Ranj Singh, despite identifying as gay, will only be allowed to dance with a woman on the BBC’s flagship show, Strictly Come Dancing.
According to the statement released by the BBC, “Strictly has chosen the longstanding ballroom dancing format of mixed-sex couples and at the moment we have no plans to introduce same-sex couples”.
Dr Ranj has spoken about his desire to dance with a man on the show. He told the Mirror, “I would love to dance with a same-sex partner. I would value a time when same-sex couples could dance on shows like Strictly. It is incredibly important. We are making progress but there is still time to go.”
Dr Ranj is not the first Strictly alum to talk about same-sex dance partners. Former contestant Reverend Richard Coles said, “We’ve had a discussion about it, actually, and I don’t know. It makes absolutely no sense that anybody resists the idea, in principle. It’s just a question of doing it.”
Judge Craig Revel Horwood also said that he could see same-sex dance couples working on the show saying, “I think a same-sex couple can exist. You only have to decide who’s going to go backwards,” he said. “In the world of competitions, there are same-sex couples that do it as well so there is no reason that can’t happen. The Beeb just have to decide if it’s something they want to do.”
For the show, the doctor has been teamed up with Janette Manrara, who has danced with Peter Andre, Aston Merrygold, Melvin Odoom and Julien Macdonald in previous seasons of the hit show.
Dr Ranj is the latest contestant to take part in the show who publicly identifies as lesbian gay or bisexual. As of 2018 there have been no transgender contestants on the show and as a whole Strictly’s casting has woefully unrepresented openly LGBT+ people. No one from the LGBT+ community has ever won the competition.
Of 207 contestants since the shows premier in 2004 these are the openly LGB stars of the show.
Series 1
Jason Wood was the first openly gay person to take part in the show in 2004. He was paried with Kylie Jones and was voted out in week 2.
Series 2
Julian Clary performed alongside Erin Boag and came third.
Series 3
Colin Jackson appeared in the third season, however, he was not openly gay at that time. He came second in the competition.
Series 9
Russell Grant danced with Flavia Cacace and was booted in week 8.
Series 12
Scott Mills was paired with Joanne Clifton and was voted out in week 6.
Series 14
Will Young appeared in the show and danced with Karen Clifton until he with withdrew in week 3.
Judge Rinder danced alongside Oksana Platero and was voted out in week 11.
Series 15
Rev Richard Coles danced with Dianne Buswell and was voted out in week 3.
Susan Calman danced with Kevin Clifton and was voted out in week 10.
Sodomy laws have been amended in Trinidad and Tobago to allow adult men to have sex with each other. Justice Devindra Rampersad gave a final ruling on legal challenges by LGBT+ activist Jason Jones, to amend the wording of certain sections of the Sexual Offences Act.
Two sections underwent wording change.
Wording has been amended in section 13, with the words “without consent”. The section now reads,
“13. (1) A person who commits the offence of buggery is liable on conviction to imprisonment for twenty-five years. (2) In this section “buggery” means sexual intercourse “without consent” per anum by a male person with a male person or by a male person with a female person.”
In section 16 the words “a male person and a female person” are deleted and replaced with “persons”
“(1) A person who commits an act of serious indecency on or towards another is liable on conviction to imprisonment for five years.
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to an act of serious indecency committed in private between—
(a) a husband and his wife; (b) “persons” each of whom is sixteen years of age or more, both of
whom consent to the commission of the act; or (c) persons to whom section 20(1) and (2) and (3) of the Children Act apply. (3) An act of “serious indecency” is an act, other than
sexual intercourse (whether natural or unnatural), by a person involving the use of the genital organ for the purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire.
In April 2018 those two sections of the Sexual Offences Act were ruled unconstitutional by judge Devindra Rampersad.
Dr Ranj is starring in Strictly, but did you know that although he identifies as gay he was once married to a woman?
Dr Ranj Singh is most famous for being This Morning‘s and CBeebies doctor, but he’s currently starring in the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing.
Who is Doctor Ranj married to?
The doctor isn’t currently married to anyone but has, in the past, been married to a woman. In an interview with the Mirror, he described how he came out as gay to his wife in his 20s. They had been married for 5 years.
He revealed that coming to terms with his sexuality and ending his marriage made him feel as though his heart “had been wrenched out” of his chest.
“I was completely broken. It was the lowest point in my life. I can only imagine how hard it was for my wife, though – she didn’t deserve any of that. I feel so incredibly sorry for what she had to go through.”
Who is Dr Ranj’s dance partner?
(C) BBC
For the show, the doctor has been teamed up with Janette Manrara, who has danced with Peter Andre, Aston Merrygold, Melvin Odoom and Julien Macdonald in previous seasons of the hit show.
What is Dr Ranj famous for?
Apart from being This Morning‘s resident doctor, Ranj has also appeared on Save Money: Good Health and is a presenter on the CBeebies series Get Well Soon and also Bedtime Stories.
Azealia Banks has made a proclamation and she’s telling you to stop using poppers when having anal sex. The entertainer took to Twitter to warn that you might not know the harm you’re doing to do yourself, well, your bum hole anyway.
In an astonishing Tweet, Banks wrote,
“Stop sniffing poppers!! When you sniff poppers there’s is [the] possibility for your pain threshold to be heightened – which means you will not feel yourself being harmed until after the fact. No more poppers and fleets!!! Embrace that boochie baby.
Fair enough.
She then went on to explain that taking a big ole D might take “twenty minutes” and that is OKAY. In fact, if you’re the bottom, she says that you’re the one in control.
“Just be patient with yourself. Sometimes it take 20 minutes to get inside a boochie and THAT IS OKAY. Don’t speed up the process by using poppers to accommodate a forceful top. Say “I HAVE THE BUSSY… I MAKE THE RULES!”
CREDIT: TheGayUK
Her fans were quick to thank her, calling her, “the patron saint of bottoms”, “woke” and one even said that they needed to give Banks an apology tweeting, “she does love the gays”.
What about Ageism, HIV stigma and effeminism, users ask…
CREDIT: Ryazan / BIGSTOCK
Banning racism is on the agenda at Grindr and many of the gay hook up apps, but users are keen to point out that Grindr is failing on other discriminatory language including ageism, HIV stigma and anti-effeminate sentiments.
Recently Grindr announced a new policy, dubbed Kindr, which looks to rid the platform of all types of discrimination, however, users point out that aside from racism there is a whole heap of discrimination that goes seemingly unchecked via people’s profiles.
Grindr says it will now moderate language on users’ profiles, saying they’d rather “hear about what you’re into, not what you aren’t”. Some, however, are concerned that the announcement seemingly only touches on racism. However, the editor of Into, Grindr’s online magazine, has said that the new policy will take into consideration any discriminatory language.
Zach Stafford said, “So, I am seeing some confusion around #Kindr and wanted to clear one big thing up: Discriminatory language like ‘no fats, no femmes, no Asians’ is officially considered discriminatory and will now be banned on Grindr”.
Hi hi,
So, I am seeing some confusion around #Kindr and wanted to clear one big thing up:
Discriminatory language like ‘no fats, no femmes, no Asians’ is officially considered discriminatory and will now be banned on Grindr.
Now he’s been seen dancing and smooching with sexy Carl Loughlin for the short film Just Me, due to be released by Peccadillo Pictures next year.
In the film, Philip plays Scott who is about to be married until a stranger from his past turns up on his doorstep. Carl plays a policeman who hides a secret life and whose fate is changed after being reunited with a stranger from the past.
Anger is mounting after the troubled House of Fraser refused to take gift cards for purchases. They have also failed to issue replacement cards for old gift cards and vouchers.
When the store was sold to Sports Direct, customers were told to send in their gift cards in August, in order to be issued a replacement card. However, the firm has yet to issue any new cards, leading to anger and worry from customers.
Sports Direct also announced last week that customers who ordered with House Of Fraser online before the chain was bought should not expect to receive the goods they paid for or get a refund.
According to the BBC, the firm’s PR has not responded to call for comment.
House of Fraser was bought by Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley, who said that he planned to keep the majority of the 59 stores open. He said that he wanted to return the store chain into the “Harrods of the high street”.
Drain of goodwill
Since the Sports Direct take over, House of Fraser has been beset with public relation issues. If the company decides to void all gift cards it could drain any goodwill left with consumers.
Droves of former and current customers have taken to Twitter to air their frustration.
Despite the buyout by Mike Ashley, House of Fraser still seem to be teetering. The stores refusal to even assist online/gift card customers will drain away any goodwill and loyalty and imperil the companies chances of survival. Would you shop there now? https://t.co/n2y1IY791o
I don’t have a gift card but it’s simple, don’t shop there anymore. Customers should use their power more and give money to companies that respect the customer is the reason there’s a business at all https://t.co/9nukWLVWyi
To make a claim against the store you will need to write to the administrator with proof of your vouchers or gift cards.
Administrators EY said : “Customers can submit a claim against the HF Stores Realisations Limited (formerly House of Fraser (Stores) Limited). However, this will be treated as an unsecured creditor claim and unfortunately they will only receive a very modest recovery against the amount claimed.”
If you bought your cards with your credit card you could try claiming with them. According to the BBC, “Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act can make credit card providers jointly liable for breaches of contract with a trader when people buy on a credit card”.
