Taking to Instagram, Michelle Visage told her fans not to fall for the “man-made holiday” and not to “buy into the crap”. She told single people – you can buy your own roses, your own chocolate… and
Have fun with your own vibrator…
AMEN
Twenty-two-year-old Ellis Birnie, of Sandveien, Lerwick, was fined £150 after he pleaded guilty to behaving “in a threatening or abusive manner” in Lerwick, Shetland, in Scotland.
He made homophobic remarks according to a witness who said that the accused had made “derogatory remarks about the females’ perceived sexuality” last year at the Thule Bar and Captain Flints on 27 September.
Shetland News reports, Mr Birnie’s defence said that he suffered from epilepsy and diabetes and according did not manage his condition by not managing his diet.
Sheriff Philip Mann remarked that the behaviour was “really stupid” and said he hoped it would be a wake-up call for the man.
“Look after your health and be wise enough to understand you can’t go out and abuse alcohol in this way”.
Ingredients.
– 1 large egg
– 135g plain flour
– 130ml milk
– 2 tablespoons butter
– Food colouring – red, yellow, green, blue, orange and purple
– Toppings: rainbow sprinkles, raspberries, whipped cream and strawberry laces
Method.
Add the flour, egg and milk into a bowl and whisk to a smooth batter.
Separate the batter into five separate bowls for each of the different colours of the rainbow.
Add food colouring to each of the bowls until you’re happy with the shade. You can combine primary colours to make a wider range; for example, red and yellow can be mixed to make orange.
Add a little oil or butter to a medium-sized frying pan and put on a medium-high heat.
Add the batter to the pan once hot and cook for one minute on each side – with the all important Toss Off in between.
Repeat this process with all of the different coloured batters until you have enough for your rainbow pancake stack.
Comedians Katherine Ryan and David Morgan battled it out for the title of Biggest Tosser at the launch of Terrence Higgins Trust’s pancake-themed fundraiser, Toss Off.
And to mark LGBT History Month, the TV favourites whipped up a stack of rainbow pancakes.
The charity is urging supporters to host a party for Pancake Day (28 February) and raise money to support people living with HIV.
David, who co-presents I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! NOW, said,
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my first Toss Off because I love rainbows and I love pancakes. As a gay man, HIV support, prevention and awareness-raising is very, very close to my heart and I’ll happily flip some pancakes with my friends to support Terrence Higgins Trust this Pancake Day.”
Friends Katherine and David came along to East London LGBT venue Dalston Superstore to see just how much fun it is to Toss Off for Terrence Higgins Trust.
If you want your FleshJack to be ready for action for a long time to come you’ll need to make sure you clean it and maintain it properly. So how exactly should you care for and clean your FleshJack? Getting your cleaning regime right will mean that you’ll get a lifetime of enjoyment out of your toy. It’s really quite easy, so here are the top 3 ways to care for your FleshJack or FleshLight.
1) Warm water. Once you’ve climaxed inside the toy, remove the inner sleeve and run it under warm water. Use only clean fresh water. The material will not react very well with most cleaning products. However there is a specific FleshWash made for the toy called FleshWash.
If you need a tough clean, then you could use isopropyl alcohol. Give it a good clean through.
Blue singer, Lee Ryan is set to join one of the UK’s biggest soaps, EastEnders. He joins his other co-Blue boys, Duncan James and Simon Webb who have both landed roles in Hollyoaks and River City respectively.
So what do we know about Lee’s new character? Well, his name is, Woody Woodward – and apparently, he’s a bit of a trouble maker and his stint on the small screen is due to only be a “short-term role”.
Executive producer Sean O’Connor has teased,
“I’m delighted to welcome Lee Ryan to Walford as ‘Woody’ Woodward. Woody is a man who has worked hard and played hard in bars, clubs and pubs around the world and has finally decided to stop wandering and put down some roots.
“He’s going to ruffle some feathers and obviously break some hearts, so there’s a great deal to look forward to as soon as he bursts onto the square. Lee is a perfect casting for Albert Square and we knew straight away we wanted him for the role.”
Lee Ryan made headlines in January 2014 during his time in Celebrity Big Brother, after a series of revelations about his sex life and sexuality. In a conversation with fellow housemates, Lee admitted that he may have had experiences with “people’ which caused bandmate Duncan James to jump in with a Tweet, that read, “I thought I was the only bi/gay in the band”.
In 2010 Lee stunned fans by stating that,
‘Me and Duncan had threesomes! We did some crazy s**t with each other. In the past we’ve done some s**t like that. It’s not weird… you just high five each other. I think they call it a spit roast.’
EastEnders continues on Thursday (February 16) at 7.30pm on BBC One.
TGUK: Can you explain a bit about Cucumber and Banana, and who you play?
FF: I play Freddie Baxter, who lives with Dean in the warehouse, and he also works at the insurance company that Henry and Dean work at, but in the canteen. He is 25, incredibly sexually confident, sexually powerful, and is an object of desire for Henry throughout the story. Initially there’s a very hostile dynamic between Freddie and Henry.
TGUK: What was it that attracted you to the role?
FF: Yeah, simply put, the scripts are so good and the stories are so interesting, the characters are so layered, and they all go on such incredible journeys. When I initially heard about the project, and the part I was up for playing, I was a bit ambivalent about it, because it sounded quite similar to parts I’d played recently. But then when I read the scripts and I realised there was no- one like this man, and there would never be anyone like this man on TV ever again. I realised I had to go for it.
TGUK: Freddie, your character’s a little cool and heartless, is that fair to say?
FF: In certain respects, he is heartless about certain things, but ultimately, no he’s not. He has got a heart, and a big one, but he just protects himself with an armour of sex and outward expressions of beauty. That’s so he can control other people, but that’s only there because it’s hiding aspects of his life that he simply will not show. As the friendship between Freddie and Dean and Henry grows, and they become more cemented together by their proximity at the warehouse, you see a much more humane and sensitive Freddie emerge. That’s why it’s such a layered, interesting character.
TGUK: You’ve described him somewhere as a nymphomaniac who gets his entire validation from sex. Is that right?
FF: More or less, yeah. He’s been sexualised from a young age – long before most of us are – and he happens to be very good at it. So he uses it as a way to protect himself and as a weapon, and also, because he’s good at it, as a way to validate his position in the world.
TGUK: Is it fun to play a character like that?
FF: What do you think?! [Laughs]
TGUK: The shoot involved living in Manchester for five months. Was that fun, and did you get to know the place a bit?
FF: Speaking as a non-Mancunian I was probably the one doing the most investigating, as Fis knows it like the back of his hand. I got to know it intimately and I love it. We saw Stockport, the suburbs, Didsbury where my character is from, so it’s great to hear the accent there. We went out a bit and had some fun.
TGUK: Did you go out and check out the gay scene in Manchester? What else did you do in the way of research?
FF: Yeah, we didn’t do as much of that as I’d expected. The first time I went to Manchester it was for a show about Boy George and we went out a bit then. For this we shot a lot on Canal Street and the atmosphere kind of pervades, even if you’re not there on a night out. There’s still a buzz there which Russell really wanted to convey. It’s very, very magnetic, and you can feel what it’s about without having to experience it.
TGUK: Freddie, is it true that you stayed in accent throughout the entire shoot?
FF: Yes I did. The accent’s really important for me. I’d never taken it as far as I did with this thought “I’m not going to get this wrong.” I stayed in voice the whole time, even when I was at home with my parents. They didn’t like it at all, but they are actors so they understood!
TGUK: What was it like working with the older actors?
FF: We learned a lot from the older actors. I’d like to point out they’re not old, just older than we are! They have more experience, and all of them also had a bedrock in the theatre, which was great because Fis and I have that too, so we had a sort of shorthand.
TGUK : You’re still young. Do you still feel like you’re learning your craft?
FF: Definitely, that really was one of the most special things on this job. The atmosphere created by Vincent and Russell on set was such that you really, really wanted to come in to work every day. As actors, we have the best job in the world, but occasionally it can be made difficult by ego and by not listening to each other and lack of communication. And on this job, it was just brilliant, and as a result, I think we all felt like we were doing our best work.
TGUK: Have you seen Queer as Folk?
FF: I hadn’t seen it before this job started, but I have now. I loved it. It was a brilliant piece of drama, and the writing was Vwhip-sharp.
TGUK: It was quite controversial when it first went out on Channel 4 15 years ago. Do you think some of the more risqué elements of Cucumber and Banana might cause a kerfuffle this time around?
FF: There should be, as well. Anything that moves public consciousness and public morality forward, which one hopes this show will do, has got to cause a stir otherwise it’s not done its job properly.
TGUK: Do you think Queer as Folk changed the nature of TV, or what was considered acceptable in a TV drama?
FF: I do yes. Everybody who I’ve spoken to who was conscious when Queer as Folk went out says it was a complete game- changer. It completely changed people’s perception of young, gay men especially. Suddenly they were successful, cool, sexy, out there, fun people you wanted to spend time with – not a stereotype. Obviously that was massive when it came out.
Cucumber is available to buy on DVD from Amazon
2. August
3. Bare
4. Big Eden
5. Boys
6. Henry Gamble’s Birthday Party
10. Love Is Strange
Such is the nation’s obsession with their smartphone that half of the 2,000 adults questioned in 2013 admit that looking at their phone is the very last thing they do in the evening, and the first thing they do when they wake.
The mobile phone has now become such a regular fixture in our bedtime routine that it takes until 10:58pm for the average Brit to relinquish their device.
Mark Fells Director of Digital at Premier Inn, who conducted the survey of 2,000 adults, said,
“In the last five years owning a smartphone has become common place for most adults, and we all love the freedom and accessibility that technology allows us to have.
“However, with almost half of those surveyed struggling to take their mind off what they have read on their mobile, and a huge 69% receiving late night e-mails and text messages from work colleagues and their boss, it appears we need to learn to ‘switch off’ when it comes to our bedtime routines.”
Worryingly, one in five admit to regularly waking in the morning with their smartphone still glued to their hand, and a third claim they have ditched reading books in bed in favour of browsing the internet, social networking and catching up on work emails instead.
ALSO READ: Six ways to get a better night’s sleep
A social media savvy 20% bid a virtual ‘goodnight’ to their friends and followers on Facebook and Twitter when tucked up in bed, with a further 8% acknowledging they are more likely to say goodnight to their online pals than their own partners that sleep by their side.
Although the nation may be smitten with their smartphones, the addiction to mobile technology appears to be having an adverse effect on love lives, with one in five Brits admitting they frequently row with their partner over how much time they spend on their phone while in bed.
Almost one in three deemed using a mobile in bed anti-social.
A pensioner’s bright yellow car blamed for ruining the view in one of Britain’s most picturesque villages has been written off by a vandal who has scratched ‘MOVE’ on it.
Peter Maddox, 84, parks his banana-coloured Vauxhall Corsa outside his Cotswolds cottage in 14th century Arlington Row, which is owned by the National Trust.
The chocolate box houses are the oldest inhabited properties in the UK and appear on the inside cover of millions of passports.
But a row erupted in 2015 when visitors complained that Peter’s “ugly” car was wrecking the classic English scene in Bibury, Glos.
The retired dentist insisted he had nowhere else to park and continued leaving his car on the road – until it was vandalised last week.
A yob scratched the word “MOVE FREDDIE” onto the bonnet, scratched every other panel and smashed the driver’s side window and rear windscreen.
Mechanics have told Peter it will cost £6,000 to repair with a full respray, making the car a probable write-off.
But defiant Peter has said if that was the case he would buy a replacement – with a lime green colour.
Daughter-in-law Marie Kraus said,
“Peter is understandably upset at the loss of his car and his independence, but he is also very fond of his lovely yellow car.
“Everyone in the village is very supportive. It is horrible to think whoever has done this has come out of their way down this little road to do something like this.
“It will be a struggle to get another car. It will leave Peter out of pocket.”
Peter moved to Bibury after his wife died 15 years ago and bought his car three years ago.
In 2015 he attracted attention when photographers took to Twitter to complain about the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty being ruined by the “ugly, yellow car“.
Villagers are supporting Peter and calling the crime “disgusting”.
Some have suggested there is “a financial aspect to the crime” and pointed the finger at a photographer who sells pictures of the village.
Postmaster Richard William, 48, said,
“We are all shocked and horrified that such mindless destruction should be visited upon a normally quiet and tranquil village.
“A lot of people make money out of photographing Arlington Row. I should think there is a financial aspect to the crime.
“I think it is related to the exposure it received on the internet and the objection to it parking in front of Arlington Row.”
Ian Howard, owner of The William Morris Tea Room, said the culprits were “nasty vandals” with “small brains”.
He added: “Peter has not done anyone any harm.”
Rose Francome-Robinson, 73, also of Arlington Row, described the crime as “disgusting” and “malicious”.
She said: “I didn’t hear anything, I saw the glass at the parking spot and the car had gone.”
Police have valued the damage at £6,000 and believe the crime happened between 4pm on Sunday 22 and 7.40am on Monday 23.
Sergeant Garrett Gloyne said,
“We have conducted house to house inquiries. We are aware that presence of the vehicle was the bone of contention to some people.
“Nevertheless the damage caused to vehicle is beyond the pale and we would appeal for anyone who knows anything to contact us.”
Speaking on Simon Gross‘s YouTube The Showbiz Show today, singing duo, Bratavio have opened up about the negativity they’ve recieved from the gay community since they left the show. The pair were the first act to be voted off in last year’s series – but had one of the most talked about auditions in the show’s history.
The duo said that they never have trouble when they make appearances at straight clubs, but in gay clubs they say that people snub them and that club-goers shout abuse at them. The pair even fear that they will get pelted with eggs.
Warwickshire-born Bradley Hunt said,
“I’d say the amount of abuse after the show has been off gay people in clubs and that, I go to all the straight clubs and it’s fine. I go to the gay clubs and they shout ‘fake’, ‘look at them’, ‘don’t ask them for a photograph’.
ALSO READ: Just because you’re gay doesn’t mean you’re not a homophobe.
They also claim that many in the community say they are a disgrace, but Bradley hit back saying that he never claimed to be an ambassador and says he’s not “representing” the community.
He said,
“They say that we disgrace the community and I don’t even that I’m the ambassador for it, I’m not representing it, it’s our personalities that we are showing on the show”.
Ottavio, who appeared in a previous series of X Factor before teaming up with Bradley in 2016 says that the act fear they’ll be attacked on stage.
He said,
“We always worry when we go onstage that someone is going to throw something at us like eggs or something and if they did that I’d go down the stage and knock them out”.
PUBLIC ANGER: A vigil outside the Daily Mail offices in 2013 after the death of trans teacher, Lucy Meadows.
Wikipedia has marked The Daily Mail as an “unreliable” source for stories and has banned its thousands of volunteer contributors from using the paper or the Mail Online as a source for facts after its volunteers decided that the 120-year-old newspaper was “unreliable” and that other sources should be cited. The editorial department of the world’s biggest online encyclopaedia have decreed that all references from the paper should be scrubbed and replaced by other sources. The Mail Online is one of the world’s most successful newspaper websites.
In a statement, the editors wrote,
“Based on the requests for comments section [on the reliable sources noticeboard], volunteer editors on English Wikipedia have come to a consensus that the Daily Mail is ‘generally unreliable and its use as a reference is to be generally prohibited, especially when other more reliable sources exist’.
“This means that the Daily Mail will generally not be referenced as a ‘reliable source’ on English Wikipedia, and volunteer editors are encouraged to change existing citations to the Daily Mail to another source deemed reliable by the community. This is consistent with how Wikipedia editors evaluate and use media outlets in general – with common sense and caution.”
It did, however, note that historically the DM had been noted as a reliable source, saying,
The Daily Mail may have been more reliable historically, and it could make sense to cite it as a primary source if it is the subject of discussion. These seem to be good points, but should come up very rarely. Editors are encouraged to discuss with each other and apply common sense in these cases.
Wikipedia went online in 2001 and was created by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger. It has become one of the world’s most popular websites. It works by allowing anyone to make edits. This can sometimes lead to false entries or vandalism of pages. It is policed by thousands of volunteers who regularly delete and reedit deliberate and accidental errors.