THEGAYUK

Category: Entertainment

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Yarico, London Theatre Workshop

    ★★ | Yarico, London Theatre Workshop

    Yarico, an Amerindian beauty, is a young woman with a fierce, independent spirit. Bored of the monotonous routine of small island life, she longs to escape. When Inkle, the third son of a British merchant is shipwrecked on her island, he faces certain death at the hands of the islanders. Yarico intervenes and saves him from his fate, marking the beginning of a story that ultimately takes them to the island of Barbados where fate has a horrific surprise in store for her.

    This new musical is based on a true story that fired the world’s imagination and contributed to a social movement against the slave trade. It’s a story of great historical significance that has been told from the 17th century onwards and one that caused a change in attitudes towards slavery.

    Sadly, the musical doesn’t quite do justice to the power of the underlying story. Performing a musical in a small space has inherent difficulties and the staging of this piece doesn’t lend itself to an intimate theatre. The performers are bawdy, expressive and, at times, brash. In a larger venue this would work but in this case, it made the action seem like a pantomime at times. There are some very powerful musical numbers but equally, there are some incredibly weak ones and the dialogue is also very hit and miss, leaving a mixed bag of a show. The humour is often juvenile, dated and laden with double-entendres; failing to raise more than the occasional titter and a few tumbleweed moments on the night I saw the show.

    Credit to the leads though: Newcomer Liberty Buckland as Yarico gives an exceptional performance in a vehicle way beneath her fine acting and vocal talents. The very able Tori Allen-Martin does her best to enliven a weak role as Yarico’s friend Nono and Alex Spinney shows fine vocal performances if slightly less polished acting skills at times.

    Ultimately this felt like a musical that had potential but failed to deliver. It didn’t seem to know what it was: an educational story, a love story or a bawdy romp? None of these elements quite worked and they certainly didn’t gel in a story that was at times rushed and unconvincing.

    In spite of all of this, it’s worth going along just to see Liberty Buckland who is surely bound for great things.

    Yarico runs until the 14th of March 2015

    Buy tickets here: http://londontheatreworkshop.co.uk/yarico/

  • FILM REVIEW | Fairytale Of Kathmandu: Highly Emotive and Compelling

    ★★★★★ | Fairytale Of Kathmandu

    Not every Fairy Tale has a happy ending especially this one desperately sad but true one from 2007.

    Director Neass Ni Chianain first encountered legendary Irish Poet Cathal Ó Searcaigh as a student in awe of him. Years later, the two are now friends and the poet invites her to accompany him on his annual three-month visit to Nepal, which he considers his spiritual home. Ó Searcaigh, a middle-aged openly gay man, was keen to share his life in the capital city of Kathmandu, and show all his charitable work supporting a whole legion of young Nepalese boys.

    The documentary starts out simply as a tribute to this seemingly altruistic generous man that villagers treat as some sort of a deity, turns into a totally different story.

    Admiration turns to dismay and anger, fuelled by Ó Searcaigh’s denials when confronted with the discoveries, and ultimately it is he that claims betrayal and not the boys or the filmmaker.

    Sensitively shot, this superb documentary with its totally unexpected curve is highly emotional, and even blood-curdling at times. Whatever one’s opinion of Ó Searcaigh is, his story is totally compelling, completely riveting and makes fascinating viewing that shouldn’t be missed. Ultimately, we are reminded of what we’ve always known: not every fairytale has a happily-ever –after ending.

  • FILM REVIEW | Geography Club, Wonderfully fresh look at gay teens coming of age

    ★★★★★ | Geography Club, Wonderfully fresh look at gay teens coming of age

    In this wonderful fresh look at the world of gay teens, the one thing the members of this Club definitely don’t talk about is Geography.

    They are a group of closeted gay high school students who don’t want anyone to know the true purpose of their meetings. There are only three members to start but when Min, a rather bossy bi-sexual, inadvertently catches her friend Russell kissing football jock Kevin, she invites him to join them and that triggers a whole series of events that will eventually force them to ‘out’ themselves to the whole school.

    Oddly enough Kevin is the deepest into the closet even though his father is actually very proud of his out gay brother. Kevin encourages Russell to join the football team in order so they can at least hang out together, and although by accepting the offer it doesn’t mean that the boys actually get any closer, apart from the rare make out session, but it results in Russell getting roped into bullying another gay classmate just to keep his own cover.

    Russell’s plump best friend Gunnar pressures him to go on a double-date as that is the only way that Kimberly will go out with him. When Trish her friend makes the moves on a petrified Russell, his panicky reactions cause Kimberly to call him a ‘fag’; a fact that she ensures is common knowledge to the entire school the very next day. Now totally exposed there are only two ways that this can play out for Russell, and he chooses the bravest and most honest option with the support of his real friends.

    Based on Brent Hartinger’s very successful young adult novel, the movie is directed by 28-year-old actor Gary Entin from a script by his twin brother actor Edmund Entin (both known for The Seeker: The Dark is Rising). It is an extremely impressive and professional debut from these two and is a wonderfully fresh look at young teens coming to terms with their sexuality. They score high points for their enlightened approach to an emotive subject, especially for avoiding all the usual clichéd stereotypes. The fact that not all the main players redeemed themselves at the end, added another credible touch of realism.

    Great cast of young experienced actors; Cameron Deane Stewart (‘Pitch Perfect’) played Russell; Andrew Caldwell (Transformers) was Gunnar, Ally Maki (Step Up 3D) as Min, Justin Deeley (Couples Retreat) as Kevin, Nikki Blonsky (Hairspray) as Min’s girlfriend Theresa and Alex Newell (Glee) as Ike a club member. And the wonderful Ana Gustier (ex-Saturday Night Live) was hilarious as the hippy teacher ‘who cared’.

    Several publishers rejected the book itself before Harper Collins picked it up. To their delight they had three reprints within the first three months, proving that there is both a market and real need for books like this, I think there is also a demand for the movies that evolve from them, especially when they are of this high calibre.

  • FILM REVIEW | Appropriate Behaviour

    ★★★ | Appropriate Behaviour

    For Shirin, a twentysomethingyear old angst ridden fashionable Brooklynite, life is mess.

    We don’t need to feel sorry for her, as she does that so well herself. She is reluctantly breaking up with Maxine her girlfriend and leaving the home they shared with little more than a strap on dildo. She is moving into a shabby squalid apartment with a pair of pretentious ‘artists’. Her nice middle class Iranian parents, who have no idea about her sexual identity, would like her to marry a nice traditional Persian boy. Her over-achieving brother is a doctor, whilst Shirin wastes her journalism degree and just flits from one menial job to another. And if that is not enough, she is broke too.

    The trouble is Shirin doesn’t know what she wants. She starts dating men again, whilst at the same time tries all she can do to woo a reluctant Maxine back. Her attempts at ‘finding herself’ make for some of the funnier moments in this comic story that is based loosely on the life of Desiree Akhavan who not only directed and wrote it, but is playing Shirin herself too. It’s her performance that makes this piece come alive even with its gaping holes. When Shirin attempts a three-way with a neurotic couple, or has a hook-up from a website, or makes a disruptive visit to a gay rights discussion group it is outrageously funny.

    Ms. Akhavan has written herself some delicious one-liners.

    Her scenes with her parents are less successful as it’s hard to believe that such worldly educated people would never have a single inkling as to what their free-spirit bisexual daughter is all about.

    The story peters out with little conclusion other than the fact that Ms Akhavan is an immensely talented performer and is a powerful presence on the screen. I am sure that we will see a great deal more of this future star.

  • EastEnders To Make History By Introducing a Trans Character

    Dominic Treadwell-Collins, Executive Producer of Eastenders, revealed at National Student Pride this afternoon that he is set to create a trans character for the iconic British soap.

    (more…)

  • BROMANCE: Hot As Hell Male On Male Dancing

    Barely Methodical Troupe: an experimental acrobatic company, have just released a video dance piece which is acrobatic, magical, touching and completely hot. (more…)

  • FILM REVIEW | Whiplash

    ★★★★★ | Whiplash

    19-year-old Andrew Neyman wants to be the next Buddy Rich.

    This aspiring young drummer who is completely obsessed with his burning ambition has managed to get himself enrolled at the prestigious Shaffer Conservatory of Music in Manhattan, which is ranked No. 1 in the country. Now he is desperate to be recruited into the School’s band led by its legendary leader Terrence Fletcher. Even after he catches Fletcher’s attention one day and is invited to become the Band’s alternate drummer, he is never sure if he will succeed and achieve his dream especially when Fletcher’s initial charming approach soon dissipates to reveal his true nature.

    The bald-headed Fletcher is nothing short than a sadistic bully akin to the worse kind of Army Drill Sergeant who insists on insulting, terrorising and abusing his talented charges. However, Andrew is not only willing but even eager to take all the public humiliation Fletcher dishes out since it forces him to suffer for a cause he chooses to believe will be worth it. After all his other idol Charlie Parker only went from good to great after a traumatic incident that induced him to sacrifice a year to intensive practice.

    During the Band’s rehearsals for some upcoming crucial Competitions Fletcher deliberately demands the near impossible, berating any of the frightened players who make a mistake and even those who don’t. He promotes Andrew from page-turner to featured drummer and then quickly demotes him back again after screaming more abuse at him and making him cry in the process. There are times he pushes Andrew to practice so hard that his hands actually bleed, and then still not content he hurls a cymbal across the room at him.

    Out of school, Andrew is very much a loner, and when he does eventually pluck up the courage to ask a girl out and start dating her, he very quickly dumps her because he feels she maybe a distraction from all the practice he needs to do to appease Fletcher in the hope of eventually becoming the lead drummer. He is also afraid of emulating the failure of his father who’s writing career never took off and he ended up be resigned to settling with just being a schoolteacher instead.

    This exhilarating indie movie was the opening gala of the Sundance 2014 Film Festival having started life however as a three-sequence film that won the US short film jury prize at Sundance the previous year. It stars the immensely talented Miles Teller (‘The Spectacular Now’) as young Andrew struggling to maximise his artistic talent regardless of the intense physical and mental pressures. It is however the subliminal career-defining performance from veteran character actor J K Simmons that ignites the screen as Fletcher a profane and seemingly unstoppable villain that has propelled this wee movie on to a much wider audience than it would normally have expected to reach. It has won a strew of well-deserved Awards culminating in a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award.

    The music throughout is also quite electric and wonderfully adds tension to some of the more frenetic scenes. This very personal second film from writer-director Damien Chazelle, ended up with an unprecedented 3 Academy Awards (Film Editing and Sound Editing) which certainly also makes him a talent to look out for too.

    Fletcher cuttingly remarks at one point that the lamest two words in the English language are ‘good job’ so we will carefully note that this is not good, but an excellent one.

  • THEATRE REVIEW | The Honey Man, The Birmingham Rep

    ★★★★ | The Honey Man, The Birmingham Rep

    Sweet, Charming and Sincere.

    The Honey Man, written and acted by the extremely talented Tyrone Huggins and elegantly directed by Emma Bernard, delights the Birmingham Rep Door with an evening of sweetness, surprise and wonder, as we see the Honey Man captivating the soul of the young character Misty. The audience are quickly gripped too.

    The Honey Man tells the story of two very different backgrounds: the wealthy and white high class via a teenage girl who is seen constantly battling with boredom, yet she appears to trying anything she can to get away from working; and the segregated and left to rot class represented by a West Indian gentleman whose past time and lifelong dedication is looking after bees.

    The drama revolves around the mystery of the Honey Man’s bees’ deaths, and the incessant preoccupation of finding the solution to the problem. Misty spills into Honey Man’s home when he happens to open the door to visit his allotment, much to her surprise, for she thought that the overgrown cottage that he lived in was uninhabited, and the ideal place to smoke cannabis away from the Concorde Manner, which was her home. They have conflictive dialogue at the start, but the enigma of the Honey Man flirts with curiosity of this young girl. She is so enthralled that she promises to help him find a cure, which happens to be living in her dad’s gardens.

    Two very special moments live in my memory from this theatre performance. The first being the Honey Man showing Misty how bees dance and he does this with the sweetness that a granddad might have when playing with his young granddaughter. He creates bee sounds and physicalises movements that show bees moving about the hive which enchant her. Misty misses her grandmother very much, so it seems that she sees Honey Man as a replacement for the relationship she had worshipped with her grandmother. By the end, they establish a special and unique bond.

    Tyrone Huggins masterminds contemporary writing with exalting a current issue that is affecting the planet today: the deforestation of lands and the fragmentation of wild habitats, both of which are ruining a lot of animals’ lives, particularly bees, who cannot pollinate and ensure the growth of plants. Huggins gave the audience a secret pleasure, for he played The Honey Man himself. The accuracy of emotion and the intricacy of character portrayal don Huggins a heavy-weight champion of contemporary drama, as he creates two parallel worlds that are crying for help, and when they meet they seem to be each other’s salvation.

    The Birmingham Rep graces us with an actress whose professional debut is The Honey Man. Beatrice Allen commands the stage most delicately, but with a hint of rawness to it too. Allen’s portrayal of Misty is both engrossing and overwhelming, and even though she may lack experience, this does not show on stage, as she matches Huggins’ ingenuity pretty convincingly.

  • Hunks Of Daytime On ITV

    Ah, daytime TV – a guilty pleasure in TheGayUK office. It occurred to us that the day time team on ITV, is particularly hot.

    Men of daytime, we salute you, from Phillip Schofield to Judge Rinder, these are our top Hunks of Daytime TV on ITV.

    Philip Schofield, ITV, This Morning

    The original silver fox, many will know Phillip from his original stint on Going Live, however, he’s now firmly embedded in the daytime schedule at ITV, one of their enduring and successful hosts.

    Jessie Pavelka, ITV Good Morning Britain

    He’s fronted numerous health magazines and apparently smokes cigars (well according to Wikipedia). He’s a trained fitness expert and specialises in extreme weight loss. Here in the UK he also fronts the popular programme: Obese: A year to save my life, on Sky 1. He is married to actress Sitara Hewitt.

    Ben Shephard, ITV, Good Morning Britain and Tipping Point

    Forty-four-old Ben Shephard is the current presenter of Tipping Point on ITV Daytime. His career in television started in 1998 when he began hosting the Channel 4 spin-off show, The Bigger Breakfast along with Melanie Sykes and Dermot O’Leary. He’s married to Annie Perks and the couple have two children, Jack and Sam.

    Robert Rinder, ITV, Judge Rinder

    Robert Rinder has been making waves with his daytime jewel, Judge Rinder. Benedict Cumberbatch married him to his husband in 2013. His first series had 20 episodes; it was so successful that ITV ordered 50 more.

    Sean Fletcher, ITV, Good Morning Britain

    40-year-old Sean is an American-British journalist and grew up in Essex and Zimbabwe. although he was born in New York. In 2014 he became a celebrity ambassador for the UK charity, Balls To Cancer. He learnt to speak Welsh because his wife is from Wales.

    Jeremy Kyle, ITV, The Jeremy Kyle Show

    There can’t be anyone in the UK who doesn’t know the name, Jeremy Kyle. 49-year old Kyle was born in Reading and is married to Carla Germaine. He has 4 children. He started his career as a radio presenter for Orchard FM in Taunton, before being signed by Kent’s Invicta FM in 1996.

    Vernon Kay, ITV, 1000 Heartbeats

    40-year-old Kay is famous for his presenting of All Star Family Fortunes, Beat the Star and Tom Daley’s Splash!. One of his first TV gigs was Fully Booked for BBC one followed by a five-year stint with T4 on Channel 4.

    Jeff Brazier, ITV, This Morning

    Born in 1979, Jeff was former partner to Jade Goody and is the father to their two children Bobby and Freddie. He made his television debut in Channel 4’s reality show Shipwrecked. Jeff’s father was Stephen Faldo, who was the skipper of the Thames pleasure boat Marchioness, which sank in 1989 after being hit by a dredger. He was killed along with 50 other passengers.

    Matt Johnson, ITV, This Morning

    32-year-old Welsh-born Matt Johnson is currently dating Ashley Robert former singer with The Pussycat Dolls. His TV career begun in 2009 when he joined ITV Wales.

    Phil Vickery, ITV, This Morning

    Married to Fern Britton, Phi, 53, is a noted celebrity chef, who has written 14 books, including the enticingly named Cooking Naked, which was released in 2007.

  • FILM REVIEW | Hyena, Slick and Brutal

    The ‘hyena’ in this slick and brutal crime thriller is a burly bent copper called Michael Logan who plays so closely with fire, he is definitely going to get more than his fingers burned if things turn out as badly as they probably will. ★★

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  • Fans Shocked By Brutal Storyline In Channel 4’s Gay Series, Cucumber

    Fans Shocked By Brutal Storyline In Channel 4’s Gay Series, Cucumber

    Fans of Russell T. Davies’s new drama on Channel 4, were shocked last night at the brutal murder of one of its lead characters.

    Cyril Nri
    CREDIT: Ben Blackall / Channel 4

    During last night’s episode of Cucumber, Lance, played by Cyril Nri was dealt a lethal blow that kills him in one of the most shocking homophobic attacks ever shown on TV.

    Viewers of the episode were clearly distressed as they took to twitter to share their thoughts. Many had a sleepless night because of the hard-hitting storyline. Nri, the actor who played Lance said,

    “I feel utterly privileged to have anything to do with this episode.”

    https://twitter.com/OwenJones84/status/571111423578902529?ref_src=twsrc^tfw