THEGAYUK

Category: Entertainment

  • THEATRE REVIEW | The Kite Runner, Playhouse Theatre, London

     

    ★★★★| The Kite Runner

    The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling 2003 novel, which was turned into an acclaimed 2007 movie and recently won rave reviews at London’s Wyndham’s Theatre, is back again and now playing at The Playhouse Theatre. Its story resonated so much with theatregoers, and after sellout crowds in its original run, it’s been granted to fly again in a limited 8-week run.

    The Kite Runner is the story of true friendship, and also true betrayal. David Ahmad is Amir, who lives with his wealthy father Baba (Emilio Doorgasingh) in Kabul, Afghanistan. They employ Baba’s long-time servant Ali (Ezra Faroque Khan), along with his son Hassan (Andrei Costin). Both Amir and Hassan lost their mothers, so Amir and Hassan have become close, even though they both come from different classes of society.

    They’ve formed a bond with each other and especially love to fly kites together. Hassan ends up becoming Amir’s kite runner – he basically retrieves the kite after knowing where it’s going to fall. The young men are practically inseparable, especially when the local thug Assef (Bhavin Bhatt) threatens them perhaps because he is jealous of their close friendship. But one day, after a kite competition, Hassan is captured by Assef, who proceeds to taunt and then rape him.

    But it’s Amir who witnesses the whole thing – he doesn’t even step in to help, and it’s a guilt that he carries around with him, enough so that he attempts to have his father get rid of Hassan and Amir. This is when the story goes in a different direction and takes us on a journey to America where Amir and Baba eventually find themselves after leaving war-torn Afghanistan. Amir eventually settles down in San Francisco with a wife, but he’s torn with guilt over what he did or did not do for Hassan. And this guilt has him trace his steps back to Afghanistan in the hopes of finding Hassan and to rekindle the relationship that they had when they were boys. But there’s more in store for him than what he bargains for.

    The Kite Runner doesn’t need any sort of magic wand or razzle dazzle to tell its story – it’s the story in itself that is strong enough to hold the audience’s attention. We see the beautiful friendship between Hassan and Amir that is eventually shattered and when the story takes it to another direction we feel Amir’s pain and heartbreak and guilt and we hope the characters will eventually find happiness, though deep down we know that’s not going to be the case. Matthew Spangler has successfully adapted the book for the stage (again) while Director Giles Croft works with an excellent acting ensemble with a very minimalist set as he excellently guides his actors to portray the characters very beautifully and emotionally.

    THE KITE RUNNER is playing at the Playhouse Theatre until 26th August 2017

     

  • LISTEN | Grenfell Tower single released by Simon Cowell

    Simon Cowell’s Grenfell Tower single has been released.

    Simon Cowell has released a version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, with a number of artists, with every penny going to the London Community Foundation.

    The single features vocals from Geri Halliwell, Nathan Sykes and Emeli Sandé, One Direction band mates Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson, and former X Factor stars Leona Lewis and Fleur East.

    Here’s everyone who appears: 5 After Midnight
    Angel
    Anne-Marie
    Bastille
    Brian May – Queen
    Carl Barât – The Libertines
    Craig David
    Deno
    Donae’o
    Dua Lipa
    Ella Eyre
    Ella Henderson
    Emeli Sandé
    Fleur East
    Gareth Malone & The Choir for Grenfell
    Geri Halliwell
    Gregory Porter
    James Arthur
    James Blunt
    Jessie J
    Jessie Ware
    John Newman
    Jon McClure – Reverend and the Makers
    Jorja Smith
    Kelly Jones – Stereophonics
    Labrinth
    Leona Lewis
    Liam Payne
    London Community Gospel Choir
    Louis Tomlinson
    Louisa Johnson
    Matt Goss
    Matt Terry
    Mr Eazi
    Nathan Sykes
    Nile Rodgers
    Omar
    Paloma Faith
    Pixie Lott
    Ray BLK
    RAYE
    Rita Ora
    Robbie Williams
    Shakka
    Shane Filan
    Stormzy
    The Who (Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend)
    Tokio Myers
    Tom Grennan
    Tony Hadley
    Tulisa
    WSTRN

    All proceeds collected from the single are to be distributed via The London Community Foundation. To make further donations to Artists for Grenfell, go to the dedicated website http://www.artistsforgrenfell.com.

  • FILM REVIEW | Destination Unknown

     

    ★★★★★| Destination Unknown

    Twelve Holocaust survivors, tell, in vivid detail, the horrors they suffered in the concentration camps during WWII in the new documentary Destination Unknown.

    These men and women were lucky enough to have lived through, and survived, the suffering and the horrors in the Treblinka, Mauthausen and Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps. They tell about losing their mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters, and how, now 70 years after the liberation of the camps, they are still haunted by the memories.

    We get to meet Ed Mosberg, who was 13 years old when the war started, and who lost all of his family, and how, 70 years later, him and his wife, who is in a wheelchair, visit Mauthausen Camp for the first time since they were liberated, with Ed wearing a prisoner’s outfit. His wife bittersweetly tells him that he never really left the concentration camp. Then there is Polish Eli Zborowski, who survived the war by being hidden by a local family, and Stanley Goglover, who had to remove his Auschwitz tattoo to completely erase the memories of his time in the concentration camps.

    Roman Ferber speaks in perfect English as he remembers when he was three years old that all of a sudden his Polish nanny disappeared only because she was not allowed to work for a Jewish family. The memorable story of couple Victor and Regina Lewis, who knew each other before the war and who, after the war, being the only members of their families to survive, ended up reconnecting and eventually getting married. Plus some of the lucky survivors who ended up on Schindler’s list and who thus were not sent to the camps get to tell their harrowing tales.

    Destination Unknown just doesn’t concentrate on death, the documentary also highlights these people’s amazing lives after the war, how they got married, had kids and even grandchildren, and how they created their own families after the horrible crimes against humanity that took place under Adolph Hitler’s short but devastating regime.

    Destination Unkown, completed in 2016, uses rare unseen archive footage from the war, as well as the participant’s own home video footage, to tell their individual stories of fear, hope, survival and courage. After 14 years of tracking down and talking to survivors, Producer Llion Roberts, along with Director and Editor Claire Ferguson, have made a documentary that is both memorable and still necessary, with an incredible and moving soundtrack. Sure there have been dozens and dozens of books, films and documentaries on this subject, but it’s a subject matter that still needs to be told for each survivor has their own story to tell, unique, frightening, courageous, and just as important, perhaps even more so, than anything in the news today.

    “DESTINATION UNKNOWN” is now in cinemas

  • THEATRE REVIEW | The Play That Goes Wrong, The Birmingham Rep

    ★★★★★ – Dangerous, jaw-dropping and comedy genius!

    Mischief Theatre, in role as The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society, brought to the Birmingham Rep stage an uproariously funny murder mystery entitled The Murder at Haversham Manor and it went south, literally.

    The Play That Goes Wrong was a comedic masterpiece, like its successor Peter Pan, Goes Wrong, with dangerous and risky tricks that left audiences clutching on to their seats as pieces of stage fell off and got thrown around, sometimes missing the actors by inches. The actors were so efficient in everything they did, from balancing three objects across two body parts, to expertly delivering their lines while dodging canvasses, candelabras and each other. What was sublime about The Play That Goes Wrong was that if ever you have seen an amateur, or a badly produced professional, play, this show embodies the different mistakes and disasters that have occurred in the former shows. There’ll be a moment where you cannot help but recall a bad production where sets had fallen down or actors had genuinely forgotten lines and asked for “line” throughout entire speeches.

    Jason Callender who plays Jonathan playing Charles Haversham was brilliant. His gag was always turning up at the wrong point in the play, revealing the ending every time. It was very comedic, too, when Jonathan was rarely allowed to play dead, for actors clumsily walked on him, sat on him, or fell on him. He made the audience laugh at his every entrance, and I chiefly loved his sneaking off stage wriggling subtly on the floor as if to kid the audience that we couldn’t see him depart. Patrick Warner who plays Chris playing Inspector Carter was a comedy genius. Every reaction was crafted to perfection, and his lines were well-timed with the action. The audience hung on to every word he said. He played the director too, so it was particularly hilarious when, under his breath, he would mutter a direction to understudies that had come on to fill in for a part. Ham acting is a feature often prominent in amateur murder mystery productions, and Alastair Kirton playing Max playing Cecil Haversham did a sterling job showcasing this. Max’s sawing the air with his hands and over dramatising his role while stopping to smile as the audience laughed during one of his lines, was incredibly entertaining. When Max changed role to be the Gardener he flashed his clothes to tell it was still him, and that he had returned, but as a different character. Absolutely hilarious. Lastly, Natasha Culley as Sandra Wilkinson enacting the role of Florence Colleymoore was a treat. Sandra was everything that had ever gone wrong with acting all sewn together in one actress. Her ticks, shallow demeanour, and not able to improvise without direction, was a great feast for the senses. Her overproduction of movement as she spoke, too, was hilarious. Overall, each cast member contributed to one of funniest nights I’ve had this year.

    The Play That Goes Wrong was especially entertaining for the set was a safety hazard, as the study, built atop of the drawing room, with no rails or support, collapsed gradually while the actors were still on there. It eventually fell down while an actor was under it, but the dexterity by which the actors moved and positioned themselves, made the accidents sort of safe, and we could exhale once again.

    Mischief Theatre is like Alton Towers, you queue to get on, you get several scares, and then you want to hop on again and again.

    The Play That Goes Wrong is playing at The Birmingham Rep until 24th June

  • FILM REVIEW | Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

    FILM REVIEW | Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales – Captain Jack Sparrow is back for the fifth and final time in the search along with everyone else for Poseidon’s Trident which is the only thing that can save him from an army of zombie pirates.

    Nutshell – Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley and all are back for one final time before setting sail into the sunset – God even Paul McCartney turns up too. The undead Captain Salazar escapes from the Devil’s Triangle which Jack Sparrow had trapped him in. He wants revenge by eliminating every pirate from the earth and Jack’s only hope is an artefact that gives full control over the seas – cue the mother of all chases across land and over and under the sea to tie up all the loose ends of 11 hours of fun films in this hugely successful franchise.

    Running Time – 129 minutes; Certificate – 12A.

    Tagline – ‘Dead Men Tell No Tales’ or ”All Pirates Must Die’

    THEGAYUK Factor – Orlando Bloom is one hot fukka with the second biggest peen in Hollywood to Jon Hamm allegedly but he goes missing for the middle of the film so the eye candy is taken up by young newbie Brenton Thwaites. Pirates are hot and we’re sure they enjoyed each other below decks as you can see in the recently released gay porn version of this franchise ‘Pirates’ from Men.com featuring UK Gay Porn megastar Paddy O’Brian shagging over the yardarm on a real pirate ship.

    Cast – Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, David Wenham & Kevin McNally.

    Key Player – Ever since the first movie when he was a supporting character these films are all now about Johnny Depp and here he has a lot more funny lines than normal – he also has this character down pat and really carries the weight of this massive movie.

    Budget – $350 Million making it one of the Top 10 most expensive films ever – $90 Million was added due to Depp’s divorce trauma’s, him busting his wrist and having to return to the States and that dog smuggling into Oz problem but it will still make a nice profit worldwide.

    Best Bit – 0.31 mins; A truly great bank heist that fits the tone of these films perfectly although it is ripped hook, line and anchor from the climax to Fast And Furious 5, but hey ho, it still works a treat. Don’t get distracted at the end of the epic stunt sequence at the bridge bit though as there is an awful blooper where six horses suddenly all disappear at once.

    Worst Bit – 0.42 mins; The David Wenham character representing the British Navy is not so much unnecessary but wholly obsolete and somewhat confusing and why does he want the Trident anyway?

    Little Secret – The Pirates’ films are the 9th most lucrative franchise of all time and this is the most expensive to date. After Keith Richard’s from the Rolling Stones as his dad here we get Paul McCartney from The Beatles playing Jack’s Uncle and singing Maggie Mae from the Let it Be Album. This was supposed to be the last Pirates ever but just this week they have announced number 6 and Keira Knightley will be back for the whole thing next time.

    Further Viewing – The Black Pearl, Dead Man’s Chest, At World’s End, On Stranger Tides for 11 hours of Jack madness plus Cutthroat Island, Blackbeard, Treasure Island, Hook and 10 years in the making Roman Polanski’s ‘Pirates‘.

    Any Good – It is basically a carbon copy of the first movie with bigger set pieces and more CGI. As that was the best one of the series and they have upped the humour here then this is definitely a return to form and is very welcome in that it is shorter too. All good fun but nothing really new here to be honest and it will get a bit lost in the midst of a very busy Summer of sequels.

    Rating – 65% out of 100.

     

     

  • Watch this 9 YEAR OLD smash a Celine Dion hit

    Okay, so this family named their first daughter Celine and their second daughter Dion… Needless to say, they are CD fans through and through.

     

    Celine Tam just tore up the Celine Dion songbook…

    UK audiences can watch America’s Got Talent on truTV every Tuesday at 8pm.

    (truTV is available Freeview 68, Sky 186, Virgin 212, Freesat 154).

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Lady Bunny in Trans-Jester, Soho Theatre, London

    ★★★★| Lady Bunny in Trans-Jester

    She’s the queen of drag queens, and almost as famous as the Queen of England, Lady Bunny is back in town to perform her one-woman show called Trans-jester, and no one is safe from her catty claws and endless wit. It’s a no-holds-barred performance that is the best of Lady Bunny.

    She commands the stage in her glitteringly-best sequins and a wig that practically reaches the ceiling. With shiny jewellery that, she tells you, is bought at yard sales.

    Lady Bunny, direct but not straight from New York, provides her loyal and tongue-wagging audience with literally an oral history of her life, which included lots of black cock-sucking jokes, as well as her days as a no name drag queen in Atlanta Georgia USA when she and Rupaul used to be roommates.

    Lady Bunny also gets all political by discussing the ridiculous notion of how now everyone has to go by a label. She tells us that she remembers when it used to be only ‘G’ but now it’s LGBTQIA – she screams that it’s ridiculous to have labels – and the audience agreed with her with a roaring cheer! Bunny doesn’t hold back when discussing Bruce Jenner and the transformation to Caitlyn and how Caitlyn’s Republican arse and new pussy doesn’t come close to representing her community. And there are quite a few hilarious Kardashian jokes thrown in for good jester.

    But Bunny is best when she does jokes. They come fast and furious in the part of the show that is her tribute to the old US television show Laugh-In. It’s a skit she used to do at the late and great Wigstock Drag Queen festival she founded in the late 1980s and which sadly came to an end in 2001.

    Lady Bunny is an institution, and she should be in an institution (ha ha ha). But she’s one of a kind, the Queen, a pure Lady, and now’s your chance to go see her live in person before she’s put out to pasture. Long Live Lady Bunny!

    Lady Bunny in Trans-jester is playing at the Soho Theatre until Saturday, July 1st.

     

  • 10 things you never knew about Miss Hope Springs

    Hope Springs Eternal.

    The perfect antidote to election fatigue is coming to a town near you. Miss Hope Springs the former international Las Vegas showgirl is currently touring the UK with her new show The Devil Made Me Do It.  Illuminating the stage with sequins and bringing a ray of rainbow sunshine, Miss Hope Springs has a black humour and intricacy of lyrics which will resonate with anyone who has clawed their way to the top and chipped every manicured nail on the way back down.

    More than drag, Hope Springs is a composer, lyricist and comedy cabaret act, with a performance harking back to the good old days of variety shows.  A civilised evening of intelligent entertainment, witty, comedic and heartfelt songs, Miss Hope Springs will treat you to belly laughs and teary eyes in equal entertaining measure.

    A five-star evening out for anyone looking for a break from the norm.

    Shuggie Hughes delves deep into Miss Hope Springs Below:

    1. What should every woman try at least once in her life?

    I think every woman should, at least once in her life, try getting in touch with her deepest inner parts. If, like me, your husband won’t help out then get a professional in to help. It’s good to blow away those cobwebs. My husband Irving said I’m a born psychologist, or is it psychopath? Well I know it’s something to do with the mind.

    2. You have been linked to Manilow and Liberace would you say you have a type?

    I always have a thing for men with that understated masculine energy. Like Noel Coward…and your Julian Clary. He really does something for me! Liberace was just adorable. His subtle sense of style…A little on the macho side for my taste…but still.

    3. What did the devil make you do?

    You’ll have to come and find out for yourself at one of my shows darling. The Devil Made Me Do It is a tell-all musical romp down my own personal memory lane through my original songs and revealing stories from my Ritz to the pits life. And trust me…it’s not always a pretty sight!

    4. What is the best advice you’ve been given?

    ‘They’ll never buy the cow if they can get the milk for free’. I don’t know what it means …but I like the sound of it. My grandmother Elke Seltzer used to say it to me all the time when I was a little girl growing up in Paradise, Nevada (a trailer park) just outside Las Vegas. She was a strip…I mean exotic dancer.

    5. Who is your musical inspiration?

    Well as you know I am a composer and lyricist and my tastes are pretty broad. My influences go from Cole Porter and George Gershwin to bands that are totally ‘down-with-the-kids’ such as The Beatles and The Carpenters. No one can say I haven’t kept up with the times.

    6. What does fame/stardom mean to you?

    It’s a heavy torch to carry sometimes. Especially when you’re doing a quick dash round Lidyl in sequinned kaftan, huge sunglasses and matching turban-kitten heels combo, you know…when you just want to be incognito. People keep staring at me and pointing, often shouting things like ‘There she goes…I saw her she shove half a dozen of them down her Spanx.’ You get used to the attention though. I think it’s rather sweet. I don’t know where I’d be without my fans…

    7. What is on your bucket list?

    Funnily enough. A bucket…Can I have a spade and a plastic crab too? Oh and one of those little flags? Seriously though. I plan to win a Daytime Emmy, an Oscar and the Nobel Peace Prize.

    8. What are the last three items on your credit card statement?

    Vaseline, a macrame plant holder and a crate of Cif.

    9. What quote do you live by?

    ‘Carlos! Open the Sauvignon Blanc and it better be chilled to perfection or else.’ (Carlos is my husband’s delightful hairdresser pal. We all share a camper van in Dungeness. When Irving told me he was getting a little camper I was like ‘I don’t think that’s possible!’

    10. What is one thing you wish you knew when you were younger?

    To start lying about my age sooner. Once I started it was too late to go backwards. I’ve been 39 for 30 years now and I think it might be wearing a bit thin. Listen…I’m no angel…but I get by…and one word of advice for those of you who may find yourself in any kind of trouble…just say Hope told you to say The Devil Made Me Do It!

    Miss Hope Springs is currently touring the UK – Links Below:

    https://www.ents24.com/uk/tour-dates/miss-hope-springs

  • Watch Duncan James and Adam Rickitt have a cheeky snog

    Duncan James and Adam Rickitt have got it on…

    Okay, it’s only for television but it totally makes our day.Check out this first look promo from e4.

    Speaking about working with Duncan, Adam said in a recent interview,

    “It’s been funny – I’ve known Duncan for years. When I first got the part and they mentioned that Kyle would be gay, I was like, “Oh, that’s fine as long as it’s not with Duncan…” because he was such a good mate. They were like, “Erm… well it is with Duncan”. [laughs] In some respect, you think it’s going to be really awkward because I’d known him for so long, but then at the same time it was really good because he’s such a nice guy and we are good mates! So, my first ever boy-on-boy kiss was with Duncan from Blue! That’s definitely a benchmark! [laughs]”

     

  • Is this the most awkward gay date ever?

    Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Is all we can say.

    It takes a brave man to put your first date with another guy on television – especially when it doesn’t quite pan out how you imagine it would.

    First Dates recently broadcast this clanger between John and Greig. However after John came back from a smoke outside he admitted to Greig, “It sounds really bad, but I don’t find you attractive,”

    “You’re a really genuine guy and we seem to get on, but I just don’t have that connection with you.”

    “What’s the point in staying and having the main course and dinners?”

    Ouch.

    Even the waiter felt the burn.

    Clearly taken aback Greig cancelled his main course and left the restaurant, leaving John to finish his steak and chips alone.

    https://giphy.com/gifs/fqwprs9RSlyla

     

     

  • Simon Cowell to release charity single for Grenfell Tower victims

    X Factor boss, Simon Cowell, says he’s going to release a charity single to raise money for the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire.

    Yesterday Simon Cowell said that he was set to release a charity single in aid of the victims and survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire. A fire engulfed the Grenfell Tower block in London on Wednesday morning.

    After watching footage of the burning tower on TV, Simon tweeted his heartbreak,

    Previously many of Simon Cowell’s charity singles from the X Factor have achieved number 1 status and raised money for a number of ventures, including Help For Heroes and Great Ormond Street Hospital.

    The song choice and release date have yet to be confirmed.

    What are the charity single released by Simon Cowell?

    2008, Hero

    Originally a Mariah Carey song, Hero was released in 2008 in aid of Help for Heroes.

    2009, You Are Not Alone

    This Michael Jackson hit became an instant number 1 when the X Factor finalists sang You Are Not Alone in aid of the Great Ormond Street Hospital and is said to have raised over £1 million.

    2010, Heroes,

    This David Bowie track was released by the X Factor finalists and like the previous two finalists’ singles reached number 1, which the original released failed to achieve. Money raised went to Help For Heroes.

    2011, Wishing On A Star

    Wishing On A Star was released

    2012, Impossible

    This James Arthur single was released in aid of Together For Short Lives. It reached number 1 and sold nearly 500,000 copies in its first week.

    2013, Skyscraper

    Sam Bailey’s version of the Demi Lovato hit raised money for Great Ormond Street Hospital and Together For Short Lives. It was Christmas number 1.

    This was the winners’ single and proceeds went to Together For Short Lives.

    2014, Something I Need

    Ben Haenow’s Something I Need raised money for Together For Short Lives and sold over 300,000 copies in its first week.