THEGAYUK

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  • Gay Icon Carol Channing dies, 97

    One of the last icons of Hollywood’s Golden Era, Carol Channing has died at the age of 97.

    As well as being a legend of some of Hollywood’s most glamorous years, the late Carol Channing was also celebrated as a gay icon.

    She will be remembered for groundbreaking roles like the money-obsessed Lorelei Lee in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and the matchmaking Dolly Levi in Hello, Dolly!

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    In her lifetime, Carol won three Tony awards and was Oscar-nominated in 1967 for the film Thoroughly Modern Millie.

    She was always a vibrant and vocal ally to the gay community and even once visited Fire Island in the USA to perform in front of 500 gay fans at the Ice Palace disco.

    Publicist B. Harlan Boll confirmed her death to USA TODAY, saying that the actor died of natural causes after suffering two strokes last year.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Embed from Getty Images

    Embed from Getty Images

    “It is with extreme heartache, that I have to announce the passing of an original industry pioneer, legend and icon: Miss Carol Channing,

    “I admired her before I met her, and have loved her since the day she stepped … or fell rather … into my life. It is so very hard to see the final curtain lower on a woman who has been a daily part of my life for more than a third of it. We supported each other, cried with each other, argued with each other, but always ended up laughing with each other.”

    Boll added, “Saying good-bye is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but I know that when I feel those uncontrollable urges to laugh at everything and/or nothing at all, it will be because she is with me, tickling my funny bone.”

     

  • This couple had their wedding in the deepest tunnel in the UK

    This couple had their wedding in the deepest tunnel in the UK

    Kate and Rebecca tied the knot in one of the UK’s most unsual venues, the longest, deepest and highest canal tunnels in Britain.

    (C) Laura Rhian

    The historic tunnel and visitor centre, which is owned by waterways and wellbeing charity the Canal & River Trust, is set in a picturesque location on the edge of the Peak District National Park just outside Huddersfield in West Yorkshire and was the stunning setting for the marriage of Kate Stephenson and Rebecca (Becks) Errett, both of Holmfirth.

    The couple, who share the same birthday and are both 36 years old, decided to tie the knot at Standedge’s Visitor Centre after viewing a number of other Yorkshire locations and deciding that the iconic tunnel was the ideal place for them.

    With the wedding date being right in the heart of the festive season, the happy couple gave their ceremony, wedding breakfast and party a Christmas theme, complete with a carol-singing choir, Christmas trees, fairy lights and a meal on sharing platters to mimic the traditional Christmas Day lunch, while guests danced late in to the night.

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    While not originally hailing from Yorkshire, Kate and Rebecca have long roots in the county having met 17 years ago while reading for a degree in performance design and production at the now defunct Bretton Hall College of Education, the Grade II listed former manor house that is now being developed into a luxury hotel within the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

    The couple met on the second day of the course and have been together ever since, while the wedding proposal from Becks to Kate came in a novel way at a breakout room game in Liverpool where the ring was hidden in the last puzzle.

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    Kate Stephenson said, “We were looking for a venue that could host the ceremony and wedding breakfast in one location, but also somewhere that was typically Yorkshire in its essence and combined a rustic feel with some industrial heritage. We looked at many different locations but as soon as we set foot in Standedge we both realised it was our dream venue. Those dreams came true in the most amazing way. We’d like to thank all the Standedge staff who helped make it such as special day.”

    Iain Weston of the Canal & River Trust which manages the Standedge site said, “We are delighted to have hosted the first same-sex wedding at Standedge Tunnel and to be part of Kate and Becks’ special Christmas present to each other. We would like to wish them many congratulations and much happiness in the future.”

    Standedge Tunnel, which dates from 1811 and stretches for more than 5km (3 miles) from Marsden in West Yorkshire to Diggle in Greater Manchester, was licensed to host wedding ceremonies in August 2017. Weddings take place in the fabulous Thomas Bourne Room which has exposed bricks, cast-iron columns and a wood-beamed ceiling. Large bright windows overlook the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and couples can arrive or depart by barge. The room holds up to 200 people. Find out more click here

  • Heartbreaking stories emerge from the “gay purge” in Chechnya

    Heartbreaking stories emerge from the “gay purge” in Chechnya

    A new “gay purge” is reportedly underway in Chechnya, as new stories emerge of the horrid and violence levied against LGBT+ people in the region.

    Working as slaves, daily beatings and torture so horrid that it cannot be shared are some of the accusations levied against Chechyna‘s authorities as reports of a new “gay purge” circulate on social media.

    Political scientist, Rémy Bonny says he has been in contact with two men who claim that Chechen authorities have started to detain and torture homosexuals again in 2018.

    The previous purge in 2017 was widely reported. There were horrific details of gay men being detained, tortured and even killed, in the region after the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov has said that he wanted to eliminate gay men from the region by the start of Ramadan.

    Up to a hundred men, suspected of being gay were held, against their wills, in what some media outlets called “concentration camps”.

    Speaking with THEGAYUK.com Rémy Bonny said that he was in contact with two survivors who are now in the EU who he says provided “detailed and credible intelligence” about the many human rights violations against the LGBT+ community in Chechnya.

    Tortured by his relative

    The first witness, who has not been named, is now seeking refuge in Belgium, says that he was tortured by his relative, who works for the Chechen police and only escape after paying a huge amount of money.

    He claims that he was left in his cold cell with just a t-shirt and jeans and fed only bread and water.

    He was caught after been framed by friends speaking to Bonny the victim said, “There was a video in which I spoke in the apartment of a friend. I was framed by guys from my city that I have known almost all my life (this video was made in May of 2018). I didn’t even know that I was being shot. And they took me only in July .. in this video, I said that I don’t like this power and we do not have the freedom to choose .. but the topic was also ‘my friend’”.

    Detained for 55 days

    The second witness provided intel about his former boyfriend, who still lives in Chechnya. The boyfriend was detained, according to Bonny, but because there was no real evidence he was held as a suspected drug-user.

    He was held at a facility in Grozny run by Adam Delimkhanov, who is a family member of Ramzan Kadyrov.

    The victim says he was bullied on a daily basis and taken to work every morning in a van, without pay, “as slaves – for free”.

    The victim was able to overhear guard’s conversations that other gay people were being held at the centre.

    You can follow Rémy Bonny on Twitter and see more details on his website.

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  • Two men sought after the sexual assault of a man in central London

    Two men sought after the sexual assault of a man in central London

    Detectives looking to identify two people in connection to an investigation into a sexual assault on a man in his 20s in Central London.

    The Met police have released images of two men they wish to speak to and identify in connection with an investigation of a sexual assault on a man in central London.

    The incident happened at around 2.45am on Wednesday, 24 October 2018 in Flitcroft Street, Camden, just a block away from G-A-Y Late and the famous gay centre of Old Compton Street.

    Police say, the victim, a man in his 20s, was sexually assaulted by two men who then left the location on foot.

    The victim’s friend, who did not witness the assault but who had been with him shortly before, came to his aid and police were called.

    Detective Constable Robin East said, “This was a sexual assault on a man in a public street and we appeal for anyone who thinks they can help us with the investigation to come forward.

    “Although this happened in the early hours, there would still have been a number of people around the area who may have seen the victim or suspects before or after the assault.

    “We are interested in speaking to the two men in these images, so if you recognise them, please don’t delay in calling police.

    “The victim in this case continues to receive support from specially trained officers.

    “We have not had any further reports of similar assaults and this is being treated as an isolated incident.”

    Both suspects were described by the victim as white, and of Eastern European origin. One man was thought to be between 35 to 40 years old, short (around 5ft5ins tall) and of stocky build. He was wearing a dark puffer jacket and had big ears.

    The other man was believed to be slightly younger, between 30 and 35 years of age, of skinny build, clean shaven and had light brown hair. He was wearing a blue Superdry jacket and thought to be around 5ft8ins tall.

    Anyone with information about this assault or who recognises the men in the CCTV images is asked to contact CN Safeguarding on 101 quoting 2330062/18, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

    You can also tweet @MetCC.

  • This UK Pride is going to use the Black and Brown striped Rainbow Flag

    This UK Pride is going to use the Black and Brown striped Rainbow Flag

    The Pride’s CEO has decided that Manchester will adopt Philadelphia’s black and brown rainbow flag which recognises and includes people of colour.

    The “more colour” rainbow flag or “Philly flag” which includes a brown and black stripe will be used by Manchester Pride in 2019. The flag was first introduced by the city of Philadelphia in 2017 to “fuel the important conversation” of “recognizing people of colour in the LGBTQ+ community”. The US city has a large Black or African American community, which stands around 43 per cent of the population. Manchester in the UK is home to a large Asian community, which stands around 17 per cent and about 9 per cent for black people.

    Mark Fletcher, the CEO of Manchester Pride told THEGAYUK, “We have seen that the iconic rainbow must adapt to reflect the modern society that we live in. A lot has happened but there is still a long way to go, especially in the recognition of people of colour in the LGBT+ community.

    “To highlight the importance of this we’ve decided to adopt the 8 stripe flag created by the city of Philadelphia, USA as part of our logo.”

    The Rainbow flag was designed by Gilbert Baker in 1978 and has been adapted over the years. It originally contained two extra colours, Pink and Cyan, which were later dropped to have just six colours, which is the most recognised version of the iconic symbol.

    The symbol for the LGBT community made its debut in San Franciso in 1978. It was displayed at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day parade in 1978. It has since gone on to be recognised worldwide as the symbol for LGBT spaces, venues and pride. The longest ever version of the flag was debuted in Key West, Florida in 2003.

    Want to buy a version of the flag for yourself? Head on over to THEGAYSHOP.co.uk to purchase your very own More Colour Rainbow Flag.

    THEGAYUK.com reached out to UK Black Pride for comment on the move by Manchester Pride.

  • Gay rapper, Kevin Fret shot dead in Puerto Rico

    Gay rapper, Kevin Fret shot dead in Puerto Rico

    Kevin Fret has died at the age of just 24 after being shot on the streets of Puerto Rico.

    Gay rapper Kevin Fret has died after being shot 8 times while he was riding a motorbike in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico. He was just 24.

    Fret was reportedly riding his motorcycle when he was shot at around 5:30 AM. He was taken to hospital after his shooting where he was pronounced dead.

    The BBC reports that an investigation is underway.

    His murder is the 22nd in Puerto Rico this year already.

    Fret’s best-known song was “Soy Asi” which managed to rack up half a million views on YouTube, after its release in 2018. He is described as Latin Trap music’s first openly gay recording artist.

    His latest single, “Diferente” featuring Mike Duran clocked up over 1.8 million hits.

    Fret’s manager Eduardo Rodriguez confirmed his death saying,

    “There are no words that describe the feeling we have and the pain that causes us to know that a person with so many dreams has to go.

    “We must all unite in these difficult times, and ask for much peace for our beloved Puerto Rico.”

    It is not known if Fret was targetted specifically or if his killing was an act of random violence or whether there is a hate-crime element to his death.

    He would have been 25 on the 2nd Feb.

    Is Puerto Rico LGBT+ friendly?

    Puerto Rico has a good recent history with regards to LGBT+ rights. Gay people in the country are afforded many rights including, marriage, adoption there are discrimination laws to protect LGBT+ people.

    Puerto Rico is known to have a high crime rate and something it has been struggling with for decades.

    It has a homicide rate of 30.6 per 100,000 people. In the UK the homicide rate is 1.20 per 100,000 people.

     

     

  • Rylan suffers homophobic abuse on busy London street

    Rylan suffers homophobic abuse on busy London street

    TV star Rylan Clark-Neal has hit out at a homophobe who abused him on a busy London street.

    Out TV presenter, Rylan has revealed that he was homophobically abused today in central London when someone shouted an anti-gay slur at him on a street, a block away from the world famous head quarters of the BBC. Rylan says he abused on Great Porland street, when an unnamed assailant shouted a homophobic slur at the star.

    Taking to Twitter the former X Factor / Celebrity Big Brother star wrote that someone shouted at him to “fuck off” and called him the anti-gay slur “faggot”. However, Rylan alleges that as soon as he shouted back at his abuser, the abuser “ran away”. Rylan joked that the abuser ran like Phoebe from the hit 90’s sitcom, Friends.

    Hundreds of fans reached out to Rylan to wish him well after his ordeal – while the British LGBT Awards noted that “The Phoebe run is probably his only redeeming feature”.

    Homophobic crime is on the rise the UK’s capital. In 2017 there were, on average around 6 anti-LGBT offences being recorded every day on London’s streets, a 9.63% increase year on year. In total, 2037 crimes were reported for the year 2016/17 compared to 1861 crimes in 2015 /16 and 1559 in 2014/15.

    However, the Metropolitan Police service was keen to point out that the crime rates were lower than five years ago and these current statistics are set against the gruelling austerity measures and “significant reductions in resources” set out by this current government.

     

  • Woman allegedly attacks two men in vicious homophobic attack

    Woman allegedly attacks two men in vicious homophobic attack

    A women “threw cup of coffee” and “hits” gay couple on train, according to police reports

    Officers would like to identify her after a homophobic incident on board a Hammersmith and City line tube train.

    On 9 August at approximately 7.25am, two men boarded a train at Plaistow and asked a woman to move her bag from a seat so they could sit down.

    British Transport Police reports that a verbal altercation ensued, during which the woman allegedly shouted homophobic abuse at the two men.

    She, according to the BTP threw a cup of coffee at the victims and hit one of them in the face several times.

    It is believed the woman left the train at Bromley by Bow station.

    Officers believe the woman in the photo may have information which could help their investigation.

    If you recognise her or witnessed the incident please contact BTP by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 143 of 9/08/18.

  • Game where Jesus kills LGBT+ people is banned by PayPal and web hosts

    Game where Jesus kills LGBT+ people is banned by PayPal and web hosts

    Its website was also pulled from Wix.

    An anti-gay game where players can kill LGBT+ people by shooting them in the head or throwing them off buildings has lost its ability to take supporter payments by Paypal, THEGAYUK.com has learned.

    The game’s website was also yanked by its host, Wix. Writing on the the new website, the game’s creators said, “Our previous website was shut down by our prior host after individuals worldwide who cannot differentiate between a perfectly legal, satirical video game parody and real life decided to make multiple complaints to the hosting provider, Wix, demanding we be censored”.

    The game’s creators also said that they had been banned by payment processor, SQUARE.

    The game was supposed to have a release date of 1st Feb 2019, but it has been moved up to the 15th January 2018.

    The creators say that the gamer takes on the role of Jesus (or a host of other characters) to travel through various cities leaving a “wave of dead terrorists and radicals in his path” in a game which it says it “fun for all the family”.

    The radicals are described as social justice warriors, radical feminists, radical LGBT militants, illegal aliens, terrorists, doctors, socialist politicians and a “radical frenzied NON-BINARY, GENDER FLUID pansexual humanoid berserker”.

    The Killers

    Players have a host of killers they can play as. Jesus is the main character however there is a choice of “Dolf” a character who looks similar to Adolf Hilter, “Tromp” who has the trademark hairstyle of President Donald Trump, “Pootin”, who has a very similar look to President Putin as well as other figures similar to historical leaders and tyrants. The game’s creators deny that the characters are based on real-life people.

    The Creators

    The game has been created by four people, who are largely anonymised or known solely by their first names. “John” who financed the game says he’s “Christian first, Republican second and is “no stranger to the old “elbow-grease”.

    “Anon” is  “A man dismayed at the overwhelming political correctness engulfing the USA and the rest of the world, he now fuels his rage into the development of JSB”

    “Anon 2” is “An anonymous European Union resident. The anguish he feels at the EU suppressing his free speech rights drove him to work on JSB”

    “Edge” is described as  “a retired full-time edgelord before joining the JSB: JD team. He has seen some edgy things in his time and  now manages the edge factor of JSB”

    Support by PayPal dropped

    Supporters were previously reminded that they could donate by PayPal in order to help pay for the game to be financed. Supporters were able to make monthly or one-off payments.

    THEGAYUK.com reached out to PayPal for comment who told us there were “looking into it, however won’t be able to comment further due to customer confidentiality”.

    PayPal has now pulled the ability to use their platform to support his game.

     

  • EastEnders’ are thinking about opening a gay bar in Albert Square

    EastEnders’ are thinking about opening a gay bar in Albert Square

    An LGBT+ venue could open up on Albert Square.

    The BBC are ramping up efforts to get a more diverse cast into EastEnders and it has been revealed that there’s a vision for a gay bar to open on the UK’s most famous Square.

    Kate Oates who serves as a senior executive producer on the BBC flagship soap has revealed that there are plans to make Eastenders more diverse and reflective of the London diverse population and revealed that she’s excited to add more LGBT+ characters to the show.

    Answering fans’ questions about the show, Oates said, “We are looking at opening a gay bar on the square which will be a super-cool precinct where gay and straight characters can all just hang out, and loads of stories can cross and should just be something really exciting, really fun, really visual and feel really true to multicultural London.

    How many gay people are there in the UK?

    There has long been a widely-held belief that around 10 percent of the UK’s population is gay, lesbian or bisexual or who identify as non-heterosexual. This is probably the most accurate of all the figures – as more and more people feel comfortable to come out about their sexuality.

    The most up-to-date statistics from healthcare company Euroclinix show that six percent of people identify as homosexual while seven percent of people identify as bisexual. This equates to 13 per cent of the population identifying as either gay, lesbian or bisexual. EuroClinix surveyed 2,000 people around the UK to find out more about the sex lives of Brits.

    The current population in the UK is estimated to be 66.02 million people, which means that there are over 8.58 million gay, lesbian or bisexual people in the UK if you take that 13 percent statistic.

    How gay is Eastenders?

    In 2015 we compiled the gayest moments of Eastenders. Read it here.

     

  • June Whitfield passes away, 93

    Comedian and actor June Whitfield has passed away at the age of 93.

    Tributes have poured in for one of the UK’s most famous comic actors, Dame June Whitfield. She, according to her agent, died peacefully on Friday night (27th December 2018). She was born June Rosemary Whitfield in Streatham, south London on 11 November 1925.

    June was most famous for her roles on the 70’s sitcom June and Terry and later as the mother in Ab Fab, she delighted audiences with her quick onliners and impeccable timing.

    Her careers spanned seven decades and she appeared in over 1300 radio and television shows.

    Tribute were made by most of her Absolutely Fabulous co-cast members, including, Joanna Lumley, Julia Sawalha and Jane Horrocks.

    Joanna Lumley remembered June as “brilliant and gorgeous”

    Julia who plays Saffi in the comedy Absolutely Fabulous thanked June for “teaching me my craft with such dignity and grace”. Julia remarked how in awe she was and that June was “far too humble” to accept her adoration.

    https://twitter.com/JuliaSawalha1/status/1079135062510194688

    Jane Horrocks paid tribute to June as a “wonderful lady” and remarked on how “versatile, funny and generous” June was during their time working together.

    She was awarded an OBE in 1985 and CBE in 1998 and last year (2017), at the age of 92, June Whitfield was made a dame.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Embed from Getty Images

    Sadly, she’s not the only cast member of Absolutely Fabulous who has died in recent years. In 2014 Christopher Malcolm, who played Saffi’s gay father passed away, then Kate Mara, who played Patsy’s sister died at the age of 74. Dora Bryan who played one of June Whitfield’s friends in the show also sadly passed away in 2014. She was 91-years-old.