THEGAYUK

Category: News

  • Piers Morgan labels the new ‘Pride train’ as “Virtue Signal Express”

    Piers Morgan labels the new ‘Pride train’ as “Virtue Signal Express”

    It seems as though Piers Morgan has been triggered by a pride flag-covered train, after calling it a “virtue signal”.

    Transport company, Avanti West Coast, recently unveiled a train covered in a Pride flag (one that includes the trans and black and brown stripes) and were asking for Twitter users to come up with a name for what they’ve dubbed the ‘Pride train’.

    Piers Morgan responded with “THE VIRTUE-SIGNALLING EXPRESS’, which started a massive Twitter backlash against the train’s design, with Morgan’s fans piling on criticism of the train company.

    One user, wrote, “We don’t want a bloody rainbow train or rainbow police cars – It just makes more people turn against the idea of Pride when they see money wasted on this virtue signalling. Can we be clear, WE did not ask for this, we are being used for publicity.”

    While another added, “I’m gay and this makes me cringe”.

    One user questioned the motives of the train company for unveiling the flag, saying,

    “Piers is not being anti-LGBT here or begrudging the community of their train or validity of PRIDE, but questioning the motives of a commercial enterprise…..so let’s keep our heads on eh? This is branding!!! We should be questioning their motives. Better spent on our charities.”

    Some users said that they approved of the train’s colourings. One user wrote, “I think it’s fantastic, it’s nice to smile & see a bit of colour in what has been a terrible year”.

    What should they call the pride train?

    There have already been many serious naming suggestions for the pride train, from Marsha (to celebrate the LGBT+ icon Marsha P Johnson, who would have been 75 this year) to Alan Turing, the scientist whose widely credited for bringing a swifter end to World World II with his code-breaker. But one of our favourites from @yagsieoj is LIL, which stands for Love Is Love.

  • Randy Rainbow apologises for Tweets that may have offended

    Randy Rainbow apologises for Tweets that may have offended

    YouTuber Randy Rainbow has apologised after dozens of Tweets were discovered on his timeline that critics have slammed as racist and transphobic.

    He responded by saying, “I am in no way a racist. I am in no way transphobic… I’m embarrassed by [the tweets]. They make me sick to my stomach.”

    In numerous Tweets, he used race as the punchline and in some, he used the T slur, which some in the transgender community offensive.

    The tweets, some of which date back to 2010, have now been deleted from his timeline, but screenshots still remain, you can see them over at Queerty.

    Embed from Getty Images

    ‘Not funny with no context or nuance’

    In an interview with the Advocate the performer made an apology by way of explaning that the tweets were offensive, “especially with no context or nuance”.

    He told them, “Twitter has recently reminded me about 10 years ago, in my maiden quest to be funny, I tweeted some jokes that were completely offensive and insensitive to look back on them now, especially with no context or nuance and through the prism of where we are in 2020 with racial inequality and the fight for social justice, which I’m proudly a part of”.

    “I deeply apologize to anyone I offended”

    “In light of issues that are now at the forefront, which I’m passionate about and have spoken up about over the years, these tweets just sound racist and awful. I’m embarrassed by them. They make me sick to my stomach, in fact, and I deeply apologize to anyone I offended.”

    “I am known as the guy who calls out bigotry and racism, which is what I want to do”

    He ended by asking his fans to remember that he is a comedian and not a politician.

    ““I am a comedian. I’m not a politician … This scandal I’m going through might seem a little more scandalous to some because I now have this voice in the political world. I am known as the guy who calls out bigotry and racism, which is what I want to do. That’s how I want to use my platform. That’s what’s really in my heart. So these recent tweets resurfacing are not skeletons in my closet; they’re crappy jokes in my shoebox from a decade ago. I think we just need to be careful about considering the source.””

  • Drag Race star Chi Chi DeVayne has died, 34

    Drag Race star Chi Chi DeVayne has died, 34

    The Drag Race star Chi Chi DeVayne has died according to reports.

    Drag performer Chi Chi DeVayne has reportedly died. She had been in hospital, being treated for pneumonia. She competed on the 8th series of the show.

    It was also reported that she had been treated for kidney failure.

    In 2018 DeVayne was diagnosed with scleroderma, a condition that attacks various internal organs.

    RuPaul, who has left social media, did release a statement through the RuPaul Drag Race Twitter account saying,

    “I am heartbroken to learn of the passing of Chi Chi DeVayne,” he wrote. “I am so grateful that we got to experience her kind and beautiful soul. She will be dearly missed, but never forgotten. May her generous and loving spirit shine down on us all.”

    “On behalf of VH1, World of Wonder and the cast and crew of RuPaul’s Drag Race, I extend my deepest sympathy – from our family to hers,”

    “I am heartbroken to learn of the passing of Chi Chi DeVayne.
    I am so grateful that we got to experience her kind and beautiful soul.
    She will be dearly missed, but never forgotten. May her generous and loving spirit shine down on us all.” –RuPaul (1/2)

    An official statement from DeVayne’s family was posted to her official Instagram account, saying, “His final words to his family and fans “never give up”.

  • These are the best gay bars in Nottingham according to Google Reviewers

    These are the best gay bars in Nottingham according to Google Reviewers

    Nottingham is home to a small but friendly choice of LGBT+ venues, but which one has come out top in the Google reviews?

    There are about 3 LGBT+ bars and clubs in Nottingham and further two “gay-friendly” places. They are dotted around the city as Nottingham doesn’t really have a “gay quarter” as other big cities have.

    So here are the best and worse gay bars in Nottingham ranked worst to best by Google Map users.

    The Lord Roberts 4.3 stars out of 447 reviews

    The Lord Roberts is the highest rated LGBT+ friendly pub in Nottingham and it’s true. We can totally vouch for that. The bar staff go out of their way to make you feel welcomed. One reviewer adds, “A welcoming safe venue. Somewhere I always feel welcome, alone or with a group. The landlord welcomes you in as if it’s a friend welcoming you into his home”.

    Another added, “Since Craig took over the Lord Roberts it’s become the place to be in Nottingham City Centre.. it’s friendly and welcoming and the place is kept immaculate”.

    New Foresters 4.1 stars out of 181 reviews

    New Foresters is located on St Ann’s Street and has been voted one of the best bars by Google reviewers. It is also award-winning, with a plethora of certificate adorning its walls.

    It has 181 reviews. One reviewer called the New Foresters a “great little gem” while another added that it had “Friendly staff, average price, great crowd and atmosphere”

    The Foresters Inn 3.7 stars out of 56 reviews

    The Foresters Inn, located on Huntington Street, just behind the Victoria centre is not technically an LGBT+ bar, but it once was and therefore has a little hangover from that period. It raucous and you’ll be able to find cheap drinks and karaoke.

    Users suggested that the pub was a “Good place to have a few drinks to start the night off” and had “Nice friendly atmosphere guest beers from local breweries reasonably priced”

    Propaganda 3.4 stars out of 415 reviews

    Located on the Broadway, in Nottingham’s Lace Market area, Propaganda, was until recently Nottinghams only specific LGBT+ bar. The owners announced it was closing down shortly after the lockdown began. However, there are hopes that they will find another location and reopen the club,

    NG One 3.0 stars out of 77 reviews

    Located on Lower Parliament Street, NG One was once Nottingham’s largest LGBT+ club. It has changed its door policy and is now open to anyone, however it does still attract some LGBT+ folk. It has 4 bars and 2 dance floors with a capacity of almost 1000. Open until the early hours every weekend.’

    It dropped it’s gay tag back in 2015.

  • Shanghai Pride is cancelling all future events for “safety”

    Shanghai Pride is cancelling all future events for “safety”

    Organisers of Shanghai’s Pride have told THEGAYUK that they have cancelled all foreseeable future events “for the safety of our family”.

    Shanghai Pride is an event which has been running since 2009, but has recently announced that the time has come for “the end of a rainbow”.

    In a blanket email statement, organisers wrote, “Over the past 12 years, we worked hard to enrich the culture and diversity of this city that we love so much: we showcased inspired artwork, theatre, and films; we fostered connections through job fairs and group open days; we offered a platform for individuals to share authentic stories about their lives; we threw parties that brought people together; and we hosted forums to trade wisdom on how to make Shanghai a more vibrant, inclusive place.

    “Pride has a lot of different meanings for different people – for us, it has always been about showing our community that not only is there nothing wrong with who we are, but that our identities and the people that we love are worth celebrating

    “Cancelling all upcoming activities and taking a break from scheduling any future events”

    Embed from Getty Images

    “ShanghaiPRIDE regrets to announce that we are cancelling all upcoming activities and taking a break from scheduling any future events. We love our community, and we are grateful for the experiences we’ve shared. No matter what, we will always be proud – and you should be, too.

    THEGAYUK reached out for further clarification and were told by a spokesperson, “For the safety of our family, we are no longer holding events. While we keep a low profile for the foreseeable future, we hope to stay in touch in with our Pride family.”

  • Priti Patel is looking to remove the legal grey area surrounding Poppers

    Priti Patel is looking to remove the legal grey area surrounding Poppers

    The UK’s home secretary, Priti Patel is looking to remove any ambivalence about the legality of Poppers (alkyl nitrates), which she called “uncertain” due to the 2016 Psychoactive Substances Act, which although was aimed at making so-called legal highs illegal, threatened to make poppers unlawful.

    So are popper actually legal?

    As it stands, Poppers do not sit on the Government’s exempted substances in Schedule 1 of the Psychoactive Substances Act. It is argued that their exemption is not actually needed as the Government’s own advisory board, the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) explained that the drugs do not affect the central nervous system, which the act is aimed at controlling.

    In 2016, the then Home Secretary, Karen Bradley wrote to the ACMD about the usage and effects of poppers on a person saying,

    “Our acceptance of your advice brings to an end the review process we were undertaking in parallel to consider the case for a bespoke exemption for the alkyl nitrites group under the Act on the basis of their beneficial and relationship effects.

    “The process to exempt substances from the Act applies only to substances which meet the Act’s definition”.

    “Lawfulness of the supply of poppers is uncertain”

    Ms Patel is now looking to make the poppers’ exemption absolute by saying,

    “A Court of Appeal judgment in 2018 confirmed that substances which have only an indirect psychoactive effect can still be captured by the 2016 Act,

    “As a consequence the lawfulness of the supply of poppers is uncertain. I am minded to remove this uncertainty by explicitly exempting poppers from the 2016 Act. I would seek the ACMD’s advice on an exemption.

    “My officials will work with you to provide more detail on the proposed wording of an exemption as you consider the issue.”

    Has anyone been arrested for supplying poppers?

    There have been no arrests or charges for the sale or possession of poppers in the United Kingdom and on the Crown Prosecution Service website says,

    “In light of advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, with which Government has agreed, alkyl nitrates (‘poppers’) are not covered by the definition of a psychoactive substance in the Act.

    “This is because they are not considered to have a direct effect on the central nervous system. The understanding is that this is unique to ‘poppers’.”

  • Polish police seen kneeling on the neck of LGBT+ activist during a street protest

    Polish police seen kneeling on the neck of LGBT+ activist during a street protest

    LGBT+ campaigners in Poland have taken to the streets after a leading activist was given a two-month prison sentence.

    Earlier this week, the LGBT+ activist was also detained for 48 hours after taking a picture with a rainbow flag in front of a statue of Jesus Christ. 

    Hundreds of LGBT+ people and their allies took the streets in Warsaw in protest in front of the Campaign Against Homophobia offices.

    According to sources, at least 48 people were detained and several were injured according to reports. Footage from the protest shows a wall of police becoming heavyhanded with the protesters, with some of the activists comparing the scenes that unfolded to the 1969 Stonewall riots.

    Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images

    Poland now has one of the most anti-LGBT+ leaders in the EU after Andrzej Duda was recently re-elected thanks to an aggressive anti-LGBT campaign.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Photos from the protests flooded social media, including one of an activist with what looks like a policeperson’s knee on their neck, many users on Twitter remarked that the actions of the police and their treatment of the protesters echoed the horrific footage of a policeman’s knee on the neck of George Floyd in the USA, which sparked the worldwide Black Lives Matter protests.

    Shocking pictures from the protests

    LGBT Activist, Remy Bonny has called on the EU to “convene an extraordinary session of the @EUCouncil on the authoritarian events that have taken place in Poland over the last weeks.

    He added, “There is no way to deny that the events that took place in Poland Yesterday is the prelude of the establishment of a dangerous dictatorship in the middle of the European Union.

    “A Europe without values is not worthy to be called a ‘Union’!”

  • This gay dating app is using its platform to highlight suicide prevention

    Daddyhunt, which boasts around 4 million members, is using its platform and social media channels to focus on suicide awareness and prevention and domestic violence.

    Since the creation of the Daddyhunt website over 15 years ago, “Daddyhunt has focused on educating its members about sexual health issues as well as creating a stigma-free environment for those living with HIV/AIDS. While connecting people is a vital part of our mission, we also want to use our platform to educate our members and fans about important issues affecting the gay community”, says Casey Crawford, Daddyhunt’s General Manager.

    Through stories and posts on Instagram and Facebook as well as its weekly newsletter to 4+ million global members, Daddyhunt now shares national suicide awareness and domestic violence abuse hotlines for the US and other countries as well as articles related to how to assist friends or family who are dealing with depression and suicidal thoughts.

    The app’s social media manager Nebojsa Cirok told THEGAYUK, “Due to the COVID-19 lockdowns and the increase in suicide rates within the LGBTQ+ community and increases in domestic violence, it is important for us to focus on the issue even more and to educate as many people as we can reach about awareness and prevention programs and hotlines,”

    “While we recognize that a lot of people view and follow our social media to see Daddies, we felt that it was incredibly important to highlight these issues. The feedback that we have received from our members and followers has been positive”

  • Is Cocksucker a homophobic insult?

    Is Cocksucker a homophobic insult?

    The words cock and sucker are bandied about a lot. It’s one of the phrases that almost gets a pass, and then you really hear it and you think, “hang on a minute” that person is being called a slur, based on the assumption that sucking cock is a bad thing and when it’s directed at another man, it’s deemed even more of a diss.

    Now, to be honest, I’m not sure we hear it a lot here in the UK, but I have heard it a lot on TV shows, particularly US shows and Hollywood films – who have thunk it, Hollywood being accused of homophobia!

    Anyway, someone recently asked on the AskGayMen subreddit whether “cocksucker” was a homophobic insult and it opened up a good discussion on the use of the word.

    person in black blazer and blue denim jeans
    Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

    A slur for men and women

    To start off, as one user pointed out, it’s not just an insult to gay men, but to women and bi men as well, while another wrote, that calling someone a CS was both “homophobic and misogynistic”.

    Another added, that if it was intended as an insult then it was homophobic, which was echoed by another use with: “It’s said as an insult, and clearly targets homosexual men.

    “It implies that being a gay man is wrong”

    “Demeaning”

    This person added, “Yes, it is a homophobic insult. Calling someone a cocksucker (always towards another guy) is meant to wound them because to a straight guy, nothing is more demeaning than to be compared to a gay man. Cock sucker, fudge packer, all insults revolving around sexual acts. All pathetic attempts to show off how manly they are”.

    Submission as a bad thing

    So when did submission become something to be ridiculed and why is it?

    One person gave context to the insult explaining, “Yes it’s technically an insult. Because it’s intended that sucking cock is generally viewed as being submissive and it’s usually something women do, implying that being a woman or submissive is a bad thing.

    “But when in a sexual context, many people love being called a cocksucker, both men and women, because they feel more slutty, and being slutty is generally seen as taboo or something you shouldn’t be, because of cultural and religious reasons, and sexual freedom is seen as the enemy of the society.”

    So, when it’s said to you to make you seem submissive, it’s bad, but when it’s said to you, in the moment of actually cocksucking and dirty talk is your thing then it’s good. Got it.

    So basically, yeah. It’s homophobic, let’s stop using it unless of course, you are actually a cocksucker and you like being called one.

    Own that label baby.

  • New lockdown measures mean you can’t visit other people’s homes in these Northern towns this weekend

    New lockdown measures mean you can’t visit other people’s homes in these Northern towns this weekend

    Just as things were starting to loosen up, the Government has mandated that it is against the rules to meet with people outside your social bubble in your own home and has plunged a number of communities in England under local lockdown.

    As the weather has been warming up and Coronavirus restrictions ease, many people have been meeting with hookups and going on dates. However, if you’re living in a number of towns and cities in northern England, including one of the UK’s biggest LGBT+ communities, Manchester, you may have to hold off a few more weeks.

    The green light was never fully given by the Government on the resuming of hookups and dates, however reading between the lines of recent guidelines, many deemed it safe enough to hop back on their favourite dating app.

    Without warning

    Sudden lockdown measures have forced many people in some major northern cities in England to rethink their plans for the weekend after the government took the unprecedented steps to lock down a number of places without warning.

    The changes come after a spike in cases of Covid-19.

    https://twitter.com/i/events/1289157717383233536

    The cities include Greater Manchester, Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Hyndburn, Pendle, Rossendale, Bradford, Rochdale, Calderdale, Kirklees and Leicester.

    However, people will still be able to visit pubs, restaurants and other businesses, providing they do so not to meet other people from other households.

    The gay scene in Manchester will remain open for business. Nevertheless, people who visit pubs and bars will need to drop off a contact name and number in order to help authorities track and trace should anyone visiting the premises be unknowingly carrying the virus.

  • 90-year-old man proves it’s never too late to come out as gay

    90-year-old man proves it’s never too late to come out as gay

    In a totally heart-warming story, a man in his 90s is able to finally come out after using the lockdown to come to terms with his true identity.

    90-year-old Kenneth Felts comes out as gay proving it’s never too late to live your true self.

    Kenneth who lives in Colorado used his time in lockdown to write his memoirs, which brought back lots of memories. He said he never planned to come out at all, making his sexuality a secret and taking it too the grave.

    His daughter, Rebecca says that she’s so happy he can be himself now.

    The BBC has the full story,