Category: News
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NHS Will Now Reconsider PrEP After Legal Threat From AIDs Charity
The NHS in England has said it will now reconsider its position on PrEP prescription for gay men and other high risk groups after a legal threat from leading AIDs charity, the National AIDS Trust (NAT).
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Actress Doris Roberts Dies At The Age Of 90
Television Actress Doris Roberts, star of Everybody Loves Raymond has died at the age of 90.
CREDIT: kathclick/Bigstock Doris Roberts who starred in the hit comedy, Everybody Loves Raymond as the meddling mother Marie Baron has died at the age of 90. Her death was confirmed by a spokesperson for her family.
The St. Louis born actress died in Los Angeles on Sunday night in her sleep.
During her time in Everybody Loves Raymond, which ran from 1996 to 2005, she won four Emmys
Speaking with Parade Magazine in 2014 she talked about how she was in favour of same-sex marriage and questioned why gay people shouldn’t be allowed to have the same rights as everybody else.
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When asked what she thought of gay marriage the veteran actress said,
“I’m in favor. If you fall in love with someone, why can’t you have what everybody else has? Why should you be segregated and denied? I have a lot of gay friends. I’m lucky. I go to parties celebrating their being together 25, 50 years. They’re together longer than any straight people that I know. I had two marriages, and I didn’t make it as long as they did.”
Writing on Twitter, creator of Everybody Loves Raymond, Phil Rosenthal, said that she was “A wonderful, funny, indelible actress and friend.”
ALSO READ: LGBT Allies and Icons who have died in 2016
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Cirque Du Soleil Add Their Names To North Carolina Boycott
Internationally renowned entertainment group Cirque Du Soleil have announced plans to boycott North Carolina over its anti-LGBT laws.
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UK’s Odd Of Winning Eurovision Are Now 50 to 1
The UK’s entry for Eurovision 2016 have seemingly terrible odds.
CREDIT: BBCJoe and Jake may be cute, but their song isn’t doing it for the bookies as William Hill puts the duo’s odds of winning at 50 to 1. To make matters worse the book maker is giving odds of 8 to 1 to come last.
CREDIT: BBCWilliam Hill spokesman Rupert Adams said,
“Things are not looking good for the duo chances and we think they are unlikely to feel like having a selfie at the end of the competition,
“They could well get humiliated again.”
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The UK hasn’t won the Eurovision Song Contest since 1997, when Katrina And The Waves were triumphant with the anthemic Love Shine A Light.
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Students Are Being Offered Amazon Vouchers For Their Sperm
Male students at one of the UK’s top universities are being offered £75 worth of Amazon voucher for their sperm.
Fliers are being handed out around a campus asking for cash strapped male volunteers to make their self-made donations as part of a trial run by the University of Sheffield – and are being rewarded with vouchers for the popular online retailer.
The study needs male volunteers aged between 18-30 who are available for 12 weeks between April and July to consume lycopene, the red pigment found in tomatoes and other red fruits, whilst donating semen samples.
Trial researchers hope to discover whether lycopene has a positive effect on participants’ sperm.
CREDIT: SWNS Scientists say a nutrient found in the “tomato pill” could supercharge sperm by up to 70 per cent and offer new hope to childless couples.
In other studies, lycopene has been suggested as a possible treatment for male infertility.
This is because the antioxidant properties of lycopene counteract the damage inflicted on sperm caused by oxidative stress.
ALSO READ: This Morning toying with showcase sperm facial!
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CREDIT: SWNS Professor Allan Pacey of the University of Sheffield, one of Britain’s leading experts on male factor infertility, is recruiting 60 healthy male students and university staff to take part in the three-month study.
He said,
“There is enough evidence out there to indicate this study is worth doing and I am cautiously optimistic. If it works in the volunteers we would then consider testing it in infertile patients.
“Production of sperm takes three months. This study will tell us if lycopene improves the quality of sperm already in development by reducing DNA damage, and whether it produces an overall increase in the number of mature sperm produced overall.”
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Homophobic Crimes Up Nearly 20 Per Cent In London
Statistics from the Metropolitan Police show that homophobic crime has soared nearly 20 per cent in one year.
CREDIT: ©-ronfromyork-Depositphotos Homophobic or anti-LGBT crimes in London have risen nearly 20 per cent from March 2015 to March 2016 a report out from the Metropolitan Police shows today.
In total 1861 crimes were reported in London 2015 to 2016 compared with 1559 the year before.
The rise accounts for a 19.4 per cent increase.
Whilst some boroughs have managed to decrease the number of homophobic crimes by up to 20 per cent like Merton, some boroughs like Haringey have seen a 259 per cent rise in anti-LGBT crime.
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The Met believes these increases are down to a range of factors, including improvements in crime recording, willingness of victims to report hate crime, world events, improved awareness of Met staff to identify these offences and support provided by more than 900 specialist hate crime investigators and our work with partners to support victims.
Assistant Commissioner Helen King, Territorial Policing said,
“London is a major, much visited, vibrant and growing capital city with diverse policing needs and is one of the safest global cities in the world. It is for this reason that people from other countries invest millions of pounds in London. There are not many capital cities in the world with such low rates of serious crime, such as murder and gun crime.
“The Met is continuing to work with partners, businesses and the public to reduce the number of offences taking place. Our officers have spent the last year conducting both pro active operations and preventative work in order to reduce crime, better support victims and build more engagement with communities.
“We will continue to keep up our intensified focus on areas such as violence where we have seen a rise in recorded offences. We must not lose sight of the reductions we have achieved over the last five years.”
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Pressure Mounts For Air France As “Gay” Petition Hits Nearly 25,000
The pressure is rising for Air France as a petition asking the airline to allow flight attendants who identify as gay to refuse travel to Iran reaches nearly 25,000 signatures.
CREDIT: Air France A petition which is calling on Air France to allow its openly gay flight crews to refuse travel on a route to Iran is gathering momentum and has had over 24,000 signatures added to it.
Air France is due to recommence flights to Tehran in Iran which has left many of its gay flight attendants fearing for their lives and questioning what might happen to them after landing.
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Mr. Laurent who created the petition called upon Air France/KLM to reconsider its ethical stance on sending gay flight attendants to Iran
“It is time again to show that Air France believes in ethics, not only for his public image. [But to] grant gay crew the right to refuse to go to a country where they could be killed for who they are.”
ALSO READ: We ask the EU Airlines that fly to Iran what their policy for safe guarding LGBT staff members
ALSO READ: Where in the world has the death penalty for being gay
TheGayUK reached out to Air France’s press team yesterday to ask whether they would acknowledge the petition and whether they will allow those who identify as gay to opt out of flights to Iran. They have yet to respond.
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Airlines That Fly To Iran
There are a number of airlines that fly out of the UK and connect in Iran.
CREDIT: © Austrian Airlines Group Using Skyscanner.net we were able to find airlines based in the European Union which fly to Iran. We have reached out to each of the airlines to find out what their policy is on gay flight attendants who fly to Iran and whether LGBT crew can opt out of flying to a country which could potentially execute them because of their sexuality.
Air France has come under increasing pressure after a petition calling on the airline to check its ethics surrounding gay air crew went viral.
There are a number of countries in the world that outlaw homosexuality and at least 10 of which have the death penalty for homosexual acts.
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The airlines which will be flying to Iran from May include: Air France, Alitalia, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines A spokesman for Austrian Airlines said,
All our crew members are informed about local traditions and laws. Furthermore, we of course do not know about private details like sexuality of our crew members. If a crew member does not want to fly to a certain destination because of reasonable personal reasons, this will be considered within his roster.
Compared to Air France, Austrian flights to Iran are very popular among our crews, there are no complaints regarding headscarves or the like.
Air France, Alitalia and Lufthansa have yet to respond to our request.
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Gay Flight Attendants Worried About Facing Death Penalty In Iran
Gay Air France flight attendants are concerned over flying into Iran after the airline reinstated flights to the country.
CREDIT: AirFrance Air France is due to recommence flights to Tehran in Iran which has left many of its gay flight attendants fearing for their lives and what might happen to them after landing.
A petition has been created by a concerned employee of France’s largest airline who called for the airline to re-look at its ethics.
The petition has reached over 13,000 signatures.
Mr. Laurent who created the petition called upon Air France/KLM to reconsider its ethical stance on sending gay flight attendants to Iran
“It is time again to show that Air France believes in ethics, not only for his public image. [But to] grant gay crew the right to refuse to go to a country where they could be killed for who they are.”
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Homosexuality is illegal in Iran and those found guilty can face 74 lashes or the death penalty.
In 2008 Air France suspended flights to Iran. The airline is resuming the service after international sanctions on the Islamic Republic over its nuclear programme were lifted.
Speaking about Air France’s decision to resume flights to Iran, Mr. Laurent commented,
“If the economic decision to open flights to Tehran is understandable, the moral issue is different. Human Rights in this country are almost non-existent.”
Air France has already said it will allow female flight attendants the right to refuse travel to Iran. The petition is asking the company to consider the same option for those who identify as openly gay.
ALSO READ: Where In The World Is Homosexuality Punishable By The Death Penalty
Mr Laurent continued,
“Fortunately, the unions intervened, the feminist cause is often seen, the media seized the debate, the hostess got (which would have seemed logical from the start) the right to refuse travel.”
TheGayUK reached out to Air France for comment, the airline has yet to comment on the petition or answer questions about the safety of LGBT staff members.
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Can You Spot The Difference? Johnny Carter Is Back
Johnny Carter is back – but can you tell the difference?
CREDIT: THEGAYUK / BBC CREDIT: Monty McKinnen CREDIT: (C) BBC – Photographer: Kieron McCarron Johnny is coming back to EastEnders on the 12th April, but he looks very different from the last time we saw him! Johnny has a new actor behind him!
The part of Johnny was originated by Sam Strike, who decided to leave the soap in December 2014.
He left the soap to make his name in Hollywood.
Speaking about his decision to leave Sam said,
“I also didn’t really feel like at the time my character was necessarily needed in EastEnders.
“When I was in talks about leaving, I spoke to the people that I’d been working with the most – including Dom, the executive producer, and the Carters. I said to them that if there was anything they really wanted me to do we’d do that, as I didn’t want to leave people high and dry.
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However the character is back and is now played by Ted Reilly.
Johnny Carter is not the first EastEnders’ character to be played by more than one person. In the past characters Lucy Beale, Martin Fowler and Sam Mitchell have all had actor changes in the past.
