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  • Gay couple brutally beaten “for being gay”

    Gay couple brutally beaten “for being gay”

    A gay couple were brutally beaten in what’s been described as a homophobic attack on a London-bound train on Valentine’s Day.

     

    Phillip Poole Homophobic attack
    CREDIT: Phillip Poole

    Phillip Poole, 35 and his boyfriend, Zbynek Zatloukal, 26 were apparently brutally beaten on a London-bound train travelling from Reading on Valentine’s day. Mr Poole said that the couple were set upon by a gang of five “for being gay”.

    Mr Poole took to social media to share the shocking images of his and his boyfriend’s injuries. The attack has left him feeling anxious and “jumpy”.

    HAPPY TIMES: The couple before the attack – a happy Valentine’s night out.

    The thugs boarded the train in Ealing, West London and verbally abused the couple with a homophobic insult before physically attacking them. Mr Poole says that he was sleeping on his partner’s shoulder when a punch to the face woke him.

    Speaking to the Standard he said,

    “I can’t really remember much about what happened because I was in such shock when I woke up. I managed to get up and stumble down the carriageway but then they followed me.”

    He said that he was not a violent person and did not know how to defend himself against the abusive onslaught. The 36-year-old said he was still jumpy from the incident.

    The couple, who have been together since November 2015 sustained cuts and bruises and were taken to Ealing Hospital.

    Mr Poole took to his Facebook profile to thank his friends and family for their well wishes

    “Just wanted to thank everyone so much for your comments of support❤means the world to Zbyněk and I. We are home resting now but are very bruised and swollen”.

     

    British Transport Police have said they are aware of the incident and was investigating and Mr Poole confirmed to THEGAYUK that they would be contact them next week.

  • OPINION | Banning homophobes from stadiums is not the answer

    Apparently, there’s a school of thought that if you hide something under a rock or you stick a head in the sand, the problem goes away.

    Banning homophobes from stadiums isn't going to help

    Except it doesn’t.

    So this week there’s been a lot of talk about banning homophobes from sports’ arenas and stadiums if they shout anti-gay, homophobic, biphobic or transphobic abuse and I’m flabbergasted. Since when did banning anything actually solve any problem?

    And who exactly is the banishment going to help?

    Whilst I agree that something must be done to solve the anti-gay culture that you’ll find on many of the UK’s sports’ grounds. This toxic environment means that gay or bisexual sports stars and athletes find it impossible to come out – why are there so few openly gay or bisexual sportsmen and women?

    But isn’t this part of the problem? There’s a complete dearth of out and proud athletes in sport, particularly men. There’s a handful of noteworthy sports professionals in diving, a sprinkle in rugby and absolutely none in football. Perhaps if we had more out and proud players homophobic fans would be exposed to other types of gay or bisexual men – not just the overtly camp fodder that entertainment formats on TV rely on to provide entertainment. Some could argue that stereotyping feeds into a homophobic mind frame. Gay and bisexual men, still in 2017 aren’t seen by some as “real men” but campy, effeminate and weak and these people need education. We are all types, shapes, sizes, colours and creeds – and all of us are worth protecting.

    Organisations that own the grounds have a responsibility to keep its patrons safe but it does not, I believe, hold the remit to educate or punish people with bigotted opinions. That responsibility lies with the police and society. Homophobes need education. Not the naughty step and time out.

    That’s why I would advocate an anti-discrimination workshop for those who are found guilty of hate speech – whether it’s gay, religious, race or other hate speech. These classes could run just like the speed awareness classes – when you’re caught speeding.

    You’d pay £100 for the class, money which could be ploughed into running the courses. On that course, you’d be given the opportunity to learn about discrimination and it’s damaging effects. You’d learn about equality and other lifestyles. Once you’ve completed the course you’d be allowed back.

    Surely this would be a better option than banning a homophobe indefinitely and letting him fester in his own hatred, as he watches the match in front of his TV. How does this help the LGBT+ community?

    It doesn’t. Instead, he’ll continue to live in his own echo chamber, feeding his own negativity.

    I agree with MP Damian Collins, who chaired the Culture, Media and Sport Committee who found that there should be “a zero-tolerance approach to the use of all homophobic language and behaviours”, but the sanctions that are implemented against those who are homophobic must be thought out as to not exacerbate the problem.

    Opinions expressed in this article may not reflect those of THEGAYUK, it’s management or editorial teams. If you’d like to comment or write a comment, opinion or blog piece, please click here.

  • Paul Nuttall pulls site down for maintenance, Google has a cache of his thoughts on equality

    UKIP leader Paul Nuttall’s official website is a treasure trove of his personal thoughts – especially what he thinks about political correctness – or as we like to call it, equality.

    You may remember that in 2011 two Christian hoteliers, Peter and Rosemary Bull lost their court case after refusing to allow two gay men to stay at their hotel. Well, writing on his personal blog in 2011 after the court’s ruling on the case, UKIP leader Paul Nuttall believed that the vast majority of people tutted and “rolled their eyes” as the judge affirmed that equality and fairness is the law of the land.

    Mr Hall and Mr Preddy successfully sued the hotel owners for £3600 in 2011, in a landmark case which found that Mr & Mrs Bull had discriminated against the gay couple, on the grounds of sexual orientation under the Equalities Act.

    Although his entire site is now offline, for “scheduled maintenance”, luckily for us, Google has a cache of it and it reveals what Paul thought about the situation.

    Writing in his blog on the site, he seemingly questioned the court’s decision by saying,

    “What a complete joke.

    “Aren’t people allowed to live by their religious beliefs in the country anymore? It seems not, especially if those beliefs clash with ‘modern’ views, which the PC ‘luvies’ constantly tell us, represents ‘progress.’”

    He then asked whether the decision was really progress and asked in whose eye was it progress.

  • Colton Haynes reveals his new boyfriend

    Major cuteness alert… Colton Haynes has revealed to the world his new boyfriend.

    Colton Haynes revealed to his fans that his new boyfriend is celebrity florist Jeff Leatham after posting a number of cute and totally loved up pictures on social media. Taking to Instagram the actor thanked his man, calling his Valentine’s Day “speechless” and encouraging his fans to “never be afraid to love harder”.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BQhVcxdgH04/?taken-by=coltonlhaynes&hl=en

    Although the couple hasn’t had a proper close up yet, we wanted to share how hot Jeff is!

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BP_lWL0lK0P/?taken-by=jeffleatham&hl=en

     

    Colton hinted that he had a boyfriend a number of weeks ago when he uploaded a picture of him with a bunch of gorgeous roses, along with the boyfriend emoji along with a heart and kiss.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BQCegJ5g9d3/?taken-by=coltonlhaynes&hl=en

    Ah so cute!

  • FILM REVIEW | Moonlight

    FILM REVIEW | Moonlight

    ★★★★★ | Moonlight

    Moonlight film review

    A tender, heartwarming story of a young black gay man growing up in 1980’s Miami is the story of the critically acclaimed film Moonlight.

    I had to see this film a second time to fully relive and understand and absorb the nuances and emotional impact it delivers. Moonlight is about Chiron, and the three chapters of his life. Played as a wide-eyed young boy by Alex Hibbert, as a teenager by Ashton Sanders, and then as an adult by Trevante Rhodes – we get to see him grow up while having to endure lots pain and heartbreak is his life.

    Chiron is not like the rest of the other boys in school. He is constantly picked on (he’s smaller than the rest), his father is not in the picture, and his mother Paula (an excellent Naomie Harris) is a drug addict who is slowly spiralling into desperate drug addiction.

    The Miami housing project where Paula and Chiron live is controlled by drug dealer Juan (Oscar-nominated Mahershala Ali), who lives there with his girlfriend Teresa (a very good Janelle Monåe). Juan just happens to be Paula’s drug dealer. But Juan also becomes a father figure to Chiron, and Chiron starts spending lots of time at his apartment. He’s looked after there, is fed and cared for by Tereaa, he gets meals there that he never would get at home. But as Chiron grows up, he becomes more aware of his sexuality, and as a teenager has a thing with fellow friend Kevin (Jharrel Jerome), whom he’s known since they were young boys, and it’s this act that changes Chiron’s life forever.

    We then see Chiron as a 24-year old ex-convict, muscled up, dealing drugs and still coming to grips with his sexuality. All of a sudden he gets a call from Kevin (now played by a very charismatic André Holland). Chiron still has feelings for Kevin, so he gets up the courage to meet up with him. It’s in these moments where we hold our breath, not really knowing what’s going to happen. All we want is for Chiron to be happy, to be in a relationship, to lead a happy life with someone he cares about and loves – and that’s all he really wants too.

    Moonlight is an exquisite depiction of self-discovery, of a disenfranchised young black man meandering through life who is on a personal journey of self-discovery. Moonlight is based on the play Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue by Tarell Alvin McCraney. It’s a beautifully shot movie (by James Laxton) and its colours are as beautiful as a Miami sunset. The acting is amazing – all three who play Chiron are fantastic, but it’s Sanders whose Chiron has to go through lots of pain and agony, and being beaten up by homophobic school bullies. The music, by Nicholas Britell, is very subtle and sets the right mood. Moonlight has won lots of film awards and is on track to give ‘La La Land’ a run for it’s money at the upcoming Academy Awards. Kudos to director and writer Barry Jenkins for bringing a rich, moving story of a young black gay man to the big screen – it’s a story that’s not been told before – and it works so fine.

     

    Available to pre-order from Amazon

     

  • THEATRE REVIEW | La Ronde

    THEATRE REVIEW | La Ronde

    ★★ | La Ronde

    La Ronde review
    CREDIT: Ray_Burmiston

    Arthur Schnitzler’s turn of the century play ‘La Ronde’ is a frequently performed and adapted classic, partly because it’s an intriguing concept and also often because it’s usually staged with just two actors and a minimal set, making it easy to put on.

    Taking the idea of a roundel, where people are linked through their sexual encounters, the original play looks at power, class and politics from the standpoint of sexual encounters. For example, in the original: a prostitute has sex with a soldier, the soldier has sex with a parlour maid and the parlourmaid has sex with a young gentleman and so on till we complete the circle back with the prostitute. It’s a bit like six degrees of separation (or six degrees of Kevin Bacon if you prefer). David Hare adapted the play into ‘The Blue Room’, which became notorious for featuring a naked Nicole Kidman. The gay version, ‘F*cking Men” was a witty and timely adaptation with cleverly drawn characters and a frisson of raunchiness. Sadly this version flounders and is an anti-aphrodisiac.

    Writer/director Max Gill has come up with a novel take on the concept. His version features four actors and Wheel of Fortune type spinning wheel featuring their faces. Each scene is preceded by a spin of the wheel which results in a choice of which actor joins the remaining actor from the previous pair, meaning that there are (apparently) over 3,000 possible actor combinations in the play. Also, this makes the play gender neutral. The couples could be two women, two men or a man and a woman. The pronouns and language in the script allow for this. It’s a lively concept and one served well by Frankie Bradshaw’s arresting set and Jack Weir and Nathan Klein’s atmospheric sound and lighting. The gimmick works but sadly it’s not at all well served by the script.

    The tone of the play is light comedy and despite some glimpses of promise and the odd flash of insight, on the whole, the script feels dated and pedestrian with few laughs and little depth. The characters mostly feel stereotyped and the acting is turned up to full stagey volume. I found myself looking forward to each scene ending and the wheel to spin again. I love a gimmick and am all for innovation and originality but there needs to be a more sturdy and polished script to make this work.

    La Ronde plays at the Bunker Theatre until 11th March 2017

  • Oh dear… Sean Spicer just called the Canadian Prime Minister the wrong name

    Sean Spicer just made a grievous error after calling Canada’s Prime Minister the wrong name.

    Major, major awkwardness from the White House after Donald Trump’s press secretary, Sean Spicer managed to get the Canadian Prime Minister’s name wrong, despite him being a guest of the White House just days previous. What is more alarming is that Spicer seems to be reading the details off a piece of paper in front of him. Written, we presume in black and white. Didn’t he check names before speaking?

    In a press conference, Sean managed to call the PM Joe Trudeau, rather than his real name, Justin Trudeau. Mr Trudeau is considered one of the world’s most progressive leaders when it comes to LGBT rights.

    It’s nice to see that accuracy is held in high regard by Trump’s administration.

     

  • Michelle Visage has some slightly amazing advice if your still smarting over No Valentines

    Michelle Visage has some slightly amazing advice if your still smarting over No Valentines

    If you found yourself sans date on Valentine’s, iconic legend Michelle Visage has some advice for you.

    Michelle Visage
    CREDIT: Michelle Visage/Instagram

    Taking to Instagram, Michelle Visage told her fans not to fall for the “man-made holiday” and not to “buy into the crap”. She told single people – you can buy your own roses, your own chocolate… and

    Have fun with your own vibrator…

    AMEN

     

     

  • Man fined £150 for two homophobic rants in Shetland pubs

    Man fined £150 for two homophobic rants in Shetland pubs

    A man who admitted shouting homophobic abuse, whilst drunk, has been fined £150.

    Thule bar, Shetlands
    CREDIT: Google Maps 2015

    Twenty-two-year-old Ellis Birnie, of Sandveien, Lerwick, was fined £150 after he pleaded guilty to behaving “in a threatening or abusive manner” in Lerwick, Shetland, in Scotland.

    He made homophobic remarks according to a witness who said that the accused had made “derogatory remarks about the females’ perceived sexuality” last year at the Thule Bar and Captain Flints on 27 September.

    Shetland News reports, Mr Birnie’s defence said that he suffered from epilepsy and diabetes and according did not manage his condition by not managing his diet.

    Sheriff Philip Mann remarked that the behaviour was  “really stupid” and said he hoped it would be a wake-up call for the man.

    “Look after your health and be wise enough to understand you can’t go out and abuse alcohol in this way”.

  • DILEMMA | I’m not sure if I’m gay – I play football and go on lads’ holidays

    This week a reader asks Dr Dannii Cohen whether he’s really gay, because he likes football and goes on lads’ holidays to Ibiza.

    Can I be gay? I like football and lad's holidays

     

    Dear Dannii,

    Up until recently I only dated girls, but I’m starting to see guys as quite attractive. My friends would consider me one of the lads – I play football and go on lads’ holidays to Ibiza… I don’t really do stuff that’s usually considered “gay” so I’m not sure. Also, I’m worried that my mates will disown me if I come out. I don’t fancy any of them, but they may think I do and that I’ve been hiding my feelings for them. I know they aren’t particularly gay-friendly. It’s been cause for a bit of banter in the past.

    Stephen, Portsmouth

     

    Dear Stephen,

    Thank you for writing in.
    From what you have told me it looks like you could very well be bisexual but focused only on girls in the past because that is ‘the norm’.
    Before you come out, try to see if your feelings go beyond just being attracted: go to a gay bar and dance with someone, go on dates, kiss a guy. No reason to come out if you don’t know how far your feelings go.

    What do you think those special things that are considered ‘gay’ actually are? There is no reason why someone gay or bi could not be ‘one of the lads’ as gay men come in all shapes and forms, but your friends may, of course, have a stereotypical image in their head.

    I am not going to lie: it’s hard coming out inside the kind of group you are in, though there have been some surprising success stories over the years.

    Do you have a close friend in the group that you trust and feel you can confide in? Or maybe one of them has an open-minded girlfriend you can talk to? Either of them could have your back during a coming out.

    If you take the step try to explain that this changes nothing: you’re still the same footballing lad you always were. Try to stay calm and answer any questions as good as you can.

    There is no guarantee that everyone will accept you immediately but you will never know if you don’t try. Try doing it on a night when the atmos is great, after a good tryout match for example. If people feel good they are more positively open. Also, try to come out in a safe public space where people are known to intervene if something goes wrong.

    Whatever you do: please discover your true feelings before starting a process that’s difficult to reverse. The moment you are secure about who you are is the moment you feel stronger when coming out.

    Always with love,
    Dannii

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  • RECIPE | Rainbow Pancakes

    RECIPE | Rainbow Pancakes

    Get your rainbow on this Pancake day with these incredible Rainbow Pancakes

    how to make rainbow pancakes

    Ingredients.

    –          1 large egg

    –          135g plain flour

    –          130ml milk

    –          2 tablespoons butter

    –          Food colouring – red, yellow, green, blue, orange and purple

    –          Toppings: rainbow sprinkles, raspberries, whipped cream and strawberry laces


    Method.

    Add the flour, egg and milk into a bowl and whisk to a smooth batter.
    Separate the batter into five separate bowls for each of the different colours of the rainbow.
    Add food colouring to each of the bowls until you’re happy with the shade. You can combine primary colours to make a wider range; for example, red and yellow can be mixed to make orange.
    Add a little oil or butter to a medium-sized frying pan and put on a medium-high heat.
    Add the batter to the pan once hot and cook for one minute on each side – with the all important Toss Off in between.
    Repeat this process with all of the different coloured batters until you have enough for your rainbow pancake stack.

     

    Comedians Katherine Ryan and David Morgan battled it out for the title of Biggest Tosser at the launch of Terrence Higgins Trust’s pancake-themed fundraiser, Toss Off.

    And to mark LGBT History Month, the TV favourites whipped up a stack of rainbow pancakes.

    The charity is urging supporters to host a party for Pancake Day (28 February) and raise money to support people living with HIV.

    David, who co-presents I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! NOW, said,

    “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my first Toss Off because I love rainbows and I love pancakes. As a gay man, HIV support, prevention and awareness-raising is very, very close to my heart and I’ll happily flip some pancakes with my friends to support Terrence Higgins Trust this Pancake Day.”

    Friends Katherine and David came along to East London LGBT venue Dalston Superstore to see just how much fun it is to Toss Off for Terrence Higgins Trust.

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