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FILM REVIEW | Jason Bourne

JASON BOURNE – The 5th film in the saga of the memory loss super-spy and former FBI agent. Matt Damon is back after the Jeremy Renner misfire

CREDIT: universal pictures

Nutshell – Picking up where the third movie left off and completely passing over number four this time coming staight out of the headlines with a massive wikileaks style hack story. Our hero gets dragged back out of hiding (again) to defeat those nasty plotting American war mongerers. This time he heads to Athens, Berlin, London Paddington and Las Vegas and the action is pretty non-stop with superstar Brit director Paul Greengrass back in charge of the mayhem (The only reason for Damon’s return)

Time – 123 mins; Certificate – 12A.

Tagline – ‘You Know His Name’ a play on the James Bond Casino Royale ‘You Know My Name’ tag.

The Gay UK Factor – Don’t be late arriving as the hottest scene is right at the start when we get Matt Damon in a shirtless illegal underground fight club with plenty of sweat, muscle and blood for your right wrists attention.

Cast – Matt Damon. Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Scott Sheperd, Vincent Cassel and franchise regular the truly gorgeous Julia Styles.

Key Player – The British Superstar director Paul Greengrass who is unbeaten in making great exciting hit blockbuster movies straight out of the headlines. From Bloody Sunday to United 93, from Green Zone to Captain Phillips plus two pevious Bourne movies he is able to make the Stephen Lawrence case, 9/11, The Irish Troubles, The Somali Pirates etc into pure thought provoking entertainment and here he does it again with whistleblower Julian Assange – this movie might not be shown in the Ecuadorian Embassy!

Budget – $120 Million but it’s already made $160 Million with a lot of legs left in it yet – a bona fide deserved hit where Hollywood does what it is best at and that is simply repeat what has worked before ad-infintum. Matt Damon is awaiting the phone to ring for number six surely.

Best Bit – 0.36mins; There is a stunt in the final sequence which could go straight up against the opening chase in TMNTurtles as the best action clip of the year. As we are not into spoilers then the second best bit is a very tense possible death scene of a major character at the end of the Athens chase.

Worst Bit – 1.02 mins; The upside of Bourne films is their realism but the problem with this is that we often expect a lot more than real life from our Hollywood entertainment. The bad guy here and the threat factor is not that huge in an era where we are used to world threatening bond villains or nasty geezers out to blow up the world – computer threat of secrets from a guy in a suit is a bit passe.

Little Secret – The Las Vegas car chase sequence took five weeks to shoot and at the end the sequence wrecked 170 cars – They were only allowed to film on the strip between midnight and 5AM. They could not film the Greek scenes there as the taxes were too high due to that country’s financial woes so they mocked up Tenerife to look like Athens instead.

Movie Mistake – A lot of car trouble, a number of times in the Las Vegas car chase you can see no driver in the vehicles, during a huge crash no airbags are deployed and four times the vehicles pass Bally’s and Paris Casinos on the strip which probably shows us how little access they actually had over the busy Vegas streets. Also why no-one noticed that the Audi Bourne hires in London has the steering wheel on the left side we will never know.

Further Viewing – Four Bourne films and 25 Bond movies to begin with. Also Kingsman, The Ipcress File, Bridge Of Spies, Mission Impossible, Spy Game, The Third Man, 24 and Spooks.

Any Good – Yes this is ace and worthy of the original trio that went before it. The action is spot on and the directing is out of this world. Matt Damon looks great and has this character locked down now. The others have great sequences but this is probably the best all round movie of the franchise.

Rating – 70%

14th August 2016
Man jailed for the rape of two men in Bristol

A man in Bristol, who posed as a fitness photographer has been jailed for the rape of two men at his home after luring them with the promise of a photoshoot.

Bristol police

Nigel Brent Wilkinson, 43, of Hill Avenue has been jailed after admitting to two counts of rape and three counts of administering a substance with intent to rape and possession of class C drugs Flunitrazepam (also known as Rohypnol) and Nitrazepam.

The photographer was sentenced to 11 years at the Bristol Crown Court today.

Det Con Stacey Matthews said,

“Nigel Wilkinson promoted himself as a male fitness photographer and last summer set up an online enterprise called WilkoPhotography.

“He’d use social media to identify men he wanted to photograph and would invite them to Bristol for a photoshoot.

“The men would often stay at his home and throughout their visit he would ply them with alcoholic drinks, some of which were laced with sedatives.

“While they were in a drugged state, Wilkinson’s predatory nature would prevail and he’d commit sexual acts on them without their consent.

“We began our investigation in February 2016, when Kent Police were called by the girlfriend of the 19-year-old victim who received a concerning text message from him saying he believed he’d been drugged.

“We went to Wilkinson’s home and found the victim inside. He was taken to hospital and tests were carried out which found traces of a sedative in his system.

“He attended a Sexual Assault Referral Centre for more tests and our investigation continued, resulting in officers attending Wilkinson’s home in April to arrest him.

“When they arrived, they found a 23-year-old man asleep on the sofa. He was also taken to hospital and then The Bridge Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Bristol. There was evidence he’d been drugged and raped.

“On the surface, Nigel Wilkinson was a photographer with an interest in male fitness models. In private, he was a cunning sexual offender who used his photography enterprise as a cover and catalyst for his deviant activities.

“The victims have shown immense bravery, dignity and courage throughout our investigation and I’d like to thank them for the support they’ve given the investigation team. These crimes have had a significant impact on them and their families.

“We believe there’ll be more victims who haven’t yet come forward and I’d urge them to do so. If you’ve had any contact with Nigel Wilkinson or WilkoPhotography, or have come into contact with him through dating websites or dating apps, please call Avon and Somerset Police on 101 quoting reference number 5216165860.”

PC Mike Steven, who is leading our Force’s ongoing campaign to raise awareness of male rape and sexual assault and improve services for victims, said:

“The circumstances of this case are truly horrifying.

“The victims have all attended Sexual Assault Referral Centres and are being given continual access to any expert services they may need now or in the future.

“I’d encourage any other victim of Nigel WIlkinson to come forward and speak to us. We’re always here and ready to listen to, believe and respect victims.

“Our vital work to change perceptions and improve our response to male victims of rape or sexual assault is continuing to evolve and I hope it’s encouraging more victims to find the strength to come forward.

“If you don’t want to speak to the police, please speak to someone. Don’t suffer in silence.”

If you want to report a rape or sexual assault but don’t want to speak to the police, you can contact your local Sexual Assault Referral Centre – available 24/7, 365 days a year. Details of your local SARC can be found atwww.thesurvivorstrust.org/sarc

12th August 2016
Gay relationships become legal in Belize

A bold and legal step for LGBT rights has been made in Belize after its Supreme court ruled that sex between two men was now legal.

A law in Belize that disproportionately affects gay men was last night ruled unconstitutional by the country’s Supreme Court after a three-year wait for the judgment.

Section 53 of Belize’s Criminal Code, an old British colonial law, banned ‘carnal intercourse against the order of nature’ and thereby made consensual gay sex between adult men in private illegal in Belize. The legal provision has been ruled ‘unlawful’ to the extent that it can be applied to same-sex activity.

In handing down the judgment, Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin agreed that Section 53 amounts to a violation of the constitutional rights to dignity, privacy, equality and non-discrimination on grounds of sex. He found that there was no justification in the form of ‘public morality’ and therefore the law must be modified. He awarded costs to the Claimaint, Caleb Orozco.

The case is the culmination of years of work by a Caribbean-led coalition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) activists, academics and legal experts. The individual claimant is Caleb Orozco, a Belizean gay man and prominent LGBT human rights advocate.

Today Orozco said:

“This is the first day of my life in which it is legal for me to be me.

This is a history-making judgment for Belize, the country which I am proud to call home.

Our judicial system has been proven to be robust and unprejudiced. This judgment should give other oppressed minorities the confidence to speak up and stand up for themselves in situations of human rights abuse in the way I have. Our courts really are there to protect us all.

In striking down Section 53, Belize has also rejected a poisonous remnant of colonial rule. We have reaffirmed ourselves as a society built on dignity and respect for all our people.

This is a proud day.”

Simone Hill, President of the United Belize Advocacy Movement (UNIBAM) said before the judgment:

‘This is about our human rights. As citizens of this country our rights should be respected without fear or favour. Win or lose, we will continue the fight to ensure the victory of the protection of our rights.”

The case was heard in May 2013 and presided over by Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin. Today’s ruling – some three years and three months later – upholds Belize’s LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans) community’s human rights to privacy, equality, dignity and non-discrimination, all of which are protected under the country’s constitution.

Meanwhile, the International Commission of Jurists, the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and the Human Dignity Trust were joint ‘Interested Parties’ in support of Mr Orozco.

Téa Braun, Legal Director of the Human Dignity Trust, said:

“This is a great victory for human rights and the rule of law.

Intimacy in private between two adults of their own free will should not be a matter for the law. The only outcome of such laws is to blight the lives of members of the LGBT community by fostering a climate of oppression and state-sponsored discrimination.

The bravery and resilience of colleagues across the Caribbean who have worked tirelessly on this case is an inspiration. Caleb Orozco is a hero and a trailblazer. The Human Dignity Trust is immensely proud to have worked alongside him and his legal team.”

Alex Ward, President of the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, which passed a resolution on the ‘Decriminalisation of Sexual Orientation’ in 2009, said,

“This is a sound and just ruling which we wholeheartedly welcome. It is the CLA’s mandate to uphold the rule of law across the Commonwealth and today marks a considerable success in maintaining the integrity of the Belizean Constitution and protecting its citizens’ fundamental rights.”

Livio Zilli, Senior Legal Adviser at the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), said,

“The ICJ hails the courage, commitment and tenacity of the entire LGBT movement in Belize, and Caleb Orozco’s in particular, and salutes this decision as a critical contribution to upholding people’s human rights whatever their sexual orientation or gender identity.”

While convictions under Section 53 in Belize were rare, the law carried a sentence of up ten years’ imprisonment effectively for consensual homosexual sex.

There are still 76 legal jurisdictions across the world that make same-sex intimacy between consenting adults a crime. Of these, 38 countries are, like Belize, members of the Commonwealth.

12th August 2016
Editors of The Daily Beast removes article after athlete “outing”

The Daily Beast has removed and apologised for an article which potentially “outed” several athletes in this year’s Rio 2016 Olympic games.

IMAGE: Grindr / FILE PHOTO

The news site, The Daily Beast, has been heavily criticised after an article appeared online in which a journalist, Nico Hines, was trying to go on some dates using the gay dating app, Grindr – however the article revealed potentially identifiable characteristics of some of the sportsmen – some of whom are not out.

German Lopez, who was covering the story for Vox.com said,

“On its face, the story may seem like yet another fluffy piece about sex in the Olympic village, and not much else. But it did do one potentially awful thing: It may have outed multiple gay athletes, including one from “a notoriously homophobic country,” potentially putting people in real danger.”

In a letter the Editorial team said that they were “wrong” and “sorry” for the article and took the decision to remove it from their site in an “unprecedented but necessary step”.

ALSO READ: Out Olympian Tom Bosworth skipped PE lessons because he was target for bullies once they found out he was gay.

ALSO READ: Tom Bosworth to buy engagement ring at Heathrow airport to make his boyfriend an “honest man!”

The editors also apologised to the athletes who “may have been inadvertently compromised” by the story.

In the statement the Editors said,

“As a newsroom, we succeed together and we fail together, and this was a failure on The Daily Beast as a whole, not a single individual. The article was not intended to do harm or degrade members of the LGBT community, but intent doesn’t matter, impact does. Our hope is that removing an article that is in conflict with both our values and what we aspire to as journalists will demonstrate how seriously we take our error.”

12th August 2016
Richard Wilson in hospital after recovering from heart attack

Legendary actor Richard Wilson is recovering in hospital after a heart attack.

One Foot In The Grave actor Richard Wilson has suffered a potentially life-threatening heart attack and is now reportedly recovering in hospital. The Scottish actor came out as gay in an interview with the Daily Mail in 2013.

The 80-year-old is now reportedly recovering in a hospital recovering after going into cardiac arrest yesterday afternoon (11th August). The sitcom star’s condition is reported to be “stable”. The actor’s agent confirmed to the Guardian that he is remaining in hospital.

Wilson is probably most famous for his stint as the grumpy old Victor Meldrew in the iconic BBC series One Foot In The Grave – a character he played for 10 years. He originally turned down the part – thinking the character was actually too old for him to play.

Last week he revealed to the Aled Jones show that he was bringing the character back for the Edinburgh Fringe – in a one-man show called I Don’t Believe It, one of his character’s stock phrases.

The play was meant to run from the 16th until the 24th – all performances have now seemed to have been cancelled as the ticketing website edfringe.com has pulled the page where you could purchase tickets.

The actor is an Associate Director at the Sheffield Crucible. THEGAYUK’s Paul Szabo wrote that Wilson was an excellent director in the five star show The Nap, which the icon directed in March of this year.

12th August 2016
Nearly 40 per cent of gay men are having unprotected sex

As STI infections soar in gay and bisexual men across the UK, a poll released by GMFA shows that a staggering 39 per cent of gay and bisexual men are having unprotected sex.

Nearly 40 per cent of gay and bisexual men are having unprotected anal sex the majority of the time. A poll by GMFA has revealed that condom usage has “slipped back” since the early days of HIV and the height of the AIDS epidemic.

Of the 40 per cent that have unprotected sex 49 per cent of them identified their relationship status as single, dating or in an open relationship.

Despite the lack of protection nearly half of those surveyed also stated that they do in fact worry about STI infections and becoming infected with HIV.

Matthew Hodson [outgoing CEO] of GMFA said,

“Condom use has slipped back a little since the early days of HIV, partly because HIV is no longer a death sentence, and partly because we’re not seeing the same investment in sexual health that we saw a decade ago. With resources deployed to promote condoms and sexual health, encourage testing, challenge stigma, ensure that all gay men are well educated about HIV prevention and PrEP provided, we could end HIV within a generation.”

The latest issue of GMFA’s FS examines the current state of sexual health of gay and bi men in the UK. According to the editor, Issue 155 takes an honest look at how much unprotected sex they are actually having, and asks the question: do we need to rethink HIV prevention?

Ian Howley, [incoming Interim CEO] of GMFA believes that relationship status has to be taken into account,

“We know that the majority of gay and bisexual men use condoms some of the time. There is an idea out there that everyone doesn’t use condoms, and for a lot of people who responded to this survey this is the case. But many of these men are in long term relationships, or are married/civil partnered or said they were in a monogamous relationship. When you look at these stats, it’s only a small percentage of gay men, who are having lots of unprotected anal sex, who are at a high level of risk.”

11th August 2016
OPINION | Should Gigi Gorgeous be surprised she was treated badly in Dubai?

So it’s all over the web, YouTube star Gigi Lazzarato (Gorgeous) was detained in a Dubai airport for 5 hours after being refused entry through passport control after allegedly being told by the worker there, that she couldn’t enter the country due to her being transgender and that her passport picture and information didn’t match her presented gender, a claim she refutes.

But should she really be remotely surprised that in Dubai, a place not known for its progressive nature towards LGBT individuals she got treated badly.

It is actually considered illegal in Dubai for “men to imitate women”, and gay people can either be deported or imprisoned, and the crazy thing is, Dubai is considered one of the more progressive cities in the region. But by the standards of the region, that’s not exactly saying much.

Now not for one second do I agree with her treatment, but at the end of the day, she was travelling to a predominantly Islamic country.

Yes Dubai is seen as a hip place to be, and the rich and famous go there on their holidays, but Gigi should have done her research before going over there. On the surface it looks like an amazing place to go, well developed and technologically advanced, but just below the surface is a heavily religious city, in a heavily religious area of the world.

It is grossly unfair that there are some places in the world that people from the LGBT community simply can’t travel, but until the world changes, people have to take precautions. It’s a question of keeping oneself safe as possible. There were probably hundreds of other equally exotic places she could have visited, but she chose Dubai. Personally, she should be thankful that immigration stopped her going through, because who knows what could’ve possibly happened if she had got out of the airport. She may have been arrested, or worse.

ALSO READ: 10 surprisingly homophobic countries we shouldn’t be spending our money on

ALSO READ: Holiday destination Seychelles ends legal ban on gay sex

ALSO READ: Gay icon Katy Perry to play Dubai where being gay could land you 10 year in JAIL

What people have to remember is that Dubai has a history of atrocities against people, especially women and the LGBT community. In 2013 a Norwegian woman went to local police and said she had been raped by a co-worker. She was actually arrested and convicted of extra marital sex, and consumption of alcohol and sentenced to 16 months in prison. She was eventually pardoned, but only after she was pressured to say the rape hadn’t happened, and this isn’t the only time something like this has happened. Numerous times, women have reported sexual assault and have been charged themselves for other things. And don’t get me started on how LGBT people get treated there. People have been arrested, fined, imprisoned for up to 10 years, lashed, and forcibly deported, simply for being convicted of homosexual behavior.

Everyone should feel free to be as fabulous as they want to be, but there will be places and people who simply can’t handle that. It’s why I thinks it’s incredibly important for people to educate themselves about places that they want to travel to remain safe. And while you may feel there is progress in general, it doesn’t mean there is progress everywhere.

I agree with Gigi to an extent when she said it was disgusting and very scary that you are denied entry somewhere because of who you are, and it shouldn’t happen, but sadly it does.

So if you are thinking of going anywhere on holiday, please find out everything you can beforehand about its laws and customs so you can stay safe and happy and actually enjoy yourself without fear of being arrested, or attacked.

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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.

11th August 2016
14 Polari words we need to bring back

Do you know what Polari is?

(C) BIGSTOCK

Polari was a form of slang in Britain used by actors, showmen, merchant navy sailors, sex workers was adopted by gay subculture.

It’s been around since at least the 19th century – some have found its origins as far back as the 16th century.

It’s had its ups and down, but it’s a rather Fantabulosa way of expressing yourself.

So we’ve dragged out our Polari dictionary to rediscover 14 words we need to start using again…

Aunt Nell danglers.

Earrings think subtle…

Basket.

The trouser bulge

Corybungus.

Your buttocks

Crimper.

Hairdresser

Fantabulosa.

Fabulous/ Wonderful

Handbag.

via GIPHY

Money

HP (homy polone).

Effeminate gay man

Mangarie.

CREDIT: Rawpixel.com-bigstock

Food

Naff.

Awful, dull, hetero

Palare pipe.

CREDIT: geoffgoldswain-bigstock

Telephone

So.

Homosexual… Is he so?

Tootsie trade.

Bottom to bottom – sex between two passive guys

Trade.

(C) BIGSTOCK

Sex- or a potential sexual partner.

Zhoosh / Tzsju.

Tart up your hair

11th August 2016
THEATRE REVIEW | Barry Humphries’ Weimar Cabaret featuring Meow-meow

★★★★★ | Barry Humphries’ Weimar Cabaret

What’s your deepest impression of Barry Humphries? The tacky, kitsch-bitch supreme Dame Edna Everage, all ghastly, C&A drag and granny glasses, or worse, the snot-and dandruff spattered Sir Les Patterson?

CREDIT: Helen White – PR Supplied

Hopefully, it’s neither. See, the true Barry Humphries is a deeply cultured graduate of the fine arts, and has written definitive articles on eccentric, human sexuality. He’s also a superb character actor, to the extent audiences mistake his Sir Les Patterson creation for a genuine Ambassador of Australian culture! And if Brits, unfairly, accuse Americans of misunderstanding irony, it’s sheer, poetic justice that they’re completely insensitive to Barry Humphries’ deathly dry, Australian wit.

There’s a reason for that, of course – what ex-colonial, reactionary, right-wing regime can bear ridicule?

Not Little Britain, that’s for sure, and Humphries, initially, works hard to win over a cold, deeply monied and highly privileged Chelsea audience. Still, he’s a charming and infectiously erudite bon vivant, all barrel-chest, squat neck and deliberately ironic, his physicality eluding rigid, anal-retentive analysis. Quite simply, the audience – many of whom have never seen the real Humphries – don’t know what to make of him, suspending their typical, pack-mentality persecution prejudices. Oh, don’t get me wrong, many hardcore Conservatives adore the arts – remember David Mellor, anyone? – but often, they view culture as shockingly disposable.

Not tonight, perhaps. ‘I’m doing my hardest impersonation ever tonight’ Humphries quips, ‘myself’.

Too true, and Humphries’ actual, authoritative, deeply knowledgeable self is instantly seductive company. Always ferociously anti-fascist and bitterly opposed to any suppression of human diversity, he’s a tireless champion of Berlin’s Weimar Republic, immortalised by Christopher Isherwood’s Cabaret.

Never heard of the Weimar Republic? Google it ASAP – it’s essential queer history. An inter-wars, sexually diverse paradise, the Republic briefly flourished from 1919-1933, an intense island of queer resistance against crushing, hetero-normative banality. And Humphries, obviously, is in his element, showcasing the cream of Weimar musicality – his entire career has hilariously skewered homophobia on the spot.

So naturally, his Weimar night shares a treasure-chest of subversive memories. Discovering stacks of obscure, German sheet-music in late 1940s Melbourne, Humphries, enthralled, tracked down any possible recordings and information on the Weimar Republic. Many otherwise utterly obscure composers – Krenek, Spoliansky, Schulhoff and Hollaender – set cynical, Weill and Brechtian lyrics into thrillingly mutated music fusing American jazz and indigenous folk motifs.

And that music, of course – soon becoming the vital staples of furiously transgessive cabaret throughout Berlin – was pure poison to Germany’s ultra-reactionary, proto-Nazis. Physical, sexual and emotional spontaneity – all encouraged and cemented by Weimar’s signature, polyrhythmic musical delights – was seen as instantly inflammatory, undermining every fascist orthodoxy.

Tragically, with the brutal rise of Nazi supremacy in 1933, Weimar was immediately suppressed, but Humphries’ gorgeously provocative time-capsule of the era suggests what we’ve lost. Appropriately, he’s accompanied by mischievous, multi-talented diva Meow-meow, channelling as always the spirit, attitude and killer glamour of every possible living drag queen! Yes, Meow-meow is a biological female, but far more than fellow, drag manqué Holestar, Meow-meow performs her femininity as an intoxicating artificiality she’s just discovered. Does it work? Oh god, yes – as sublimely as Ru Paul in full, killer-queen mode, and visiting and inhabiting Weimar’s music simply demands a hugely exaggerated reality!

CREDIT: Harmony Nicolas PR SUPPLIED

It’s a theme that extends, even, to Humphries’ backing chamber orchestra, all uniformly dressed in sharp, Bohemian black, all Joel Grey trilbies for men and women. And the music’s a revelation, all instantly contagious, colloquial melodies grafted to the spare bones of classicism and non-European, imported tonalities. Yes, there’s some expected, Weimar favourites – ‘Pirate Jenny’ and ‘Surabaya Johhny’ – but the stand-out is Erwin Schulhoff’s ‘Dada masterpiece’, the Sonata Erotica.

Bearing radical, avant-garde comparison to John Cage’s 4.33’ – four minutes of silence with the score considered any random sounds within that time – Sonata Erotica still startles. Exuberantly performed by Meow-meow, it’s orgasmic moaning, pants and screeching delivered as fine, operatic art, the most joyous, unrestrained expression of subversive sexuality possible!

No wonder Humphries, after an awkward but endearing dance with Meow-meow, finally exits with an ecstatic grin- he’s just mentally liberated yet another slice of Little Britain!

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11th August 2016
COLTON HAYNES | “I was told my dad killed himself because he found out I was gay”

Colton Haynes has opened about about his Dad’s suicide and how he was told that it was after the actor came out as gay.
CREDIT: kathclick bigstock

Actor Colton Haynes, 28, has revealed in a heartbreaking interview with Out.com that he was told his father killed himself after he came out as gay earlier this year.

His father died earlier in the year after swallowing 40 oxycodone pills. There’s no evidence to link his father’s suicide to Colton’s coming out – the Teen Wolf star said,

“I was told that my dad killed himself because he found out I was gay.”

After hearing that, Colton says he “lost it” and questioned how anyone could say something like that.

The Arrow actor also revealed that although nobody would ever know the truth about why his father committed suicide, when his mother and his brother went to collect his father’s belonging the only picture on his fridge was Colton’s 8th Grade school photo.

11th August 2016
THEATRE REVIEW | Do you have a secret crush?

★★★★ | Do you have a secret crush?

Something quite extraordinary is happening in Wandsworth, the mid 90’s gay scene has come back to life and it’s hilarious as it is heartbreaking.
CREDIT: PND Photography

Based on a true story, Do You Have A Secret Crush (sleeping with straight men) transports you back to mid-90s-America, where a gay man, Stanley (Chris Britton), working in the city’s only gay bar Flamingos, is eager to spread his wings and escape Pontiac in Michigan. He falls head over heels with a straight waiter, Lee (Rich Watkins) whilst out to lunch with his drag queen friend Sally (Dave Lynn).

He devises a plan to tell Lee that he has fallen for him, live in front of a television audience, to be broadcast nationally on the daily chat show The Jill Johnson show.

Flown first class, limo drop offs, all expenses paid trip to New York, both Stan and Lee make their way to the studio separately for the big reveal. What could possibly go wrong?

The small but perfectly formed company fits in the cosy space of the Lost Theatre in the heart of Wandsworth.

You’re immediately transported back to the 90s thanks to a rather fabulous soundtrack and costumes. Britton plays Stanley confidently and cheekily, filled with life. Watkins plays straight man Lee safe, curious and slightly unnerving. Ruth Petersen’s mid-morning Talk Show host is perfectly fake, disingenuous and veneered. Drag icon Dave Lynn smoulders as Sally and belts out some glorious numbers. It is however Louie Westwood who manages to steal the show, with his shrieks and trills, hair tszujing and high-campery.

CREDIT: PND Photography

CREDIT: PND Photography

If your in the mood this summer for some gay history, a slice of campery, a belly of laughs, a hint of longing and a tragic reminder of period less accepting, this glorious time capsule of a play is a must see.

Do You Have A Secret Crush is playing at the Lost Theatre, Wandsworth until 21st August.

SPOILER (if you’ve not heard of the Scott Amedure story.)

It’s an incredibly powerful story – even more chilling that it is based on the murder of Scott Amedure in 1995, who went on the Jenny Jones’ talk show to tell Jonathan Schmitz that he was attracted to him. After a “suggestive” note was delivered an enraged Schmitz bought a shotgun and shot Amedure twice in the chest.

Schmitz was found guilty of second degree murder and is currently serving a 25-50 year sentence.

10th August 2016