THEGAYUK

Search results for: “ ”

  • OP ED: Why Dan Wootton And The Sun Should Be Ashamed Of Themselves

    OP ED: Why Dan Wootton And The Sun Should Be Ashamed Of Themselves

    There seems to be a lot of people who are attempting to turn back the clock at the moment

    Whether it’s one of my friends who has recently had her latest round of botox or the Conservative government trying to take us back to 1875, it seems we all want to relive the past. Then came The Sun and its journalist Dan Wootton, who are apparently trying to take us back to the 1980s with sensationalised, scaremongering articles.

    By now I’m sure most of us will have seen The Sun’s recent front page, which claims a top Hollywood star has HIV.
    “Hollywood HIV Panic”, the headline read, as if the article is a trashy Hollywood-made drama in itself. The Sun alleged that the famous man has been living with HIV for a number of years and has had a string of also famous lovers.

    The article insinuates that the actor has been knowingly having sex with a number of women when he’s aware of his HIV status, and therefore could potentially be passing it on. In the article, The Sun also claim they have chosen not to name the star. How wonderfully considerate of them.

    I have to admit that I thought to myself, where do I even begin with my takedown of this article and Dan Wootton?

    The whole thing is so odious, and indeed Dan Wootton an odious creature, that I wanted to throw my laptop out of the window and bang my head on a brick wall. Let’s begin with the fact that regardless of this person’s fame, everybody has a right to privacy and confidentiality, particularly when it comes to something such as medical records. Running this story is an absolute invasion of privacy.
    Then there’s the sensationalist, dated tone of the headline and article. It reverts back to the dark days of the 1980s. An article of this type can only help to reinforce the stigma around HIV. It takes a giant leap backwards in the fight to change attitudes and perceptions regarding HIV.

    What The Sun could have done is ran a very informative piece about HIV, but instead they chose to cheapen it and spread vicious gossip that is hurtful to many people.

    Overall I’m not really shocked that The Sun would run such a piece. I’ve long regarded them as a trash rag. What I am disappointed with, though, is The Sun’s showbiz journalist Dan Wootton putting his name to something so shameful.

    I must admit that I have never been a fan of Dan Wootton. I believe he and his type represent what is wrong with the world. I have zero respect for someone who makes a living out of spreading gossip and rumours about people. However, I had assumed that as a gay man he’d have used his position to help rather than to hate. Clearly I was mistaken.

    Upon seeing the article, I tweeted Dan Wootton to ask him if he thought it’s ok to spread hurtful gossip. I told him that he is contributing to stigmatising HIV and that he should be ashamed of himself. Many other people had also tweeted him, saying similar things to what I had. I didn’t expect him to reply, but I was surprised to discover that he has blocked me. I’m not the only one; many others have also been blocked by Wootton for calling him out on what he has done.

    I can understand blocking trolls, but when people are asking genuine questions and aiming justified criticism at you, the best approach is to face it head on and be man enough to admit that you made a mistake. By blocking people and ignoring all criticism, Dan Wootton is burying his head in the sand and not taking any responsibility for his actions. This just makes him look even worse and gives the impression that he stands by the article.

    What I’d like to see Dan Wootton do is apologise for what he has done and make an effort to do something more beneficial for those living with HIV. As it stands, he’s shown himself to be a truly appalling individual. He has betrayed people living with HIV and should absolutely be ashamed of himself.
    Terrence Higgins Trust does amazing work supporting people living with HIV, campaigning and raising awareness. Please have a look at their website and show them some love.

    by Daniel Browne

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

  • Dustin Lance Black And Tom Daley Want To Save The George Tavern

    Tom Daley and his fiancé Dustin Lance Black have added their voices to the Save the George Tavern campaign.

    Celeb couple Tom Daley and Dustin Lance Black have been photographed in an embrace wearing a “save the George Tavern” t-shirt.

    The iconic landmark music venue has come under threat after developers bought the surrounding buildings and has lodged plans to convert them into luxury homes. The proximity of the flats to the music venue will mean that the George Tavern will not be able to host music events, described as it’s “bread and butter”

    The pub’s website describes their plight as,

    “The Grade II listed pub and venue on Commercial Road, Stepney, London is under threat from developers who have purchased the adjoining site. They have submitted a number of different plans to build luxury apartments next to the pub. If the flats are built, the venue will most probably be forced to stop live music events – its bread and butter.”

    Nearly 3,000 fans of the venue have signed a petition which was sent to the Planning Inspector.

    The petition was signed by a host of celebrities including Sir Ian McKellen, Plan B, Jo Whiley, Ricky Wilson of the Kaiser Chiefs.

  • RECIPE | Lemony Spaghetti

    This may be one of the most simplest recipes I do, in that it’s ingredients and effort are both minimal.

    It is perfect for mid-week, no energy, no brainpower cooking. However this simplistic dish at the table is very well received, as it bursts with freshness from the lemon and parsley, with a touch of garlic. With ingredients and method being so easy, once you’ve cooked this once you should be able to recall it from memory for the next time.

    I avoid wheat and use a “free-from” spaghetti, but you, of course, can substitute for normal spaghetti.

    CHICKEN

    • About 115g of free-range chicken will provide the following of your recommended daily intake;
    • 97% vitamin B3 (significant protection from heart disease, lowers levels of bad cholesterol, elevates “good” cholesterol HDL).
    • 70% protein.
    • 56% selenium (selenium deficiency, which some people who are HIV positive may have, has implications on immune function, depression, cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypothyroidism, infertility in males).
    • 40% vitamin B6 (can prevent anaemia, and also used to treat heart disease, high cholesterol, cramps, skin conditions, and boosting the immune system).
    • 36% phosphorous.
    • 22% choline (liver protector).
    • 21% vitamin B5 (great for acne and reducing oil production in the skin)
    • 16% vitamin B12.

    PARSLEY

    • The vitamin C content is higher than oranges (53% of your recommended daily intake in 30g of fresh parsley). Within the same 30g you will get 553% of your daily intake for vitamin K (healthy bones). It’s packed full of antioxidants, vitamin A, folate, iron. and can help neutralize carcinogens. It’s also great at neutralizing garlic breath! (SOURCE: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=100 )
    • Containing a high amount of enzymes, parsley benefits digestive activity .

    LEMONS

    Ingredients

    3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

    3 spring onions, sliced on the diagonal

    1 garlic clove, sliced

    1 pack fresh flat leaf parsley (finely chopped)

    1 tbsp butter (optional)

    250g mini chicken fillets, sliced into bite-size pieces

    75-100g spaghetti, per person

    Method

    1. Get a large saucepan of boiling water on the go.
    2. In a wok heat a tablespoon of oil and a tablespoon of butter (if using), and fry the spring onions for 5 minutes, adding the garlic for the last minute.
    3. Add your spaghetti to the pan with boiling water.
    4. Add in the chicken along with lemon juice to your wok and cook out for 8-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked.
    5. Drain your spaghetti and add to the wok, along with all of the parsley. Mix well to combine, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and a scattering of black pepper.
    6. Remove from the frying pan with tongs into bowls and serve. For extra nutritional value serve with a simple side salad of romaine lettuce and vine tomatoes.

  • Passion Pit Singer Michael Angelakos Comes Out As Gay

    American singer Michael Angelakos, front man of Passion Pit has come out as gay on a podcast.

    Michael Angelakos, frontman of Passion Pit has come out as gay on a podcast produced by writer Brett Easton Ellis.

    Angelakos, 28 who has released 3 albums in the UK divorced his wife Kristy Mucci earlier in 2015.

    They were married for two years.

    The singer decided to come out to Brett because he “admires” him. He admitted that the most difficult thing about coming out was admitting he was gay to himself.

    After the podcast was released Angelakos took to Twitter to write,

    “everything’s going to be okay”

    https://twitter.com/passionpit/status/663848760318033924?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

     

    and then went on to thank his fans saying,

    “i’ve received so many kind and supportive messages today. thank you for reaching out and being so kind to me.”

    https://twitter.com/passionpit/status/663912575453761536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

     

    He said that his ex-wife was extremely supportive on hearing the news. He remarked,

    “I just wanted so badly to be straight, because I love her so much,

    “I think that was one of the most painful things when we decided to separate.

    “When I decided to really deal with it head on – which was, I don’t know, in June – she was the one that kind of spearheaded it in a way.

    “She said, ‘You need to figure out what’s going on with your sexuality, you can’t hate yourself any more.’”

  • COMMENT: Is The Gay Community Its Own Worst Enemy?

    Last year I wrote an article for this divine publication about the gay movement eating itself from the inside out.

    It was in response to a comment from RuPaul, in which she made that exact statement after the term ‘she-mail’ was dropped from the Drag Race television show. Almost 18 months later I still agree with RuPaul; perhaps even more so now than I did then. That’s because recently I’ve found myself becoming victim to an increasing amount of abuse… not from homophobes, but from other gay people.

    Locally I do a lot of work with and for the gay community. This has led to a certain level of interest in the work I do and made me the go to person whenever an organisation or the local media wish to discuss a gay-related topic. I’ve never claimed or wanted to be a spokesperson for the gay community, but at the same time whenever I do give an interview or have a meeting, I’m keen to get across points that gay people have made to me rather than simply putting my own point of view across. It’s something that has ran pretty smoothly until the tide appeared to change several months ago.

    There was a bit of controversy surrounding the Coventry Pride festival earlier in the year. I had been organising it, but decided to step down from that position over a disagreement with the venue, who I perceived to be in it for the money and exposure rather than for the community. With money and influence on their side, the venue went on a spin campaign that absolutely trashed my reputation. It was then that negativity from people within the gay community began. I was subjected to threats of violence, death wishes, slurs about my appearance, and general Dan-bashing. It led to me having to log off social media for several days until things started to die down.

    That experience got me thinking again about how the gay community can sometimes be its own worst enemy. There I was doing what I thought was something positive for the community, only to have people jumping on the bandwagon to troll me. I resolved to ignore ‘the haters’ as I thought the truth of the situation was all I needed. Besides, if you start to respond to trolls it just feeds them, right? I anticipated that the trolling wouldn’t last as people would get bored and move on to something else. How wrong I was.

    Back in September, there was a horrific attack on a gay man in Leamington Spa. A number of people from an outraged community asked me to do something about it as we could all see that violent crimes against gay people were becoming more common locally. So I set about an awareness raising campaign and organised the Leamington Spa Equality Rally, which took place at the beginning of October. As part of the campaign, I gave interviews to local press, as well as holding meetings with the Police to discuss increased support for the community. As the press reports began to surface, I started to receive abusive comments again. What shocked me was that it wasn’t from homophobes, but from gay people. I was called all sorts of names, and it was claimed that I was making the violent incidents up as a form of self-promotion. I let it go as frankly I had more important things to think about, but at the same time felt a sense of disappointment that so many gay people appear to turn on each other so easily. Where was the sense of community and togetherness going? Does the hatred come from their own self-loathing or is it jealousy?

    After a couple of weeks free from being trolled, it has flared up again recently. This time it’s due to an article that a local newspaper ran based on one of my tweet sabout the LGBTQ charity I run not doing too badly considering I was told by a local councillor that there are no gay people in Warwickshire. It’s a very old story and I thought it was common knowledge. However after a sensationalised article locally, the story was picked up by national gay publications. They began running the story of how I had made this revelation, despite the fact I hadn’t revealed anything or even spoken to those publications. As the comments from gay people started, they ranged from the amusing to the abusive. For some, it became less about the article and the issues we face as a community, as more comments about my appearance surfaced, with some gay people basically saying I’m a minger.

    Whether I’m a minger or not, the thing that concerns me the most is how the gay community appears to be fracturing. I’ve detailed some of my personal experiences here, but I’m sure we’ve all seen profiles online that state “no fats, no fems, no blacks, no Asians”. There’s even one person on Grindr who states he is looking for “beef, not mince”. The reality is that we are now in a position where it’s seemingly ok to ridicule and discriminate against our own kind rather than stick together. I now find myself questioning whether the ‘gay community’ actually exists or whether it’s a thing of the past.

    With hate crime on the rise and equality still to fight for, particularly in a social context, I don’t see that in-fighting and discrimination within the gay community does anything to further our cause. It worries me that so many gay people would rather abuse and ridicule their own kind than come out in support of the issues that are being highlighted or in support of each other as a minority. We’re no longer the family we once were.

    So what’s the solution? Unfortunately, I don’t have all the answers, but it’s clear to me that trolling, racism, body shaming and ridicule are becoming increasingly prevalent within the gay community. Surely we’re better than that.

    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.

  • CAR REVIEW | Renault Captur Dynamique Media Nav

    The Renault Captur is proving a popular choice amongst those after an alternative to a common-or-garden hatchback.

    Based on the same platform as the Clio supermini, it’s a similar length but both wider and taller. Engines mirror the Clio range with 900cc and 1.2 litre turbocharged petrol engines along with a 1.5 litre diesel on offer. It may be competitively priced but is it any good?

    First impressions are positive; the exterior is smartly styled with an attractive take on the Renault corporate ‘face’, nicely sculpted sides and pert rear. There’s even the option of a contrasting roof and coloured highlights on the wheels for those that want to stand out. The Captur may ride higher than the Clio it’s based on but don’t think it has any off-road ability. There isn’t even the option of four-wheel drive.

    Move inside and everything is laid out pretty sensibly apart from the switch to toggle between the cruise control and speed limiter; this was unhelpfully between the front seats. Still, the heater controls are easy to use and the infotainment isn’t mounted too far down the dashboard like some rivals. It’s not overly exciting but it is attractive enough, especially with the piano black trim and body coloured highlights of higher trim levels.

    The Captur is practical too, the boot is a decent size and the seats naturally fold down. Cleverly, they also slide back to give rear passengers more legroom albeit at the expense of carrying capacity. It is however in the cabin where the Captur’s cheap price really shows. Closer inspection reveals acres of hard plastic while the infotainment system looks exceedingly dated compared to rivals. It works well enough though.

    On the road, the Captur proves a comfortable companion that only got caught out by particularly rough surfaces. Not only could it deal with bumps well, it resisted wallowing too. You’d never call it engaging though; the steering provided little to no feedback as to what the front wheels were doing and I couldn’t turn off the traction or stability control. Although that may not be of too much concern to many of you, I found the traction control cut in far too quickly leaving you accelerating out of junctions far slower than you’d expected.

    While it may sound like there’s too much power for the chassis, that isn’t the case at all. Initially, the 1.5-litre diesel seemed quite punchy around town but this feeling soon disappeared on the open road. Despite a quick and enjoyable gearchange, a 0-62 time of 13.1 seconds means getting up to motorway speeds can be a bit of a chore and a noisy one at that. Economy hovered at just under 50mpg on a mixture of roads. Not bad at all for a real world test if somewhat below the official figure of more than 70mpg.

    Still, the Renault does have price on its side. Even before discounts, you can pick one up new for a little over £14,000 which is very competitive indeed. Opt for a decently specced mid-range model and you’ll still be looking at under £18,000 for a vehicle with air-con, sat-nav and cheap running costs. With that in mind, you can forgive a lot of the negative points of the Captur. It’s easy to see why it’s so popular, that’s for sure.

    PROS

    Inexpensive

    High driving position

    Looks

    CONS

    Slow

    Cheap feeling interior

    Dated looking infotainment system

    The Lowdown

    Car – Renault Captur 1.5 dCi Dynamique Nav

    Price – £17,695 (£18,964 as tested)

    Power – 110hp 0-62mph – 11.0 seconds

    Top Speed – 109mph

    Co2 – 98g/km

  • Gareth Thomas Strips Off To Remind Us About Pneumonia

    Former rugby champ Gareth Thomas has stripped off and painted his body to remind us that pneumonia can strike even the healthiest of us.

    Last year 40-year-old Gareth Thomas was struck down by pneumonia, a virus that claims the lives of over 50,000 of us in Britain every year. Even those, like Gareth who are healthy and active can be affected by it. As many as one in one hundred of us will develop the chronic condition, brought on by a bacterial infection which causes the tiny air sacs in your lungs to become inflamed and swell up with fluid, something that is very uncomfortable and debilitating.
    Thomas who is fronting the campaign ‘Expect the Unexpected’ said,

    “I was getting ready to take part in a pantomime last December, but had been suffering with a cold for a while,

    “Once a cough came, everyone agreed I should go and see a doctor, who confirmed it was the back-end of a cold.

    “I left it at that but I didn’t feel any better and it started to get worse and worse.

    “The breaking point came in bed one night when I was coughing so hard I was sure I’d broken my ribs – I knew what broken ribs felt like, and I had that feeling. I was so tired of being ill, so frustrated and in so much pain that I started crying. I couldn’t take any more so decided to go to hospital.”

    Doctors and healthcare professions are urging Brits to keep an eye on coughs and colds that won’t go away. Those living with HIV and other immune system issues should be especially aware about pneumonia symptoms, which you can read in the table above.
    Dr Ben Marshall, a consultant in respiratory medicine and expert in the field of pneumonia from University Hospital Southampton comments,

    “We find that there is still a lot of confusion between pneumonia and a ‘really bad cold.’ Symptoms are very similar, including cough, fever and shortness of breath. However, pneumonia is usually much worse, it is an infection in your lungs that requires antibiotics and can sometimes lead to hospitalisation. The risk of pneumonia increases with age and for those living with chronic conditions. If you are considered vulnerable, there are ways by which pneumonia can easily be prevented, please consult your local GP, nurse or pharmacist in this instance”

    Thomas adds,

    “I now know to listen to my body; if I catch a cold this Christmas that seems to last longer than it should I’ll chat to my doctor, rather than try and tough it out.

    “I’d definitely talk to my doctor about a vaccination, 100%. I would never want to go through this again and never want anyone else to have to experience it.

    “I would take prevention for pneumonia as seriously as I take my flu jab, the flu is a walk in the park compared to pneumonia.”

  • THEATRE REVIEW | Lovesong Of An Electric Bear

    Alan Turing’s life is told, with the help of his teddy bear, in the new play ‘Lovesong of the Electric Bear.’

    Yes, you read it right. It’s a teddy bear called Porgy (Bryan Pilkington in a teddy bear suit) who guides Turing (and the audience) through the events in his life. From his life as a young boy in France, where he was a bit different from the other boys, to his time in Bletchley, where he created his machine which broke the German code during World War II. It’s a strange and unusual little show, currently playing in the small studio upstairs in the Arts Theatre on Great Newport Street, redesigned to look like a codebreakers bunker.

    It’s a true story, written by the late Andrew Wilson. Turing evidently did have a teddy bear, and it’s the teddy bear in the opening sequence who awakens Turing from his deathbed and takes him through the journey of his life.

    It’s an incredible journey, a journey we all know very well from last year’s hit film The Imitation Game, which starred Benedict Cumberbatch as Turing. Not much new information on Turing is provided in this production, but it’s the viewpoint of the teddy bear giving advice and opinion on every move Turing which makes is interesting to say the least. And it’s quite funny, and surreal, especially when Turing (played stoically and confidently by Ian Hallard) starts ‘dating’ Joan (an excellent Laura Harling), and he takes her to meet his parents, but it’s always the bear who is in the background giving advise and musing about Turing’s wrong decisions. And it’s also the bear who advises Turing to get far away from the rent boy (Chris Levens, very good in all the roles he plays in this show) that eventually brought upon Turing’s downfall. And of course we all know how it ends, and that’s the sad part, there was nothing the bear could have done for Turing, in the play and in real life. Turing’s was a life cut too short, he was a man too far ahead of his time.

    Lovesong of the Electric Bear is playing at the Arts Theatre until November 21, 2015

     

     

  • SINGLE REVIEW: Showbiz Christmas, Simon Gross

    Ahhh… Christmas camp.

    There are three things we want in a Christmas song: 1) Camp 2) Camp and 3) Camp and Big Brother’s Showbiz showman Simon Gross delivers all three in outstanding measure in his insta-hit Showbiz Christmas.

    Gross manages to shoehorn in his well-worn, some may argue genius catchphrase “Showbiz” into 3 minutes and 10 seconds of pure Christmas campness, the likes of which we haven’t seen since Cliff Richard released Mistletoe and Wine.

    Move over Weather Girls, Madonna and Wham, we have a contender for the gayest Christmas single ever released.

    If you mix Peter Kay’s Once Upon A Christmas Song, with Britney’s My Only Wish you’re starting to get close to Simon’s Showbiz Christmas.

    Fairly speaking it won’t or can’t match Mariah’s 1994 mega hit All I Want For Christmas, which has entered the UK charts every Christmas since 2005, when chart rules changed to allow digital purchases count towards them, but it makes a fair attempt at giving the UK an alternative to whatever bland winner’s song that Simon Cowell is bound to give the UK as it’s Christmas number 1.

    With proceeds going to Centrepoint, the charity that aims gives homeless young people a future; there’s never been a better reason to change the Christmas number 1

    Available to buy from iTunes and Amazon

  • Seann Miley Booted From X FACTOR

    X Factor’s Seann Miley Moore has been booted from the X FACTOR despite being the second favourite to win the entire season

    In a sing-off with Mason Noise, Seann was eliminated from the show after the judges brought the vote to deadlock meaning the act with the least number of public votes would be axed from the show.

    Mason Noise delivered a less-than-perfect version of the Boyz 2 Men hit, End Of The Road, in which his voice cracked and was out of time. Seann delivered a flawless, goosebump version of A Song For You.

    Simon and Cheryl both chose to send Mason home, while Rita chose Seann to go home. Nick Grimshaw had the deciding vote and decided to bring the vote to deadlock by choosing Seann, saying that the audience should decide on who should go home.

    Presenter Caroline Flack issued the verdict like a guillotine strike, quick, sharp and without warning.

    The two singers were both in Nick’s category. Seann Miley Moore came out as gay in a recent interview with Now Magazine saying that he was a “proud gay man.”

  • Who Is Going To Win X Factor 2015 Can Twitter Predict Again?

    At this stage of the competition we like to bring back TWATS. Twitter Winning And Theoretical Service.

     

    In previous years we used Twitter to see if we could predict who the season’s winners would be. What we can tell you is that 2015’s contestants are vastly unpopular when compared to previous seasons of X Factor.

    In 2014 after two live shows the contestants with the most Twitter fans was Jack Walton with 148K followers.In 2013 Union J had 288K followers on Twitter, this year Louisa is by far the most popular on but lags fair behind both on 82.4K.

     

    Louisa 82.4K

    4th Impact 52.2K

    Mason Noise 41.5K

    Lauren Murray 39.1K

    Seann Miley Moore 35.4K (eliminated)

    Che Chesterman 34.7K

    Monica Michael 28.1K

    Kiera Weathers 21.1K (eliminated)

    Anton Stephans 20.4K

    Reggie N Bollie 19.9K

    Alien Uncovered 17.9K (eliminated)

    Max Stone 16.3K

    Bupsi Brown 8.9K (eliminated)

     

    Two of last year’s top three were already in triple digits by this point. Andrea Faustini had 147K followers and eventual winner Ben Haenow was at 122K followers. Runner up Fleur East was at 68.8K followers.

More posts