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  • INTERVIEW | Scottee

    With a new show coming to the Roundhouse, we natter with a very open and honest Scottee who, despite a troubled past, has no problems airing his dirty laundry in public.

    G’day Scottee I believe you’re currently in Australia. I hope it’s providing much inspiration?
    Yes, but not in a Priscilla Queen of the Desert kind of way, more in the fact that actually there’s a queer community here, I think in the uk we have queer people. Ive been invited into people’s houses who don’t even know me, who’ve thrown dinner parties. People have been driving me around everywhere. In short queer australians seem to be very open and generous.

    Now the first question I have to ask, ok so it’s actually the second, who cleans your shirts?
    I have a stage manager called James in Australia and in the uk I have my wonderful producer Rachel, so yes she gets to have the glamourous jobs. We have to keep on using them otherwise it’d be too expensive.

    Would you describe yourself as a messy performer?
    No I wouldn’t. I would just describe myself an honest one. I think life is full of mess. Life is blood, sh**, p*** and everything in between. I don’t use those fluids but I guess I’m definitely renowned for throwing sh** over myself. I think I do that because it’s about my difficult relationship with food, so I use food a lot in my work.

    Your new show at the Roundhouse is called The Worst Of Scottee. What can an audience expect?
    I guess brutal honesty! I got a psychotherapist to get in contact with 10 people, who no longer talk to me, to find out what they thought of me and why they don’t talk to me. I think an audience are going to change their minds on me or their opinion of me in more ways than one. ooooh cryptic.

    Would you describe it as a very public form of therapy?
    Yes I would, (laughs), and I think in some circles, mainly The Rooms, I think this is called step 4.

    Whilst making the show, was there a particular person from your past that you really didn’t want to meet again?
    Yes. Out of the ten that we got in contact with only four came forward, and two of those people were quite adamant they wanted nothing to do with the project so we have to bleep their names out during the show. So this is still very live for a lot of people. I bumped into one of these people outside of Pret A Manger and we didn’t really know what to do so we just stared at each other and walked past.

    Stealing at aged 10, arrested at aged 14, are there any parts of your life you don’t lay bare to the audiences?
    No I don’t think so. Im brutally honest and I think that’s why people come to my shows or I think that’s why this is a strong piece, if I can be bold to say, because I think when you’re an artist you’re supposed to go to those places, I guess to educate and inform to help an audience get to that place themselves. I’m only being honest and I don’t think that’s a difficult thing.

    Have you now made friends with your past because of this performance?
    No. I wasn’t allowed to have contact with these people. We were really cautious about how we went around this and so the psychotherapist and my producer got in touch with these people. I wasn’t there at the filming and I wasn’t allowed to have their contact details and stuff, which is fine because a lot of these people don’t want to be contacted by me. They’ve made the decision not to be a part of my life or for me to be a part of theirs.

    What would be the Best of Scottee?
    I think this is the best of me. The best of me is to be honest, to be open, to be upfront and to rid myself of shame. There’s a particular story in the show which I carried around a lot of shame for years and now I don’t, so maybe the irony is that this has actually become the best of me.

    Performer, director, artist, writer and broadcaster. What’s been a personal career highlight so far?
    I really love doing the radio. I love being on Radio 4 because I think it’s just bizarre. I think it’s weird that I pop up on Radio 4, ‘And today I’m going to be interviewing Lisa Stasfield.’ Which I love. (We have also had a chin wag with Lisa and you can read her interview in the Feb issue!) The reason why I’m a performer, director, artist, writer and broadcaster is because I just like working and making art, performance, entertaining all of it. Although a personal highlight would be throwing cake at Rihanna on the X-Factor.

    Looking through your website gallery I’m reminded of Leigh Bowery. Do you have a life inspiration?
    I guess I get compared to Leigh quite a lot. Mainly because we’re both performance artists, although I don’t call myself that, and we’re fat and we wear funny clothes. A lot of his friends are very good close friends to mine and they kinda don’t think that I’m like him, which is good. I’ve got nothing against it. I guess growing up more of my icons were people like, Dawn French, Les Dawson and Hattie Jacques. So I guess those would be more of my inspiration, light entertainers who were on the telly when I was a kid.

    Where can folk learn more about the great Scottee?
    Well on my website, I’m all over social media because I love it. The internet is the best invention in the world.

    The Worst Of Scottee is at the Roundhouse from the 4th – 15th February 2014. for tickets visit here.

    Do check Scottee out what at www.Scottee.co.uk
    or for the latest ramblings follow him on Twitter @ScotteeScottee

  • Ben Summerskill to step down as CEO of Stonewall

    Stonewall today announced that Ben Summerskill OBE is to step down as Chief Executive of the lesbian, gay and bisexual charity after eleven years at the helm.

    His time as Chief Executive saw a dramatic change in the legal landscape for lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Britain. During his tenure he led successful campaigns to secure legal equality for gay people in Britain, including the repeal of Section 28, goods and services protections, civil partnerships and marriage equality.

    Ben’s tenure also saw a transformation of the charity itself, taking it from one with just 20 staff, an annual income of £1.3 million, to an effective campaigning organisation of 75 full time staff with annual income of excess of £4.2 million, with improved governance and financial integrity including substantially augmented reserves in line with charity best practice.

    Paying tribute to his time as Chief Executive, Stonewall Chair Jacqueline Davies said: ‘In the last decade, under Ben’s direction, Stonewall has become a hugely influential campaigning body that has played a key role in achieving legal equality for lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Britain – from the repeal of Section 28 to the recent same-sex marriage bill.

    ‘Britain is now a beacon of equality around the world and we are incredibly proud of Stonewall’s contribution to this. Ben’s own commitment has been extraordinary. He has worked tirelessly to achieve equality at home, at school and at work – and we are enormously grateful to him.

    ‘We remain all too aware that Stonewall’s work is by no means complete. The whole organisation remains more determined than ever to fight for full equality for gay, lesbian and bisexual people in all areas of life – both in the UK and internationally.’
    Ben Summerskill said: ‘I’ve had a wonderful 11 years at Stonewall. As a charity, it comprises a constellation of staff and volunteers who, working together, have achieved remarkable things. The fact that Stonewall’s Workplace Programme now engages the employers of ten million people and one in three local authorities in Britain now works with us to tackle homophobic bullying in schools is testament to some of the fantastic teamwork I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with.’
    The Stonewall Board today also announces that current Deputy Chief Executive Ruth Hunt will be appointed as Acting Chief Executive while the Board recruits into the role. In recent months, Ben has worked with Ruth to ensure the organisation transitions smoothly and remains focused on its key priorities.

    Ruth Hunt said: ‘The Stonewall team is working hard to achieve equality for gay people in education, the media and in the workplace.’

    ‘As a leadership team, our priority will be to maintain the momentum Ben has built up over the last 11 years so that we continue to see significant progress in these areas. I’ve worked side-by-side with Ben over the last eight years, and will be delighted and honoured to step into the role of Acting Chief Executive.’

  • FILM REVIEW | Inside Llewyn Davis

    ★★★★ | Inside Llewyn Davis

    Poor Llewyn is both a loser and a user. Nothing is safe in his hands as his life careers from disaster to disaster whilst he goes from crashing on couch to couch in his long-suffering friend’s New York apartments. He even manages to lose one of his host’s cat that he lets escape into the streets.

    Inside Llewyn Davies is the Coen Brother’s wonderful take on the early 1960’s folk music scene in Greenwich Village that focuses on good-looking 30-something year old Llewyn whose songs are as bleak as his very messy life. He treats everyone so shabbily that it is a complete surprise that anyone puts up with him at all. There’s Jean, who sings with her husband Jim when she is not sleeping with Llewyn and half of the folk club circuit. She blames Llewyn for her pregnancy and although he unquestioningly accepts responsibility for paying for an abortion, in reality it may not even be his child.

    There’s Joy his resentful sister who allows Llewyn to crash in the Long Island house that had once been their childhood home just so that she can nag him to give up singing and go back to being a merchant seaman. And in uptown Manhattan, there are the Columbus scholars the Gorfiens whose cat he loses, but it also turns out that they were the parents of Llewyn’s late singing partner who jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge.

    Everybody on the folk club circuit is enjoying more success than Llewyn even though he think he has much more talent, but he fails miserably to earn their respect or worthwhile gigs or even a decent Agent.

    Why such a depressing tale should be so watchable is totally down to the Coen’s obsessive attention to detail. It’s a glorious period piece shot in smoky hues that makes it feel like a black & white movie that has been hand tinted with some color. The acting from this incredible ensemble is top-notch but the production design and cinematography deserves star billing too. The fact that we get so engaged in watching the story of a loser is because he is played by a remarkable relatively unknown actor Oscar Isaac (and local Miami boy) who was nothing less than sensational in this his first ever lead role.

    Rounding out the cast were the superb Carey Mulligan and Justin Timberlake as Jean and Jim, Garret Hedlund as Johnny Five, and John Goodman playing the obnoxious loud-mouthed Roland Turner.

    My initial reaction after viewing this, was one of stunned silence as I had simply not been prepared for what a downer the actual story was. Now on reflection, and I am wallowing in the memory of the sheer pleasure of what a powerful character study of such a flawed character it was in such a magnificent set piece. And lest I should forget there was all that music too that had been ex-produced by none other than T Bone Burnett.

    It won the Grand Prix at Cannes Film Festival earlier this year and is unmissable, as it could even be the best Coen Brothers yet. And that is really saying something.

     

    Available to buy / view on: Amazon | Amazon Prime | iTunes

  • FILM REVIEW | The Cat

    ★★★ | The Cat

    The Cat is a Korean horror film which tells the story of a young woman, So-Yeon, who is an animal groomer in a pet parlour. Following the death of one of her customers who dies in a lift, she cares for the abandoned cat found next to the body. But So-Yeon soon finds herself haunted by the ghostly figure of a young girl with cat like eyes and as people around her start to die in small spaces So-Yeon tries to uncover the truth about the link between the cat and the violent deaths of those around her.

    The Cat was very typical of the Asian horror films which have become more popular over the last ten years or so. Films like The Ring, The Grudge, A Tale of Two Sisters and Dark Water have brought the Asian film industry to the attention of the West and this film is a good, if standard, example of the ghost story genre. It has all of the elements you would expect in such a film – a ghostly figure, a few jumps, a slow build of the tension and an uncovering of the truth behind the shadowy figure. Whilst the structure of the story was nothing ground-breaking, it held your attention and built to a satisfying enough conclusion.

    Overall, the film is a slow burner, with the story gently unfolding throughout the first two thirds of the film before reaching its denouement and revealing the reason for the hauntings. Those expecting an all-out action packed gore fest will be disappointed, but for those who want a decent ghost story and something more atmospheric, there are some nice set pieces (as some of the characters meet their demise) and the ghostly figure of the little girl comes across as both menacing and creepy at times.

    Overall, the performances of the cast are perfectly functional and the special effects are muted but effective. However, viewers should be aware that throughout the film there are some scenes of animal cruelty, which may make uncomfortable viewing for some people (although the film very clearly states that no animals were harmed in the making of the film). Also, the film is subtitled, which may also put off some people, although it shouldn’t. If you have never seen an Asian horror then this is a decent enough introduction.

    Available to buy / view on: Amazon | iTunes

  • Joan Rivers thinks the Kardashian kind needs waxing

    Oh my… gay icon Joan Rivers proves she’ll go after anyone – including a 6-month-old Kardashian.

    We love that JR will literally say anything – but tis a brave lady who takes on the Kardashian-West clan.

    In her latest standup routine the amazing 80-year-old Rivers said that the six-month-old, North, was ‘Ugly’ and ‘in a desperately need of a waxing’ according to gossip site RadarOnline.

    Joan Rivers returns to the UK this autumn in her new show.

    Kim took to Twitter writing, after pictures of her baby were aired on The Ellen DeGeneres Show last week

    ‘Do people really think I would wax my daughters eyebrows so young? Come on, I’d wait until she’s at least 2 1/2!
    ‘I’m kidding!!! Its pretty sick for people to insinuate that I would wax my daughters eyebrows. They are thick, natural and amazing!’

  • RESTAURANT REVIEW | Arbutus Frith Street Soho (CLOSED)

    Choosing a restaurant in Soho after a couple of gin martinis is like a one-sided game of Battleships. You take aim at the heart-of-London’s gridded streets and often miss, leaving your peg sitting in a tasteless hole. Another evening, another game you fire and it’s bull’s-eye. A peg in a ship suggests a revisit. But what if you’ve hit a piddly patrol boat? Your second hit will sink that tiny ship. It was the competent chef’s shift on your first encounter.

    But every now and then you strike an aircraft carrier that can withstand numerous blows and stay afloat.

    The vessel HRH Lady H and I targeted one finger-numbingly cold January night was christened Arbutus. An aircraft carrier that sails Frith Street. This was my third meal there and she’s still holding her head above water.

    We hiccuped our way through the doors of the one-Michelin-starred gaff, and were greeted by a foxy Marilyn Monroe look-a-like. Marilyn playfully ummed and ahhed, then dangled the eatery’s last table in the air as if it was a toy mouse and we were a pair of mischievous Persian cats. Once she’d made us purr we were led to the table.

    The restaurant is intimate and narrow. The white walls are mostly lined with old black and white photos of city life. One could be sitting in the National Portrait Gallery during a Robert Frank exhibition.

    Lady H’s attention was drawn to the other bums on the banquettes rather than the menu at first. HRH has a penchant for young chaps sporting a crisp white shirt with a subtle hint of Dries Van Noten on their person.

    The frolics didn’t end at reception. Lady H ordered two glasses of Davenport East Sussex bubbly. Our pretty waitress smiled and teased us with the idea of a whole bottle. I dug my Paul Smith calf leather Wallace’s heels in. Deux glasses it was.

    Davenport Limney Estate is as French as us Brits get when it comes to fizz. Much like south-Londoner John Galliano’s final spring/summer collection for Dior.

    Lady began with the Scottish white crab, confit egg yolk, avocado guacamole and brown crabmeat crackers. The ocean fresh crabmeat was mild and sweet. The combination of textures from the runny yolk, crunchy cracker and distinctively strandy crab worked.

    For my entrée shoulder of Elwy Valley lamb and Herefordshire snails ‘lasagne’. The scallop like texture of the snail was slightly overpowered by the lamb. I needed to season this dish. The pea green sauce was about as memorable as the Liberal Democrat’s latest policies.

    To wash down the mains a bottle of The Flower and the Bee (La Folora y la Abeja). Ribena-like with a spicy bite. Utterly drinkable.

    I followed with young Scottish pheasant cooked in hay, with quince jam and cauliflower, with a sausage roll on the side. If the West Cornwall Pasty Company churned out meaty tubes of perfection like this every day I’d be using a different belt loop. The sagey bird came alive with the tart undertones from the jam.

    HRH chose the grilled piece of beef with charred calcot onion, toasted buckwheat and Pomme Anne spuds. I had food-envy slapped across my face like Jordan wears make-up. Your neighbour’s Ford Mondeo is aways shinier. The potato was buttery and rich. A treacly saltiness seeped from this addictive beef.

    To end we shared a selection of cheeses that Borough Market would have been proud of. To accouplement Graham’s 10-year-old port – vibrant, oaky with a nutty bouquet.

    Not as cost effective as eating on the Ark. You’ll need a squadron of Navy officers wages to dine for two on Arbutus’s decks. But she’s worth a hit.

  • OPINION: Age Gap Relationships, What Is The Fuss?

    My name is Daniel Browne. I am 29 years old (although tell people I’m only 19) and I’m in a long term relationship with a man who is 25 years older than me. I wouldn’t be surprised if assumptions are made at this point as I have had to face them over the past couple of years. Am I gold a digging whore? Is my boyfriend a sugar Daddy? What do I get out of the relationship?

    Rather than answer those questions when people ask them, I simply give a death stare that ultimately makes the person feel as small as their mind is. Of course the answers are that I am not a gold digging whore and my boyfriend is not a sugar Daddy. I have my own career, home, and money. Sometimes I pay for things, sometimes my partner does. It’s a very grown up and equitable relationship.

    The reason I am writing about my own relationship is not because I have a great desire to let the world know certain details of my personal life, but because I am a big champion of age gap relationships. Actually, that may be slightly incorrect. I am a champion of all relationships and people having the freedom to be happy. Age gap relationships obviously fall into that. If someone wants to date another person who is years older or younger than themselves then why should it matter? The only thing that really matters is that the people in the relationship are happy.

    The world and his dog (and possibly even creatures in outer space) will have heard about Tom Daley recently revealing he is in a relationship with a man. As rabid gays and teenage girls went into diver boy crush overdrive over this ‘news’, much of the reporting in the following days began to focus on the fact that Tom’s boyfriend is twenty years older than him. Friends of mine commented on the age gap before remembering that I am with someone who is almost twice my age. I found myself getting increasingly annoyed that not only Tom’s sexuality was making the news, but also that his age gap relationship was such a big deal.

    I think that much of the problem with some of the rabid gays is that they wish they were Tom Daley’s older man. Jealousy is certainly playing a part. Personally he doesn’t do it for me but I can see why all these people would fancy him. Another reason for such a big deal being made out of this particular age gap relationship is because I think people love to be outraged or unimpressed by things. Some of it is so feigned that it’s almost amusing. All I can really say to that is people should get over themselves. Live and let live.

    There’s always going to be the haters; people who don’t agree with age gap relationships and say they shouldn’t happen. The only advice I have for those people is that they shouldn’t knock it until they have tried it. I don’t believe in passing judgement on people’s relationships and wish more people could be like that.

    After all, you can’t help who you fall in love with.

     

    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.

  • Falcon Porn Studio Removes Condoms Digitally

    In a controversial new move, Falcon Studios has digitally removed condoms from its actors.

    The porn studio, which up until now has been steadfastly condom only, has digitally removed condoms from one of it’s latest releases Calfornia Dreamin’ 1.

    In a press release posted by Joe My Blog, Falcon said:

    ‘Legendary gay film producer Falcon Studios has decided to use some decidedly new tech to compete with bareback studios. For it’s latest release, California Dreamin’, the San Francisco-based studio used advanced Photoshop techniques to remove condoms from the final film. While the film itself was shot using condoms, the final result appears as condomless.

    The move comes in response to two trends in the industry. Porn studios are facing increasing financial pressures from consumers who want to see films without condoms and state regulatory agencies that have fined adult film producers for going without.

    In an interview with the consumer-facing blog, GPB, director Tony Dimarco described it as,

    “a throwback to the classic, pre-condom Falcon poolside movies from the 70′s and 80′s.”

    “Falcon itself has used condoms in all its features since the late 80s.’

    So what do you think? Hot or Not? Does it increase the desire for gay people to have bareback sex?

  • NEWS: Brand New Networking Site For Gay Muscle Men

    If you’re a fan of the muscles, then you’re going to love this all new networking site for gay muscle men.

    (more…)

  • OPINION | Don’t blame the gay weather man

    So as I woke today, head banging after too much wine last night, I opened my emails to the news that David Silvester, a UK Independence Party councillor had claimed yesterday that the UK’s recent bad weather has been caused by, no wait for it, the legalisation of same-sex marriage!

    After my initial shock and making sure I had actually woken up and wasn’t still dreaming, I actually couldn’t stop laughing and find this extremely amusing. I mean come on!

    Hold on to your hats people…. EXTREME WEATHER WARNING! Tonight for the first time, just about half past ten. For the first time in history it’s gonna start rainin’ men!

    The absurd claims this clown is making is that the country was suffering storms after David Cameron had ‘acted arrogantly against the gospel’. In a letter written to the Henley Standard, he stated ‘The scriptures make it abundantly clear that a Christian nation that abandons its faith and acts contrary to the Gospel will be beset by natural disasters such as storms, disease, pestilence and war.’ This looney who is the councillor of Henley-on-Thames also advised he had written to the prime minister in April 2012 to warn him this was going to happen.

    I hate to be the bearer of bad news and give this fool the rude awakening he needs but further bad weather has been predicted so it doesn’t look like the legalisation of same-sex marriage is going anywhere! The deluded councillor has also told BBC Radio Berkshire in an interview ‘…I believe as a Christian I should love gay people and indeed, I do. My prayer for them is they will be healed.’ He went on to say ‘It is a spiritual disease… it’s not what I say, it’s what the Bible says.’

    All I can say is, it is not us gays that need praying for you knob, it’s the poor people of your constituency.

    A spokesperson for the UK Independence Party said yesterday that the party did not share Mr Silvester’s views but defended his right to state them. They seemed to have changed their tune today as according to Sky News he has been suspended. Well, I hear the Westboro Baptist Church is currently recruiting.

    The stupidity of some people never fails to amaze me!

    You’re never going to get a rainbow, without a little rain!

     

    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.

  • Cheshire’s fire service among top LGBT employers

    Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service is celebrating after once again making it into Stonewall’s annual list of the UK’s top 100 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) friendly employers.

    After making the Top100 of the Workplace Equality Index for the first time in 2013, the Service increased its ranking by 20 places, achieving the 25th slot and placing it in the top quarter of organisations.

    Deputy Chair of the Fire Authority, Cllr Stef Nelson said: “Making the Top100 for a second year is something we are incredibly proud of. It demonstrates that the culture of the fire and rescue service is changing for the better. We are totally committed to getting the most out of every single member of staff and developing an inclusive working environment where our staff feel valued regardless of their background or sexual orientation”.

    Stonewall is a national organisation that works to achieve equality for lesbians, gay men and bisexual people. The Index has been running for ten years and is seen as the definitive benchmark for gay-friendly employers.

    Nearly 400 organisations entered the 2014 Index, including some of the UK’s (and the world’s) largest and most successful firms. The Service was the joint-highest scoring organisation based solely in the North West.

    The Workplace Equality Index provides an audit for workplace culture and ranks the top employers for LGBT staff through a 25-question evidenced assessment, focussed on the approach and mechanisms for supporting LGBT employees, customers and communities.

    Chief Fire Office Paul Hancock, who is the senior sponsor of the Service’s LGBT staff network, added: “I am delighted that our organisation has again improved its placing in Stonewall’s Top 100 this year. It reflects the hard work invested by our staff and volunteers, not only in ensuring that our people can perform at their best and be themselves, but also so that LGBT people across Cheshire know that we are here to support them. Our aim is always to deliver an excellent fire and rescue service and to do that we need people from every background.”

    Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service has an active LGBT employee network group, Firepride, which has once again been accredited as a ‘Star Performing Network’. This means that it has been recognised as ‘making an invaluable contribution to the experience of LGBT staff in the organisation and beyond’.

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