THEGAYUK

Tag: UK

  • 50 Things We Find Totally Boring

    Party Political Broadcasts, Fifty Shades of Grey and shopping channels have been hailed as life’s biggest bores according to a new survey.

    The study which asked 2,000 adults about what causes them to switch off revealed a list of the 50 most mind-numbingly boring people, places and things Brits come across in everyday life.

    The topical winner was Party Political Broadcasts, rated as excessively boring by over half of the adults polled.

    Ad breaks, queueing in the Post Office, and a painfully slow wi-fi connection were also placed highly in the list of biggest yawns.

    Mark Walters, Managing Director of Interparcel, which commissioned the study said: ‘’It seems we Brits get bored very easily.

    ‘’And we all have different boredom triggers – many often find themselves restless and looking for things to do, while others relish their free time.

    ‘’It seems our general impatience is a common cause for boredom nationwide and that suggests our free time is very precious.”

    ‘’It’s no surprise that most of the top ten were made up of situations where we have to wait around so any areas of life where we can avoid this are embraced.’’

    The research showed many of the most hyped elements of British life prove to be a source of boredom for many.

    Sport bore a brunt of the blame, with extended football analysis, Formula 1 races and horse racing on TV all making an appearance.

    And the gentlemanly sports of snooker, cricket and bowls were added to the many sporting mentions that sent those in the poll snoring.

    Ed Miliband, David Cameron and Gordon Brown were all deemed completely boring by the poll, as well as the current affairs discussion show, Question Time.

     

    Other TV entries included the daytime classics Bargain Hunt and Loose Women, while Scrapheap Challenge and Gardener’s World were also shown to tip Brits into tedium.

    On a similar gardening theme, TV presenter Alan Titchmarsh came in as the 50th entry, accompanied by the famously boring A-listers of Kanye West, Gwyneth Paltrow and Bono.

    The world of work was another source of boredom – 14 per cent claimed to work with someone who bores them to death; while company meetings and PowerPoint presentations made the top fifty.

    But life outside of work doesn’t provide entertainment it seems, as filling in tax-returns, washing the dishes and mindless small talk were also named.

    And doctor waiting rooms, staying in for a delivery and train delays all came within the top ten pinnacles of boredom.

    Amazingly, over seven in ten adults confessed they lead boring lifestyles, and almost half considered themselves a boring person.

    Though almost a third said they’re tired of their jobs, 58 per cent said they get bored on their days off, at a loss as what to do with themselves.

     

    Mark Walters continues, “As the research clarified, the majority of us find queuing boring. What seemed liked endless queues in the Post Office was a key trigger in the development of the Interparcel.com business.

    “The emergence of the internet and the rapid development of technology mean you no longer have to queue up to send a parcel.

    “You can now easily and cost effectively arrange for a courier to come to your home or place of work to pick up or drop off your parcels and deliveries; you can drop them off or pick them up at a convenient parcel drop off point such as your local shop, garage or even an automated parcel locker at a time that suits you”

     

    “Most importantly it saves time queuing and waiting around, letting you get on with the things that you enjoy doing.”

     

    THE 50 MOST BORING THINGS OF MODERN LIFE

     

    Party Political broadcasts 50.90%

    Being kept on hold 45.95%

    Queuing in the post office 44.45%

    Traffic jams 42.90%

    Shopping channels 42.65%

    Doctor waiting rooms 37.30%

    Slow Wi-Fi 34.35%

    Waiting for a delivery 33.60%

    Train delays 32.30%

    Ad breaks 31.30%

    Football pundits/analysis 31.10%

    The Kardashians 29.65%

    Bowls 28.85%

    Selfies 28.65%

    Horse racing on the TV 28.10%

    Ed Milliband 27.35%

    Fifty Shades of Grey 26.80%

    Darts 26.30%

    Gordon Brown 25.50%

    Men playing Fifa 25.30%

    Diet chat 24.95%

    Formula One 24.60%

    Rice cakes 24.55%

    Filling in tax returns 23.10%

    Cricket 23.05%

    Bargain Hunt 22.10%

    Snooker 21.75%

    Kanye West 21.65%

    David Cameron 21.35%

    Scrapheap Challenge 21.15%

    Football 19.45%

    Other people’s family trees 19.00%

    Loose Women 18.25%

    Updating your CV 17.90%

    Top Gear 17.60%

    Shakespeare 16.85%

    Gwyneth Paltrow 16.80%

    PowerPoint presentations 16.35%

    Coldplay 16.15%

    Time team 15.30%

    People telling you about their dreams 15.15%

    The Gadget Show 15.05%

    Bono 14.55%

    Company meetings 14.05%

    Question Time 14.05%

    Buying socks 14.00%

    Washing the dishes 13.90%

    Gardeners World 13.80%

    Small talk 13.75%

    Alan Titchmarsh 12.10%

     

  • 71 Per Cent Of Londoners Would Be Happy If London Mayor Was Gay

    A poll for radio station LBC has found that 71 percent of Londoners would be happy if the next Mayor of London was gay.

    The poll of 1100 adults found that most Londoners would be happy if the next Mayor of London was gay. Sixteen per cent said that they would be uncomfortable with a gay person taking the position.

    As it stands there is are three out candidates declared in the mayoral race which will see a new Mayor take over from Boris Johnson in 2016. Peter Whittle, UKIP’s mayoral candidate and the Conservative’s Andrew Boff are both out candidates, whilst Benali Hamdache is the chair of LGBTIQ Green Party.

    The poll by YouGov revealed that only 55% of those questioned would be comfortable with a Muslim Mayor and 31% said that they would be uncomfortable.

  • “Dramatic” Rent Increase Forces The Closure Of Yet Another London Gay Bar

    The George and Dragon pub in Hackney is to close after a lease review dramatically increased the cost of the rent.

    The George and Dragon is another LGBT venue which is set to close with the pub owner, Richard Battye blaming a lease increase which he decribed as “dramatic.”

    The pub, which was opened in 2002, still has seven years remaining on the lease, but the owners don’t feel that they will be able to meet the payments so have decided to sell on the pub “a little earlier than intended.”

    The owners are actively looking for a new space so there is hope that the George And Dragon will exist as an LGBT space in the future.

    Battye said in a Facebook post,

    “We will be looking for a new opportunity and hope very much that some of our dear G&D fans will be able to join us on this new journey soon.

    “We’ll try to be as open as we can throughout this process as we’d love as friends as possible to join us for a drink as we begin to bid farewell to our beloved old pub.”

    A number of LGBT pubs and bars have closed in the past year.

  • PRIDE: Four Days Until Pride Cymru…

    This weekend, 15th August, sees Cardiff hold their 2015 Pride Cymru – Wales’ largest annual celebration of equality and diversity. Run entirely by the charity of volunteers, its purpose is to promote the elimination of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender, race, religion and others who have been faced with adversity from society.

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  • New Report Released on Gay Hate Crime Challenges

    A new report has been released by Nottingham Trent University that has for the first time examined the perspectives of police officers and the issues they face preventing hate crime.

    Carried out by Nottingham Law School on behalf of the Hate Crime Steering Group, it involved in-depth interviews conducted with frontline officers from Nottinghamshire Police. The outcomes of this are to be shared among UK forces by the government.

    The reports author, Dr Loretta Trickett, has claimed: “many of the officers I interviewed were not fully engaged with the current format” and that while officers are clear on what hate crime is and know the procedures to follow, more training from external agencies on how to sufficiently deal with complicated cases is vital.

    Hate crime is currently an area of priority for the police, including five monitored areas, two of these being sexual orientation and gender identity. The crime itself makes up 1% of overall crime, with 44,480 incidents being recorded by police in 2013/14.

     

  • REVIEW | A Naughty Night With Noël Coward at the Old Red Lion Theatre Islington

    Absurdly polite confrontations, beastly upper-class pompousness, all served up with preposterous hilarity.

    Director Jimmy Walters, co-founder of Proud Haddock, has brought to life two works of one of the most famous actor-director-producer-playwrights, Noël Coward. You’ll feel as though you’ve been pulled back to the 1920s for 70mins with two authentic performances of Noël’s short one act plays.

    In the first – We Were Dancing – Louise (Lianne Harvey), a married woman, supposedly falls pinned-curls-over-oxford-heels in love – without so much as a first name exchange – with Karl (James Sindall), a chap she’s just met on the dance floor of a South Pacific country club. Replace the waltz with bare-chested shape-throwing and that’s just another normal night at XXL.

    Once the euphoric bubble bursts and carnal frenzy fades, what’s left? In today’s world, would they even swap digits?

    Brilliantly awkward with a good old-fashioned, British stiff-upper-lip marriage break-up, all executed with high society etiquette.

    In the second – The Better Half – Alice (Tracey Pickup) is bored, and has fallen out of love with her drippy husband David (Stephen Fawkes). Blunt Alice attempts to rile David with confessions of adultery, and tries to push him into the arms of her friend Marion (Beth Eyre) – car-key swapping partiers weren’t around back then. Drippy David accepts the affairs – in his mind, that’s the honourable thing to do – which leads to Alice’s hysterical hysteria.

    In the speakeasy golden 20s it wasn’t so easy to speak of infidelity. Nowadays it’s a lot simpler, a few words on WhatsApp or a quick Snapchat, and out the door one totters.

    Pickup really picks up Alice’s nuances and breathes life into the character – the crowd sympathised with Alice, no contest.

    By the end of the night the 20s weren’t the only thing roaring in the Old Red Lion’s intimate theatre – the humour is as fresh as the performance, and the audience found the both acts jolly agreeable.

    A Naughty Night with Noël Coward: We Were Dancing and The Better Half

    Old Red Lion Theatre, 418 St John Street, London EC1V 4NJ

    www.oldredliontheatre.co.uk

    Tuesday 4th – Saturday 29th August 2015 Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm

    Saturday matinees, 2pm – Sunday matinees, 3pm

  • Passengers Overhear Homophobic Bus Driver Blaming “Bum Busters” For Traffic

    A petition is calling for the sacking of a bus driver in Northern Ireland after using a homophobic slur during Belfast Pride.

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  • PRIDE: Swindon & Wiltshire Pride Ready To Party In The Park

    After a packed park last year, Swindon & Wiltshire Pride are ready to do it all again this weekend. Good weather, check. Headline acts, booked. Carnival parade, final feathers, glitter and sequins being sewn on!

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  • DEPRESSION CRISIS: One Quarter Of Gay Men Surveyed Tried Committing Suicide

    Shocking new statistics from GMFA’s FS magazine show that nearly one quarter of gay men who have suffered from depression have tried to kill themselves.

    A startling survey in the latest issue of FS magazine uncovers the true extent of the effects of depression on gay men. Around 600 men, who identified that they had or were suffering from depression, were asked if they had tried to commit suicide and around 24%, nearly one quarter, said they had, that number increased to over half when asked if they had had suicidal thoughts.

    Around 54% of gay men surveyed said that they had considered ending their lives, with self-esteem being the biggest contributor to their thoughts.

    For those men living with HIV, 66% identified their diagnosis as the leading cause of depression and suicidal thoughts.

    Simon, 36 from Oxford, is one of the many HIV-positive gay men who responded. He says: “I was diagnosed with HIV in January 2012. I was having lots of risky sex and I knew eventually it would happen but didn’t really care. It wasn’t until I was diagnosed that reality set in. I wasn’t ready for it and became depressed. It affected my job. It affected my social life and I became a recluse.”

    Anthony is 26 and from London. He told FS that after his diagnosis he couldn’t handle it. He said: “About three months after I was told I was HIV-positive I tried to overdose. I didn’t cope at all with being told I had the virus. I thought my life was over and suicide was the best option. Luckily my attempt failed.”

    When asked, what were the main reasons HIV-positive gay men felt suicidal or why they attempted suicide, 66% said ‘Living with HIV’ was the main issue with ‘Low self-esteem (60%) and relationship issues (39%).

    “HIV remains one of the most stigmatised of all health conditions,” says Matthew Hodson, Chief Executive of GMFA. “Rates of depression among gay men with HIV are twice as high as they are among other gay men, affecting about one in every four men. And depression in men with HIV can lead to poor adherence, which can have a major impact on their physical health as well.

    “Depression also has an impact on someone’s likelihood of becoming HIV-positive,” adds Matthew. “A recent study showed that men with depressive symptoms were more likely to have unprotected sex, and to have unprotected sex with several partners. Tackling the mental health challenges faced by gay men is crucial if we are going to reduce the high levels of sexual risk-taking and high incidence of HIV in our community.”

    Ian adds:

    “Gay men are just as likely to face the same everyday struggles straight people face on a day-to-day basis with the added pressure of their sexuality. For HIV-positive gay men the issues they faced were greater due to their diagnosis. The gay men in our new issue wanted to share their stories in a bid to help other gay men realise that they are not alone. The first thing to do when trying to fix a problem is admitting you have one. So, hello gay people… we have a problem.”

    Last year helpline charity Samaritans revealed that 1 in ten male callers were worried about their sexuality.

    The new issue of FS magazine can be read online for free by going to: www.fsmag.org.uk

    If you’d like support Please call 08457 90 90 90 (UK) 1850 60 90 90 (ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find details of the nearest branch.

    Or phone Switchboard on 0330 330 0630

  • Leicestershire: Trade Sexual Health Wins Regional Award

    Trade Sexual Health, a sexual health service set up to champion the health of the LGBT community in Leicestershire have won an award.

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  • Porn Studio Branches Out Into Music Videos…

    In the world’s first music video parody by a porn studio, Sylvain Guerrier sings along to Lady Gaga’s Do What You Want With My Body.

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