As it stands, all we really know is that Covid-19 is spread through droplets from when people sneeze and cough.
The reproduction rate of the coronavirus is pretty high (higher than the normal flu) which is why we’re being told to wash our hands for 20 seconds and to cough and sneeze into the crook of our elbow or into tissues.
“While Coronavirus isn’t an STI, the virus can still be transmitted by direct content between two people and if one partner is infected, there’s a strong chance the other partner would also contract the virus.
“The virus can enter through these droplets through the eyes, nose or throat if you are in close contact, which means it can be spread by touch if a person has used their hands to cover their mouth or nose when they coughed or sneezed.
So what are the chances of being infected if you come into contact with someone who has Covid-19? Well as Dr Chaudry explains, “Covid-19 is also a highly infectious virus, which means if you are in close contact with someone infected there’s a high chance you will also become infected”.
If you’re having sex at this time, the good doctor gives this advice,
“As for safe sex, I wouldn’t recommend getting intimate with someone you’re unfamiliar without protection regardless of Covid-19.
“Always practice good ole fashioned safe sex: that means wearing a condom if you don’t know your partner’s sexual health/history. Stay safe!”
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So what are the symptoms?
The symptoms to look out for are primarily a new cough or fever.
Feeling panicky, isolated or anxious during these uncertain times? We’ve created a resource page which has important phone numbers, articles and support groups listed. Click here to go there.
Nottingham‘s only dedicated LGBT+ club has sought to reassure its customers that they doing everything they can to keep customers and staff safe during the Covid-19 outbreak.
The club took to Facebook to say that all their staff were “fully trained on strict hygiene practices” and that there were “constantly checking for updates and further advice from the NHS and government”.
Club bosses also advised, “Antibacterial hand soap remains in our soap dispensers (and we have plenty of it!) so please do use it. You may find our team members wearing latex gloves on shift, so please do not be alarmed if you see us sporting the sexy blue gloves. This is our way of protecting you and us”.
It added, “In line with government guidance, WE REMAIN OPEN and welcome you to join us at Propaganda”.
The show was “well underway” according to a source but has been postponed due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
Drag Race UK has apparently been placed “permanently on hold” according to The Sun – after a show source admitted that they’ve had to “pull the plug”.
The source said,
“At the moment the plug has been pulled completely on the show and as it stands, the second series of Drag Race is permanently on hold.
“It’s awful for everyone involved, people aren’t working and the studios are empty. But obviously the health of everyone on the show comes first.”
Fans of the first series had rejoiced when the BBC announced, along with the Drag Race production company, World of Wonder, that there was to be a second series of the hit BBC 3 show.
Drag Race UK isn’t the only show to be halted. A number of shows have been suspended or delayed since the outbreak of Covid-19.
Today the BBC announced a raft of postponements. In a statement the corporation said,
“In light of the spread of Covid-19, after much consideration, it has been decided that filming on all BBC Studios continuing dramas will be postponed until further notice. The decision was made after the latest government update.
“We will continue to follow the latest news and advice from the World Health Organisation and public health organisations.”
THEGAYUK.com has reached out to World of Wonder for comment.
Health officials have outlined guidance for self-isolating if you have symptoms of Covid-19.
The symptoms of Covid-19 include a new continuous cough and/ or a high temperature.
The guidance states that if you live alone and you have those symptoms you should stay at home for 7 days from when the symptoms started.
If you live with other people but they are well, they should stay at home for 14 days. The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
Making sure that people self-isolate for 14 days will “greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community” according to the Government issued guidance.
THEGAYUK has put together a page full of useful articles, helplines and other resources for the wellbeing of our community. Check it out here.
According to Doctor Hilary on this morning’s, Good Morning Britain, Dr Hilary warned against buying into a scam, which sees fake kits being sold for £20 which allege to test for Covid-19, however, the doctor slammed these sellers as “scum” saying,
“There are a lot of scams going around. There is a lot of scum perpetrating scams selling £20 kits which are totally inaccurate and potentially very dangerous because they’re giving people false reassurance…”
'This disgusts me.'
'Why can some people buy private testing when frontline health staff can’t get tested?’
The UK had scaled back its testing for Covid-19 with the Chief Medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty saying, on the 12th March that it was “no longer necessary for us to identify every case”.
However, it seems as though the Government is asking the NHS to ramp up testing amid concerns over the lack of capacity for testing within the community and for NHS frontline staff.
The NHS is expected to test around 25,000 patients who are already in hospital for the Coronavirus.
As of 18th March, over 56,000 people had been tested within the UK of which 2626 were confirmed to be positive for Covid-19.
“Pleasuredrome will undergo maintenance and cosmetic improvements providing work for our core staff”
One of the UK’s busiest gay saunas has announced that it is to shut its doors from today, “until further notice” due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
A spokesperson, Chris Amos, for the sauna said,
“Following last night’s advice from the UK government recommending people avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other social venues and in the interest of the health and wellbeing of our much-valued guests as well as the wonderful staff we have decided to temporarily close our doors from 7 am today until further notice.”
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The sauna will use the time to “undergo maintenance and cosmetic improvements” which will provide work for the core staff at the facility.
Pleasuredrome says it will continue to monitor the Government’s advice and “act accordingly to ensure public health and safety.”
You can keep up-to-date with the sauna on their Twitter feed.
The Government has called upon people to start “social distancing” in order to protect older people and the most vulnerable in society, this includes those living with HIV and AIDS and those who have compromised immune systems.
You ask a good question and one that could be applied to any number of viruses or infections that we face every time we make the decision to hook up with someone random off an app.
Every time we decide to hook up with someone we haven’t received an entire up-to-date health scan from (read: basically every time) you are at some risk, but overall we make the call that the risk is worth the play.
I think coronavirus could be a good engine for change or adaptation for our community. It might invite us to start talking more openly about our sexual health, testing and well-being in general and there’s no harm in having a conversation with someone about their health before you hook up.
The more we talk about these things, hopefully, the less stigma there is attached to our health.
But with that said, it would be prudent to take some precautions.
You could ask the person you’re planning to meet with whether they’re likely to have come into contact with the virus – i.e. have they travelled from one of the places hardest hit with the virus – like China, Iran, Italy or South Korea.
However, given that the incubation period for this virus is assumed to be around two weeks, even someone who isn’t showing any symptoms may actually be carrying the virus.
Be wary of your own heath – do you have underlying health conditions that could lead to complications should you become infected with the coronavirus.
Keep the NHS website in your bookmarks for updates from the medical professionals and make your decisions based on their advice.
Matthew, in the end, it’s up to you. I wouldn’t stop having fun at this stage, but I’d urge you and others to self isolate if you think you’ve started to get symptoms and not just with Corona – don’t hook up with guys if you’ve got a cold, flu or if you’re in treatment for an STI.
Let’s not spread infections around.
We’re a community that needs to protect each other.
While I’m at it, why not go for a sexual health check-up – ask about PrEP, the HPV and Hepatitis vaccines.
Pride in London is calling on the UK’s government to help safeguard LGBT+ rights in Poland, where over 100 Polish municipal or local governments have announced that they are “free from LGBTI ideology”.
The UK’s largest Pride is calling on the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Rabb MP, to intervene directly to safeguard LGBT+ rights.
Pride in London has expressed serious concerns at the ongoing situation where over 100 Polish municipal or local governments have announced that they are “free from LGBTI ideology”.
The situation faced by the country’s LGBT+ community has worsened since 2019 when a number of Prides were faced with being banned or had large counter-demonstrations from far-right and nationalist groups.
The organisation has written to the Foreign Secretary urging him to raise the LGBT+ rights violations in Poland with the Polish Government’s UK Ambassador, Arkady Rzegocki, as a matter of urgency.
Alongside this, Pride in London has made a donation to support LGBT+ activists and communities in Poland through the European Pride Organisers Association (EPOA) Emergency Fund.
Michael Salter-Church MBE, Co-Chair of Pride in London, said,
“50 years on from brave activists taking a stand at Stonewall, the appalling situation in Poland clearly shows that the fight isn’t over. Whilst we remain focused on furthering LGBT+ rights in the UK, we mustn’t forget those abroad who need our support. We must take a stand for our community in countries where their fundamental human rights are not being upheld.
“This emergency fund will help our siblings in Poland continue their vital work towards equality, and we urge members of the LGBT+ community to donate however they can. Beyond this, we must also continue to speak out in order to raise awareness of these shocking events – we have already seen how international attention can often disrupt the violent plans of Poland’s far-right nationalists.”
Alongside other Pride organisations across Europe, Pride in London is supporting the work led by EPOA and in January developed an Action Plan with Polish counterparts aimed at strengthening ties with LGBT+ communities in Poland and providing strategic and operational advice.
Pride in London remains committed to standing up for LGBT+ communities around the world where their fundamental human rights are not being upheld.
As thousands of us are facing lockdowns and self isolations anxiety levels for some are rising.
As countries around the globe fully or partially closed down public services, shops and schools due to Coronavirus, there are growing concerns for OCD, depression and anxiety sufferers that the British government will soon implement more dramatic measures to contain the spread of coronavirus in the UK.
Gerard Barnes, CEO of mental health treatment specialists, Smart TMS, gives his insight on the mental health implications of the circumstances surrounding coronavirus, shares tips on how to safeguard one’s mental health, and highlights the importance on supporting friends, family and loved ones as the situation develops:
“It is certainly important to take the necessary precautions to protect one’s physical health given the circumstances surrounding the spread of COVID-19, but there is now a real threat of a serious mental health crisis alongside the potential physical effects, particularly to those already suffering with chronic anxiety, depression or OCD.
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Here’s what you can do if you’re anxiety or depression is starting to spike.
Check in on your loved ones
While you may not be able to pay a visit to your friends and family if widespread quarantine and self-isolation measures are introduced, staying in touch with your loved ones through social media, video calling or messaging is more valuable than ever. Not being in close proximity to people can have a negative impact on your mood and energy levels, and it is therefore imperative that you maintain regular contact with loved ones to improve your mood and make it easier to deal with these stressful and lonely times.
Stay Active
When self-isolating, it is important to make sure that you stay active. Whilst it is impossible to go to a gym and inadvisable to exercise in a public space, we would highly recommend engaging in moderate exercise at home, ideally for 30 minutes a day. Exercise is one of the best ways to fight symptoms of mental health problems, and people who are less physically active are more at risk of anxiety and depression.
Eat well and stay hydrated
Make sure to think about your diet carefully – this is vital to both your physical and mental health. If your regular routine changes or you are less active than usual, your blood sugar levels are certain to affect your mood and energy levels, so be sure to eat healthily and drink enough water to ensure your body is in its best condition.
Netflix hits like Sex Education and Stranger Things could be causing damage to the environment with millions of tonnes of Carbon Dioxide being released into our atmosphere, a study has found.
Netflix and other streaming platforms have become the main source of TV viewing for millions of us across the UK, but new research shows that the habit might not be that eco-friendly.
For an individual to stream video content, it has to travel through a complex network (i.e. cables, routers, data centres etc.) that runs on vast sums of electricity. This electricity in turn generates carbon dioxide (CO2) – which can leave a devastating impact on the environment.
Interested in the carbon footprint from streaming, energy comparison site SaveonEnergy utilised official viewership figures to discover what watching Netflix’s top original movies and shows is equivalent to in terms of miles driven by a car, and the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted.
Series like AJ and The Queen use a lot of power, both in their creation and their supply to our homes.
Save on Energy found that the energy generated from Netflix users’ total 80 million views of the thriller Birdbox is the equivalent of driving more than 146 million miles and emitting over 66 million kg of CO2.
To put that into context, the
equivalent of driving from London
(United Kingdom) to Istanbul
(Turkey) and back 38,879 times.
The energy produced from 73 million streams of Adam Sandler’s Murder Mystery translates to driving over 104 million miles and emitting more than 47 million kg of CO2.
Since taking a return flight from London (United Kingdom) to Los Angeles (United States) creates 1,650 kg of CO2 per person – this means an individual needs to fly 28,610 times from London to Los Angeles and back to produce the same amount of CO2 amassed by every Netflix user who has watched Murder Mystery.
And binging on your favourite series?
Save on Energy discovered that the energy accumulated from the 64 million streams of Stranger Things season three is comparable to driving more than 420 million miles and emitting over 186 million kg of CO2.
This is effectively driving from
Marrakech (Morocco) to Cape
Town (South Africa) and back
12,771 times.
Subsequently, the energy garnered from 45 million views of the Umbrella Academy season one, translates to driving more than 164 million miles and emitting over 364 million kg of CO2.
Flying from London to Perth and back produces 3,153 kg of CO2 per person – this means an individual would need to fly 115,657 times from London (United Kingdom) to Perth (Australia) and back to produce the same amount of CO2 generated from those who have watched Umbrella Academy season one.
Save on Energy discovered that the energy accumulated from the 64 million streams of ‘Stranger Things’ season three is comparable to driving more than 420 million miles and emitting over 189 million kg of CO2.
This is effectively driving from
Marrakech (Morocco) to Cape
Town (South Africa) and back
28,391 times.
Subsequently, the energy garnered from 45 million views of the ‘Umbrella Academy’ season one, translates to driving more than 364 million miles and emitting over 164 million kg of CO2.
Flying from London to Perth and back produces 3,153 kg of CO2 per person – this means an individual
would need to fly 52,046 times from London (United Kingdom) to Perth (Australia) and back to
produce the same amount of CO2 generated from those who have watched ‘Umbrella Academy
season one’.
Flying from London to Perth and back produces 3,153 kg of CO2 per person – this means an individual would need to fly 115,657 times from London (United Kingdom) to Perth (Australia) and back to produce the same amount of CO2 generated from those who have watched Umbrella Academy season one.
“This includes the energy use of companies we work with such as Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud, and the power required to support the servers we install with internet providers.
“We don’t control this energy footprint, so we’re not able to address its efficiency directly ourselves. But we do account for the emissions by matching them with regional renewable energy certificates and carbon offsets.
“This indirect energy use was about 357,000 megawatt-hours in 2019.
*This article was updated to reflect the correct miles and C02 emissions.
A bar, popular with the LGBT community in Cardiff for 25 years is set to close in May 2020.
Minksy’s showbar in Cardiff is set to close after 25 years after the new owner of the building decided not to renew the lease, according to the bar’s management.
Speaking about the decision to close the doors, the bar’s owners, Owen Sendell and Nathan Barker said,
“It is such a shame that we are having to close our doors at our current premises, we are going to miss providing top quality entertainment to Cardiff and our visitors from further afield”
However, all is not lost as the pair are looking for another venue in Cardiff to continue the legacy, they added,
“We’re currently looking for another venue so that we can continue to provide Cardiff with amazing shows.
“We’re currently looking for another venue so that we can continue to provide Cardiff with amazing shows. Entertainment Manager Gavin Wilson said “We’ve lined up a top evening of entertainment for our big send off.”
The last shout
The last night Minsky’s will be open to our customers will be Saturday 9th May 2020. We’ll have entertainment from Opal Fruits, Jolene Dover, Dr Bev, and Mary Golds and a whole host of other entertainment starting from 7:30pm.
Tickets are £5 for standing, £10 for silver and £25 for gold. For more information visit www.minskys-showbar.co.uk
