THEGAYUK

Tag: UK

  • Joseph And the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Review: A camp classic and this version puts it over the top

    Joseph And the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Review: A camp classic and this version puts it over the top

    ★★★★☆ | Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

    (C) Tristram Kenton

    49 years after it originally debuted, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is back and is as good as ever!

    Now playing at the fabulous (and best venue in London) The Palladium, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat boasts a cast that is first rate and leaves the audience wanting more. The show, based on the ‘Coat of many colours’ story of Joseph from the Bible’s Book of Genesis, begins with Joseph (Jac Yarrow) being given a colourful coat by his dad. He’s then sold into slavery by his jealous brothers and then climbs back to the top. The show is considered a camp classic and this version puts it over the top!

    Sheridan Smith is very good as the narrator – she guides us through the show effortlessly, and cheekily – it looks like she is having as good a time as we are. Jason Donovan makes an all too very brief appearance as the Pharaoh (with an excellent Elvis Presley-like imitation), in his gold harness-style outfit dutifully displaying most of his upper torso and legs – Jason has still got it. Yarrow, making his West End debut, is absolute perfection as the main character Joseph. Currently training at the Arts Educational School, Yarrow is the strongest voice in the show, and his rendition of ‘Close Every Door’ right before the end of the first half literally brings down the house. It’s a stunning West End debut by someone so young and very talented (he is only 21). And Donovan, who played Joseph in a 1991 version (also at the Palladium, has come full circle and weathered it very very well.

    The show does not rely on razzle-dazzle sets and special effects – it’s all about the actors and talent on stage – and they more than deliver. The sets are effortlessly perfect, and the cast of children, most of them playing adult characters (a few with fake beards) make the show charming and enduring. But the show, on the technical side on the night I saw it, had sound problems. The audience could not quite understand Donovans’ lyrics, while, in a show that is mostly sung and not spoken, makes a big impact on the storytelling for those of us seeing it for the first time. But’s it a minor quibble – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (written by a very young Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice) is lively and fun and should continue to bring this to audiences to come, probably for the next 49 years.

    Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat plays at The Palladium until September 2019, book tickets here

  • Are these the UK queens ready to star in the first ever UK drag race?

    Not to get you too excited, but it seems that a list of UK drag queens has been released…

    But take this list with a grain of salt, it’s not been confirmed, but it looks so good.

    According to the Twitter user, DragRaceUK_ the following queens are set to take part in the first ever RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, which is due to stream on BBC 3 later this year.

    The list that has been released contains 14 names and contains alternates and reserves according to the Twitter account, which isn’t a verified account.

    Cheryl Hole

    Gothy Kendoll

    Vinegar Strokes

    Sumtingwong

    Divina De Campo

    Scardey Kat

    Crystal Beth

    Bagachipz

    The Vivienne

    Blu Hydranga

    Vicki Vivacious

    Tiakofi

    Mary Mac

    Cookie Monstar

    Even if just some of this group of queens are in the final 10,  it’s sure to be an epic, epic debut season for the UK. The only problem is that it’s on BBC 3 and you will require a TV license to watch the show and there are no plans at this time to stream the show onto Netflix, the orginal home in the UK for Drag Race.

     

    https://twitter.com/DragRaceUK_/status/1118121763819409408

  • Acceptance of gay relationships declines in the UK

    Acceptance of gay relationships declines in the UK

    The UK’s acceptance of same-sex relationships has decreased slightly year on year, with experts suggesting that tolerance has “plateaued”.

    (C) BIGSTOCK

    According to new research by the British Social Attitudes survey (BSA) the acceptance of gay relationships amongst the population of the UK has stalled and even slightly declinced over previous findings.

    Previously, 68% of people thought that same-sex relationships were acceptable, however the latest findings have seen a slight decreased to 66 per cent, suggesting that 34% of people in the UK do not think that homosexual relationships are acceptable.

    A point of plateau

    (C) BIGSTOCK

    The BSA survey, which has been conducted since 1980, warned that the country has “reached a point of plateau” according to a spokesperson for the organisation.

    Some 66% of those polled in 2018 said same-sex relations were “not wrong at all”, down from 68% the previous year.

    The survey covers a wide variety of societial questions, covering many subjects. Of the nearly 3,000 people polled, 74% said sex before marriage were “not wrong at all”, down from 75%  over the previous years, revealing that perhaps the UK is becoming a little more conservative on issues of sexuality.

    Leading LGBT+ rights activist, Peter Tatchell, called the findings, “concerning”, saying that there had been no “significant increase in support recorded over the past few years”.

     

     

  • Tom Tries It: Pedicure

    Tom Tries It: Pedicure

    The world of male grooming can be a daunting place. With a myriad of product types and treatments available, it’s hard to know what products you need to be using and what treatments are right for you. This is why at THEGAYUK, we have sent our beauty expert Thomas Swallow to try them out and decode the enigma of male grooming.

    Carry on reading below, to hear about Tom’s experience getting a pedicure. Missed the other instalments of this series? Click here to find out about Tom’s previous adventures, where he tried intimate waxing, a dermalux facial and tinting/threading.

    With summer well and truly here, along with a few comments from the girls in my office. This week I decided to jump into the world of pedicures and get my feet ‘summer ready’. To be fair, it really needed to happen, they weren’t looking cute! Now if you’re like me one of the reasons I don’t usually get pedicures, is because of the way they are typically marketed as a women’s beauty treatment. Well, newsflash to the world, men have feet too and let’s face it, fellas, all our feet could probably use a bit more TLC. This is where Aldwyn & Sons come in. A men’s pedicure and manicure parlour based in London, that not only will leave you feeling fabulous but give you vibes of Victorian gentleman’s club decadence on the journey.

    So what is a pedicure?

    A pedicure is simply the maintenance and general upkeep of your feet. It’s not to be confused as a treatment for foot conditions but as a preventive measure of them. For the treatment of any foot conditions, please consult your chiropodist. Your pedicurist will not be able to help in these situations. Generally, a pedicure will involve the removal of hard skin, the clipping/shaping of nails and maintenance of the nail bed/cuticle. Nothing inherently ‘girly’ about it, eh?

    Treatment:

    So first of all, I would just like to say thank you to Aldwyn & Sons for helping with this feature. I genuinely couldn’t recommend them enough if you are in London definitely give them a visit. By the end of this feature, it’ll be clear why you should. They truly go above and beyond.

    When entering Aldwyn & Sons, you are greeted by the aroma of fresh coffee (one of my favourite things) and a very helpful barista, that will guide you to the treatment room. Now I know this sounds a bit bizarre, but this is because the parlour is located at a hub of male grooming. You have Sharps the barbers on-site and their artisan coffee shop, in case you need that extra pick me up. All in all, I could be quite content spending my entire day here.

    Once you get to the treatment room though, you’ll be greeted by the very dapper Aldwyn, and he will get you settled in for the pedicure. Offering you your choice of hot drink from the coffee shop, as he prepares the foot bath to soak your feet and take all your cares away. Especially great after the morning run, I’d just done!

    As you sit there, letting your feet soak and enjoying your caffeinated beverage of choice. One thing you instantly notice is the relaxing aesthetic of the treatment room. It truly does remind me of a Victorian gentleman’s club, and I’m more than ok with that. It’s masculine and refined but without the toxic stereotypes of masculinity today. A place men can go, feel relaxed and enjoy the experience of taking care of themselves.

    After your feet have been thoroughly soaked, Aldwyn will go on to start clipping your nails and shaping them. The advantage of this is the control this gives over the direction of nail growth. Especially useful in the avoidance of ingrown toenails, which trust me, are best to be avoided!

    Following this, he will go on to add cuticle remover to soften your cuticles and then proceed to push them back, clip them and tidy up your nail bed. By doing this, we avoid any build up of bacteria and ensure healthy nail regrowth. To finish this step of the manicure, Aldwyn went on to apply cuticle oil to my nail beds before letting my feet soak some more. This process conditions the cuticles and nail bed. Leaving a perfect canvas for nail regrowth in the future.

    Once my nails had been suitably pampered, it was then time to focus on removing the hard skin on my feet. Which were now in a prime position to have the hard skin removed, following the foot bath. To do this, Aldwyn used a foot file and gently removed the top layers of hard skin, following up with a foot scrub and moisturiser combo to condition and soften the feet. He explained to me during this step that it is never a good idea to entirely remove all hard skin from our feet. As it acts as a protective barrier, during our day to day lives. Instead, it’s best to manage the hard skin, removing only the top layers and in doing so, maintaining the overall appearance of our feet.

    The next and final step of the pedicure was probably the most relaxing thing I’d done this year. It was time for the foot massage, and honestly, this man is magic with his hands! Based upon the reflexology points in your feet, you will honestly just melt into your chair at this point. Definitely take the extra time and go for ‘The Modern Footman’ treatment, you won’t be disappointed.

    With this final step done, my feet were now ‘summer ready’, and I have to be honest, they felt pretty damn amazing. So it’s definitely a part of my grooming routine, that I’m going to upkeep in the future.

    After-care:

    As usual, I think it’s essential to advise you of any of after-care for the treatments I try out, and in this case, there really isn’t any. Just make sure to keep on top of the moisturiser and nail care in between appointments, to keep your feet looking fresh all summer long!

    Pricing:

    As always we can’t speak for every clinician in the country, but for Aldwyn and his team, the pricing is as follows:

    The Modern Footman: £50.00

    A pedicure consisting of nail and cuticle work, foot filing, exfoliation and moisturising, followed by a foot massage.

    The Quick March: £40.00

    A pedicure consisting of nail and cuticle work, foot filing, exfoliation and moisturising.

     

    Follow on Aldwyn & Sons  Instagram

  • No police officer to face discipline over the investigation of the Stephen Port serial killings

    No police officer to face discipline over the investigation of the Stephen Port serial killings

    The Independent Office for Police Conduct has confirmed that none of the 17 police officers who were being investigated, working the Stephen Port serial killings will be disciplined.

    Stephen Port
    CREDIT: met police

    The IOPC has confirmed that none of the 17 officers it investigated over the Stephen Port murder investigation will be disciplined.

    In March 2017 the IOPC announced it had launched an investigation of 17 officers into the service’s response to the deaths of 4 men, Anthony Walgate, Gabriel Kovari, Daniel Whitworth, and Jack Taylor murdered by Stephen Port.

    Port was convicted at the Old Bailey in London in 2019 where the judge said that Port had carried out the murders to “satisfy his lust” for sex with men who were rendered unconscious.

    According to the Barking And Dagenham Post, an IOPC spokesman said, “While we agreed none of the officers involved in these investigations may have breached professional standards justifying disciplinary proceedings, we will be making a number of recommendations to the Metropolitan Police to address some of the systemic failings our investigation identified.

    “We have advised the families of Port’s victims and the officers involved that the performance of nine officers fell below the standard required. They will now be required to improve their performance.”

    None of the families of the victims have commented on the announcement.

  • Bitter Wheat Review: Downward spiral that becomes shockingly dumb

    Bitter Wheat Review: Downward spiral that becomes shockingly dumb

    ★ | Bitter Wheat

    (C) PR SUPPLIED

    John Malkovich and David Mamet attempt to tell a story about a Hollywood mogul and his downfall but it falls completely flat in the new West End Show Bitter Wheat.

    Malkovich, star of screen and stage (70 films in total including Empire of the Sun and Burn After Reading), and playwright David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross, Speed the Plow) are where the blames lie in a show that tries to deal with an issue that is very timely but in this stage production is poorly executed. Malkovich is super-rich movie mogul Barney Fein who thinks and makes decisions with his nether regions. All likeliness to Harvey Weinstein is purely coincidental (!!).

    In this satire that is far from funny, Fein’s life is managed by his loyal assistant (Doon Mackichan).

    He even relies on her to get a gift for his mother’s birthday (his mother owns the company) – strangely the same scarf she got her the year before. And then there is another assistant (Alexander Arnold) who has no other function then just to walk in from time to time (including at the end where he announces that there is a man with a gun in the lobby – the same man who kills Feins’ mother in the second half – not shown) – all very silly and unbelievable. But before we get to this we are witness to an attempt by Fein to get young British-Korean actress and Cambridge grad Yung Kim Li (Ioanna Kimbook), who’s flown in to meet him, into a sexual liaison (all she wants is to eat after a long flight).

    Fein first asks her for a massage, and then finally asks her if she would watch him take a shower.

    It’s all very creepy and weird. And the show, at only 110 minutes long, (it also has an interval,) continues on a downward spiral that becomes shockingly dumb and just as quick as Weinteins’ downfall. Malkovich is just not convincing enough and delivers his lines like he’s reading them, while Mamet, who wrote and directed, knows better than to stage a show this bad.

    Avoid at all costs.

    Bitter Wheat plays at the Garrick Theatre until 14th September, book tickets here

  • When is Pride Month in the UK?

    When is Pride Month in the UK?

    Across the world, June has become known as Pride month, but is June Pride Month in the UK?

    When is Pride Month in the UK?

    Pride Month stemmed from the US, which has been adopted more widely across the world, but in reality, there are many Pride months across the globe. For instance, Sydney Mardi Gras, Australia’s biggest pride takes place in February (although they do have a Pride festival in June) and here in the UK, there isn’t such thing as one month for Pride.

    In the US most prides happen in the month of June to coincide with the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Riots, in the UK however things are a little more spread out with more and more county, city and town prides becoming available.

    There are over 150 pride events in the UK alone and they start in Feb with the last (outside Winter Pride) in September. So Pride month in the UK is better described as Pride Half Year!

    Want to know more about prides, see our entire collection of Pride articles here. Want to shop for Pride Merchandise, visit our partner retailer, THE PRIDE SHOP.

  • MPs to debate make online homophobia a specific criminal offence

    MPs to debate make online homophobia a specific criminal offence

    On Monday 1 July MPs will debate a petition urging the Government make online homophobia a specific criminal offence. Daniel Zeichner MP, a member of the Petitions Committee, will open the debate.

    Houses of parliament
    CREDIT: Jake Hook

    The petition, which has more than 152,000 signatures was started by TV personality Bobby Norris.

    Bobby Norris states: “As a gay man I find it devastating how members of the LGBT community are still subjected to homophobic abuse online.

    “Just because I am on TV I don’t think that makes it acceptable to be sent homophobic messages and comments on social media platforms.

    “Nobody should have to receive these comments.”

    Mr Norris adds, “I won’t go into detail as to the various names I have been called, but this should not be acceptable and can have an impact on people’s mental health and has certainly helped in making my anxiety and low self-esteem worse by receiving them.”

    In response to the petition, the Government said, “The Government recognises the harm that homophobic online messages can cause. We are working cross-Government to challenge inequality and make the UK’s online environment a safer place for everyone.”

    Monday’s debate will provide an opportunity for MPs to question a Government Minister directly on this topic.

    In January, the Petitions Committee published its report into online abuse and the experience of disabled people. The inquiry found that the current laws around online abuse are not fit for purpose. The report can be read here

  • Woman and girlfriend suffer homophobic abuse on Ryanair flight

    Woman and girlfriend suffer homophobic abuse on Ryanair flight

    A woman and her girlfriend say they were subjected to a frightening Ryanair flight from hell when a group of thugs started calling her “Dyke” and a “lesbo”.

    skeeze / Pixabay

    A woman and her girlfriend have yet to receive a satisfying response from Ryanair after she was allegedly subjected to homophobic and misogynistic chants from a group of men on a flight from Stansted to Seville on the 19th June. She accuses the airline of not caring about women or LGBTQ+ people.

    Social Media Manager, Laura Muldoon described a horrific flight in which she says that a group of drunken men shouted, used profanity and homophobic slurs against passengers on the flight. Ms Muldoon said although she complained to the flight attendant at the time of the incident but they were unable to do anything about the behaviour.

    She said that the men even started to blow up condoms and getting their arses out in front of other passengers. When she turned around to the men to complain, they apparently sent her a small bottle of wine to apologise for the disruption, which Ms Muldoon “politely refused” – that’s apparently when their behaviour turned sour towards Ms Muldoon.

    At the time, Ms Muldoon tweeted a picture of the passengers she alleges were disruptive, which was retweeted thousands of time. She wrote, “First-holiday snap! Of this bunch of lads who chanted that I was a “miserable b*tch”, “d**e” and “lesbo” (very well observed!) on @Ryanair flight 12.27 from Stansted to Seville today”.

    Although Ms Muldoon did complain to Ryanair over her ordeal via an online system, she tweeted that she had received a “generic” response from the airline, which stated that they were proud of their “high standards and professionalism”

    THEGAYUK.com reached out to Ryanair for comment.

  • THEATRE REVIEW | The Girl On The Train – National Tour

    THEATRE REVIEW | The Girl On The Train – National Tour

    ★★★ | The Girl On The Train -Sheffield

    Based on the best selling book by Paula Hawkins, The Girl On The Train stars Samantha Womack (Eastenders) as Rachel Watson, a troubled woman who romanticises about a couple she sees from her commuter train window every day, as she imagines the life she could have had. When one of the couple goes missing, she finds herself drawn into the mystery; but the gaps in her memory and her inability to separate out reality from her fantasy leads to her becoming a suspect in the woman’s disappearance.

    Samantha Womack is entertaining as Rachel and she is ably supported by a small but proficient cast. The set changes are fairly slick, the set is sufficiently detailed, and the lighting and sound design all compliment the mood of the piece.

    But for a thriller to work, it’s the story that counts, and over the course of the first act, the plot developed nicely and pulled in the audience, with a narrative which blurred fact and fiction, and imagination and reality; but as the second act unfolded the story became increasingly convoluted with a few too many red herrings and clumsy plot twists for it to maintain its momentum.

    Having not read the book or seen the film, I’m not sure whether fans of either will find enjoyment or disappointment in this play, but as a standalone piece of theatre, it is competently presented and entertaining enough, but not a show which I would imagine will go on to become a classic.

    The Girl on the Train is at Sheffield Theatres until 29th June 2019 before continuing on its national tour.

  • Boris Johnson: Kids need to be taught to reflect society

    Boris Johnson: Kids need to be taught to reflect society

    Speaking on LBC today, Boris Johnson said that pupils across the UK should be taught “about the world as it is”.

    Tory leader and Prime Minister hopeful, Boris Johnson fielded a call today, while on LBC with Nick Ferrari, from an organiser of Shetland LGBTQ, who asked the candidate whether children should be taught about LGBT+ relationships and acceptance in schools across the entire UK.

    The line of question comes after hundreds of mostly Muslim parents in Birmingham protested LGBT+ acceptance and relationship lessons being taught in schools through the No Outsiders‘ campaign.

    Answering the question, Mr Johnson said that he believed that, “People should be able to love whomever they chose” and said that the country was “all the greater” for that right.

    He told Nick Ferrari, “People should be able to love whomever they chose and that’s the way we live our lives in the UK. Our country is all the greater for it. I do think it’s important that kids are taught about the world as it is.

    He added that he believed that teachers and schools have “a responsibility to teach kids about the world as it is”.

    Hundreds of parents removed their children from the Parkfield Primary school in April in protest of the ‘No Outsiders’ lessons.

    When pushed further about whether the parents were right or wrong to take their children out of classes in schools in Birmingham, Mr Johnson continued, “I don’t think kids should unreasonably be taken out of school”