Gscene Magazine - April 2019 | WWW.GSCENE.COM

PUBLISHER Peter Storrow

TEL 01273 749 947

EDITORIAL info@gscene.com

ADS+ARTWORK design@gscene.com

EDITORIAL TEAM

James Ledward, Graham Robson, Gary Hart, Alice Blezard, Ray A-J

SPORTS EDITOR Paul Gustafson

ARTS EDITOR Michael Hootman

SUB EDITOR Graham Robson

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR Marina Marzotto

DESIGN Michèle Allardyce

FRONT COVER

MODEL Joe Black @ Polyglamorous at Envy above Charles Street Tap

PHOTOGRAPHER Jack Ball

Instagram: @jack.alfie

CONTRIBUTORS

Simon Adams, Ray A-J, Jaq Bayles, Jo Bourne, Nick Boston, Brian Butler, Suchi Chatterjee, Richard Jeneway, Craig Hanlon-Smith, Samuel Hall, Lee Henriques, Adam Mallaby, Enzo Marra, Eric Page, Del Sharp, Gay Socrates, Brian Stacey, Michael Steinhage, Sugar Swan, Glen Stevens, Duncan Stewart, Craig Storrie, Matthew Trinder, Violet Valentine (Zoe Anslow-Gwilliam), Mike Wall, Netty Wendt, Roger Wheeler, Kate Wildblood

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Jack Ball, James Ledward, Jack Lynn, Marina Marzotto

© GSCENE 2019

All work appearing in Gscene Ltd is copyright It is to be assumed that the copyright for material rests with the magazine unless otherwise stated on the page concerned. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in an electronic or other retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior knowledge and consent of the publishers The appearance of any person or any organisation in Gscene is not to be construed as an implication of the sexual orientation or political persuasion of such persons or organisations.

20 B RIGHT ON What’s on at this year ’ s unique LGBT+ community festival in April

24 FIVE MINUTES WITH YOU

Stephen Wrench meets the three political party leaders, Tony Janio (Conservatives), Daniel Yates (Labour) & Phélim Mac Cafferty (Greens)

52 THE GREAT DABBLER

Gyles Brandreth, Scrabble expert, murder mystery writer and ex MP talks to Brian Butler about the vital importance of words 53 HEY MR PRODUCER! Theatre and show impresario Quintin Young has seen it all, as he tells Brian Butler

PRIDE VILLAGE PARTY GETS THUMBS UP FROM CITY COUNCILLORS TILL 2020

Tourism, Development and Culture Committee gives approval for Brighton Pride Village Party (PVP) to continue in the St James’s Street area of the city as part of the annual Pride celebrations.

) A public consultation, which sought the views of residents, businesses and stakeholders on the event, received over 2,800 responses The consultation asked whether the Pride Village Par ty (PVP) should continue in its current form or be relocated to Madeira Drive or another par t of the city People were also invited to comment on other aspects of the event

• Over 68% of respondents were in favour of keeping the event at St James’s Street with respondents either strongly agreeing or tending to agree that the PVP had a positive effect on the city

• Over 80% of respondents strongly agreed or tended to agree that the PVP should continue where it is at present

• Over 63% of respondents strongly agreed or tended to agree that there should be no change to the current arrangements

• The majority of respondents felt that the event felt safer since it had been ticketed (59%)

The consultation responses and the contributions made by Pride organisers, as well as statutory agencies, were included in a repor t presented to the Tourism, Development and Culture Committee on March 7

The repor t recommended that the PVP not be moved and that the event continues to be run by the Brighton Pride Community Interest Company The recommendations were passed by majority vote by the committee

Councillor Alan R obins, Chair of the Tourism, Development & Culture Committee, said: “It is clear from the responses we received from the public consultation on the PVP that the majority of people, including residents as well as the emergency services, want the event to continue on St James’s Street The event has been wellmanaged by Pride organisers who, since taking on the event in 2015, have put resources in place to manage the disruption to local people including additional security personnel, street cleaning and toilets

“The annual Pride event is an important fixture in the city’s calendar and we look forward to the event returning again this A ugust ”

The decision to continue allowing the PVP to be held in the St James’s Street area received crosspar ty suppor t from all three political par ties with some senior politicians making a point of saying they did not recognise some of the areas of concern raised by the Kingscliffe Society in the committee’s repor t

Nancy Platt, Labour Councillor for East Brighton, said: “A t the moment the event is staged in the heart of the gay community in St James’s Street and if moved to Madeira Drive would not

benefit local LGBT+ traders I live in the area and don’t recognise much of the complaints listed in the report ”

Tom Druitt, Green Councillor for Regency, said: “I see no case for moving the event from the heart of the gay community ” He went on to say he hoped the police would use officers that know the area well to police the event

Mar y Mears, Conservative Councillor for Rottingdean, said she felt the council needed to “stand up to the plate and do more to support the event while continuing to listen carefully to the concerns of local residents ”

Anne Norman, the Conservative Councillor for Withdean, congratulated the Pride organisers and said they did "a great job" organising the event

Phélim McCaffer ty, Green Councillor for Brunswick and Adelaide and Convenor of the Green group of Councillors on Brighton & Hove City Council, said he saw no case for moving the event from its present location and, rather than moving the event, everyone should concentrate on ensuring the event was as safe as possible for everyone attending and made a special plea to the organisers of Pride to “implement the use of re-usable plastic cups for drinks served on the streets"

R ober t Nemeth, Conservative Councillor for Wish Ward in Hove, questioned council officers on what they thought was the crux of the matter when it came to the complaints They assured him each item of concern either had been or was being addressed He said: “I hope that organisers and community can get on a little better going forward ”

Finally, Mo Marsh, Labour Councillor for Moulsecoomb & Bevendean, and Mayor of Brighton & Hove last year, asked everyone to remember what Pride is all about, why we have Pride and why it is impor tant to a city like Brighton & Hove She said: “I live in the footprint of the PVP and do not recognise many of the complaints listed in the report I’m particularly concerned about the nature of some of the comments reported in the media to have been made at a public meeting on January 15 by people who wanted to move the event away from the Gay Village to Madeira Drive ”

) More LGBT+ venues will take par t in this year's Brighton Unity Weekend, up from the original four of Charles Street Tap, Legends, Club & Bar R evenge and the Queens Arms raising funds for the R ainbow Fund

Amsterdam Bar & Kitchen, Subline, Bedford Tavern, Bar Broadway, Bulldog, and The Zone, have organised special fundraising cabaret events and club nights over the last weekend in April - with more venues still expected to join in Full details of events and venues taking par t can be found on the Brighton Unity Weekend Facebook page

The original Unity Weekend was the brain child of managers Chris Marshall from Charles Street Tap and Andrew R ober ts from Revenge, to raise the money needed for two memorial benches on the New Steine - dedicated to the late Michael ‘Mouse’ Bur ton and Gar y ‘Gloria’ Swan who passed away just a couple of weeks apar t in December 2016 Gloria and Mouse were two big personalities on the Brighton Scene and their loss was felt by many

Chris Marshall, General Manager of Charles Street Tap, said: “T his is really about creating an amazing legacy for Mouse and Gloria, w ith so many of Brighton’s L GBT + v enues w orking together for such an impor tant Brighton cause It really goes to show, that despite w hat some may think, the v enues on the scene really do get on w ith each other and this w eekend giv es us a great oppor tunity to show case the true community spirit w e hav e in the city ”

Andrew R ober ts, General Manager at Revenge, added:

“I’m thrilled that so many more v enues hav e agreed to take par t in the Unity Weekend this y ear T he original fundraiser target w as for £2,000 to pay for the memorial benches and w e managed to beat that target w ith another £186 30 on top for the R ainbow Fund T his y ear w e only need £200 for the upkeep of the benches - so w e really do hav e an amazing oppor tunity to blow that number out of the w ater for the R ainbow Fund ”

This year ’s Unity Weekend will take place from Thursday, April 25 to Sunday, April 28 and will see LGBT+ venues across the city working together as one to raise money for the Rainbow Fund, which gives grants to LGBT/HIV organisations who deliver effective frontline ser vices to LGBT+ people in the city

GLITTER CURIOUS

Countdown to major new Monday pop night at Basement Club@Legends

) A major new weekly LGBT+ community par ty night, Glitter Curious, launches at Basement Club@Legends on Monday, April 1 “Everyone is welcomed with open arms to this unique nonpretentious, camp and sexy pop night”, bringing you every great iconic pop moment through the years, wedged in between the freshest pop stars ruling the char ts right now, from Ariana to ABBA, Britney to Bowie, Calvin to Cher, and Destiny's Child to Diana Ross!

Curated and promoted by Patrick Cawley (DJ Trick) and Maria Gardner, with the assistance of Miss Disney, Glitter Curious will bring together all the camp classics, with a burst of fresh new pop talent all presented in their purest most sing-along original glory!

DJ Trick is at the helm pulling crowd pleasing tunes from his box of surprises! Your hostess for the evening is the fabulous Miss Disney, plus there’ll be friends and special guests greeting and extending a warm welcome to people from all par ts of the LGBT+ communities Glitter Curious intend on maintaining the Basement Club as a safe space for everyone and will be providing information on LGBT+ services and charities available in the city!

Entry is free, and in April the Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum will be shaking their buckets to raise money for the essential services they deliver to the city's varied LGBT+ communities and also giving guests information about those services

THT will also be on site offering safe-sex packs to help establish Glitter Curious as a responsible brand with the very best community focus

Launching April 1 - VIP cards are presently being rolled out for the event providing some of the best deals available on the scene for industry workers, new students and scene icons, including £2 shots, £2 50 drinks with selected premium deals exclusively for Industry Card holders

Glitter Curious can’t wait to bring a fresh feel to the scene, merging together the old and the new with lots of throwback moments and tonnes of fresh surprises

Glitter Curious is at Basement Club@Legends, 31-34 Marine Parade, Brighton, star ting Monday, April 1 then every Monday thereafter from 11pm3am Free entr y, but please make donation to Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum

SWITCHBOARD APPOINTS NEW CEO

) Last month Switchboard announced that Daniel Cheesman would be stepping down as CEO after two years in the post Following a successful recruitment campaign Switchboard have announced that Lyndsay Macadam will be taking over as the new Chief Executive Officer later in the spring

Lyndsay comes to Switchboard from Brightonbased community development charity TDC where they were Director of Equalities, specialising in reducing health inequalities and isolation, and empowering and involving communities

Prior to this Lyndsay has many years’ experience in the community and voluntary sector in Brighton, London and Scotland, suppor ting and representing

communities of identity through their work in infrastructure and community development

Lyndsay is committed to equalities, inclusion and social justice, par ticularly ensuring that minority and intersectional communities are represented in decision-making processes and have access to appropriate services, as well as challenging stigma, hate crime and inequalities

Dawn Draper, Chair of Switchboard said; “ We’re delighted that Lyndsay will be joining us as our new CEO later this year It is an exciting time for Switchboard as we plan for our 45th year and Lyndsay has the skills, experience and knowledge that we are looking for ” Lyndsay will take over from Daniel Cheesman later in the spring

EASTER BONNET PARADE TO RAISE MONEY FOR LOCAL GOOD CAUSES

) The Bedford Tavern and Grosvenor Bar will once again host the annual Easter Bonnet Parade and Drag R aces on Easter Sunday, April 21 The funfilled day kicks off at noon when Western Street will be closed to traffic and the street par ty begins The traditional Easter Bonnet Parade commences at 2pm when everyone, young and old, is encouraged to create a fabulous Easter hat to parade down Western Street before being judged and prizes awarded

Following on from the parade are the now infamous Drag Races when a gaggle of Drag Queens and Drag Kings will compete against one another throughout the afternoon before the final races will see an overall winners being crowned To keep things interesting ‘bets’ can be placed throughout the day and should your runner win the final race you can win one of the amazing prizes on offer JB's Piano Sing-a-Long at 5pm leads on to the carnage of the Bedford's weekly dose of Piano Bingo followed by a fun-filled evening of cabaret

This fantastic (rather bonkers) community event brings people together raising funds for the R ainbow Fund, a charity who give grants to local LGBT+/HIV groups providing effective front lines services to LGBT+ people in the city Registration is now open for Drag runners so contact Adam Brooks at the Bedford on Facebook or email: ad4mbrooks@gmail com Only people 18+can take part

NEW MONTHLY FUNDRAISING NIGHT AT CLUB REVENGE LAUNCHES MAY 3

) Club R evenge and the Powder R oom are launching a new monthly fundraising event, Queergasm! #1, on Friday, May 3 to raise money for the Rainbow Fund Showcasing the finest drag, burlesque and cabaret talent, the event will bring our queer communities together under one roof! Ar tists confirmed to appear include: Lydia L’Scabies, Tayris Mongardi, TeTe Bang, Prudence R ae, and R uby Wednesday. Your host for the evening will be Alfie Ordinar y Purchase some Drag Dollars to use as you wish to tip the performers50% goes to them, 50% goes to the Rainbow Fund In the words of Alaska: Tip. These Men!

The Powder R oom presents Queergasm! #1 at Club R evenge on Friday, May 3 from 8.30-11pm, entry £3/£2 NUS, 100% of which goes to the Rainbow Fund This includes entry to the club straight after the show for Pop Tar tz, open till 4am, with £2 50 drinks before 11pm Ages 18+ only

BEAR-PATROL RAISE ALMOST £3,500 FOR LGBTQ MENTAL HEALTH CHARITY

) Bear-Patrol, the social networking community group, raised £3,424 25 for MindOut, the LGBTQ Mental Health Service, during the Grand Brighton Half Marathon 2019 Monies were raised via sponsorship of Bear-Patrol suppor ters all running as par t of Team Bear-Patrol on behalf of MindOut

Nine team members helped raise the sponsorship: Craig Baines, Lawrence Mulingani, Danny Dwyer, Mark Alexander, Paul Woodcock, John Pursglove, Simeon Peach, Alexandra and Kirsten Wheatley Craig Baines, applied for his sponsorship monies to be match funded by his employers, the Santander Foundation and was successful in his application adding an extra £500 to his sponsorship bringing his total to over £1,000 for MindOut

In 2020, Bear-Patrol will be celebrating their 10th Anniversary of Fundraising and are aiming to put a BIG team together this time on behalf of the Sussex Hear t Charity bringing in new runners and encouraging past team runners to put their running shoes back on for next year’s Grand Brighton Half Marathon

Helen Jones, MindOut CEO, said; “We are so grateful and impressed by the Bear-Patrol runners who raised such a fantastic amount at The Grand Brighton Half Marathon, they are brilliant ! The money raised will go towards our low cost counselling service ”

For more information on team entries for the Grand Brighton Half Marathon 2020, and other Bear-Patrol events in 2019, email Danny: info@bearpatrol org uk

ZANZIBAR REUNION PARTY 2019 RETURNS TO ITS ORIGINAL HOME

) After two hugely successful reunions in 2014 and 2015, the 2019 Zanzibar R eunion returns to its original home at 129 St James’s Street, Brighton, currently the home of Subline on Friday, June 28

Zanzibar, a members club opened to the public in 1991 at a time when traditional pubs were getting a bit tired Modern decoration, a graffiti seating area and fluorescent painted toilets made it a very different place to meet and drink Varied music nights, preClub Shame drinks, the Blue Camel Club and alternative cabaret provided the backbone of what the club had to offer

This reunion of old and new faces, including women being welcomed at this usually men only club, will be a very mixed affair playing old school 1990s classic tracks as well as new

remixes Tunes cour tesy of: ‘Screwtopia’ (DJs Screwpulous and iTopia), DJ Josh Sharp, Queen Josephine & Kate Wildblood

Entry: £5 with any profits being donated to R ainbow Fund, the local LGBT+ charity that gives grants to LGBT+ organisations who deliver effective services to LGBT+ people in the city

Save the date: Friday, June 28

LUNCH POSITIVE SUPPER GROUP

) In addition to the weekly HIV lunch club every Friday, Lunch Positive run a regular evening supper group for people with HIV who are over 50 The supper group, funded by the R ainbow Fund to pilot for 12 months, runs every six to eight weeks Progress has been very successful with each session reaching existing and many new members, all of whom have remarked on the food, peersuppor t, welcome and friendliness of the group

An average of 36 people have attended each session commenting about the project filling a much-needed gap in what's on offer locally Supper group sessions are put together by the Lunch Positive volunteer team, and suppor ted by a trustee of the charity

In addition to the enjoyable social oppor tunity, the next session on Tuesday, April 16 will also provide an oppor tunity for group members to feedback and influence how the project develops, and to star t discussing any other suppor t that the project could provide for people as they age with HIV

Richard Jeneway, Lunch Positive Trustee, said: “The supper group was one of the ideas on the wish list from the Lunch Positive focus group and service evaluation in spring 2018 Since November 2018 we have now provided three events with some great levels of attendance

“It’s important to say from the outset that none of this could have taken place without the hard work, passion and dedication of lead volunteer Tony, and volunteers in the kitchen and front of house who have been truly inspirational As a service user and Trustee I feel privileged to be connected on a personal level with this new and much- needed event The HIV community in Brighton has a high level of people aged 50 and over According to statistics provided by the Lawson unit over 48% of patients with HIV are aged 50 and over, and this will continue to grow

“In addition to the very successful weekly lunch club we hope that the community rt we provide will continue to develop with this ditional service We’re always reaching out to meet ew people and welcome them to our service, so if you or someone you know might like to come along then please do get in touch by emailing supper@lunchpositive org” or more information about Lunch Positive, view: w lunchpositive org

FIRST LONG-ACTING HIV TREATMENT INJECTIONS PASS TRIAL

VOLUNTEERING AT BRIGHTON BEAR WEEKEND

) Brighton Bear Weekend (BBW)

held its first 2019 Volunteer Par ty at the Black Horse pub in Church Street on March 4 Volunteers battled the elements to meet the BBW team and sign up to help at events over the Big Bear Weekend from June 13-16 The BBW team want to thank all those that showed up on the night, as well as Andy Tull and his team at the Black Horse for putting on such a great spread

Putting on an all-weekend event is a huge task and there’s always a need for more people to get involved and be par t of the event crew! There are lots of roles to fill: everything from fundraising, visitor management, helping at club

nights, to building the stage in Dorset Gardens Volunteering is huge fun and also a great way to meet people, make new friends and help our communities, so get in touch and be at the hear t of the Brighton Bear par ty

There is of course a serious side to everything the BBW team do, and that’s to raise money for the R ainbow Fund BBW are proud to suppor t this wonderful charity, which gives grants to local LGBT+ / HIV organisations in Brighton & Hove who deliver effective frontline services to LGBT+ people in the city

To find out more about volunteering, view brightonbear weekend.com/contact and send them a message!

SKYDIVING FOR THE BEACON

diet back on track amongst other things

) Injections that could one day be an alternative to daily pills for people living with HIV have been shown to be effective in maintaining viral suppression, bringing them one step closer to market Results from the ATLAS and FLAIR studies were presented at the recent 2019 Conference on R etroviruses and Oppor tunistic Infections (CROI)

Kat Smithson, Director of Policy and Campaigns at NAT (National AIDS Trust), said: “Constantly improving treatments for HIV have revolutionised the lives of people living with this condition The potential for HIV to be successfully treated with an injection repeated every month, rather than pills taken every day, could be life-enhancing for many people It will help with adherence to medication and allow people with HIV to get on with their lives

“Although we are some way off this treatment being available to patients, we are excited about the potential for this to improve life for people living with HIV ”

) James Preston has worked at the Brighton Sauna for the last six years, he says he ‘throughly enjoys his job’ and the ‘interesting’ people he meets there James hails from a little town in East Lancashire called Nelson, which lies in the shadows of the famed Pendle Hill

In 2010, while visiting a friend in Manchester, he met someone who later became his par tner of five years and with whom he moved to Brighton to be with Eventually they got married, but sadly it wasn’t meant to be and they separated After the divorce James was in a bad place and didn’t know who to turn to until a friend suggested he ask the Sussex Beacon for their help He did this, spending a week in The Beacon having respite care, receiving help with his mental health issues and getting his

Recently, James found himself back at The Beacon needing their help after being in an eight month long ‘abusive’ relationship in 2018 James says: “The whole team at the Sussex Beacon provide a wonderful service for anyone living with or affected by HIV/AIDS and the people there are just amazing Without them I really don’t know where I would be today I wanted to do my part to help this valuable service and the people behind the scenes, and decided to do something that hasn’t been done in a while and that I want to tick off on my own 'bucket list' ”

So on his 33rd bir thday, on September 14, James plans to give something back to the Sussex Beacon and say thank you for all their help by doing a sponsored skydive! “I’ve set a target of £500 as I think it’s a modest amount to want to raise for a worthy cause but I really hope to smash this target Any and all help, support, donations and sponsors will be greatly received and appreciated, with all monies raised going directly to the Sussex Beacon ” Suppor t James and make a donation at: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/jame s-preston2019

ALBERT KENNEDY TRUST MARKS 30TH ANNIVERSARY WITH BRAND REFRESH

) National LGBT+ youth homelessness charity akt (formerly the Alber t Kennedy Trust) have launched their first brand refresh since 2009 Providing safe homes and better futures for LGBT+ young people, the new brand identity introduces akt’s own take on the rainbow flag, to create a contemporary, loud and proud accent of colour to its previously purple visual

Tim Sigswor th, CEO at akt, said: “ Young people of ten talk about akt as providing more than just a roof over their heads, describing us as courageous, caring, inclusive and accepting - like a family We wanted the new brand and the way we talk about our history and our work to reflect that

LOCAL SCHOOLS ACHIEVE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING LGBT+ WORK

) Four schools in Brighton & Hove were recently presented the R ainbow Flag Award for outstanding inclusion of LGBT+ and unsure young people, and for tackling homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying

The evidence-based quality assurance award, funded by the Government Equality Office via the Depar tment for Education (DfE), was described by the DfE as “The best framework for LGBT+ inclusion in the country” and suppor ts schools to meet Ofsted and Government requirements around safeguarding, equality and diversity

Pictured: Georgina Clarke- Green (Assistant Director of Brighton & Hove City Council) and Anna Spragg (Equalities Manager of Brighton & Hove City Council) present Adam Smith (Senior Student Manager at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy) with the school’s Rainbow Flag Award

with the Proud Trust in Manchester, the Kite Trust in Cambridgeshire and Humankind in County Durham

R euben Davidson, Development Worker and Training & Education Worker at Allsor ts, who’s been working closely with the schools, said: “It’s been a privilege to work with the Brighton & Hove schoolsthey should be very proud of what they’ve achieved All young people deserve to feel safe at school, to see

“Nothing represents this more than our founder, ally and former foster carer Cath Johnson (nee Hall), who set up the charity in 1989 when lesbian, gay, bi and trans people faced extreme hostility in the UK akt was the world’s first charity to respond to the LGBT+ youth homelessness crisis, providing safe homes with lesbian, gay, bi and trans carers Cath spoke out and acted at a time when to do so was both controversial and rare, and stood shoulder to shoulder with our fellow founders in stepping in to ensure that vulnerable young LGBT+ people who were facing or experiencing homelessness had somewhere to turn

“ When talking to our young people today about akt and its journey, Cath’s selfless and unwavering support really stuck with them, and is something they wanted celebrated in how we talk about the organisation Today, Cath still meets the young people we work with and is a huge supporter of what we do, and as we mark our 30th anniversary and continue to look ahead we want to celebrate and thank her for everything she’s done

“akt is how our young people, supporters and the wider community have come to know us as we’ve grown, and so we’re pleased to own that in our new brand identity while still paying tribute to the young Albert Kennedy ”

The brand was designed by agency Derek&Eric, who worked on the project probono for the charity akt was also suppor ted by brand strategist Deborah Taffler in the new identity's conception, as well as a team from law firm Baker & McKenzie in mark searching and trademarking the new brand, also done free of charge

Adam Swan, a Creative Par tner at Derek&Eric, said: “Being part of the community, it’s such an honour to be working with a charity like akt, who make a genuine positive impact to young LGBT+ people’s lives We’re delighted to have created a brand that utilises the colours of the iconic Pride flag to tell a new story about the strength of difference within a framework of supportive community ”

While akt was set up in 1989, LGBT+ youth homelessness remains a huge issue in the UK with almost one quar ter of young people facing homelessness identif ying as LGB or T Of these, 77% are in their situation due to familial rejection, ejection or abuse

See akt on Twitter and Instagram at @aktcharity or view: www.akt.org.uk

Brighton Aldridge Community Academy, Blatchington Mill and Patcham High all achieved top marks for their effor ts and Her tford Infant & Nurser y School became the first primary school to receive the award in the South-East

The Rainbow Flag Award has been delivered by Allsor ts Youth Project with suppor t from Brighton & Hove City Council as par t of a consor tium

positive representations of people like them, and learn about our diverse communities in an age-appropriate and sensitive way

The Rainbow Flag A ward aims to create a legacy so that school children in the future are free to thrive and these four are setting an example for others to follow ”

For info about the Rainbow Flag Award, training oppor tunities, and how Allsor ts suppor t LGBT+/unsure young people in Sussex, view: www.allsor tsyouth.org.uk

A LIFE IN CABARET: LEGENDS CELEBRATES BRIGHTON’S OWN LEGEND, MAISIE TROLLETTE

) Legends will host a very special event, A Life in Cabaret, on Sunday, April 28 celebrating the 50 Year Golden Jubilee of the Grande Dame of cabaret David R aven, aka Maisie Trollette

Miss Jason, Jennie Castell, Lola Lasagne, JP Christian, Davina Sparkle, Jason Price, Krissie DuCann and The WestEnders with Jae Alexander will be joined on the day by many surprise guests including Jimmy Trollette, reuniting the original Trollettes for one day to celebrate the suppor t David Raven has given to Brighton & Hove’s LGBT+ communities and organisations, including the Sussex Beacon which over the years David has personally helped raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for

To get the fundraising off to a great star t, owner of Legends Tony Chapman is making a personal gift of £2,500 to thank David for all his performances to audiences at Revenge and Legends over the last 25 years and all his fundraising for LGBT+ organisations not only in the city but all over the country Customers are asked to dig deep and put money in the buckets which will be donated to the Sussex Beacon

David said: "From the bottom of my heart I would like to thank everyone who has organised this fabulous day for me especially all the artists who are appearing It is wonderful to be surrounded by lovely people not only on stage but also behind the scenes It means so much to me ”

The enter tainment kicks off at 3.30pm and will continue late into the evening All ar tists appearing are confirmed subject to availability on the day

OUT TO SWIM SOUTH RECEIVE OLYMPIC COACHING

) Out to Swim South, Brighton & Hove’s dedicated LGBT+ swimming club, are par t of the larger national Out to Swim club, based in London Earlier this year, members had a visit from their head Olympic swimming coach who put everyone through their paces to help them brush up on their technique

There was a great turn out at the pool with people of all ages, shapes and abilities attending - all with a common goal, to improve their swimming and fitness Out to Swim South have a wide range of members, from those who can swim two lengths to those who can swim marathon distances

The ethos of the club is that everyone can join in and gain something Attendees say the coached session was brilliant for those who attended, with excellent tips on technique to improve their swimming and enhance their fitness

Out to Swim South have recently employed a new swimming coach, so if you have considered improving your swimming, getting fitter or want to make new friends go along to any of their sessions and try them out!

For more information, view: www.outtoswim.org/brighton/

RAUNCH & MINCE!

) Brighton Bear Weekend (BBW) reveal a full programme of events for this year’s big weekend from Thursday, June 13-Sunday, June 16, with 12 events scheduled over four days

Highlights this year includes the first ever visit to Brighton of London’s BeefMince! Expect a welcoming crowd full of hotties, beards, cubs, bears and lovers of a good raunchy par ty on Saturday evening (June 15) at the Rialto Theatre by the Clock Tower

Another highlight is the upgraded Saturday afternoon par ty in Dorset Gardens on June 15 - eat, drink, watch and laugh at this fast-growing mainstay of the bears’ weekend

Miss Jason and Lola Lasagne as JLo will greet friends old and new at the Welcome Par ty at the Amsterdam Bar & Kitchen on Friday, June 14; the all new Mr Brighton Bear competition takes place at Subline (129 St James’s Street) later the same evening Star t thinking about your outfits and look out for details about the competition, the prizes and how to register next month!

You can now buy this year’s T-shir t, designed by Richard Denne, and

wristbands that give you discounts on drinks in most BBW venues over the weekend, along with reductions on the Brighton Bear website and at Prowler (112-113 St James's Street) Brighton

Tickets for BeefMince! on the Saturday night will be on sale from 12am on March 30 Make sure you get in by getting your ticket early as these sell out quickly – visit: www.brightonbear weekend.com

Graham Munday, BBW Chair, says; “ We have another full programme of events this year with something for everyone We’re pleased to add two walking tours to our 2019 programme to show off the hidden delights of Brighton that even some locals don’t know about! One is a guided tour of the fabulous Royal Pavilion, and the second an LGBT+ tour of this gayest of cities! Do come and join us for a fun- filled weekend by the sea ”

For the full events programme, and with the online shop to buy T-shir ts and tickets, view: www.brightonbear weekend.com

MISS JASON'S SUNDAY FUNDAY RAISES £186 FOR THE RAINBOW FUND

) The R ottingdean Club raised £186.02 for the R ainbow Fund at Miss Jason's Sunday Funday in Februar y The Rainbow Fund give grants to LGBT / HIV groups who deliver effective front line services to LGBT+ people in the city

WORTHING PRIDE 2019 HAS LIFT OFF!

)

Organisers of Wor thing Pride unveiled an exciting line-up of performers for the 2019 event at a launch par ty hosted by main sponsors, the Cow & Oak bar and restaurant in Wor thing Pictured above from left to right: Wor thing Pride Event Management team Claire Fuller, James Spencer, Andy Kelly, Keira Thomas, Josie Kelly, WP Sound and Light Marc Woollard, and Hope Charity founders Claire Sparrow and Paul Mant

Wor thing Pride 2019 on Saturday, July 13 will star t with a colourful Parade On The Prom at noon ending at Splashpoint R ocks; followed by the Main Event at Beach House Grounds on Wor thing seafront from 1-10pm Pride-goers can expect starstudded enter tainment from headliners Magic Queen, the UK’s best Queen tribute act Fans say that they’re the closest you’ll get to seeing Freddie Mercury and the legendary band

Other performers taking to the Pride stage this year are drag ar tists Dave Lynn, Cherr y Liquor and Mar y Hinge, soul-singing duo Hear t & Soul, and

DJ Patch will perform a special set on the decks

Wor thing Pride welcomes local boy Richard Hadfield, who won Britain's Got Talent, in 2014 as par t of singing group, Collabro, to the main stage

Also making a welcome return is singing star Jason Lee, the formidable Davina Sparkle and DisneyDiva Miss Disney Finally, back by popular demand to host the main stage is Spice, the fabulous compere, singer, and ‘gender discombobulator’

For the second year, technology and administration exper ts Equiniti will be Wor thing Pride’s second sponsor

Jenny O’Callaghan, Equiniti LGBT Network Treasurer, said: “ We’re thrilled to be supporting Worthing Pride again, and looking forward to getting involved on the day and taking part in the Parade on the Prom ”

Nationwide transpor t giants Stagecoach, who have a base in Wor thing, are “over the moon” to be suppor ters of the event R ob Vince, Operations Manager, said: “ We’re working on plans to promote Worthing Pride on our buses, with one special bus, The Pride Of The Fleet, featuring Worthing Pride’s themed designs, so watch this space ”

Also present at the launch were founders of the Hope Charity Project, Wor thing Pride’s chosen

charity for 2019, with all profits from the event donated to the groups work

Horsham-based founders, Claire Sparrow and Paul Mant, created the charity project following health problems affecting their now 15-year-old daughter A combination of mental health issues and failings from a care system in crisis, the founders created a self-styled ‘happy place’ on an acre of donated land near Horsham Claire said: “The Hope Charity Project couldn’t be more grateful to be chosen and supported by such a wonderful event We are a small charity project, we need to grow in order to reach the kids and their families in crisis Worthing Pride’s support will help us grow and reach out further into the community ”

In July 2018, sell-out crowds descended on Wor thing making the first Wor thing Pride a huge success for the town Josie Kelly, Wor thing Pride founder, said: “ We were overwhelmed with the success of our town’s first Pride, and how everyone embraced the event We loved the chilled family vibe and were touched by many coming- out stories and others that said how wonderful it was to see all couples, regardless of sexuality, feeling comfortable and safe to be true to themselves We hope to replicate that vibe this year ”

Wor thing Pride will be sponsored by local independent bar restaurants, the Cow Shed, Cow & Oak, and Equiniti All proceeds will go to local organisation, the Hope Charity Project

Wor thing Pride beat off strong competition from established local events to be crowned ‘Best Event’ at the Sunny Wor thing Awards in Februar y

Tickets are now on sale for Wor thing Pride 2019, along with other Pride events and Parade registration information Follow on Facebook or visit the Wor thing Pride website: www wor thingpride co uk

OUTDOOR L ADS TAKE BOWLING CROWN

) Over 200 bowlers representing 26 LGBT+ organisations competed in the 14th Annual Bowling Extravaganza organised by BLAGSS (Brighton Lesbian and Gay Spor ts Society) at the Bowlplex in Brighton Marina on Wednesday, Februar y 27 This year’s winners were Outdoor Lads, followed by BLAGSS Bowling with Brighton Gay Men's Chorus in third place, the R ainbow Fund, BLAGSS Football and R ainbow Chorus occupied 4th, 5th and 6th places

At this year’s event BLAGSS raised £500 for Allsor ts Youth Project from a raffle on the night with prizes presented by par ticipating teams John Moore, BLAGSS’ Chair, said: “It was a fantastic event, bringing local people together in friendly rivalry We are delighted to support Allsorts to provide sustainable opportunities for young people "

Katie Vincent, Co-Director of Allsor ts, was thrilled at the donation and said: “Allsorts Youth Project listens to, supports and connects young people under 26 who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans or unsure (LGBTU) of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity This donation will make a difference and help us to offer one to one emotional support, training and education, advocacy and support for parents and carers too "

APRIL EVENTS:

MONDAY 1

PERSONAL SAFETY WORKSHOP

) Hosted by the Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum. This session will introduce the principles of Personal Safety, including how to keep safe without using any physical techniques.

You will also discuss and practice some techniques to increase your confidence and help you distract or escape a potential attacker In this session the techniques will be adapted to suit differing physical abilities

This is not a session in martial arts. Refreshments available

WORKSHOP: 2pm–4pm FREE EVENT

WEDNESDAY 3

UNDERSTANDING HATE CRIME WITH THE CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE

)Free workshop covering the following topics:

• What is a Hate-Crime?

• The different types of Hate-Crime.

• The history and evolution of legislation.

• How do the police and CPS deal with/make decisions about Hate-Crime?

• An overview of the criminal justice process and how to report including third party reporting.

• What support is available?

• What can we do as a community to reduce Hate-Crime?

• How YOU can challenge Hate-Crime Refreshments available

WORKSHOP: 11am-12pm FREE EVENT

UNDERSTANDING DOMESTIC ABUSE WITH THE CPS

)Free workshop covering following topics:

• What are different ways DA can manifest?

• Understanding physical, emotional, psychological, financial, sexual abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour

VENUE: All events are at PHIL STARR PAVILION Victoria Gardens, Brighton BN1 1WN

The Phil Starr Pavilion is a multi functional, fully accessible, heated performance and conference space with a licensed bar

ACCESS: If you have any access requirements please email access@lgbt-help.com or call 01273 855620 and select option 4

TICKETS: to book online visit: brightonlgbtfestival.com or call 01273 855773

Tickets without a booking fee are also available from PHIL STARR PAVILION BOX OFFICE in Victoria Gardens or THE RAINBOW HUB, 93 St James’ Street, BN2 1TP See website for terms & conditions on eligibility for concessions.

• DA and the law

• Who can be a victim of DA?

• Stereotypes of victims and perpetrators

• How do the CPS prosecute these cases and what special provisions are available?

• What are the benefits of reporting and going through the Criminal Justice System?

• Challenging attitudes and behaviours that permit DA to continue to be perpetrated. Refreshments available.

WORKSHOP: 1–2pm FREE EVENT

THURSDAY 4

LGBTQ DEMENTIA FRIENDS TRAINING

) LGBTQ Dementia Friends Training: This one-hour workshop is aimed at raising awareness of dementia within our communities and gives those attending a

basic knowledge of dementia Switchboard is working in partnership with dementia services both locally and nationally to raise awareness of the additional issues that LGBT+ people living with dementia face and it is our aim to Bring Out Dementia.

TWO SESSIONS: 10.30-11.30am & 12-1pm FREE EVENT

CREAM TEA

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MINDOUT, OLDER & OUT AND SWITCHBOARD

) Go along and have a cream tea with the Switchboard Team in the unique surroundings of the Phil Starr Pavilion and learn more about the Older Persons Project & Dementia Café To help the organisers cater for the right numbers, please email helen.bashford@switchboard.org.uk or call 01273 234009 to reserve a place.

EVENT: 2-4pm FREE EVENT

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz. Directed & staged by Quinton Young, written by Andrew Stark

DOORS: 6.30pm, SHOW: 7.30pm BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT, TICKETS: £23

FRIDAY 5

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Mrs Moore, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz.

DOORS: 6.30pm, SHOW: 7.30pm

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT, TICKETS: £23

SATURDAY 6

QUEER ART EXHIBITION

) A collection of art, photographs and media from local Queer artists at the Starr Bar in the Phil Starr Pavilion Café and Bar open all day

EVENT: 10am–2pm FREE EVENT

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz. The 3pm show is BSL interpreted by Accessibility Matters

DOORS: 2pm, SHOW: 3pm (7.30pm show sold out)

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT, TICKETS: £23

SUNDAY 7

SAFE SOCIAL

) A peer support initiative set up by the volunteers and service users of Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum encouraging those LGBT+ people affected by loneliness and experiencing isolation, domestic abuse or the impacts of Hate Crime to meet up, prepare and share a meal or take part in a social activity A discrete reporting service will also be available.

EVENT: 11am–2pm FREE EVENT in Starr Bar

LGBT+ BAME DROP-IN ADVOCACY SERVICE

) A drop-in advocacy service for people affected by Hate Crime, Female Genital Mutilation and Honour Based Violence

EVENT: 11am–2pm FREE EVENT in main Pavilion

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Mrs Moore, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz Directed & staged by Quinton Young, written by Andrew Stark.

DOORS: 2pm, SHOW: 3pm BAR/CAFE OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT TICKETS: £23

MONDAY 8

MINDOUT DAY MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING DAY

) MindOut are running a day of mental health and wellbeing support sessions, workshops, advocacy drop-ins and information sessions for LGBTQ people. There will be specific group and individual support sessions on issues relating to housing and homelessness, mental health, suicide prevention, living well on a low income, employment and unemployment, trans health care and PoC healthcare.

There will be a free lunch and opportunities to talk to MindOut about volunteering as well as demonstrations on how to use their online support service.

DOORS: 10am–4pm

FREE EVENT: for activity times, to reserve a place on a workshop or for more information, visit www.mindout.org.uk or email: info@mindout.org.uk

UNITY IN OUR CITY

) Speakers from diverse community groups talk about the importance of standing together against hate and explore their shared experiences With short film clips and Q&A

Speakers include Billie Lewis (LGBT CSF), Lilly Kennard (Possibility People), Linda Beanlands from the Network of International Women, Archbishop Jerome Lloyd of Brighton & Hove Faith in Action and Harriet Cavanagh, Community Engagement Officer for Brighton & Hove Scope’s Local People Programme. Victoria Garcia, Accessibility & Communities Manager for Brighton & Hove Buses will also discuss how they are supporting local groups with their Anti Hate Crime project

EVENT: 6pm–8pm FREE EVENT

WEDNESDAY 10

LGBT COMMUNITY SAFETY FORUM

) Public meeting and AGM with guest speakers

DOORS: 7pm

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT FREE EVENT

THURSDAY 11

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton. This show includes an interactive sensory session at 5pm hosted by Accessibility Matters, for blind and visually impaired patrons to meet some of the cast and explore the set, costumes and scenery.

DOORS: 6.30pm, SHOW: 7.30pm

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT TICKETS: £23

FRIDAY 12

DENTAL DROP-IN

) The B&H LGBT CSF working in partnership with Dental Health Spa Brighton. A free confidential check up and advice service for those who have experienced dental issues relating to medication, violence, homelessness or abuse.

EVENT: 2pm–6pm, FREE EVENT

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz Directed & staged by Quinton Young, written by Andrew Stark

DOORS: 6.30pm, SHOW: 7.30pm

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT TICKETS: £23

SATURDAY 13

CIRCUS LGBT+ FAMILY DAY

) Go along, take the kids and join in the fun: entertainers, games, cafe, prizes, info stalls

EVENT: 11am–3pm FREE EVENT

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz Directed & staged by Quinton Young, written by Andrew Stark

DOORS: 2pm, SHOW: 3pm (7.30pm sold out)

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT TICKETS: £23

SUNDAY 14

HIV STORIES

) In collaboration with The Sussex Beacon, Brighton & Hove Hankie Quilt, Speaking Volumes and The Martin Fisher Foundation. Digital reminiscing of HIV/AIDS in the 1980s/ 90s Presentation of The Martin Fisher STIGMA Films project Display and community preservation/restoration of the Brighton & Hove Hankie Quilt Speaking Volumes, a recorded storytelling project that allows the voices of hidden, stigmatised and marginalised people to be heard A FREE self testing machine will also be available on site. Café and Bar EVENT: 11am–2pm FREE EVENT

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

) Presented by The Alternative Panto Brighton starring Dave Lynn, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Lola Lasagne, Jason Lee, Allan Jay, Davina Sparkle & Stephanie Von Clitz Directed & staged by Quinton Young, written by Andrew Stark.

DOORS: 2pm, SHOW: 3pm

BAR OPEN TILL MIDNIGHT TICKETS: £23

FIVE MINUTES WITH YOU

Brighton & Hove Council elections on May 2nd will be hard fought. The results are guaranteed to be ver y close. That means our LGBT+ votes are more important than ever. How do the three main parties stand on our issues? Stephen Wrench met the three party leaders, Tony Janio, for the Conser vatives, Daniel Yates for Labour and Phélim Mac Cafferty for the Greens to give them the five-minute test. In separate inter views, each politician answered the same LGBT+ questions, with a strict overall time limit. Their answers, given with a stopwatch in front of them, are reproduced here unedited.

) Why should we, in the LGBT+ communities, vote for councillors from your party in the upcoming council elections in Brighton and Hove?

Daniel Yates, Labour: Well I’m hoping that people will be voting for Labour councillors because of their record in administration on the City Council over the last four years, also their previous record as councillors on the City Council over decades and especially for Labour’s record when it was in government as well. You know, Labour’s got a very strong track record of supporting LGBT rights, we ’ ve got a very strong record here of, of supporting services that are specific to LGBT community and communities, or services that are just simply providing a decent level of services to people who may or may not be LGBT across the City. So we ’ ve put a lot of money in, we made some very clear promises at the last set of elections about what we would do for the LGBT communities especially working around dealing with hate crime, making sure that we made services inclusive, making sure that we made services attentive and appropriate to the LGBT community I think, I think we ’ ve delivered on those Tony Janio, Conservative: I think what you’ll find is the Conservatives at the moment are the most inclusive of parties - it, it - you probably wouldn’t have asked that question 30 years ago, you would’ve made an assumption that we weren’t, but I think nowadays in Brighton and Hove we ’ re probably the most diverse bunch that you, you’ll ever meet so I think that’s the reason to vote Conservative is we go right across the whole spectrum, er, and people, people can trust us that we, we pick people on merit and not because of anything else So we ’ ve got the right councillors for the right jobs in the right places

Phélim Mac Cafferty, Green: Thank you for the question Um, I think first of all what we have to acknowledge is that we ’ ve had, we’ll celebrate 50 years since the Stonewall Riots this summer, um, and, er, in those 50 years there’s been an awful lot of progress, er, and a whole lot of that is down to dedicated campaigning from communities, umm, and from campaigners and the reason why, er, voters, er, and readers of Gscene need to vote for us is because we stand with a very clear firm commitment as to what we ’ re going to do for LGBT people and we have seven key areas, er, that we want to outline in terms of the work that we want to do in the next four years But the top three I would say are to do with sexual health, to do with the impact of cuts in the City and to do with safety On sexual health, um, we reversed the cuts on sexual health services this year, we want to protect HIV budgets and ensure sexual health services are prioritised as the City has an escalating need, we want to work on driving down rates of STIs and we also want to work for the PreP, ah, to be routinely available from sexual health clinics. Um, on cuts, we know that cuts have deeply affected the community, we know that one in two LGBT people have depression and we want to help voluntary and community organisations, um, access, um, resource and in-kind support from the council

) Are we safe, those of us who identify as LGBT+ in our City, with rising hate crimes and falling police numbers?

Tony Janio, Conservative: Safe is, I must admit safe is a, is a strange word nowadays because it can be interpreted many ways. If you ’ re talking about physical safety, yes I think you can One of the good things is Katy Bourne, who’s the Police and Crime

Commissioner, has, has finally got to the finances within the, um, the police budget and she’s now increasing police numbers again and she’s guaranteed that there will be uniformed officers which is good And from the Council, I think you saw, um, at Budget Council last week that the the Conservatives can be trusted to start cutting the bureaucracy within the Council and the unnecessary posts and getting people into the front line. Over the last few years we ’ ve supported the Youth Service, in fact the last couple of years not, not this year but the previous two years you could almost say we saved the Youth Service, certainly in Hangleton Knoll, the Hangleton Knoll Project (Interviewer’s note: this charity works with young people considered to be at risk of antisocial behaviour), er, I consider that to be one of the most vital things that I do, is to support the Hangleton Knoll Project, and they are taking the next generation through and they, they’re very inclusive and they’re taking people into the new, er, if you like the new millennium if, and I, I just think that the Conservatives are the party that, that you can trust to, to put the money where it’s going to be most effective, that’s what I’m sort of saying, it’s, its not going to be on bureaucracy, it’s not going to be wasted it’s going to be good, um, money directed to the right things

Phélim Mac Cafferty, Green: Um, I think we ’ re less safe now than we were at the start of austerity and one of the key things that we want to be doing, ah, as we go forward, if you roll back to 2017 we reversed the cut to the LGBT community safety officer through that budget and that was because we could see from the results of the Brexit referendum that

there’d been a massive mushroom in the quantity of hate crimes I’ve got the figures here: they went from 49 to 64 crimes and incidents across the City, that was why we then defended the LGBT community safety post and it’s why as we go forward we want to work with the Sussex Police, the LGBT Community Safety Forum and others on campaigning to make homophobic, transphobic and bi-phobic hate crimes an aggravated offence to put them on the same par as faith and, er, religious-motivated hate crimes

Daniel Yates, Labour: I’m not happy about falling police numbers obviously and I know, I know a lot of people in a lot of parts of the City, including around St James’s Street, are very unhappy with how safe they feel in our community but when you look at the figures overall across the City, many people feel safe in their community during daytime, many of them also feel safe in their community at nighttimes too But one single person going out and feeling unnerved or unsafe or experiencing any form of hatred whether it’s a hate crime or whether it’s, you know sort of, something that’s relatively just unnerving, that’s unacceptable. We have to do more, there’s always more that we can do. What we need to be doing is putting in the extra resources in, that’s why we as a Labour administration want to get those extra resources in to dealing with hate crime, to dealing with improving neighbourhoods and communities

) How many LGBT+ candidates are you running in this election?

Phélim Mac Cafferty, Green: Off the top of my head, I believe we have four? Um, I could have got that wrong because not all of our candidates are yet in place, um, but, but as usual we, we put a, a real importance on having LGBT people standing to represent the community, um, and I think that, that, they’ll come from all sorts of different backgrounds as well I’m slightly older, we’ll have slightly younger, we’ll have women, er, we’ll have men, we’ll, um, we’ll have a real mix of candidates.

Daniel Yates, Labour: I can’t actually tell you at the moment, I can tell you we ’ ve got several out candidates I can tell you we ’ ve had several out councillors in the last administration too. We’re actually conducting a survey now, we ’ re just, it just came through into my inbox yesterday, of all of our candidates to see how they identify, because one of the things that we don’t try to do is to discriminate either for or against candidates on the basis of their sexuality or any, or any of their other protected characteristics, but what we do want to know is to understand how broadly representative our candidates are of, of all of the communities in the City

Tony Janio, Conservative: Um, I could take a guess but I don’t know because I don’t ask, um, it’s not something I concern myself about I try to make sure that we have a sweep of all types of candidates but really, um, is that the

question you should be asking nowadays? I think in society, the one thing I’m keen is, is that everybody should be equal, um, whether, whether you ’ re female candidates, gay candidates, er, it, it, the days in this City where you have to ask is over and I think that’s to be applauded.

) After five years with you in charge how will things be better for us, by us I mean the LGBT+ communities?

Daniel Yates, Labour: I hope there’ll be a range of things that make a difference to the community. Firstly I want the community to feel that it’s safer, safer, and to feel happier with its place and its standing in the City. I think the LGBT community has always had a very strong reputation for being able to speak out and feeling that it’s able to make the case for the changes that it’s needed in the City. I think sometimes the City Council and other services haven’t necessarily been as responsive or as quick to deal with things We’re taking action, as I’ve said, on a, on a number of specific issues, we ’ re a, we ’ re a world leader on many of those issues including if you look at things like trans rights, you know sort of, and gender identity What I would like to think in five years is that people who identify as LGBT+ actually feel that this is a City that not just welcomes them, but that actually values them and that recognises that they are an integral part of the City life, of the City’s future as well as of the City’s past.

Tony Janio, Conservative: Wow, that, that’s a good question. And I think, what, the one thing you can say from us is that, that we tend to base our lives around merit, um, we obviously have to have a safety net from, from people who can’t succeed for what reason, but I think that meritocracy is the way to go Some Conservatives don’t believe in that word of course because it comes from, er, maybe the left but with a meritocracy if you ’ re the right person in the right job at the right time you’ll succeed, if you ’ re the right person with the right attitude at the right time you’ll succeed, if you ’ re the right person with the right attitude who can, who can give something to society then society gives back to you and that’s what the Conservatives believe in, so I think in five years ’ time, the Council will be well run, it will be efficiently run and it gives you the, it’ll give this City the infrastructure that everybody can be happy here.

Phélim Mac Cafferty, Green: Um, I think a number of the key ways in which our presence would be felt would be building on things we ’ ve done in the past, um, we worked, for example, we won the national Stonewall Education Awards, we won Top Local Authority, er, for, for LGBT work We launched the Trans Tool Kit, I chaired the Trans Equality Scrutiny Report which has brought out a whole load of different, important findings Um, I think if you look at what we did previously, that would be very much a mark of what we would do in the future as well.

) Final words. You have a minute to convince us.

Tony Janio, Conservative: For voting Conservative? I, I think the, the, certainly if you look back the Conservatives have got a, a bad press with the LGBQT community over the years, I think that certainly in this City has gone We have got a, a series of candidates and indeed councillors from all different races, sexes, er, genders and if you look forward, you should look forward to a Council that is run by the Conservatives that is inclusive, it’s, it’s even-handed, it’s, as I say, meritocratic, it puts people first, it doesn’t put politics, I think the saying is it puts people before politics and I think we do a lot of that We, we believe in people, we believe in education, we ’ re driving the digital technologies in this City, I mean I’m a scientist myself and I believe that, er, through, through all these new innovative techniques that everybody can thrive and the, the question of LGBTQ, I think in five years, if I’ve got to the state where the question doesn’t need to be asked, then I will have run a successful Council.

Phélim Mac Cafferty, Green: (Chuckles) Okay, um, I think at this election we have seen a divided Labour Party, we ’ ve seen a national Conservative Party, um, that has brought us to the dire straits of Brexit, um, I think we represent something fresh and, er, something that, er, Gscene readers can get behind. Um, we stand for recognition of all the different parts of the LGBT community, we want to include older LGBT people in the work of the Council as we go forward, we want to support, um, community and voluntary organisations, we want to, ah, make sure that, ah, the Street Party at Pride has a vibrant future, we voted for more of that last week Um, we want to win back events like Student Pride and we want to work with Pride and Trans Pride on bringing, turning both events plastic-free into the future.

Daniel Yates, Labour: I don’t think it takes a minute to convince people does it? I think it takes a lifetime to convince people I think anything that I said in one minute is impossible changing people minds if they’ve got a viewpoint about, you know sort of, the hatred or the bigotry or the, or the lack of respect that they’ve been treated with over the, over the generations or over decades. I think what’s important for me to remind people is that Labour’s the party that really started making a push on LGBT rights, Labour’s the party that decriminalised homosexuality (Interviewer’s note: the partial decriminalisation of 1967 was through a private Labour member’s bill rather than from the Labour government itself), that repealed Section 28 Labour’s the party that’s pushing forward for the next set of issues that we need to be dealing with across the city and across the country. (Gscene: “20 seconds, if you want to add anything else, or are you happy?”). I think I’m more than happy, I’m more than happy with our record and I’m more than happy however people choose to vote, I just want them to get out there and vote.

AFFINITY BAR

l 129 St James’s Street, BN2 1TH, Tel 01273 567935 www affinitygaybar com

Facebook: Affinity Bar Brighton Text Aler ts: text ‘Affinity’ to 88802

l OPEN daily from 12pm–12am

l DRINK PROMOS Thirsty Thursday: £3 50 drinks including Fosters, double house gin/vodka/rum and house wine

l EASTER Good Friday (19): Kick off your weekend in cracking style with CABARET from Charlie Hides at 8pm; LIQUID GOLD then spins hi-NRG tunes from 9pm Drag superstar Charlie Hides, one of the 14 queens to compete in the9th series of RuPaul's Drag Race, is well known for his YouTube channel, which features hundreds of parody videos, and sketches where he impersonates celebrities He has also interviewed queens including Bianca Del Rio and Cour tney Act! l Sat (20) is camp CABARET with Pat Clutcher at 6pm; then Pat Clutcher ’s KARAOKE at 7pm l Easter Sunday (21) is CABARET with the legendary Dave Lynn at 5pm l Easter Monday (22) is CABARET with Pat Clutcher at 5pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sunday CAMP CABARET at 5pm: see Affinity Bar Facebook for details (7), Pat Clutcher (14), Dave Lynn (21) and Jade Justine (28)

l REGUL ARS Mon is ALL DAY KARAOKE from 12pm; karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) is at 7pm l Tue is ALL DAY FREE JUKEBOX, where you pick the tracks from 12pm l Wed is KARAOKE with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) at 7pm l Thur is Lydia L’Showbies with Lydia L’Scabies performing her greatest homages to TV, film and musical theatre at 10pm and 11pm l Fri: Star t your weekend in style with LIQUID GOLD high-NRG tunes from 8pm l Sat CAMP CABARET at 6pm: Charlie Hides (6), Miss Jason (13) and Pat Clutcher (27); KARAOKE with Pat Clutcher at 7pm

Information is correct at the time of going to press Gscene cannot be held responsible for any changes or alterations to the listings

MONDAY 1

l AFFINITY BAR All Day Karaoke 12pm; Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Classics Jukebox 6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Glitter Curious launch: LGBT+ sing-along par ty with DJ Trick + Miss Disney 11pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Gaymers Night: consoles, board/card games 8 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Miss Jason’s Monday Madness 9.30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Nils SolbergMick Hamer Trio 2pm; Geoff Simkins & band 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Kara Van Park’s

Musical Mondays 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Arsenal v Newcastle 8pm

TUESDAY 2

l AFFINITY BAR Free Jukebox 12pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Crewsday: DJ Lewis Osborne 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Piano Singalong with the Regency Singers 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Curry & Quiz with Nat 7 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live blues: Smokestack 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Dave Lynn Hr 9.30pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Wolves v Man Utd 7 45pm

WEDNESDAY 3

l AFFINITY BAR Karaoke with Tommy

AMSTERDAM BAR & KITCHEN

l 11-12 Marine Parade, BN2 1TL, T: 01273 670976, www amsterdambrighton com

l OPEN daily from 11am–late

l FOOD Mon–Fri 11am–8pm; Sat 10 30am–8pm; Sunday roasts from 12 30pm till they run out, booking recommended: 01273 670 976 Easter Monday (22): Cure your hangover with a full English breakfast and a Bloody Mary for £12 50 – served all day Full tea and coffee menu available

l DRINK PROMOS House wine £10 90 a bottle; two cocktails £15

l EASTER Good Friday (19) is the EASTER EGG HUNT with Miss Jason from 9.30pm Amsterdam Bar & Kitchen say: “Get your Easter weekend started with some chocolaty fun – find Miss Jason’s Easter eggs to win free shots!” Easter Sunday (21): is CABARET with Wain Douglas aka Kara Van Park from 5pm

l REGUL ARS CABARET FRIDAYS with top enter tainers at 9.30pm: Sally Vate (5), Dave Lynn (12) and Stephanie Von Clitz (26) l Saturday is KARAOKE with Jason Thorpe at 9.30pm l Sunday ENTERTAINMENT with Brighton’s best singers serenading you after lunch from 5pm: Paul Cantara (7), Jennie Castell (14) and Jamie Watson (28) Award-winning performer Jamie Watson (28) brings a hugely enter taining show covering a wide range of genres from big band, swing, easy listening, power ballads and disco, all sprinkled with camp comedy!

Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Midweek Chill 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Tabitha Wild’s Play Your Cards Right 9pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Ice: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Student Sessions 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Mrs Moore’s Bona

Bingo Bonanza: THT fundraiser 8 30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Pink Pound 7pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: One Hat Trio 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Sally Vate Show 10pm

l SUBLINE FLOSS: QuEER, PROgRESSIVE, OpEN, ALTeRNATIVE ExPERIENCE 10pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS Open Mic with Waterbear Music College 7 30pm

l VELVET JACKS Quiz 7pm

THURSDAY 4

l AFFINITY BAR Lydia L’Showbies: Lydia L’Scabies performs homages to TV, film & musical theatre 10pm & 11pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Weekend WarmUp 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Ross Cameron’s

Quiz with prizes 8.30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Now That’s What I Call Legends with DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS £300 Big Cash Quiz 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Throwback Thursday 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR Abel Mabel’s Bingo 8 30pm

l HORSE FAIR@BRIGHTON SAUNA roleplay/fetish night: stable lads, stallions & mares - www jamiehp co uk 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Throwback

Thursday 80s Night 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE World music: Son Guaranchando 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Brighton’s Leading Ladies cabaret: Spice 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN Karaoke/Open Mic with Jason Thorpe 8pm

l SUBLINE Brace Yourself 9pm

FRIDAY 5

l AFFINITY BAR DJ Liquid Gold 8pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Sally Vate 9.30pm

BAR BROADWAY

l 10 Steine Street, BN2 1TE, Tel: 01273 609777, www barbroadway co uk

l OPEN Mon–Thur 6pm–1am, Fri 5pm–3am, Sat 4pm–3am, Sun 4pm–1am

l DRINK PROMOS Download the Bar Broadway app for exclusive drink deals

l EASTER Good Friday (19): with a live appearance from Ian Elmslie, one half of the award-winning cabaret act Katrina & The Boy, from 7pm A “Jacqueline of all trades, and a mistress of none”, Ian Elmslie studied drama at Rose Bruford College and after graduating, spent three years with Proteus Theatre Company, as resident actor and musical director, writing original music and lyrics for three touring productions Ian says: “During the 1990s, I was one half of the award-winning cabaret act Katrina & The Boy, taking our unique brand of musical comedy to gay bars and clubs around the country Along with our regular gigs, we performed at the Brighton Comedy Festival and the Edinburgh Festival, alongside the legendary Lily Savage, and guested in shows at the Players Theatre, the Playhouse and the Haymarket, sharing the stage with the iconic author, Armistead Maupin!” l Easter Sunday (21) is SHOWTUNE KARAOKE with R oss Cameron & Sally Vate from 8.30pm l Easter Monday (22) is Bank Holiday Jukebox from 6pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sunday FIREPLACE SESSIONS with top acts from 8 30pm: Jennie Castell (7), Jennie Castell’s Tribute to Shirley Bassey (14) and Paul Middleton (28) Sunday (14): Jennie Castell, the ‘mistress of many voices’, brings the sound of the girl from Tiger Bay, the fabulous Shirley Bassey, to the stage Bar Broadway say: “ We just can’t wait to hear all of those fabulous Shirley Bassey songs from the decades It’ll be a fantastic evening!“

l REGUL ARS Wed is Tabitha Wild’s PLAY YOUR CARDS RIGHT from 9pm l Thursday is R oss Cameron’s QUIZ with prizes at 8 30pm l Fri & Sat: BROADWAY JUKEBOX; tweet the playlist @barbroadwayuk #Jukebox

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY 7 Upstairs 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 5pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Glitter: DJ David Noakes 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Par ty with DJ Cee 7pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Friday Club 6pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fabulous Friday: DJ Morgan Fabulous 9pm

l CROWN KEMPTOWN Disco 6pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Spice

9 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Brighton Belles: local cabaret stars & guests 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Jukebox Disco 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE DJ Havoxx 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS cabaret: Allan Jay 10pm

l SUBLINE Dir ty Tackle: spor ts kit 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Southampton v Liverpool 8pm

l ZONE cabaret: Marsha Mallow 10pm

SATURDAY

6

l AFFINITY BAR Camp Cabaret: Charlie Hides 6pm; karaoke: Pat Clutcher 7pm

l AMSTERDAM Karaoke with Jason Thorpe 9.30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Submissive Saturday 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 4pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Fusion: DJ Peter Castle 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Saturday Night Fever: DJ King Sol 7pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fierce: DJs 9pm

BAR 7 CRAWLEY

l 7 Pegler Way, Crawley, RH11 7AG, Tel: 01293 511177, www 7crawley co uk

l OPEN daily from 6pm

l DRINK PROMOS Tue, Wed, Fri, Sat & Sun drink deals all night

l EASTER Fri (19) is CAMPTASTIC GOOD FRIDAY with DJ Trick and cabaret from Baga Chipz from 7pm l Easter Sunday (21) is the GAYWATCH BEACH PARTY with toasty tunes and atmosphere from 7pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sunday is the EXTENDED KARAOKE and Par ty from 6pm

l REGUL ARS Fri is 7-UPSTAIRS with all-star DJs playing pop/dance/guilty pleasures at 8pm, free entry till 11pm l Sat is par ty time at SUBMISSIVE

SATURDAY with tunes at 9pm, free entry till 11pm l Tues is CREWSDAY with DJ Lewis Osborne from 7pm l Wed is MIDWEEK CHILL from 7.30pm l Thur is

WEEKEND WARM-UP with DJ Lewis Osborne from 7pm

l COVENT GARDEN HEALTH SPA

@LONDON WC2 Total Fekkin Nude:

naked par ty for all 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Miss Jason 9 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Pre-club DJ 7pm

l MARINE TAVERN Candi Rell’s Karaoke & Cabaret Par ty 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Jorge’s Hot Club Trio 4pm; DJ Andy the Dandy 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Poppycock 6pm, Lola Lasagne 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN JB’s Jukebox

3pm; cabaret: Spice 9pm

l SUBLINE Leathermen Meet 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Man City v Cardiff 12 30pm

l ZONE cabaret: Spice 10pm

SUNDAY 7

l AFFINITY BAR cabaret: TBA 5pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Paul Cantara

5pm; roasts 12pm-till gone

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY karaoke 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Fireplace Sessions present: Jennie Castell 8.30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Pop!Candy: DJ Claire Fuller 9pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Bear Bash, free food & raffle 5pm; roasts & select menu

12pm–till gone

BOUTIQUE

l 2 Boyces St, West St, BN11AN, 01273 327607

www.boutiqueclubbrighton.com

l OPEN 9pm–late Wed, 7pm–late Fri (from 3pm Fri 19) & Sat

l EASTER Thur (18) is the EASTER WARM UP PARTY with Easter cocktails to put a spring in your step! Boutique say:

“Tomorrow is Good Friday, which means you have a long weekend to party and even longer to recover!” l Fri (19) is the GOOD FRIDAY PARTY with DJ Cee spinning old school bangers plus find Golden Eggs to win a free cocktail l Sat (20) with DJ King Sol and an EASTER ROOF TERRACE PARTY till the early hours

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Wed is STUDENT SESSIONS with student tunes, prices and vibes from 9pm

l REGUL ARS Fri is PARTY TIME with DJ CEE bringing the house down with old school bangers from 8pm; call Becks 24 hours before arrival on 07572867585 for free karaoke for groups of 10+ people or more (5), shot drop every hour on the roof terrace (12), free shot for groups if 10+ (26) l SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER with par ty vibes and hefty beats from superstar DJ King Sol; quote Gscene on the door for free entr y till midnight (6), free cocktail making session in bar 2 at 9pm (13)

l CHARLES ST TAP cabaret: Sally Vate’s Bir thday Bash with Dr Beverly Ballcrusher 7.30pm; Sally’s Rock & Roll Bingo 8 30pm; roasts 12pm

l UNION CLUB@LONDON SE1 Stark

Bollock Naked: naked par ty 2pm; gay adult movie stars: Korar Darver & Leo Rex 5pm; Near Bollock Naked: underwear/ jockstrap par ty 6pm

l LEGENDS BAR cabaret: Mary Mac 3 30pm; roasts 12 30–4pm

l MARINE TAVERN roasts 12-5pm; Drag Open Mic: Stephanie Von Clitz 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Marilyn du Sax & band 6pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Mrs Moore 6 30pm & 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN roasts 12-6pm

l ROT TINGDEAN CLUB Sunday Sounds Launch 6pm

l SUBLINE Guilty Pleasures: DJ Screwpulous 9pm

CAMELFORD ARMS

l 30-31 Camelford St, BN2 1TQ, Tel: 01273 622386, www camelfordarms com

l OPEN daily from 12pm The Camelford is dog friendly

l FOOD Mon–Sat 12–9pm; Hot Cross Buns on Fri

(19); seniors’ lunch Wed 2–3 30pm, two courses £9 50; Sunday roasts and select menu served 12pm–till gone, includes free Easter Eggs on Sun (21)

l EASTER Thur (18) is the £300 Big Cash BBW

EASTER QUIZ from 9pm l Fri (19) is the GOOD FRIDAY CLUB from 6pm

l REGUL ARS Thur is the BIG CASH QUIZ with a £300 cash prize, free sarnies and great atmosphere 9pm l Sunday BEAR BASH with free food & raffle at 5pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Ever ton v Arsenal 2pm, Spurs v Brighton 4.30pm

MONDAY 8

l AFFINITY BAR All Day Karaoke 12pm; Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Classics Jukebox 6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Glitter Curious : LGBT+ sing-along par ty with DJ Trick + Miss Disney 11pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Gaymers Night: consoles, board/card games 8 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Miss Jason’s Monday Madness 9.30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Nils

Solberg-Mick Hamer Trio 2pm; Matt Holborn 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Kara Van Park’s Musical Mondays 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Chelsea v West Ham 8pm

TUESDAY 9

l AFFINITY BAR Free Jukebox 12pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Crewsday: DJ Lewis Osborne 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Piano Singalong with the Regency Singers 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Curry & Quiz with Nat 7.30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live blues: John Crampton 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Dave Lynn Hr 9 30pm

CHARLES STREET TAP

l 8 Marine Parade, BN2 1TA, Tel: 01273 624091, www charles-street com

l OPEN daily from 10am

l FOOD served daily from 10am–10pm, inc: breakfasts from 10am; 2-4-1

burgers on Tue till 10pm: choose any two burgers and get cheapest free; Sticky Wings Wed: 10 chicken or cauliflower vegan wings for £3; fresh homemade Sunday roasts for £9 from 12pm: hand carved roast beef or turkey, roast pork with crackling, nut roast, roast lamb shank £11

l DRINK PROMOS all cocktails £4 95 Mon–Thur 5–8pm, £4 a pint on craft/ cask world beers (everything apar t from Fosters & cider) on Mon, bottles of Prosecco £15 all night & half price drinks 5–9pm on Fri, Sunday Craft Club: any two craft cans or bottles £6 from 6pm

l EASTER Easter Sunday (21) CABARET with Drag

With No Name, one of the most ‘versatile’ acts on the cabaret scene from 7.30pm, no bingo due to Bank Holiday l Easter Monday (22) is LOOSE-LY WOMEN with three top cabaret acts: Mrs Moore, Mar tha D’Ar thur and Sally Vate at 7 30pm, free entry Charles Street Tap say: “New for Bank Holiday Mondays in 2019 - a triple whammy of outstanding acts! This really is a must see cabaret event; it’s going to be immense!”

l REGUL ARS Wed is Mrs Moore’s BONA BINGO BONANZA raising money for THT South from 8 30pm l FABULOUS FRIDAYS with DJ Morgan Fabulous on the decks from 9pm l Sat is FIERCE with DJs on rotation playing dance/house anthems from 9pm l SUNDAY CABARET with stars of the stage and host Sally Vate, Mrs Moore (14), from 7 30pm: Dr Beverly Ballcrusher and Sally’s 40th Bir thday Bash (7), Gabriella Parrish (14) and Miss Penny (28)

ENVY CHARLES STREET TAP

l 8 Marine Parade, BN2 1TA, Tel: 01273 624091, www charles-street com

l EASTER Good Friday (19): kick-star t your Easter weekend at POLYGLAMOROUS, the queer dance par ty with gay bangers & queer pop, £2 drink offers all night, and different colour themes every month from 10pm, entry £5/£7

WEDNESDAY 10

l AFFINITY BAR Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Midweek Chill 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Tabitha Wild’s Play Your Cards Right 9pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Ice: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Student Sessions 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Mrs Moore’s Bona Bingo Bonanza: THT fundraiser 8.30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Pink Pound 7pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Tim Wells & band 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Sally Vate’s 40th

Bir thday Par ty 10pm

l SUBLINE Hump Day 9pm l VELVET JACKS Quiz 7pm

THURSDAY 11

l AFFINITY BAR Lydia L’Showbies: Lydia L’Scabies performs homages to TV, film & musical theatre 10pm & 11pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Weekend WarmUp 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Ross Cameron’s Quiz with prizes 8.30pm

THE CROWN KEMPTOWN

l 24 Grafton Street, Kemptown BN2 1AQ Tel: 07949590001, http://tinyurl com/CrownKemptown

l OPEN Tue–Sun 3pm Open from 3pm Easter Mon (22), closed Tue (23) The Crown Kemptown is a dog friendly pub

l DRINK PROMOS daily specials, pop in for more info

l EASTER Open from 3pm Easter Monday (22), closed Tue (23)

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Wed (1) May is FINLAND MAY DAY with Finnish music, drinks and treats from 6pm, free entry

l REGUL ARS Friday is DISCO CLASSIC S with tunes from 6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Now That’s What I Call Legends: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS £300 Big Cash Quiz 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Throwback

Thursday 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR Abel Mabel’s Bingo 8 30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Throwback

Thursday 80s Night 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE World Music: Babou with Abraham de Vega 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Brighton’s Leading Ladies cabaret: Davina Sparkle 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN Karaoke/Open Mic with Jason Thorpe 8pm

l SUBLINE Joystick Jockeys: gaymers night 9pm

FRIDAY 12

l AFFINITY BAR DJ Liquid Gold 8pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Dave Lynn 9.30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY 7 Upstairs 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 5pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Glitter: DJ David Noakes 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Par ty: DJ Cee 7pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Friday Club 6pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fabulous Friday:

DJ Morgan Fabulous 9pm

l CROWN KEMPTOWN Disco 6pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Pooh Lay

May 9.30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Brighton Belles: local cabaret stars & guests 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Stand Up Comedy

- Open Mic Night 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE DJ Havoxx 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS cabaret: Miss Jason 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN CABA Regency: students/graduates perform 8 30pm

l SUBLINE Dir ty Tackle: spor tswear par ty 10pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Leicester v Newcastle 8pm

l ZONE cabaret: Topsie Redfern 10pm

SATURDAY 13

l AFFINITY BAR Camp Cabaret: Miss Jason 6pm; karaoke: Pat Clutcher 7pm

l AMSTERDAM Karaoke with Jason Thorpe 9 30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Submissive Saturday 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 4pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Fusion: DJ Peter Castle 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Satiurday Night Fever: DJ King Sol 7pm; free cocktail making 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fierce: DJs 9pm

l COVENT GARDEN HEALTH SPA @LONDON WC2 Total Fekkin Nude: naked par ty for all 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Dave Lynn 9 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Pre-club DJ 7pm

l MARINE TAVERN Candi Rell’s Karaoke & Cabaret Par ty 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE All that Jazz: Andy Panayi Trio 4pm; DJ Andy the Dandy 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Poppycock 6pm, Stephanie Von Clitz 10pm

G R O S V E N O R

l 16 Western Street, Hove, BN1 2PG, www thegrosvenorbar com

l OPEN daily from 1pm–late

l DRINK PROMOS Mon–Fri from 3–6pm all pints £3 30

l EASTER Sun (21) is the Bedford Tavern and the Grosvenor Bar ’s EASTER BONNET PARADE and DRAG RACES from 1pm Everyone, young and old, is invited to create a bonnet for the parade, which will be followed by a camp afternoon of drag king and drag queen races!

l REGUL ARS Thursday is ABEL MABEL’S BINGO at 8 30pm l Fri CABARET with top acts at 9 30pm: Spice (5), Pooh La May (12), Miss Jason (19) and Sally Vate (26) l Sat is top CABARET at 9 30pm: Miss Jason (6), Dave Lynn (13), Davina Sparkle (20) and Trudi Styles & the Piano Man (27) Dastardly duo Trudi Styles & the Piano Man (27) have been performing together for a number of years, bringing their eclectic mix of comedy and music, with pure on the spot genius, to venues on the south coast! With laughs, music, fun and banter this is a show not to be missed

l REGENCY TAVERN JB’s Jukebox

3pm; cabaret: Fannie Coil 9pm

l SUBLINE The Men’s Room: DJ Screwpulous 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS Pre Home Match Warm Up with Pie & Pint £9 12pm; live football: Spurs v Huddersfield 12 30pm, Man Utd v West Ham 5 30pm l ZONE cabaret: Sally Vate 10pm

SUNDAY 14

l AFFINITY BAR cabaret: Pat Clutcher 5pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Jennie Castell 5pm; roasts 12pm-till gone

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY karaoke 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Fireplace Sessions pres: Jennie Castell as Shirley Bassey 8.30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Pop!Candy: DJ Claire Fuller 9pm

l BRUNSWICK PUB El GeeBee Tea Queue: host Paul Diello + Paul Moore, Valerio Lysander, Travis Eddie, Sam Dickinson, Dan Webber & Emma Clowsley 7 30pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Bear Bash: free food/raffle 5pm; roasts/select menu 12pm–till gone

l CHARLES ST TAP cabaret: host Mrs Moore + Gabriella Parrish 7.30pm;

JAMIE HP EVENTS

Visit www jamiehp co uk for free membership, discount entry/special invites BRIGHTON

l BRIGHTON SAUNA 75 Grand Parade, BN2 9JA

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Thursday (18) is SBN (STARK BOLLOCK NAKED) on the South Coast with DJs Lee Harris and Dave Hunt playing commercial sounds and a XXX show from adult stars Goodlad and John Strap SBN London events usually attract over 400 clubbers - a mixed crowd of single boys, gay couples, groups of gay lads, bi men and guys of all ages, from 18-80 Dress code: strictly naked, although fetish accessories may be worn Admission: £13 members, £15 guests Claim your free membership and save on the cost of entry by visiting www jamiehp co uk

LONDON

l UNION CLUB 66 Alber t Embankment, London, SE1 7TP

Sally’s Rock & Roll Bingo 8 30pm; roasts 12pm

l UNION CLUB@LONDON SE1 Stark Bollock Naked: naked par ty 2pm; gay adult movie stars: Orson Deane & James Bennett 5pm; Near Bollock Naked: underwear/jockstrap par ty 6pm

l LEGENDS BAR cabaret: Lady Imelda 3.30pm; roasts 12.30–4pm

l MARINE TAVERN roasts 12-5pm; Drag Open Mic: Stephanie Von Clitz 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Sam Chara & band 6pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Adult Panto After Par ty 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN roasts 12-6pm

l SUBLINE Guilty Pleasures: DJ Screwpulous 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live

football: Crystal Palace v Man City 2pm, Liverpool v Chelsea 4 30pm

MONDAY 15

l AFFINITY BAR All Day Karaoke 12pm; Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Classics Jukebox

6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Glitter Curious : LGBT+ sing-along par ty with DJ Trick + Miss Disney 11pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sundays: SBN (STARK BOLLOCK NAKED) with an enormous play space from UKRed and tunes from 2pm; gay adult movie stars on stage from 5pm: Korar Dar ver & Leo R ex (7), Orson Deane & James Bennett (14), Austin Sugar & R onnie English (21) and James Castle & TBA (28) Stick around for NBN (Near Bollock Naked) from 6pm Entry: members £14, guests £17, includes locker and first drink Join online: www.jamiehp.co.uk Jamie HP say: “Customers may notice a change next time they come to naked and underwear clubs SBN and NBN as the club brands have transferred to Union on the Albert Embankment, just across the road from Vauxhall tube and bus stations Your usual Jamie HP team has taken care of the move, meaning you can expect our attention to service and detail from the moment that you arrive The club has been running smoothly for a few weeks now and we’re sure that you will love our new bar and club space, playing sexy house sounds and dirty club beats It’s the ideal place to let yourself go at the end of weekend, surrounded by dance floor full of hot, naked men!”

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sat (20) is the LONDON HORSE FAIR from 9pm (9 20pm stallions) with over 150 fit guys aged 18+ Entry: £15 includes coat check & first drink To be a par t of this private event, visit www jamiehp co uk

l COVENT GARDEN HEALTH SPA , 29 Endell St, London WC2H 9BA

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Every Saturday is the TOTAL FEKKIN NUDE naked par ty; everyone invited from 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Gaymers Night: consoles, board/card games 8.30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Miss Jason’s Monday Madness 9 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Nils SolbergMick Hamer Trio 2pm; Ela Southgate & band 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Kara Van Park’s Musical Mondays 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Watford v Arsenal 8pm

TUESDAY 16

l AFFINITY BAR Free Jukebox 12pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Crewsday: DJ Lewis Osborne 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Piano Singalong with the Regency Singers 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Curry & Quiz with Nat 7 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live blues: Scott Booth 2pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Dave Lynn Hr 9 30pm

L E G E N D S B A R

l 31-34 Marine Parade, BN2 1TR, T: 01273 624462, www legendsbrighton com

l OPEN daily from 11–5am

l FOOD Mon–Sat 8am–5pm, Sunday lunch 12 30–4pm: choose from beef, belly pork, chicken supreme or wholesome nut roast served with roast potatoes, seasonal vegetables, homemade Yorkshire pudding and real stock gravy If you have a sweet tooth, then make sure you leave room for one of the moreish desser ts

l DRINK PROMOS Buy one bottle of wine and get 2nd half price, Mon–Fri 12–11pm; star t the weekend at Gin O’Clock with gin promos every Fri, 5–9pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sunday (28) is 50 YEARS

GOLDEN JUBILEE with The Grande Dame Maisie Trollette

Celebrating A Life In Cabaret with guests from 3.30pm Maisie Trollette is nothing less than drag royalty with the sharpest wit, and some of the most powerfully impressive pipes around Try heckling at your peril! Over the years, Maisie has played in panto, both mainstream and alternative, and counts many of the country’s greatest stars and celebrities of stage and screen as close friends Expect happiness, glamour, a raft of filthy jokes, ditties galore and a very special appearance from Jimmy Trollette!

l REGUL ARS Friday is THE BRIGHTON BELLES with stars of the Brighton stage live at 9.30pm l Saturday PRE- CLUB sounds from 7pm l Sunday CABARET at 3.30pm: Mar y Mac (7), Lady Imelda (14) and Miss Jason (21) l Miss Jason’s MONDAY MADNESS returns from 9.30pm

WEDNESDAY 17

l AFFINITY BAR Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Midweek Chill 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Tabitha Wild’s Play Your Cards Right 9pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Ice: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Student Sessions 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Mrs Moore’s Bona Bingo Bonanza: THT fundraiser 8 30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Pink Pound 7pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Alex Bondonno 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Sally Vate Show 10pm

l SUBLINE Hump Day 9pm

l VELVET JACKS Quiz 7pm

THURSDAY 18

l AFFINITY BAR Lydia L’Showbies: Lydia L’Scabies performs homages to TV, film & musical theatre 10pm & 11pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Weekend WarmUp 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Big Quiz: Ross Cameron & prizes 8 30pm

l BOUTIQUE Easter Par ty Warm Up with Easter cocktails 7pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Now

That’s What I Call Legends: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS £300 Big Cash Easter Quiz 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Throwback Thursday 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR Abel Mabel’s Bingo 8 30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Throwback Thur 80s Night 8pm; Drag Roulette 10pm

l PARIS HOUSE World Music: Pollito Boogaloo 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Brighton’s Leading

Ladies cabaret: Pat Clutcher 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN Karaoke/Open Mic with Jason Thorpe 8pm

l SBN@BRIGHTON SAUNA Stark

Bollock Naked (SBN) South Coast: strictly naked par ty for guys aged 18-80 with DJs

Lee Harris & Dave Hunt + XXX gay adult

L E G E N D S B A S E M E N T C L U B

l 31-34 Marine Parade, BN2 1TR, T: 01273 624462, www legendsbrighton com l OPEN Mon, Wed–Sun from 11pm l DRINK PROMOS £2 drink deals on Mon & Fri, £2 50 drinks all night on Sun

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Monday is new GLIT TER

CURIOUS, a queer sing-along par ty with DJ Trick, host Miss Disney & special guests from 11pm, free entry, buckets for LGBT+ Community Safety Forum, cheap drinks and fabulous giveaways with tonnes of surprises in store for all!

DJ Trick said: “It’s a brand new Brighton LGBT+ community event; a non-pretentious, camp and sexy pop night! We want to bring together all of the camp classics with a burst of fresh new pop talent all presented in their purest most sing-along original glory! We also want to be seen as a safe space for the community, with information on services and charities available to people who may not know what is out there! The LGBT Community Safety Forum will be on hand collecting change and educating customers on their services, and THT will be offering safe-sex packs We can’t wait to bring a fresh feel to the Basement Club, merging together the old and the new with lots of throwback moments and tonnes of fresh surprises!”

l REGUL ARS Saturday is FUSION with DJ Peter Castle’s char t/club remixes

l Sunday: POP!CANDY with DJ Claire Fuller’s pick & mix of new/retro pop tunes

movie stars Goodlad & John Strap 9pm, free membership @ www jamiehp co uk

l SUBLINE Brace Yourself 9pm

FRIDAY 19

l AFFINITY BAR Good Friday Cabaret: Charlie Hides 8pm; DJ Liquid Gold 9pm

l AMSTERDAM Miss Jason’s Easter

Egg Hunt with prizes 9.30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Camptastic Good Friday: DJ Trick + Baga Chipz 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Good Friday: live appearance from Ian Elmslie of Katrina and The Boy 7pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Good

Friday Glitter: DJ David Noakes 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Easter Par ty: DJ Cee 3pm

l BRUNSWICK PUB Lady Gaga Par ty with Paul Diello, Alfie Ordinary, Miss

Disney, Dick Day & Rose Randles 9pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Good Friday

Club: hot cross buns & reg menu 12pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fabulous Friday: DJ Morgan Fabulous 9pm

l CROWN KEMPTOWN Disco 6pm

l ENVY Polyglamorous: LGBT+/queer night 10pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Miss

Jason 9.30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Good Friday Brighton Belles: local cabaret stars & guests 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN cabaret: Kryan Shayne 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE DJ Havoxx 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Easter Bank Holiday cabaret: Gabriella Parrish 6.30pm & 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN Easter Fundraiser for Rainbow Fund: Jason Thorpe & guests 9pm

l SUBLINE Easter: Nailed 10pm

l ZONE cabaret: Davina Sparkle 10pm

SATURDAY 20

l AFFINITY BAR Easter Cabaret: Pat Clutcher 6pm; karaoke: Pat Clutcher 7pm

l AMSTERDAM Karaoke with Jason Thorpe 9.30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Easter Gaywatch Beach Par ty 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 4pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Fusion: DJ Peter Castle 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Saturday Night Fever: DJ

King Sol + Easter roof terrace par ty 7pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fierce: DJs 9pm

M A R I N E T A V E R N

l 13 Broad St, BN2 1TJ, Tel: 01273 905578, www marinetavern co uk

l OPEN daily from 12pm

l FOOD daily from 12–9pm: Curr y & Quiz £1 on Tue from 7 30pm (quiz star ts

9pm), roasts £8 each every Sunday 12–5pm, booking advised

l DRINK PROMOS Wed from 7pm: Pink Pound Night with drinks from £1

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Fri: live enter tainment at 9pm: Jukebox Disco (5), STAND UP COMEDY OPEN MIC (12), Kr yan Shayne (19) and Pat Clutcher (26) Kr yan Shayne (19): is back for another hilarious show of the par ty game for horrible people, CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY!

Kryan says: “Come down for your chance to play, win prizes and hear the Poison but Tasty tones of this Killer Queen!”

l REGUL ARS Sat: Candi R ell’s CABARET & KARAOKE at 8 30pm

l Sun: DRAG OPEN MIC with Stephanie Von Clitz at 9pm l THROWBACK THURSDAY with 1980s tunes from 8pm; (19) is DRAG ROULET TE from 10pm

l COVENT GARDEN HEALTH SPA @LONDON WC2 Total Fekkin Nude: naked par ty for all 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Davina Sparkle 9.30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Pre-club DJ 7pm

l MARINE TAVERN Candi Rell’s Karaoke & Cabaret Par ty 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE And All That Jazz: Mike Piggott Trio 4pm; DJ Andy the Dandy 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Poppycock 6pm, Cosmic 10pm

P A R I S H O U S E

l REGENCY TAVERN JB’s Jukebox 3pm; cabaret: Kara Van Park 9pm

l SUBLINE Easter In the Man Cave 10pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Man City v Spurs 12.30pm, Newcastle v Southampton 5 30pm

l HORSE FAIR@UNION CLUB: LONDON SE1 roleplay/fetish night: stable lads, stallions & mareswww jamiehp co uk 9pm

l ZONE cabaret: Miss Jason 10pm

l 21 Western Rd, BN3 1AF, T: 01273 724195, www parishousebrighton com

l OPEN daily from 12pm l FOOD served 12pm–close every day

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sun LIVE MUSIC 6pm: Fleur de Paris (7), Dolly Par ton & Carmen Miranda tribute with Sam Chara (14), Louis Checkley & band (21) and Dave Williams & band (28)

l REGUL ARS Mon free LIVE JAZZ with the Nils Solberg-Mick Hamer Trio at 2pm; then 8pm: Chris Coull & band (1), Abi Flynn (8), Simon Spillett & band (15), Paul Richards (22) and the Oli Howe Trio (29) l Tue LIVE MUSIC at 8pm: Smokestack (2), Scott Booth (9), The Stuntmen (16), John Crampton (23) and Sam Chara, Theseus Gerard & Tim Young (30) l Wed free LIVE ACTS 8pm: Gabriel Garrick (3), Andy Panayi & band (10), Dan Car twright (17) and the Jason Henson Trio (24) l Thur free WORLD MUSIC 8pm: Pollito Boogaloo (4), Babou with Abraham de Vega (11), Son Guaranchando (18) and Tres Amigos (25) l Fri PARTY TIME with DJ Havoxx at 9pm l Sat AND ALL THAT JAZZ with live jazz at 4pm: Jorge’s Hot Club Trio (6), Sara Oschlag & band (13), Lawrence Jones Trio (20) and Sam Carlese & band (27); Andy the Dandy DJ at 9pm, free

Q U E E N S A R M S

l 7 George St, BN2 1RH, T: 01273 696873, www theqabrighton com

l OPEN Mon–Fri from 5pm, Sat & Sun from 2pm

l EASTER Fri (19) is Gabriella Parrish’s Bank Holiday Show at 6 30pm and 10pm l Sat (20) is CABARET with Poppycock at 6pm and Cosmic (20) Sunday (21) Bank Holiday Cabaret with Mar tha D’Ar thur at 6 30pm & 8pm and Son of a Tutu at 9pm & 10pm l Kara Van Park’s Musical Bank Holiday Monday (22) at: 6 30pm & 10pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Wed (10) Sally Vate’s 40th Bir thday Par ty at 10pm!

l REGUL ARS MUSICAL MONDAYS with Kara Van Park at 9pm l Tue is Dave Lynn Hour at 9 30pm l Wed the Sally Vate Show at 10pm l Thur CABARET with the Brighton’s Leading Ladies at 10pm: Spice (4), Davina Sparkle (11), Pat Clutcher (18) and Miss Jason (25) l Fri CABARET at 10pm: Allan Jay (5 & 26) and Miss Jason (12) Allan Jay (5 & 26), the dance music recording ar tiste, is renowned for powerful vocals and highenergy performances! The QA say: “The Scottish singer with the big voice is live on stage for your entertainment, banging out the club classic and original material!” l Sat CABARET: Poppycock hour of madness and showbiz delightfulness every week at 6pm; more top acts at 10pm: the Brighton belle herself, Lola Lasagne (6); Stephanie Von Clitz’s (13)’s evening of songs and witty repar tee; Queen of Shade Cosmic (20) with banter and songs; and don’t shimmer but Sparkle with Davina Sparkle (27) l Sunday CABARET and top enter tainment: Mrs Moore (7) at 6 30pm & 10pm, the ADULT PANTO AF TER PARTY (14) at 10pm and Topsie R edfern (28) at 6.30pm & 10pm

SUNDAY 21

l AFFINITY BAR Easter Sunday

Cabaret: Dave Lynn 5pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Wain aka Kara

Van Park 5pm; roasts 12pm-till gone

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Easter Sunday: extended karaoke & par ty 6pm

l BAR BROADWAY Easter Sunday

Showtune Karaoke with Ross Cameron & Sally Vate 8.30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Easter Pop!Candy: DJ Claire Fuller 9pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Bear Bash: free food/raffle 5pm; Easter Sunday roasts with free Easter eggs 12pm– till gone

l CHARLES ST TAP Easter Sunday

cabaret: host Sally Vate + Drag With No

Name 7 30pm; roasts 12pm

l UNION CLUB@LONDON SE1 Stark

Bollock Naked: naked par ty 2pm; gay

adult movie stars: Austin Sugar & Ronnie English 5pm; Near Bollock Naked:

underwear/jockstrap par ty 6pm

l GROSVENOR BAR Bedford Tavern & Grosvenor pres the Easter Bonnet Parade & Drag Races 1pm

l LEGENDS BAR Easter Sunday cabaret: Miss Jason 3 30pm; roasts 12 30–4pm

l MARINE TAVERN roasts 12-5pm; Drag Open Mic: Stephanie Von Clitz 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Dave Williams & band 6pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Easter Bank Hol cabaret: Mar tha D’Ar thur 6 30pm & 8pm, Son of a Tutu 9pm & 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN roasts 12-6pm

l SUBLINE Easter: Renaissance with tunes & Easter Egg hunt for prizes 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Ever ton v Man Utd 1 30pm, Cardiff v Liverpool 4pm

l ZONE Easter Sunday Cabaret: JP Christian 6pm

MONDAY AT 9PM KARA VAN PARK’S MUSICAL MONDAYS

BANK HOLIDAY MON 22 APR 6.30PM & 10PM

TUESDAY AT 9.30PM THE DAVE LYNN HOUR

WEDNESDAY AT 10PM

THE SALLY VATE SHOW

WED 10 APR SALLY’S 40TH BIRTHDAY PARTY

THURSDAY AT 10PM

4APR SPICE

BRIGHTON’S LEADING LADIES

11APR DAVINA SPARKLE

18APR PAT CLUTCHER 25APR MISS JASON

SATURDAY

EVERY WEEK POPPY COCK AT 6PM

CABARET AT 10PM

6APR LOLA LASAGNE

13APR STEPHANIE VON CLITZ

20APR COSMIC

27APR DAVINA SPARKLE

SUNDAY

7APR MRS MOORE

14APR ADULT PANTO AFTER PARTY

21APR MARTHA D’ARTHUR 6.30PM &9PM SON OF A TUTU 8PM & 10PM

28APR TOPSIE REDFERN

EASTER

FRIDAY AT 10PM

5APR ALLAN JAY

12APR MISS JASON

19APR GABRIELLA PARISH 6.30PM & 10PM

26APR ALLAN JAY

BANK HOLIDAY WEEKEND FRI 19 GABRIELLA PARISH 6.30PM & 10PM SAT 20 POPPY COCK 6PM COSMIC 10PM SUN 21 MARTHA D’ARTHUR 6.30PM &8PM SON OF A TUTU 9PM & 10PM MON 22 KARA VAN PARK 6.30PM & 10PM

R E G E N C Y T A V E R N

l 32-34 Russell Sq, Brighton BN1 2EF T: 01273 325 652, www regencytavern co uk

l OPEN Sun–Wed 12–11pm, Thur 12pm–12am, Fri & Sat 12pm–1am

l FOOD Tue–Sat 12–8pm, bookings recommended for Sunday roasts 12–6pm, two for £19 95

l EASTER Fri (19) is the EASTER FUNDRAISER for the R ainbow Fund with Jason Thorpe & guests at 9pm

l REGUL ARS Fri (12) is CABA-REGENCY with the best talent that Brighton’s student and recently graduated community has to offer from 8.30pm l Fri (26) is live music with Daniel Under wood at 8pm l Sat is JB’S JUKEBOX at 3pm; top acts on stage at 9pm, free entry all day and night This month’s line-up: Spice (6), Fannie Coil (13), Kara Van Park (20) and Debbie Bridge (27)

A versatile singer, Debbie Bridge (27) delights in transforming any event into one full of emotion, laughter and elegance!

Debbie says: “I live to inspire confidence, power and truth I’ve performed for British royalty, at Abbey Road Studios, the Savoy Theatre and to people on the London Underground! I’ve spoofed an operatic Princess Leia, have been a water pistol, raffle ticket selling gay cabaret singer, sung in the West End and I’ve coerced, with my song, sparkling wine from picnicking audience members!”

MONDAY 22

l AFFINITY BAR Easter Monday

Cabaret: Pat Clutcher 5pm

l AMSTERDAM Easter Monday

breakfasts & bloody marys 11am

l BAR BROADWAY Easter Monday Jukebox 6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Glitter Curious : LGBT+ sing-along par ty with DJ Trick + Miss Disney 11pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Easter Monday Cabaret: Loose-ly Women with Mrs Moore, Mar tha D’Ar thur & Sally Vate 7.30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Miss Jason’s Easter Monday Madness 9 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Nils SolbergMick Hamer Trio 2pm; Chris Coull 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Kara Van Park’s Bank Hol Musical Monday 6 30pm & 10pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Chelsea v Burnley 8pm

TUESDAY 23

l AFFINITY BAR Free Jukebox 12pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Crewsday: DJ Lewis Osborne 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Piano Singalong with the Regency Singers 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Curry & Quiz with Nat 7 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live blues: Yellow Funk Machine 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Dave Lynn Hr 9 30pm

T H R E E J O L L Y B U T C H E R S

l 59 Nor th Rd, BN1 1YD, Tel: 01273 608571, www 3jollybutchers com

l OPEN daily from 12pm

l FOOD Sat (13 & 27) from 12 30pm: Pre-Home Match Warm Up with Pie & Pint £9 before Brighton matches

l SPORT Live football on the big screens, see listings for fixtures

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Wed (6) is OPEN MIC night with Waterbear Music College from 7pm

R O T T I N G D E A N C L U B

l 89 High St, Rottingdean, BN2 7HE, Tel: 01273 309529 f therottingdeanclub

l FOOD served daily; ask at the bar for full menu

l MEMBERSHIP The Rottingdean Club is a members’ bar in the hear t of the village with regular enter tainment, great food, welcoming staff, a large garden with lager and cider on draught and free Wi-Fi For membership details email bar@therottingdeanclub co uk The Rottingdean Club says: "We’re a private members’ bar where there’s always a warm welcome We offer the comforts of a traditional pub with modern standards of service and superb food!”

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sun (7): get into the groove at the launch of SUNDAY SOUNDS with Duncan and Lizzie providing the enter tainment from 6pm

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Fri 26) is with Wain Douglas (aka Kara Van Park) live on stage at 8 30pm Rottingdean Club say: “ Wain is a multi-talented, versatile singer who be bringing his show to us once again on 26th April!”

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sat (27) is THE RATPACK V BEATLES with vocalist Steve Brown from 8.30pm Rottingdean Club say: “Following a HUGE success with his Beatles v Buddy Holly evening, we have the ace Stevie Brown back in the building for his take on The Ratpack and Beatles this time ”

WEDNESDAY 24

l AFFINITY BAR Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Midweek Chill 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Tabitha Wild’s Play Your Cards Right 9pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Ice: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Student Sessions 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Mrs Moore’s Bona

Bingo Bonanza: THT fundraiser 8 30pm

l MARINE TAVERN Pink Pound 7pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Oli Howe Trio 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Sally Vate Show 10pm

l SUBLINE Hump Day 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Man Utd v Man City 8pm

l VELVET JACKS Quiz 7pm

THURSDAY 25

l AFFINITY BAR Lydia L’Showbies: Lydia L’Scabies performs homages to TV, film & musical theatre 10pm & 11pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Weekend WarmUp 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Ross Cameron’s Quiz with prizes 8.30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Now That’s What I Call Legends: DJ Claire Fuller 11pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS £300 Big Cash Quiz 9pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Throwback Thursday 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR Abel Mabel’s Bingo 8.30pm

l H-PARTYBOYS POOL PARTY

@UNION CLUB: LONDON SE1 fit 1840-year-old guys in towels, trunks or nothing 7 30pm, apply: jamiehp co uk

l MARINE TAVERN Throwback

Thursday 80s Night 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE World Music: Tres Amigos 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Brighton’s Leading Ladies cabaret: Miss Jason 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN Karaoke/open mic with Jason Thorpe 8pm

l SUBLINE Brace Yourself 9pm

FRIDAY 26

l AFFINITY BAR DJ Liquid Gold 8pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Stephanie Von Clitz 9 30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY 7 Upstairs 9pm

S U B L I N E

l 129 St James' St, BN2 1TH, T: 01273 624100, www sublinebrighton co uk

l OPEN Sun, Wed & Thur from 9pm, 10pm Fri & Sat

l DRINK PROMOS Members’ Drinks Deals: Beers & wines £4, two cocktailsfor-£12 on Weds

l EASTER Fri (19): Kick-star t Easter weekend at NAILED, £3/£5 and drink promos until midnight l Sat (20) is IN THE MAN CAVE, £3/£5, drink promos until midnight l Sun (21) is RENAISSANCE with an Easter Egg hunt for prizes, £3/£5

D

l ONE FOR THE DIARY Sun (28) is the CUM IN YOUR PANTS underwear par ty with DJ Screwpulous, entry £3 for members or £5 Subline say: “Undress to impress at our monthly underwear party! The long cold winter is finally over so cast aside your wooly pullies for the night as we'll be keeping things hot down here ”

l REGUL ARS Wed (3) is FLOSS, the queer, progressive, open and alternative experience with free candy floss, electronic music, pop-up performance and visual ar t from 10pm, £5 on the door with proof of event share l Wed (excl 3) is HUMP DAY, all welcome and free entry! l Thur (11) is JOYSTICK JOCKEYS gaymers night from 9pm l Fri (12) is DIRTY TACKLE spor tswear night, £3 in kit or £5 l Sat (6) is LEATHERMEN SOUTH MEET for guys who love guys in leather! Free in leather /rubber, or £5 The organisers say: “The Leathermen South crew will be back in Subline en masse on April 6th! Expect guys in full leather or rubber, plus videos, a resident DJ, a couple of dark rooms, lockers, coatcheck, and a changing room We look forward to seeing you all again then!”

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 5pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Glitter: DJ David Noakes 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Par ty with DJ Cee 7pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Friday Club 6pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fabulous Friday: DJ Morgan Fabulous 9pm

l CROWN KEMPTOWN Disco 6pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Sally Vate 9 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Brighton Belles: local cabaret stars & guests 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN cabaret: Pat Clutcher 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE DJ Havoxx 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS cabaret: Allan Jay 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN live music: Daniel Underwood 8pm

l ROT TINGDEAN CLUB live music: Wain Douglas 8 30pm

l SUBLINE Steam 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Liverpool v Huddersfield 8pm

l ZONE cabaret: Stone & Street 10pm

SATURDAY

27

l AFFINITY BAR Camp Cabaret: Pat Clutcher 6pm; karaoke: Pat Clutcher 7pm

l AMSTERDAM Karaoke with Jason Thorpe 9.30pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Submissive Saturday 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Jukebox 4pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS Fusion: DJ Peter Castle 11pm

l BOUTIQUE Saturday Night Fever: DJ King Sol 7pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Fierce: DJs 9pm

l COVENT GARDEN HEALTH SPA

@LONDON WC2 Total Fekkin Nude: naked par ty for all 9pm

l GROSVENOR BAR cabaret: Trudi Styles & the Piano Man 9.30pm

V E L V E T J A C K S

l 50 Norfolk Sq, BN1 2PA, Tel: 07720 661290 tinyurl.com/VelvetJacks

l OPEN Tue–Thur 4–11 30pm, Fri & Sat 12–11 30pm, Sun 1–11pm

l FOOD Tara’s Tiffin (Indian & Sri Lankan food) every Thur, Fri & Sat

l EASTER Lots of Easter shenanigans, check with the venue for more info!

l ONE FOR THE DIARY It’s back! Every Wed is QUIZ NIGHT from 7pm

l LEGENDS BAR Pre-club DJ 7pm

l MARINE TAVERN Candi Rell’s Karaoke & Cabaret Par ty 8pm

l PARIS HOUSE And All That Jazz: Lawrence JonesTrio 4pm; DJ Andy the Dandy 9pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Poppycock 6pm, Davina Sparkle 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN JB’s Jukebox

3pm; cabaret: Debbie Bridge 9pm

l ROT TINGDEAN CLUB Ratpack v Beatles 8.30pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS Pre Home Match Warm Up with Pie & Pint

£9: 12pm; Spurs v West Ham 12 30pm

l SUBLINE The Men’s Room: DJ Screwpulous 9pm

l ZONE cabaret: Sally Vate 10pm

SUNDAY 28

l AFFINITY BAR cabaret: Jade Justine 5pm

l AMSTERDAM cabaret: Jamie Watson 5pm; roasts 12pm-till gone

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY karaoke 7pm

l BAR BROADWAY Fireplace Sessions pres: Paul Middleton 8 30pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Pop!Candy: DJ Claire Fuller 9pm

l CAMELFORD ARMS Bear Bash: free food/raffle 5pm; roasts/select menu 12pm– till gone

l CHARLES ST TAP cabaret: host Sally

Vate + Miss Penny 7 30pm; Sally’s Rock & Roll Bingo 8 30pm; roasts 12pm

l UNION CLUB@LONDON SE1 Stark

Bollock Naked: naked par ty 2pm; gay adult movie stars: James Castle & TBA 5pm; Near Bollock Naked: underwear/ jockstrap par ty 6pm

l LEGENDS BAR 50 Years Golden

Jubilee: The Grande Dame Maisie

Trollette celebrates a life in cabaret with guests, all day from 3 30pm; roasts 12.30–4pm

l MARINE TAVERN roasts 12-5pm; Drag Open Mic: Stephanie Von Clitz 9pm

l PARIS HOUSE live music: Louis Checkley & band 6pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS double cabaret: Topsie Redfern 6.30pm & 10pm

l REGENCY TAVERN roasts 12-6pm

l SUBLINE Cum in Your Pants: underwear par ty 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Burnley v Man City 2pm, Man Utd v Chelsea 4.30pm

MONDAY 29

l AFFINITY BAR All Day Karaoke 12pm; Karaoke with Tommy Tanker (aka Pat Clutcher) 7pm

T H E Z O N E

l 33 St James’ St, BN2 1RF, Tel: 01273 682249, www.zonebrighton.co.uk

l OPEN 11am Sun–Thur, 10am Fri & Sat

l DRINK PROMOS all day every day, excluding Fri & Sat night

l EASTER Easter Sunday CABARET (21) with JP Christian at 6pm JP Christian, aka the Human Jukebox, now has a reper toire of over 400 songs and he can apply himself to a number of styles from musicals to pop, rock to soul and swing from the last 60+ years Incredibly versatile, and with a broad vocal range, JP’s cabaret sets are like a potted history of popular music!

l REGUL ARS Friday with top CABARET at 10pm: Marsha Mallow (5), Topsie

R edfern (12), Davina Sparkle (19) and Stone & Street (26) l Sat CABARET with sensational acts at 10pm: Spice (6), Sally Vate (13 & 27) and Miss Jason (20)

l BAR BROADWAY Classics Jukebox 6pm

l BASEMENT CLUB@LEGENDS

Glitter Curious : LGBT+ sing-along par ty with DJ Trick + Miss Disney 11pm

l CHARLES ST TAP Gaymers Night: consoles, board/card games 8 30pm

l LEGENDS BAR Miss Jason’s Monday Madness 9 30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live jazz: Nils

Solberg-Mick Hamer Trio 2pm; Chris Coull 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Kara Van Park’s Musical Mondays 9pm

l THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS live football: Leicester v Arsenal 8pm

TUESDAY 30

l AFFINITY BAR Free Jukebox 12pm

l BAR 7@CRAWLEY Crewsday: DJ Lewis Osborne 9pm

l BAR BROADWAY Piano Singalong with the Regency Singers 9pm

l MARINE TAVERN Curry & Quiz with Nat 7.30pm

l PARIS HOUSE live blues: Yellow Funk Machine 8pm

l QUEEN’S ARMS Dave Lynn Hr 9 30pm

WEDNESDAY 1 MAY

l CROWN KEMPTOWN Finland May Day: Finnish tunes, drinks & treats 6pm

THE EDGE & BOX BAR SOUTHAMPTON

l Compton Walk, SO14 0BH, Tel: 023 8036 6163, www.theedgesouthampton.com

l OPEN The Edge: 10pm everyday l The Box Bar: 7pm Tue–Sat

l FOOD Box Bar: 7–10pm Tue–Sat

l HAPPY HOURS The Box Bar: 2-4-1 cocktails 7–late Tue, Thur & Fri (till 8pm on Wed & Sat); The Edge: Mon £1 50 shots & £2 house doubles, Wed £1 50 drinks, Sun£1 50 singles/£3 doubles

l EASTER Sat (20) the EASTER EGG HUNT with DJs Phil Marriott, Neil Sackley, KT and Darcy Buckland chucking out cracking tunes from 10pm Find the Golden Egg to win a free Easter cocktail, hidden crème eggs everywhere!

l REGUL ARS Sun is CABARET V KARAOKE with drag host Aura Jay l Mon is MATES RATES with DJ Darcy Buckland l Tue is TIME OUT with DJ Ar thur Hutchinson pop/r&b l Wed is BEAUTY & THE BALLS BINGO with host Miss Disney, prizes every round from 6pm, KARAOKE after with Bella Black 10.30pm Stick around for BAR 150 with DJs Missy B, & Lee Harris from 10pm l Thur is DOUBLE TROUBLE QUIZ with drag hosts Aura Jay & Bella Black at 7pm; then GET DIRTY with DJ Liam Searle l Fri is GLOW: UV lights and guest DJs l Sat is THE BIG ONE at 10pm with 3 bars, 2 dancefloors & DJs: Luke Anthony, KT & Darcy Buckland (6), Dave Cooper & KT (13), King K, Patrick Cawley & KT (27)

MONDAY 1

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 20Something: DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor 9pm SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Mates Rates: DJ Darcy Buckland 10pm

TUESDAY 2

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Cherry’s Bingo & cabaret with Mary Golds 8pm SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Time Out DJs 11pm

l EDGE Time Out: DJ Arthur Hutchinson 11pm

WEDNESDAY 3

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Big Navy Night Out with Aura Jay’s karaoke 9pm SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Beauty and the Balls Bingo: host Miss Disney & prizes 8pm; Bella Black’s karaoke 10.30pm

l EDGE Bar 150: DJs Missy B & Lee Harris 10pm

THURSDAY 4

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Night on the Lashes: Lucinda Lashes, karaoke & tunes 9pm SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Double Trouble Quiz: drag

hosts Aura Jay & Bella Black 8pm

l EDGE Get Dir ty: DJ Liam Searle 10pm

FRIDAY 5

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD We Love Fridays: DJ Toby Lawrence 9pm SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR GLOW: DJs 10pm

l EDGE GLOW: DJs & UV lights 11pm

SATURDAY 6

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Blank: DJs Missy B & Rob Davis 9pm SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR The Big One: DJ KT 11pm

l EDGE The Big One: DJs Luke Anthony, KT & Darcy Buckland 10pm

SUNDAY 7

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 90s-Now 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Aura Jay’s Cabaret v Karaoke 10pm

MONDAY 8

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 20Something: DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Mates Rates: DJ Darcy Buckland 10pm

HAMPSHIRE BOULEVARD PORTSMOUTH

l Hampshire Terrace, Southsea, PO1 2QN, Tel: 02392 297509

l OPEN Sun & Mon 9pm, Tue–Sat 7pm

l DRINK DEALS various deals on Sun, £1 50 drinks on Mon

l EASTER Good Friday (19) the POPCORN PARTY with DJ Toby Lawrence spinning tunes to make you pop 9pm

l Easter Saturday (20) with DJ Missy B & Luke Ennor

l Easter Sunday (21) is HOT TUB PARTY with DJ Luke Ennor & Toby Lawrence with a steamy set!

l REGUL ARS Thur is A NIGHT ON THE LASHES with the legendary Lucinda Lashes hosting karaoke and dishing the ditties 9pm, free entry l WE LOVE FRIDAYS with DJ Toby Lawrence, £3 b4

10pm/£5 after l Sat is BLANK with DJs R ob Davis & Missy B with the latest char t remixes from 9pm l Sun is 90S–NOW, free entry l Mon 20SOMETHING with banging tunes from DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor, £5 l Win up to £500 every Tue at CHERRY’S BINGO from 8pm with top acts: Mar y Golds (2), KY Kelly (9), Drag With No Name (16), Cosmic (23) and Cher yl Hole & Herr (30) Every hole’s a goal with Cher yl Hole (30) bringing dance moves, death drops, meme wor thy faces and catchphrases galore! You won’t get more of an enter tainment package than from the queen of Essex who, since storming onto the UK drag scene in 2016, has hosted many Drag Race alumni across the country, performed internationally and even had a stint on BBC Breakfast Are you ready for this candy? l Wednesday is BIG NAVY NIGHT OUT with host Aura- Jay’s KARAOKE, free entry

TUESDAY 9

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Cherry’s Bingo & cabaret with KY Kelly 8pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Time Out DJs 11pm

l EDGE Time Out: DJ Ar thur Hutchinson 11pm

WEDNESDAY 10

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Big Navy Night Out with Aura Jay’s karaoke 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Beauty and the Balls Bingo: host Miss Disney & prizes 6pm; Bella Black’s karaoke 10 30pm

l EDGE Bar 150: DJs Missy B & Lee Harris 10pm

THURSDAY 11

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Night on the Lashes: Lucinda Lashes, karaoke & tunes 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Double Trouble Quiz: drag hosts Aura Jay & Bella Black 8pm

l EDGE Get Dir ty: DJ Liam Searle 10pm

FRIDAY 12

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD We Love Fridays: DJ Toby Lawrence 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR GLOW: DJs 10pm

l EDGE GLOW: DJs & UV lights 11pm

SATURDAY 13

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Blank: DJs Missy B & Rob Davis 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR The Big One: DJ KT 11pm

l EDGE The Big One: DJs Dave Cooper & KT 10pm

SUNDAY 14

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 90s-Now 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Aura Jay’s Cabaret v Karaoke 10pm

MONDAY 15

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 20Something: DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Mates Rates: DJ Darcy Buckland 10pm

TUESDAY 16

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Cherry’s Bingo & cabaret with Drag With No Name 8pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Time Out DJs 11pm

l EDGE Time Out: DJ Arthur Hutchinson 11pm

WEDNESDAY 17

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Big Navy Night Out with Aura Jay’s karaoke 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Beauty and the Balls Bingo: host Miss Disney & prizes 6pm; Bella Black’s karaoke 10 30pm

l EDGE Bar 150: DJs Missy B & Lee Harris 10pm

THURSDAY 18

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD A Night on the Lashes: Lucinda Lashes, karaoke & tunes 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Double Trouble Quiz: drag hosts Aura Jay & Bella Black 8pm

l EDGE Get Dir ty: DJ Liam Searle 10pm

FRIDAY 19

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Easter Popcorn Par ty with DJ Toby Lawrence 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR GLOW: DJs 10pm

l EDGE GLOW: DJs & UV lights 11pm

SATURDAY 20

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Easter: DJs Missy B & Luke Ennor 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Easter Egg Hunt: DJs Phil Marriott, Neil Sackley, KT & Darcy Buckland, find the golden egg to win free cocktail 10pm

l EDGE Easter Egg Hunt: DJs Phil Marriott, Neil Sackley, KT & Darcy Buckland + find the golden egg to win a free cocktail 10pm

SUNDAY 21

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Easter Hot Tub Par ty: DJs Luke Ennor & Toby Lawrence 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Aura Jay’s Cabaret v Karaoke 10pm

MONDAY 22

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 20Something: DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Mates Rates: DJ Darcy Buckland 10pm

TUESDAY 23

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Cherry’s Bingo & cabaret with Cosmic 8pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Time Out DJs 11pm

l EDGE Time Out: DJ Ar thur Hutchinson 11pm

WEDNESDAY 24

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Big Navy Night Out with Aura Jay’s karaoke 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Beauty & the Balls Bingo: host Miss Disney & prizes 6pm; Bella Black’s karaoke 10 30pm

l EDGE Bar 150: DJs Missy B & Lee Harris 10pm

THURSDAY 25

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD A Night on the Lashes: Lucinda Lashes + karaoke & tunes 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Double Trouble Quiz: drag hosts

Aura Jay & Bella Black 8pm

l EDGE Get Dir ty: DJ Liam Searle 10pm

FRIDAY 26

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD We Love Fridays: DJ Toby Lawrence 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR GLOW: DJs 10pm

l EDGE GLOW: DJs & UV lights 11pm

SATURDAY 27

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Blank: DJs Missy B & Rob Davis 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR The Big One: DJs 7pm

l EDGE The Big One: DJs King K, Patrick Cawley & KT 10pm

SUNDAY 28

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 90s-Now 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Aura Jay’s Cabaret v Karaoke 10pm

MONDAY 29

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD 20Something: DJs Lee Harris & Luke Ennor 9pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l EDGE Mates Rates: DJ Darcy Buckland 10pm

TUESDAY 30

PORTSMOUTH

l HAMPSHIRE BLVD Cherry’s Bingo & cabaret with Cheryl Hole & Herr 8pm

SOUTHAMPTON

l BOX BAR Time Out DJs 11pm

l EDGE Time Out: DJ Arthur Hutchinson 11pm

JULIAN CL ARY: BORN TO MINCE

The Dome, New Road,, Brighton Box office: 01273 709709

)

JULIAN CLARY: BORN TO MINCE

(Sun 28) In this outrageously camp new show, (that he was going to call Bed Knobs & Knee Pads but was advised might not sell too well in Harrogate), renowned homosexual Julian Clary will bare his soul in the interests of light entertainment. He’ll murder some well known songs along the way, read you a sneak preview from his next memoir, A Night At The Lubricant, and make withering remarks about punters foolish enough to sit in the front row.

A NIGHT OF 21ST CENTURY FOLK MUSIC

Unitarian Church, Brighton ) A NIGHT OF 21ST CENTURY FOLK MUSIC and fundraiser for the Peter Tatchell Foundation (7pm, Fri 26), with special guest speaker Peter Tatchell and live music from Naomi Bedford & Paul Simmonds, Brighton-based BBC Radio Folk Award nominees singing Appalachian songs of English & Scottish origin, ‘Naomi is the best singer of Appalachian ballads that I know’ Shirley Collins; Lisa Knapp, English folk singer and BBC Radio Folk Award winner, ‘Fearlessly original talent’ fRoots; Robb Johnson, ‘creator of some of the most potent songs of the last decade’ fRoots; Sarah Clarke Kent, Sue Tyhurst and Michele Allardyce give it some welly with searing vocals and groovy rhythms, a mix of folk, blues and indie music; Bird in the Belly, Brightonbased folk group ***** ‘folk album of the year ’ Sunday Express Tickets £16 from Resident Records, Brighton and Union Music Store, Lewes (no booking fee from Union Music Store) and www.wegotickets.com/event/464777

BENT DOUBLE

Komedia, Gardner St, Brighton Box office: 0845 293 8480 ) BENT DOUBLE (Sun 7). A gayfriendly, irreverent night of fun and frolics hosted by Zoe Lyons (Mock

The Week and Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow). Featuring headliner Mary Bourke with James Danielewski, Sam Savage and Rosie Jones.

BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY

Phil Starr Pavilion, Victoria Gardens, Brighton, Box office: www.brightonticketbooth.com ) BIG DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS PUSSY (Thu 4–Sun 14). The Alternative Panto Brighton returns with a saucy retelling filled with double entendres delivered by a stellar cast of Brighton entertainers and a sprinkle of West End and international performers Can Big Dick Whittington (Jason Lee) win Alice’s (Lola Lasagne) heart, to the disappointment of the loveable Wicky Woo (Allan Jay)? Will her father, Alderman Fitz-Tightly (Christopher Howard), put a stop to that and marry Alice

off to the Sultan of Gran Canaria to save his shop? Can Dick’s Pussy (Miss Jason) help him keep them on track purrrfectly? Whatever happens, Sara-Lee, the cook (Sally Vate), is there to keep an eye on them! That is as long as Queen Rat (Davina Sparkle) doesn’t interfere and get her way of becoming Mayor of Brighton town with the help from her chief, Ratling (Stephanie Von Clitz) This tale couldn’t be told without Fairy Vape-Juice (Dave Lynn) pointing Dick in the right direction!

BRIGHTON CENTRE

Kings Road, Brighton Box office: 0844 847 1515

) LEGENDS LIVE (Sun 7) Rockfest featuring Suzi Quatro, David Essex, Les McKeown’s Bay City Rollers and Showaddywaddy

) UB40 (Mon 8): A REAL LABOUR OF LOVE tour featuring hits such as Red Red Wine, Cherry Oh Baby and Rat In Mi Kitchen

THE BRUNSWICK Holland Rd, Hove, www.thebrunswick.net

) AL START: MAMAS & PAPAS ROCK (2pm, Sat 6). Join Al and special guests for an afternoon of great kids songs, silly stories, games, prizes and kids’ open mic. Suitable for primary school age children and their little siblings.

) EL GEEBEE TEA QUEUE (Sun 14). An evening of LGBT+ comedy and cabaret featuring: Paul Moore, who is on a mission to educate straight people on the intricacies of gay sex Just how realistic was Brokeback Mountain? And is there really a sexy way to get out of

skinny jeans? British-based Italian artist Valerio Lysander performs pop/folk songs influenced by the opera/classical music His songwriting looks at the world with optimism and a full emotional spectrum. Travis Eddie is a female singer/songwriter, guitarist, drummer and front woman of allgirl band, She Said Yes. Sam Dickinson is a singer-songwriter from Newcastle and presenter on the LGBT+ radio station, Pride Radio Emma Clowsley delivers a ‘curlwind’ of emotions through poetry and spoken word

CAROLINE OF BRUNSWICK Ditchling Road, Brighton www.brownpapertickets.com

) FUNNY GIRLS (Fri 12) Julie Jepson hosts a night of fabulous female funnies with stand-up, musical comedy and improv

) SLEEP PARALYSIS (Sun 21). Join Fuchsia Von Steel and her guests for a unique blend of glamour, grotesque and comedy in an unforgettable evening.

CHEER UP MOLLYS

The John Seldon, Half Moon Lane, Salvington, Worthing ) Cheer Up Mollys (7 30pm, Sat 6): Sussex-based folk, acoustic and Americana band are playing a fundraiser for Wadars Animal Rescue ‘Unique vocal arrangements with beautiful mandolin, ukulele and guitar - a gorgeous performance!’ Brighton Folk, Roots & Acoustic. Adv tickets £7.50 from Wadars (01903 247111) or thecheerupmollys.co.uk, £9 on door.

NEEDLEWRITERS

John Harvey Tavern, Bear Yard, Cliffe High St, Lewes BN7 2AN ) NEEDLEWRITERS presents Maria Jastrzębska, Kay Syrad and John Usher (Thurs 4) Needlewriters is a co-operative of poets and writers in Lewes, who present an evening of poetry and prose, showcasing their finest writers in a friendly and welcoming venue Maria Jastrzębska co-edited Queer In Brighton’s most recent collection, The True Story of Cowboy Hat And Ingénue. Tickets £5, or £3 for students/unwaged and claiming benefit at the door on the night.

ROTTERDAM

Theatre Royal, New Rd, Brighton, Box office: 08448 717650 ) ROTTERDAM (Mon 8–Wed 10). It's New Year in Rotterdam, and Alice has finally plucked up the courage to email her parents and tell them she's gay. But before she can hit send, her girlfriend Fiona reveals that he’s always identified as a man and now wants to start living as one named Adrian As Adrian begins his transition, Alice must face a question she never thought she'd ask does this mean she's straight? A bittersweet comedy about gender, sexuality and being a long way from home.

‘Another reminder - warm, witty and wise - of the stupidity of thinking that there are only two genders’ Time Out.

ALL THAT JAZZ

) THE ART ENSEMBLE OF CHICAGO and Associated Ensembles (ECM). I hesitate to recommend this mighty set too highly, as it currently retails for £72 on that well-known river site. But it is a wonder: a box set of 18 albums over 21 CDs celebrating the 50 years of the birth of both the Art Ensemble of Chicago and ECM records in 1969 The box rounds up not just the Art Ensemble’s five ECM sets but also a further nine sets headed up by trumpeter Lester Bowie or reedsman Roscoe Mitchell, two of its founding members, and the remaining four by related musicians. The Art Ensemble was a force of nature, five musicians who played, as their slogan stated, “Great Black Music – from the Ancient to the Future.” They could play bebop and New Orleans marching music, as well as deliver avant-garde sonic explorations that blew the mind with their spacious use of time and silence They also dressed to kill: trumpeter Lester Bowie wearing a white lab coat and sporting an interesting forked goatee, the rest in face paint and African costumes, the stage adorned with carpets and hanging fabrics, their usual collection of jazz instruments enhanced by every possible type of gong, drum and percussion They put on a show, which often lasted hours, and while obviously best heard live, their recorded output did them more than justice. This set is probably for completists only, but it is still aweinspiringly wonderful.

THE BRIGHTON FRINGE

As usual, May’s Brighton Fringe makes up in jazz gigs what the main Festival lacks.

) Herbie’s Jazz Breakfast (May 5–June 2), Brighton Spiegeltent, Old Steine Gardens.

) Jazz In The Afternoon: Julie Roberts & Michael Hinton (May 10 ): Piano and vocals at Friends’ Meeting House, Ship Street.

) Barb Jungr: Bob, Brel & Me (May 15): Chanteuse Barb Jungr turns her attention to some Bob Dylan and Jacques Brel songs she has never before performed on stage Komedia, Gardner Street

) Round Midnight: The Magic & Music Of Thelonoius Monk (May 17

): A vocal and musical tribute to one of modern jazz’s finest pianists Brighton Unitarian Church, New Road

) Swingin’ At The Spiegel (May 18): A Lindy Hop spectacular with an 18-piece band Brighton Spiegeltent, Old Steine Gardens

) A Scattering Of Jazz Jewels! (May 31): An intimate performance of song, story, musical mischief, and jazz, with a theatrical twist. Brighton Unitarian Church, New Road.

) South London Jazz Orchestra Big Swing Face (June 1): Big band music at St Nicholas Church, Church Street.

) And, while not strictly jazz, too good to miss: The Joni Mitchell & James Taylor Story (May 13): A journey through the interwoven lives of these two legends. Komedia, Gardner Street.

LIVE JAZZ IN BRIGHTON

The best jazz is always heard live, and we ’ re fortunate in this city to have a wealth of jazz on most nights of the week. Two particular venues stand out:

) The Paris House: live jazz (8pm Mon & Wed, 4pm Sat, 6pm Sun): good drinks and food, free entry, 21 Western Road, www.the-paris-house.co.uk

) The Verdict (every weekend from 8 30pm): a dedicated jazz club with some top-class acts Prices vary, but the music is always excellent 159 Edward Street, www.verdictjazz.co.uk

ART MATTERS

This month I let me introduce you to two exhibitions in Norwich and Cardiff where I’m showing my work - I hope if you ’ re travelling through you’ll visit and take in what’s inside There’s also more local arts content, so don't despair!

NORWICH CATHEDRAL

www.cathedral.org.uk, www.contemporarybritishpainting.com

) In the Hostry, my work is in a group show of paintings in conjunction with the Contemporary British Painting group (Apr 25–May 16) The exhibition has been curated by Barbara Howey and Norwich-based artist Molly Thomson Private view: Apr 2, 5 30-8pm

RUG GALLERY

Unit 16, The Capitol Centre, Cardiff, instagram.com/rugart.celfryg ) IT LOOKED LIKE A PAINTING I ONCE KNEW (Mar 1–May 26), is a twoperson show where I'm exhibiting a selection of older paintings alongside the works of Lara Davies, who was selected for the John Moore’s Painting Prize in 2018. This is the second exhibition of the recently opened RUG gallery, which is directed by artist John Abell. I’ll be exhibiting in Brighton soon and look forward to giving you an opportunity to see my work in a more immediate way. Watch this space!

PHOENIX GALLERY

Open Wed-Sun, 11am-5pm, www.phoenixbrighton.org ) PROJECT ART WORKS (until Apr 21) is an artist-led organisation based in Hastings and working with children, young people and adults who have complex support needs. Through a personalised and holistic approach, the studio programmes and outreach projects provide freedom and purpose through art The studio is a place where events and happenings unfold, revealing the essential abilities and nature of all those involved. Siddharth Gadiyar's paintings often take two-three hours to complete, in which time Siddharth is completely focused, which is highly unusual and unlike other areas of his life. The resulting images are visibly full of purpose and free from self-conscious restraint.

) MAKING PAINTING + (until Apr 14) in the window gallery features Philip Cole’ s most recent experiments in painting/sculpture. With sources which are loosely drawn from packaging, print media, and the overlooked, his concern is how to combine clearly defined regular areas of colour. Plastic resins are added by pouring and painting, then partially subtracted from the surface, a highly particular approach

CL ASSICAL NOTES

REVIEWS

) WA MOZART, Piano Sonatas, Somm SOMMCD0191 Peter Donohoe launches his series of Piano Sonatas by WA Mozart (1756-91) with a disc containing two Sonatas from Mozart's set of

six, composed in Munich in his late teens, along with his penultimate Sonata, composed in Vienna a couple of years before his death aged just 35 Donohoe also throws in the popular Fantasia in D minor, K284 for good measure. The early Sonatas are full of energy and drive, and as with all Mozart's Piano Sonatas, when played as expertly as they are here, they sound deceptively simple. Donohoe's tempi are on the welljudged steady side, which means that Mozart's frequent rapid runs and arpeggios are always clear and precise The hand-crossing passages in K284 have clarity and poise, and the substantial finale here, a theme and no fewer than 12 variations, has a wonderful arc of development. K280 again appears straightforward, but its first movement surprises with striking chromatic harmonic progressions in the development section, and Donohoe brings out the plaintive lilt of the slow movement, before dancing through the sprightly Presto Again, Donohoe takes a measured approach to the opening movement of K570, which allows space for the ranging harmonies in its development section to be registered The slow movement here is beautifully contemplative, and Donohoe plays the graceful second half with great delicacy, before enjoying the perkiness of the sprightly finale. On the basis of this first volume, Donohoe's Mozart is warm, open and precise, allowing the music to breathe, achieving a fine balance, allowing for moments

of drama without losing classical grace and poise Roll on volume 2!

) FELIX MENDELSSOHN, STRING QUARTETS, Chandos

CHAN20122(2) Another first volume now, this time Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) String Quartets, from the Doric String Quartet Here we have the first and last of Mendelssohn's six published quartets, together with the fifth, spanning from age just 20 to the year of his death, aged 38 (so just three years older than Mozart at his death). If you don't know Mendelssohn's chamber music, then you should - it’s always full of life and energy, as well as incredible invention. The first String Quartet, Op 12 stems from the time of Mendelssohn's infamous Scottish tour that produced the Hebrides Overture and the Scottish Symphony Its opening movement never stops flowing, with warm lyricism as well as a turbulent urgency, and the Doric String Quartet never let that sense of perpetual progress to sag. The canzonetta second movement is light and delicate, and the players skitter through the quicker central section with ease. Following the passionate and striking third movement, the finale is frenzied and again turbulent, with swirling, dizzying lines for the violins, before a surprising quiet

conclusion Mendelssohn referred to the late String Quartet Op 80 as his Requiem for Fanny, his beloved sister had suddenly died following a stroke It’s a work of passion, with its frenzied, nervy opening movement and earnest scherzo with its dark trio section The slow movement is full of yearning, the Dorics bringing this out with beauty of tone throughout, and the finale, with its hints of Schubert's Death And The Maiden, is wild and heartfelt. The String Quartet Op. 44

No 3 was completed just before the birth of his first son in 1838, and it is lively and spirited, with a fleeting scherzo and a beautifully lyrical slow movement that moves from light to shade and back, before an energetic finale full of remarkable invention. The Dorics once again carry the almost relentless energy throughout the work, particularly the lengthy finale Highly recommended

) OLI SPLEEN & BIRDEATSBABY

,

GASLIGHT ILLUMINATIONS

. By way of contrast, I'd like to highlight a local artist, Oli Spleen, who has joined forces with local indie band Birdeatsbaby for his second studio album, Gaslight Illuminations Spleen's work might not be an obvious fit with this column, and he’s hard to categorise, yet this album, with its deft writing for strings and piano, and Spleen's

CONCERTS

soulful and expressive voice, should have broad appeal Written after the death of his father, it touches on deep and dark emotions, and Spleen's closely miked voice is rich and immediate. There are touches of French chanson in the poignant Almost Young, whilst there's more than a dash of country, with steel guitar, in Little Lost, vocals shared between Spleen and Mishkin Fitzgerald Spleen is Bowie-esque in the darkly self-destructive Mother And The Spoon, and the self-destruction, even self-harm of relationships continues in Ghost, which Spleen concludes with an otherworldly, pained falsetto Their cover of Nico & the Velvet Underground's I'll Be Your Mirror is pared back, over simple piano and strings (with a snippet of a Brahms Hungarian Dance on music box at the end!). Hana Maria deserves mention for the strings writing and playing, with some hauntingly glassy strings on Mister Crystal and an improvisatory violin line in the weirdly dark and distorted Turning Tide Listen and download from olispleen.bandcamp.com

Reviews, comments and events: v nicks-classical-notes.blogspot.co.uk t @nickb86uk ) nbclassical@hotmail.co.uk

LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Brighton Dome, www.brightondome.org

Congress Theatre, Eastbourne, 01323 412000, www.eastbournetheatres.co.uk

) The London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä, performs Bax, Sibelius and Grieg’s Piano Concerto, with Jan Lisiecki (piano) (7 30pm, Sat 6, Brighton; 3pm, Sun 7, Eastbourne)

A SSEMBLY HALL, WORTHING 01903 206206, www.worthingtheatres.co.uk

) The Worthing Symphony Orchestra performs Parry, Elgar, Stanford, Delius and Grieg’s Piano Concerto with Arta Arnicane (2.45pm, Sun 7).

LEWES TOWN HALL 07759 878562, www.eastsussexbachchoir.org

) The East Sussex Bach Choir (7 30pm, Sat 13) perform Bach’s St John Passion with the Baroque Collective, conducted by John Hancorn, with soloists Nick Pritchard, Gwen Martin and Rebecca Leggett

CINEMA

) Verdi’s La Forza del Destino, with Anna Netrebko, Jonas Kaufmann and Ludovic Tezier is showing live from the Royal Opera House (Tue 2).

) Then you can see Gounod’s Faust, also live, with Michael Fabiano, Diana Damrau and Erwin Schott (Tue 30).

In a range of local cinemas, including: Duke of York’s/Duke’s at the Komedia, Brighton, Cineworld Eastbourne, and the Picture House, Uckfield. Check for times.

) SPLENDOR SOLIS (Penguin Random House) by Dr Stephen Skinner, Dr Rafal T Prinke, Georgiana Hedesan and Joscelyn Godwin. This, the world’s most famous alchemical manuscript, was written in high gothic, with its origin in Germany around 1582 and now in the British Library after being collected by Charles II Splendor Solis is a beautiful and superb quality book with 22 full colour, breathtaking page miniatures of alchemical subjects in vivid colours; gold with full borders It’s a real wonder and, with its superb translation of the 16th century text, takes us into the world of a renaissance alchemist, at a time when chemistry, physics, maths and spiritual belief were inextricably entwined. Popularly attributed to the legendary figure Salomon Trismosin, the Splendor Solis (Splendour of the Sun) is the most beautiful alchemical manuscript ever made, with fabulous illustrations rich in allegorical and mystical symbolism The paintings are given a fitting showcase in this new edition, accompanied with Joscelyn Godwin’s contemporary translations alongside interpretation from alchemical experts Stephen Skinner and Georgiana Hedesan, and from Rafal T Prinke, authority of Eastern European esoteric manuscripts. Stephen Skinner explains symbolism of text and illustrations, suggesting that they describe the physical process of the alchemical transmutation of base metal into gold. Like Hieronymus Bosch it’s utterly bonkers but also deeply layered in meaning and with their expert interpretation this quartet of authors leads us into this mysterious world.

) NURSERY SCHOOL by GD Grey

This first volume of a series of books concerning the adventures of Alice Darwin and her friend Rachel Katz. Their parents are small holders and spies, who happen to have daughters born within a few days of each other. They proceed to bring their kids up trained in all the various combat arts possible, imagine precocious St Trinians Nijansi and you ’ re halfway there.

insights for readers from beginner to advanced, single to married, and regardless of gender or sexual orientation You’ll learn how to find and use pleasure points, looking at ways to overcome fears and insecurities, then what Porter calls ‘next-level sex tips’, change up your positions, incorporate toys and vibrators, roleplay and how to spark intimacy before, during and after oral sex. An erotic, passionate, engaging and entertaining book which will get you orgasming, or giving great head that never takes itself too seriously If there was a Michelin Muff diving award, Porter would have one

questions about trans men and his reflections on how transition has deepened and changed his relationships with women, makes this book one of the stand out trans narratives of the year Inspiring and honest, this unique memoir of gender transition and coming-of-age proves it’s never too late to find your true identity.

They are bright and schooled at home by some extraordinarily odd people but have an annoying ability for modesty and blending in with their peers. The author, with humour and an interesting obsession with subplots, gives us the early years of this duo’s life. Although you'll need to suspend any safeguarding concerns and a very small font in the print run, it’s an enjoyable enough romp

) THE CUNNILINGUIST: HOW TO GIVE AND RECEIVE GREAT ORAL SEX by Alex B Porter How refreshing - a how to sex book not written with cis men in mind but written by a woman, well versed in sensual passionate pleasure with other women and concentrating her experience in a delightfully humorous and easy to access good c*** eating guide, stuffed with top tips from both ends of the tongue. Porter aims to build your confidence in giving or receiving oral sex; with tested tips, tricks and techniques that any giver or receiver can try It’s delightfully gender non-specific, so has

) THIS ONE LOOKS LIKE A BOY, MY GENDER JOURNEY TO LIFE AS A MAN (Greystone Books) by Lorimer Shenher Since he was a small child, Lorimer knew something for certain: he was a boy The problem was, he was growing up in a girl’s body In this candid and reflective memoir, with a narrative spanning decades, Shenher shares his gender journey, from childhood gender dysphoria to teenage sexual experimentation to early-adult denial of his identity and finally the acceptance that he is trans, culminating in gender reassignment surgery in his 50s Woven in with the bigger stories of his career and personal struggles, Shenher shares his thinking around one of the most important decisions in his life Trans narratives are constantly evolving and this book reminds us of the importance of authentic authors, trans voices, writing about trans experiences from their own perspective. It’s startlingly blunt on occasion, with an attention to detail that gives some of the more complex passages an easy ability to be digested Shenher’s matter of fact dealing with lots of common

) THE PAST AND OTHER THINGS THAT SHOULD STAY BURIED (Simon Pulse) by Shaun David Hutchinson. A good friend will bury your body, a best friend will dig you back up. This book explores the wierd and wonderful world of Dino and his dead-but-not-quitedead ex best friend, July. His parents own a funeral home and death is the family business, so he’s fine with it - he’s just not used to them talking back! July isn’t quite alive, and not quite dead Dino and July attempt to figure out what’s happening, look at why their friendship collapsed and eventually come to an understanding about themselves, each other, and all those grand mysteries of life. Superbly odd and laugh-out-loud funny, it’s a wonderfully emotional book about friendship, acceptance and death itself.

DANCE MUSIC

BY QUEEN JOSEPHINE & KATE WILDBLOOD

ALBUMS

) The daffs are in bloom as and our gander is up Must be the bounce that comes with spring, so here comes some house wonders to keep you on your toes this April

First to get you in the mood we recommend the off the cuff corker that is Eric Copeland’ s Trogg Modal Vol 2 on DFA, followed by the dancefloor hypnotics of Eluize’ s Confide on Craigie Knowes. Add Wrongtom Meets on TruThoughts and all your genre defying needs will be met

If that doesn’t tickle you spring box then Mâhfoud’ s The Fear Of Dying With Potential on Klassified Records, with its emotionally charged electronica, will deliver As will the charming tones of Timmy

Regisford’ s 7pm on Quantize Recordings

Quality from start to finish

As for our longplayers of the month, be it the epic grooves of star compilations

India Gets Physical Vol 1 on Get Physical Music, or Philadelphia Compilation no.2 on Worship Recordings, the Hamburg heat of Smallpeople’ s Afterglow on Smallville, or the utter brilliance of Oded Nir’ s Rooftop Conversations on Suntree Records, each will see you alright this April Just as it should be Enjoy

) Catch Wildblood and Queenie at Club Barbra, B,Please!, Zanzibar Reunion, Club Syndicate, Alfresco Festival and on 1BTN 101.4FM www 1btn fm 1st & 3rd Friday 1-4pm & 4th Weds 5-8pm perfectdistractions.com

WILDBLOOD & QUEENIE’S APRIL 12”

) TECH SUPPORT ‘Hello’ Night Riders Ep Pulse Msc

The boy wonder does good again with another soon to be classic cut.

) FOUK Truffles Heist Recordings

Hip shakin’, booty breakin’ lovers of bumpy house music brilliance.

) LETHERETTE Oh Lord Wulf Records

Like the cool on a ‘letherette’ seat, a Mander House Edits marvel

) AMY DOUGLAS Never Saw It Coming (Justin Strauss remix) DFA

The queen returns with a rework more regal than our Josephine

) LES INFERNO Making Me Sweat Samosa Records

Do yourself a disco favour Go buy Disco Dude Vol 2

) LOVE WILL SAY NO I Won't Promise Love Will Say No

Like the wiggling worm hit the discotheque Just perfect

) CHANEY 39 Times (Confrontation) Skint Records

Repeat this 39 times and you’ll be half way to heaven alright.

) ANGEL MORAES Dancin Wit My Baby Griffintown Records

Check out the Darius Syrossian Remix for a twisted disco destination.

) PROK | FITCH & Kevin Knapp The Homie Repopulate Mars

Brighton’s other fave DJ double act deliver the hometown goods.

) LAUREN FLAX One Man's House is Another Woman's Techno Bunker

Learn from Lauren and one ’ s life of techno will be complete.

DJ PROFILE: DJ TRICK

Well it finally feels like spring has sprung and things are getting brighter, so what better time for Queenie to catch up with the magnificent DJ Trick to find out about all that’s sparkling and new…

Hello, how are you? Amazing! I’m currently sat on the Pier with a gin and tonic and some gorgeous company! I’m feeling super fresh, positive and ready to keep 2019 the year of sheer happiness! Plus I’m super busy planning a summer filled with travels, Pride events and fabulous gigs full of laughs both at home in Bubbly Brighton and away

Where are you DJing these days? Currently I’m working for the G-A-Y brand on Thursdays, The Edge Southampton on Saturdays, Brighton Place Pier on Sundays (and all Easter week) and am about to launch two majorly exciting new projects Firstly Glitter Curious - a new industry worker, student and Scene Icons night in association with Legends Basement Club, which will be every Monday We’re launching April 1st with a grand opening party! Secondly, Camptastic - my new Friday night for Bar 7 in Crawley Both nights are fabulous new creations designed to have an all-inclusive, non-pretentious, throwback to the good old days feel with tonnes of genre bending sing-along bangers! Everything from Queen to Scissor Sisters to Little Mix and from Tina to Ariana to Kylie. What music rocks your world these days? I’m all about playing a hot artist and then going on to play all of the artists who influenced their creation and sound I’ll usually go from playing songs from the 1980s to next week’s Number One! In the car I’m currently obsessed with Cher’s Dancing Queen ABBA celebration album, and Ariana Grande’s Thank U Next and Sweetener collections Amazing!

Fave tune of all time? Every time I answer this I’m sure my answer is completely different, but today I’m going with Robyn’s Dancing On My Own - such a glorious banger with all the feels.

Most memorable gig and dream gig? Warming up for Britney Spears at Pride last year has to be the highlight of my whole life! Thanks to Dulcie, Paul and the team! I’m already booked this year to do Pride stages throughout the UK but would love to add more, more, more.

Tune you wish you’d never played? No regrets ever!

Guilty pleasure? It’s Britney, bitch!

Describe yourself in three words... Proud. Honest. Sparkly.

DJ TRICK ’S CURRENT TOP FIVE

) MABEL Don’t Call Me Up Polydor

) ARIANA GRANDE Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored Republic

) CARLY RAE JEPSEN Now That I Found You Interscope

) CALVIN HARRIS & RAG’N’BONE MAN Giant Columbia

) CHER If I Could Turn Back Time Geffen (I needed a fabulous throwback that I’ve been blasting out lately and Cher is eternally fresh ;)

) MAURICE (BFI blu-ray). The Merchant/Ivory adaptation of EM Forster’ s novel of gay love is, in its own way, quietly radical. For most of cinema’s history homosexual desire never really ended well yet it’s an Edwardian novel which suggests that there can, just possibly, be a happy ending The film made a star out of Hugh Grant, but the film is packed with absolutely stirling performances James Wilby as Maurice is perfect as the young man finding his true nature just as Grant manages to lose his The supporting roles are also perfectly realised from Barry Foster’ s strait-laced Dean to Denholm Elliot’ s almost terrifying friend of the family. Remember in olden times trying to pause the Rupert Graves naked scene on the VHS copy you kept under your bed? I can report blu-ray gives infinitely better results. The two-disc set's extras include interviews with Ivory, Grant, Wilby plus deleted scenes and a fascinating commentary by Professor Claire Monk.

) STRANGER IN THE HOUSE (BFI blu-ray) The BFI’s label, which explores the wilder, less familiar shores of British cinema, continues with a swinging '60s adaptation of a Simenon novel set mainly in Winchester Geraldine Chaplin hangs around with a wild set including pam kid Ian Ogilvy and beatnik Bobby Darrin who ends Luckily her father, James Mason, is a lawyer and ge defend her boyfriend who’s accused of the murder M coasts by on his amazing voice and Chaplin does as can with a lacklustre script and some scenes of yout hijinks which are reminiscent of The Young Ones. An absolute must for residents of Winchester, but I think the rest of the country can give it a miss.

) Brass Salad Server £28 (Workshop 13a Prince Albert St, Brighton, 01273 731340)

) Know Yourself Cards, £10.50 (Dowse, 27 Gloucester Rd, Brighton)

) Mugs, £12.50 (Prowler, 112-113 St James's St, Brighton, 01273 603813)

) Hippo Planter, £22.99 (England At Home, 22b Ship St, Brighton, 01273 205544)

) Unisex Boxers, £18.50, made in the UK (GFW Clothing, 102 Portland Rd, Hove, BN3 5DN, www genderfreeworld com/collections/underwear)

) ‘Oswald’ Seagull Vase, £55 (Pussy, 3a Kensington Gdns, Brighton, 01273 604861)

“I tell the audience to leave their mobiles on. Any interruption I get might be the best bit of the show ”

THE GREAT DABBLER

Gyles Brandreth, Scrabble expert, murder myster y writer, and ex MP, best known for his radio and TV appearances on programmes like Just A Minute and Countdown, tells Brian Butler about acting lessons from Sir Roger Moore, and the vital importance of words.

) Gyles Brandreth’s current one-man show, due in Brighton in April, had its very beginnings at school. He went to a preparatory school in Kent; his maths master was an exmilitary man of discipline, one Major Douch.

Now it happened that Major Douch had trained a military recruit who turned out to be a big star of television called Roger Moore. So it was that the 10-year-old Gyles first met the star of The Saint, who later became one of the most popular James Bonds on the big screen.

“Roger gave me a masterclass in acting with his eyebrows - for which he was famous. He could raise both independently. I could only manage the left one. His answer to me was simple - that I was only half the actor he was!"says Gyles

And that anecdote, along with many others, now features in his theatre-story show Break A Leg “I have met so many delightful people in

show business and been influenced by them and others - Donald Sinden, Kenneth Williams, Frankie Howerd and June Whitfield to name only a few.”

Indeed June, best remembered for Ab Fab, recorded a song with Gyles just before her death last year. “She features in my show - we hear her recording and I sing along live.”

I put it to the comic performer and writer that words were everything. “Yes, they are. They’re my obsession. My latest book, Have You Eaten Grandma?, deals with that. I am a bit of a word nerd. And did you know that word was conjured by Dr Seuss in 1953, he invented a character called Nerd."

‘Words are fundamental. You can do a lot with an emoji but language is everything.’

I asked him if he prepared for appearances on Radio 4’s long-running Just A Minute where the celebrities have to talk for 60 seconds

without hesitation, repetition or deviation: “You can’t prepare It’s recorded in real-time and the audience can see the clock ticking down It’s a great adrenaline rush That’s why I love live TV ” And it’s why he loves doing live stage shows “People are coughing, fainting, walking out I tell the audience to leave their mobiles on Any interruption I get might be the best bit of the show."

He has done so many different things in his life from writing murder mystery novels to his love of Scrabble and Monopoly, teddy bears and the works of Oscar Wilde. “My career wasn’t planned. I’m still trying to work out what I should be doing with my life. Really I haven’t yet left school. I’m doing exactly what I did there 60 years ago."

What advice would you give the young Gyles? “Find a life plan and change your name - no-one can ever spell it. The three most valuable words are: don’t dabble, focus. I don’t regret dabbling but a focus might have helped.”

Break A Leg has some improvised elementsincluding some audience participation. And he readily admits that’s the fun, especially when it goes wrong. In one performance a heckler shouted out “What about the fish? Where’s the fish?” It turned out that the man had misread the ticket website and thought he’d come to see a de-boning demonstration by celebrity chef Rick Stein He’s even had the unfortunate experience of an audience member collapsing, being carried out and unsuccessfully given the kiss of life

His love of Oscar Wilde has led him to write seven murder mysteries with Oscar and his friend Arthur Conan Doyle as the detectives The latest one features the Jack the Ripper case “Oscar lived in the same street as the Ripper case detective,” adds Gyles who hopes the books will be taken up for TV or films.

His life-long ambition to go into politics was achieved in 1992 when he was elected MP for Chester and eventually became a Government Whip, a period he describes in his book Breaking The Code. But the Blair landslide of 1997 saw him lose his seat, his political career came to an end and he decided the Tories would be out of office for so long he had better get on doing something else.

Asked about current politics, he is enigmatic but on one thing adamant; “I give my audience a guarantee that the show is a Brexit-free zone. It isn’t funny any longer, we ’ ve had enough of it. Even President Trump is ceasing to be amusing.

“When you ’ re out of politics as I am, you ’ re out. I’m rising above it. I don’t read the newspapers or watch the news, because life goes on. It’s like in WW2 - shows went on; people did panto with the bombs dropping around them. It’s the same with Brexit We will survive it I’m looking at the sunny uplands ”

, April 15

HEY MR PRODUCER!

From the luxur y of Frank Sinatra ’s Las Vegas dressing room to a portakabin in Brighton’s Victoria Gardens, theatre and show impresario Quintin Young has seen it all, as he tells Brian Butler.

) Brighton-based producer Quintin Young has had a world-wide career, first performing and then staging shows of all shapes and sizes.

Growing up in Ayr, Scotland, Quintin’s earliest influence was the famous five month summer season at its Gaiety Theatre, where the shows were twice nightly and the production changed every week. “It was my early foundation for work in show business,” he says

After drama college, he found himself involved in variety shows on Scottish television and later graduated to do the same at London Weekend TV “I was given responsibility at an early age to be dance captain and choreographer My other great skill at school was maths, so I could count the dance steps and balance the books,” he jokes

After performing in Edinburgh at the Royal Lyceum in productions of The Boyfriend, Cabaret, and the King And I, he later found himself in London, his base for the next 25 years He became international tour director for Spirit of the Dance, the first spin-off from the celebrated Irish dance show Riverdance, incredibly being responsible for 15 productions of it all over the world. At this time there were five productions of it in the USA alone and so Quintin found it easier to be based there than in London. Vowing that he’d never do another dance show, he found himself almost immediately being responsible for the stage version of Strictly Ballroom as associate producer The show, featuring Lionel Blair and Jane McDonald, played worldwide for four years

In Las Vegas, the Hollywood and Broadway legend Debbie Reynolds fronted the show and she and Quintin became close friends “The precision of that kind of dancing was almost

military on aspect and the Chinese for one came to love it.” Another fan was the now controversial Michael Jackson with whom Quintin worked on two charity shows in Korea and Munich. “The massive set was just loaded on a jumbo jet and flown from Korea to Germany ” he says

A David Essex musical, All the Fun of the Fair, followed and then the Proclaimers’ show, Sunshine On Leith, which he believes is due for a stage revival

He thinks his early responsibility, being thrown in at the deep end, helped him understand the challenges facing performers but also those facing producers and venues to make productions succeed, artistically and financially

He’s a strong believer that local and regional theatres survive because they fully understand the demographics of their audiences “As a producer you have to work with the venue and its marketing department to get the best outcome ”

Having moved to Brighton five years ago he feels it’s a shame there is no big mainstream family pantomime in the city “It gets their next generation of audience into the theatre It’s also a shame that amateur theatre companies can often no longer afford to mount shows in big commercial venues I’d like to see the commercial theatres help out.” he added.

As creative director of Brighton’s Gay Men’s Chorus he knows too well how expensive large venues like the Dome can be

His preoccupation in April is staging the alternative panto at the Phil Starr Pavilion in Victoria Gardens, with a portakabin as his base, a far cry from his Las Vegas luxury dressing room which has formerly been home to Frank

Sinatra. But he thinks the venue, which is a new home for the show, will work well, with 100 seats on the flat and a further 150 on tiers.

“I treat this show the same as I would a major world tour.” This year he has swapped roles round so that the cast are playing characters they haven’t played before. The cast, which includes six Brighton drag acts: Davina Sparkle, Miss Jason, Sally Vate, Dave Lynn, Lola Lasagne and Stephanie Von Clitz, have worked together before which helps since there are only eight days rehearsal available before the curtain goes up The cast also includes stage and cabaret singers Allan Jay, Jason Lee and David Anthony

“I have my ideas of how it should be played, but so do they and many have experience of playing family pantos I do have to be a headmaster occasionally to avoid them becoming just eight individual acts. The fun is that it’s live and interactive with the audience and very different every performance.”

Asked what advice he would give the young Quintin, he pauses for quite a while then says: “Don’t be too shy, and grasp every opportunity that comes your way. Don’t doubt yourself.”

So what’s in the future? “I think I have one more big musical to do, but I don’t know what it is....” Then he adds: “An all-male Guys & Dolls would be fun.”

After the panto run it’s down onto the sea-front to manage the highly successful Luna Beach open air cinema in July and August. info

) Big Dick Whittington & His Pussy runs at the Phil Starr Pavilion from April 4 to 14 with tickets a mere £23. To book tickets online: www.brightonticketbooth.com

CRAIG’S THOUGHTS

is not gay. (*spoiler: There is no God).

By Craig Hanlon-Smith

) Freedom is everything. To wake in the morning and to know that I’m free to make whatever choices I want to Confidence in freedom is everything and more Confidence to know that the freedoms I live do not inhibit the liberties of others today or tomorrow

Freedom is everything It truly is But the use of the term ‘religious freedom’ troubles me Don’t misunderstand me I respectfully admire those who devote their lives to a cause, to a belief, to a coded way of being if they choose to do so, after all freedom is everything It is however a matter of national shame that oppressive, aggressive, inhibitive, limiting, hostile and archaic beliefs are driving curriculum decisions in schools and the direction of elected politicians all under the banner of ‘religious freedom’. And this, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the year of our Gay Lord 2019.

Parkfield Community School in Alum Rock, Birmingham was rated Outstanding by Ofsted at its most recent inspection. Imagine the pride parents must feel in sending their children to a school which is as good as it gets. A state funded primary school that is up there with the best independent education money can buy

If I were a parent at such a school, how I would roller-blade out of there with my children of a Friday afternoon and flip the bird beautiful at the parents over the hill with their 14k school fees The role I would play in supporting such a centre of excellence in my local community, the cakes I would bake and the celebratory hugs I would give to my kids, safe in the knowledge that everything about their educational experience is rated outstanding. But alas, this is not that story. On Friday, March 1, 80% of the children of this exceptional school were kept at home because their parents took a stand in the name of religious freedom. The school had designed and delivered a programme it called No

Outsiders; a programme concerned with inclusion and the acceptance of LGBT people as equal members of the wider community One of the assistant head teachers at the school, a pioneer of the programme, has been threatened and verbally abused by parents at the school Threatened by those advocating a freedom to believe in a religion of peace. Threatened and verbally abused in the name of religious freedom. Threatened.

Local MP Shabana Mahmood has spoken out many times in recent weeks on the matter. She has proclaimed her support for the rights of the LGBT community and cited her record on related parliamentary voting. In short she supports the gays and their mates and has the voting record to prove it. However, she is also a self-serving politician in difficult political times where uncertainty reigns. She perhaps has a sensible eye on the next election which let’s face it, could be within a month if not tomorrow With this in mind she is supporting the parents’ right to oppose such a curriculum in an outstanding school Despite the Government’s own inspectorate proclaiming this school to be amongst the best in the country, the parents should, in her words, decide “how their kids would be taught, and at what stage”.

Oh? Is that how it works? Can we as parents or interested stakeholders march into school and state ‘ no Pythagoras this week – it doesn’t feel right’. Or do we defer to the

knowledge of the maths teacher on such matters and place our trust in both the national and local curriculum decision makers?

MP Shabana Mahmood further states that, “ we need to be able to have a sensible conversation about how faith and education intersect”.

Well now we ’ re in trouble Because if we are stating that a component of education must be stopped or paused for reconsideration in the name of religion, then it is the faith that becomes a dominant feature. A feature that is oppressive, aggressive, inhibitive, limiting, hostile and archaic. The world was after all created by God in seven days was it not?

Ancient theories committed to religious doctrine that is thousands of years old in its true origin takes precedence over a respectful moral code of decency that is relevant today. In our schools in 2019 This particular school has stated that it always planned to stop the pro-LGBT lessons and that it’s now consulting with parents before re-starting the programme after Easter Face saving spin

MP Shabana Mahmood can claim to be insulted by the suggestions that she is supporting a secret ushering in of a return to Section 28 all she wants, because in truth this is exactly what has happened here Section 28 didn’t arrive with bells, whistles, screeching brakes or a fanfare of triumphant trumpets It was legislation by stealth and deceit that both encouraged and endorsed an enforced silence. A legitimate expectation that the world of education, and publicly funded organisations or local authorities, would shut up on such matters. And for 15 years it succeeded.

The silencing of a progressive education policy, such as that at Parkfield Community School, should be a matter of concern to everyone. It’s a silencing of society in the name of religion, a religion which like all religions before it, has taken pride in proclaiming itself the victim when it is very much the oppressor All religions have at some time in their existence murdered ‘the other’ in its own name and in its proclaimed divine right to supercede that which came before In the name of religion, I promise to slope off and shut my sissy little mouth when you can prove to me that my community has done the same.

Your religious freedom is not under attack because I exist. Freedom is. In the name of religion.

“The silencing of a progressive education policy at Parkfield Community School should be a matter of concern to everyone. It’s a silencing of society in the name of religion, which like all religions before it, has taken pride in proclaiming itself the victim when it is very much the oppressor”

WALL’S WORDS

BY M I K E WA L L

THINGS CAN ONLY GET BETTER

) In 1993, when I was just a young man in my first year in university, a band called D:ream had a hit with a song called Things Can Only Get Better. Most of you will probably also know that the incredibly talented Professor Brain Cox was also a member of the band. I wasn’t in a particularly good place back then and I’d no idea what the next 26 years had in store for me. I’m sure Brian Cox had no idea of his wonderfully successful future either Back then I was struggling with accepting myself and battling with demons from my youth, but I remember this song coming out and I recall almost holding on to it as a kind of mantra to keep me going

Around this time I was also two years in to a clandestine affair with a closeted local politician, 30 years my senior, who was terrified of his own sexuality Not ideal as a first relationship for an 18-year-old man with serious issues around his own identity I didn’t know then that the relationship would last almost 10 years and it definitely added to my already very heavy yet invisible rucksack of pain that I was constantly wearing on my back

During that decade of my life I tried to go out with girls, then drank heavily due to the self-disgust I sampled some other types of drugs but thankfully didn’t like the experiences enough to keep trying I lived a self-destructive existence, staying up late into the night with friends, smoking dope and drinking, then going to my partner’s house and having sex, sleeping for a while, then going to college or work, repeat. Unbelievably, during all of this, I managed to complete third level education whilst working part-time and paying all my fees.

In my last year of studies, my dad died and this again I just added to the rucksack I went on to change direction, do another couple of qualifications, find my first real job managing a youth project and basically, to the outside world they believed I was a normal bloke with a normal past and a normal future Different friends saw different bits of me and therefore only I knew the total car crash that was my life. Roll forward a bit and during a moment of clarity I stopped. I realised that my job was good and that I needed to put the rest away.

“Different friends saw different bits of me and therefore only I knew the total car crash that was my life”

It’s now 26 years later and, due to depression, I’m now picking up the remnants of 44 years existence. It’s now that I have to explore my past so that I can continue to have my lovely life with my wonderful husband. I’ve moved forward so much that if I was introduced to that 18-year-old today I’d cringe with embarrassment, but also acknowledge that we both have the same pain, we just handle it very differently Recently, someone said something which I completely agree with, “Look back at your past but never stare”

Things ‘ can ’ only get better

GAY WISDOM

BY G AY S O C R AT E S

“PLEASE

DON’T BE CREEPY!”

) This request, together with a profile pic of an attractive young man, was all there was to the Grindr profile...

The #MeToo campaign has highlighted the shocking extent of unacknowledged sexual abuse in the form of implicit casting couch imperatives for career advancement in the entertainment industry. There is also, now, an ever-growing recognition of the high prevalence of workplace-based sexual harassment in general

Since sexual creepiness has been an integrally endemic background feature of my culture, the chances are I’ve got some blind spots and it therefore behoves me to examine the extent to which creepiness has crept into me!

With this in mind I took the question ‘How might I be creepy?’ to a week-long Faerie retreat One of the glorious aspects of Faerie community is its queer diversity in terms of shapes, sizes, ages, genders, races, and sexualities So I began to explore, privileged as I am, with elder, white, middle class, apparently-cis-male, predominantly homophilic status, how that capital might possibly be being unconsciously exploited in the pursuit of my erotic interests

Faeries often tend to be seekers from a broad set of spiritual backgrounds Newcomers to Faerie-space are particularly vulnerable, often having rejected a rejecting and sex-negative Abrahamic belief system - possibly exploring for the first time a more earth-based and sex-positive framework

So here’s what I came up with after a week of enquiry and meditation

) The essence of creepiness is a mismatch between professed and actual intention If I were to present myself as someone who is available to give help, advice, and guidance on how best to negotiate Faerie-space whilst secretly lusting after, and planning on the sexual conquest of a newfound ‘apostle’, then I’m being as creepy as a creepy fingered masseur who has offered the service of a massage but who is, instead, covertly taking sexual pleasure from the tactile sensation from his wandering hands!

) Emotional authenticity with full transparency of intention is key to establishing creepy-free relationships

) When there exists some kind of power gradient across a relationship regarding, e g youthfulness, attractiveness, maturity, experience, wealth, etc, I need to give voice to what is there, and explicitly acknowledge the real possibility that this differential of capital may be open to emotional or sexual exploitation

) Super-creepiness happens when sexual overtures are made and continue to be made in the absence of a receptive audience It becomes abusive if it continues after it has been made clear that the sexual attention is unwanted

) Once intentions have been made clear, and the potential for abuse across power gradients has been explored, then clarity of consent is paramount “How would you like me to enter into intimacy with you? How would you like to enter into intimacy with me?” If these questions can be answered with clarity, and if the answers can be honoured fully, then we ’ re likely to have moved into a creepy-free zone!

CHARLIE SAYS La Monde est merde.

By Charlie Bauer Phd. http://charliebauerphd

blogspot co uk

) By the time you read this, Brexit will be here Or not be Or forgotten But whatever way, the future goes on.

I've been banging on about defending the LGBTIQ rights all my life and never before in my years have I ever seen such a rapid decline in such standards.

All things start and end in America And what you are seeing in Europe now, started in America A glut of Trump appointed US local judges will have an effect over the Pond. These are the judges that just gave Paul Manafort less than four years of the proposed 30 for lying under oath with the intention of undermining the American electoral system. Why so lenient? Because the judge has a grudge and he's shaping the government line on the ground - where ordinary people live

More and more of these judges call themselves Evangelical or whatever Christian nonsense group they feel a part of Hey,

even the vice President of the United States is one. He's the same one who thinks queer conversion therapy is the only real cure for the homosex. And now legions of mini-Mikes are dishing out the law - and it doesn't look sexy out there anymore.

Easy to say that all this is going on with those crazy Americans and doesn't affect us

over here Well, America sneezes and Britain catches a train

I've talked about general commandant Banon's Nazi victory tour of Europe already, stoking only the fascist wolves along the way Well, we now know (because I'm writing this in your past) what the new Europe is Or isn't We don't even know what Europe could be anymore and that's the problem We don't know It's like everyone around me saying (for the last three years about Brexit), "Let's just wait and see" It's a politician’s job to see the future but now the future's too late.

This is why what happens in America is so important When we suppose what happens to us we never prepare ourselves for it American democracy is shaken to the core and the switch to authoritarianism is now only a kiss away.

Now think of life without the European Bill of Human Rights or NATO. Think of the effect of anti-queer legislation. Because it's happening as it did in the European Middle Ages when millions of women were murdered as witches through the cleansing of 'Christianity' on a defunct and depraved continent full of sinners.

Hypocrisy and injections of morality go hand in glove for such a moralistic VP as Mr Pence with his anti-woman's right to choose agenda and correctives around the disease of homos; it’s all about hypocrisy His boss, Mr Trump, is a lying woman abuser, sl** shamed about sex crimes going back years But hey, Mike - a pay cheque’s a pay cheque

And anyway, it's not confined to Christians either Trump says that Democrats hate Jews Does that include his daughter who converted? His son-in-law who had Michael Jackson sleepovers with family friend, Netanyahu? What about the Zionists both Jewish and non-Jewish? The real troublemakers who stem up pro-Israeli hatred when they're rural Protestant cattleprodders? Hypocrisy abounds via the never believers. They throw the first stones. They cause the landslides.

We are going to have to make friends with uncertainty all over again if we're going to survive. Or we can party and ignore them all. Your (only) choice.

“Think of life without the European Bill of Human Rights or NATO. Think of the effect of anti-queer legislation. Because it's happening as it did in the European Middle Ages when millions of women were murdered as witches”

HYDES’ HOPES

BY R E V

LESSONS LEARNT?

) I hope that by the time you read this there will have been some resolution to the Brexit fiasco that we've been living with. However, I very much doubt we ’ ve yet seen an end to the increasing homophobia, transphobia, racism, and general intolerance. It's always the same during times of upheaval. The marginalised and the weak are invariably scapegoated. It's been like that for millennia. It'd be nice if we learned the lesson but humanity is dreadfully stubborn and historically rather stupid As MIB agent K said: “A person is smart, people are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals”, and I reckon we are

Recently Mark Kandolsky from the LGBT Centre in St Petersburg, Russia, came to visit my church He talked about what it's like to be a young trans man in Russia In St Petersburg there's a relatively liberal attitude, although there is still the fear of arrest and medical treatment is prohibitively expensive for most people One of the comments Mark made was about gangs In Russia there are gangs which prey on young LGBT+ people, and gangs that consist of young LGBT+ people Gangs of state sponsored homophobes and transphobes are met by young LGBT+ people who have no other recourse or support available except to arm themselves, form their own gangs, and retaliate. It seems a million miles from Brighton.

Except that it isn't The Guardian recently reported that hate crime has more than doubled in the UK over the past five years. If you ’ re part of a minority group then you ’ re probably at risk. LGBT+, Muslim, Jewish, black, disabled, homeless, the list goes on. So, what can you do?

Firstly, if you ’ re targeted in any way, report it Cuts to the police force have undeniably led to higher crime rates and if that is to change anytime soon then the police need the numbers to be able to prove it. You'd think the link was obvious, but apparently not to a number of politicians. And remember, if you report any incidents to the council you need to also report to the police as they don't share statistics. Your incident will not be recorded in the police statistics if it’s only reported to the council or to some agency.

Secondly, protect yourself. Right now text the word 'REPORT' to 999. This begins the registration process that will then allow you to place a future emergency call via text. This is very useful in situations where you can’t make a call but could text for help. Police will be able to respond to an emergency without you putting yourself in further danger

Thirdly, spend a little money supporting organisations who combat hate crime such as the Peter Tatchell Foundation, the Global Justice Institute (MCC), even grass roots organisations like Mark's in St Petersburg, (contact me for more info) Most groups run on a shoestring and every penny helps Don't think that giving a few pounds every month won't make a difference, it makes a huge difference

Next, remember that we can all be guilty of scapegoating and for the most part the people who make up other minority groups are just like you and I, trying to make their way in the world, make sense of life, protect their families, and be happy Religion isn’t the problem, although some religious people can be, just as politics isn’t the problem, but some politicians can be

And lastly, be yourself in the world Commit random acts of kindness Be ridiculously generous with what you have, especially your time Be open hearted Remember that those who claim to know everything probably know nothing; whilst those who know they know nothing have the beginnings of wisdom Listen with both your ears and your heart Defend rights, not propaganda

I hope that by the time you read this Brexit will have gone well and we'll be happily united as a country moving together into a time of prosperity - although I'm not holding my breath

SCENE & DONE IT

BY

SAVVY SHOPPER

) Does anyone else rescue the single bananas? Because if I don't, then what? Forlorn, they'll end up at the bottom of that box like the last sad puppy at the pound. I can’t look at them and not feel sorry! So I choose them (only if they're still pretty mind) and I put them into the flimsy see-through carrier. Then later I eat them of course, so maybe that puppy has it better after all.

Shopping for groceries thrills and annoys me at once! I’m at that age where it’s a feature. Young people may pack trendy backpacks full of cans, and head to the park or the beach after work, I count and categorise my discount vouchers to make the most of the week’s offers!

Needless to say, I have one of those cards that get you points! It sits right next to my driving licence in my wallet, an appropriate place of honour, and is almost broken in half I should probably get a new one, but can’t imagine the week I’d have to wait without I obtained said card many years ago, when I was still one of aforementioned trendy young people. I think a BOGOF offer on booze was involved if you signed up, and I haven’t looked back since.

I love every moment! I feel like a staple-food-hunter-gatherer Indiana Jones, as I meticulously put a basket together that makes it to the £50 mark to gain me an extra 200 bonus points. 200 points for all the things I need anyway, you know like the triple-pleated paper towel and so on, what a win!

Like Nanna on a pension budget, I collect and bag coupons, and count them out at the till. I don't even care as people behind me start tapping their feet or begin, in frustration, to do the Sodoku in the paper they haven't yet paid for.

“Like Nanna on a pension budget, I collect and bag coupons, and count them out at the till”

The real jackpot came once when I got my special monthly vouchers and saw the 3,000 point offer in collaboration with an opticians. I booked in the very next morning, despite the fact that I don't wear glasses!

But let’s not forget it’s not all chocolates and shop flowers, there are moments of sheer frustration too! When they move things around, and suddenly you ’ re standing in front of condiments where baked beans should be. Or you leave it too late in the day, and the rump steak that’s on offer is all sold out, an empty shelf mocking you with its abundance of nothing.

My worst though, is when you get to the till, pay, and they give you your change - coins in a neat little stack, on top of the receipt, on top of the notes. Look at the bin at the exit, it’s overflowing with the things! No, I don’t want your useless paper, unless it’s more coupons. I’ll be back in two days to buy the 24-roll family pack of toilet paper. I’ve heard rumours it’ll be two for one!

I HAVE A PHOBIA

What do you do when your very reflection can kill you? With the help of some sufferers, Ray A- J peeks into the world of Spectrophobia, and the fear of mirrors.

) "I don't know when it started, exactly," is a phrase that circulates the minds of many of us phobia sufferers. Overcome with panic, trepidation, and horror at the sight of that ghastly thing that will haunt us for an eternity, fearing for our very lives, we lose all sense of control. We cry, we break down, we lose that feeling of hope or bravery we thought we had. As soon as we recover, we desperately try to block out any memory of that panic attack that we had just erupted into - the very first reaction to our trigger, that very first meeting with our worst enemy, it must be shut out to keep us safe So when we're presented with the question "When did your phobia start?" we have a hard time recalling We have to summon up every morsel of courage, just to remember, to revisit that harrowing time.

For me, I can remember that first encounter vividly As a five-year-old, I was watching the Harry Potter film Prisoner of Azkaban from the comfort of a large sofa, surrounded by my family. I felt safe, relaxed, stupidly calm at the prospect of watching a film like I always would. How was I to know that I was about to meet the creature that would go on to haunt me for 13 years? Before I could protect my fragile mind or look away, this rat monster blew up on the screen, swallowing the entirety of it as its face grew and grew into the thin drawn out busted features of a disgusting human rat hybrid And that was it, that was all it took Little me was scarred for life, left in a sudden panic attack, bawling at the sight of that creature’s terrifying face Developing a phobia at a young age is common amongst us suffers When you're

aged around four or five you're highly impressionable, scared of anything, and very curious about the world around you. So this is the perfect time for phobias to pounce and claim you as their victim. For some suffers I found on the internet, it was this wonderfully innocent curiosity at this age that accidently lead them to their triggers:

"I know it started because as a dumb child, I would look up urban legends and ghost stories on the internet," a user writes. "I read quite a few tales about Bloody Mary "

"When I was like four or five, I saw a YouTube video about this girl looking in a mirror," another sufferer explains. "But when she turned to look at her sister's camera, the reflection made a demonic face That sh*t scarred me to this day "

Ever since that singular experience, these sufferers have been overcome with trepidation, anxiety and pain each and every time they meet their trigger - a mirror They have what's sometimes known as Spectrophobia or Catoptrophobia, which can be described as a fear of mirrors, their reflection, or a worry that the mirror may be a portal for the supernatural For these suffers in particular, their fear lives in the actual reflection they might see, or demons that may live on the other side:

"I’ve had a phobia of mirrors ever since Every time I was in front of a mirror, I’d always look at it," one sufferer continues "I was afraid if I wasnt looking at it, it would be different from what I actually looked at."

"Now, years down the line, it's manifested into a fear of mirrors and reflective surfaces, not due to the objects themselves but because I'm terrified I’ll see something in them that isn’t on ‘ our ’ side of that mirror," another writes. "When I have an ‘episode’ as I call it, I can't talk or move, and either stare into one spot for a few minutes while shaking."

"I have a fear of mirrors," another explains. "I’ll do anything to not get my reflection caught. Even crawl under it, or redirect my path. I even get out of the way of my TV when I turn it off. If I'm by myself with one, or if it's dark, I'd just get out of the room entirely."

Like a weed, this phobia can grow, manifest and take over any other little worry it can find and claim it as a source of power. Many suffers find themselves developing a phobia of the night or darkness, and for some this might even fester into a fear of demons, ghosts, or the supernatural:

"It's 10 times worse in the dark. (It doesn't help that I already have a childhood fear of the dark that I never got over) It helps if there's someone else in the room though I'm scared of my doppelganger, or some ghost coming through the mirror if I look at it too long I don't panic at the thought of it, but when it's actually happening, that's when the fear starts "

What can make this worse is the feeling that the phobia is silly or ridiculous - after all, a mirror can't hurt you, right? Having a phobia that is unusual, irrational, and not entirely common, it can feel as though your brain is making it up, especially when you're told it's something stupid. You start to question yourself, feel as though you're faking your reactions. But the reality is, we know what we're feeling is real.

I know, when I was first presented with the idea of a phobia of mirrors, I thought it was slightly odd. But hey, my phobia was pretty weird too. Thankfully, I had the chance to speak with some sufferers, and through them I’ve learnt that there’s much more to this phobia (and a lot of it that actually makes sense to me), than I first thought So I hope that through reading this and joining me on this journey through the world of Spectrophobia, we can open up our minds to the curious fear of mirrors, and as always help out those that suffer

“When you're aged around four or five you're highly impressionable, scared of anything, and ver y curious about the world around you. So this is the per fect time for phobias to pounce and claim you as their victim”

SAM TRANS MAN

Dr Samuel Hall on how transitioning is a deeply spiritual journey and dealing with feelings of shame.

) I’m spending a lot of time on my own at the moment I really need it The process of surgical transition is really gruelling and has taken its toll on my body, heart and soul It’s affected my relationships with my nearest and dearest in a tumultuous way, which although all positive, not everyone can see that yet It’s increased my confidence as a clinician, long eroded by transphobia in the medical profession, allowing me to take my place with pride in a profession that is beginning to open up and see that we (trans people) are valid and worthy of the same respect accorded to others. It’s a long and slow change though. Around me and inside of me. You see to transition is also a deeply personal spiritual journey, and one that I feel privileged to be making.

That’s a far cry from the shame-filled person I was 10 years ago when I first set out to change my life for the better. Little was I to know then how very great this change would be. My political views, my life and lifestyle, my body, my career, my children and my family have all changed beyond recognition The only thing that hasn’t changed beyond recognition is the core of me The id to my ego, or heart, some might say In my heart, I’m the same person Once named Lisa and living as a woman (very uncomfortably I might add), now called Sam and living my life as a man My best life. The loss of shame is the key here, and regardless of your life circumstances, we all carry shame.

There is a profound and important difference between guilt and shame. Guilt carries with it a judgement of our own behaviour or actions in relation to others. I feel bad because I did something wrong. I know I hurt that person and I need to make amends. Guilt can be assuaged, let go of. It restores us to good

faith with ourselves and those around us Guilt forms the basis of legal judgement, such that if our wrongdoing is serious enough as judged by our societal norms, we may pay a price of reparation in the form of money, time in prison, or community service. Guilt moves us on to become better people, providing we allow it to penetrate and inform us. It engenders empathy, an important skill we must develop in order to maintain healthy relationships.

Shame, on the other hand, is a different beast altogether. It’s about my view of myself, my worthiness of my place in the world. It doesn’t have anything to do with my behaviour or actions, and it affects us all to a greater or lesser degree Much shame is linked to how we are raised and nurtured

If we ’ re loved for who we are as babies and children, if you grew up with parents or caregivers who accepted you completely, warts and all, then you ’ re less likely to carry a burden of shame If you weren’t emotionally neglected in any way, smacked or shouted at, told you were a disappointment, and weren’t sexually abused in childhood, then you ’ re very, very lucky, and you might feel little shame If you didn’t grow up under the shadow of minority oppression, be it race, sex, religion, disability or mental ill health, then you ’ ve a better chance of carrying no shame.

White people almost certainly feel less shame than people of colour, although those tables are rightly turning as we start to embrace a sense of collective shame. Shame sets in as we become sentient, and our brains mature and begin to appreciate ourselves as separate from others. Probably from the age of about three years old, we start to feel it. A telling off for snatching a toy or hitting a sibling, discipline of varying degrees with a heavy-handed message about our behaviour becomes internalised and manifests as ‘I’m not good

enough’ Not good enough for this world, for this person, this job, this parenting role Each of us carries our burden of shame like a yoke laden with goods, and we all find it hard to put this down.

My Catholic upbringing taught me that shame is the same thing as original sin, and that baptism heals us from this weight We needn’t carry our shame around, or let it drive our lives. I understand that theology, and I appreciate its meaning. But I was baptised as a baby, as were many of us, and didn’t make an adult choice. Moreover, I was baptised with the wrong name.

If people are to become christians in today’s world, they must do so with a full and adult understanding of the true freedom that is on offer under the mounds of ugliness that Christianity has amassed over the centuries. The original, early christian movement, was based on communal living, sharing of food and wealth, contributing fairly to the community in which you lived, and reaching out to those less fortunate A life I aspire to

Somewhere along the way, at the outset of the 4th century, this early movement, called ‘The Way’, which saw itself as an offshoot of Judaism, grew and grew until it became a state obligation under the Roman Empire At this point we see the emergence of the dictatorial, rule-based, punitive and exclusive church that we see today and which still operates from the Vatican.

It looks horrific; rich, aloof, patriarchal, misogynistic and homophobic, the Catholic Church, into which I was baptised as a child, does not deserve to survive in our rapidly changing culture. Sometimes described as the world’s largest paedophile ring, it has for centuries both legitimised and hidden the oppression of women, abuse of children, exclusion of gender and sexual minorities, and fuelled the shame felt by LGBT+ people all over the planet Many have taken their lives rather than live with the shame they feel for being who they are

I want no further part in it. I see myself now as someone who is not baptised, and doesn’t wish to be I have lost all sense of shame through my transition, precisely because I have decided to become who I am Thank God

ARE YOU ‘GAY ENOUGH’ TO CONTACT MINDOUT?

MindOut is a mental health ser vice run by and for LGBTQ people. People may need our suppor t though they don’t identif y as LGBTQ, or as having mental health needs. The stor y below illustrates some of these issues...

) Terry recently contacted MindOut because he to talk to us about his sexuality and requested that we share his story.

As a 34-year-old straight, cisgender man, Terry didn’t often think about his sexuality or his gender, there was never a need to. He had girlfriends, one very long-term and another who identified as bisexual, so the subject of sexuality came up then, but not about him and his sexuality Living in Brighton he knew some gay people - mum was really pally with her gay neighbours who regularly took her to drag shows which she loved and would talk endlessly about to Terry

He had a great relationship with his nephew who would often correct Terry’s assumptions and language On one occasion he accused Terry of being homophobic as he had referred to a work colleague as a ‘poofta’ It was a common word Terry and his friends used to describe and poke fun at each other; Terry never gave any thought to this being offensive or derogatory and certainly not homophobic. He hated himself for not giving this any thought before. His nephew corrected him, explained, and helped him realise that the use

of this term really wasn’t okay, not even in jest. Last year Terry was made redundant and was given an opportunity to retrain as a support worker. He loved his new job, and he got on really well with his colleagues. His new team was really diverse, in fact he was the only straight person in his team He learned lots about LGBTQ lives and started to develop friendships with his colleagues His social life began to change and in many ways improve

At a recent leaving do, he joined his team for drinks on the Brighton gay scene and probably had the best night of his life He laughed, he danced and for the first time he talked about his identity and his sexuality The conversation was enlightening and he was left wondering if he really was straight and asking himself what does being straight really mean?

As the evening wore on, the more interested in the idea of having sex with a man Terry became Sex became available and he went for it He described the experience as being a mix of awkward and hilarious and “f***ing great!”

Sex with men had never really crossed Terry’s mind before, possibly because it was connected

“Some straight people may experience confusion or have questions about their sexuality and some ver y confidently have same-sex sex but don’t identify as LGBTQ. All are welcome to approach MindOut for suppor t”

to being gay If asked, he would say he wasn’t gay, not because of any deep rooted shame or self-hatred, but because he wasn’t gay He didn’t regard himself as bisexual either, he just didn’t really identify with being bi. Sex with men now feels totally normal to Terry, he treats it like it’s a normal thing.

His friends know he has sex with men and, although he hadn’t for ages, he intends to continue to have sex with women. Sex, for Terry, is fun, recreational, exciting, brilliant –for him it has nothing to do with his identity.

Of course, others tell him he is gay or bi and when he denies it they say he is confused or f***ed up. But he disagrees, he’s neither of these things. Terry sees his sexuality as an ever-changing journey, that doesn’t need to be defined or labelled. He has met men who feel similarly and he has met men who have sex with other men who are deeply ashamed about their behaviour, who really did hate themselves Terry’s question for MindOut was, ‘Are men who have sex with men welcome at MindOut, if they are not gay?’ He was concerned that some of these men didn’t feel ‘ gay enough’ or perhaps weren’t gay at all and they were left without help or support

We explained that non-LGBTQ people do contact MindOut and some do use our services Straight people who make contact might be trans or pansexual or in a relationship with an LGBTQ person, or they might have identified as LGBTQ at some point in their lives Some straight people may experience confusion or have questions about their sexuality and some very confidently have same-sex sex but don’t identify as LGBTQ. All are welcome to approach MindOut for support.

Terry didn’t feel he needed support himself, he felt confident and happy with his identity and didn’t have a mental health problem, but he said he felt safe knowing MindOut existed.

If you or someone you know would like to talk to us about thoughts, feelings or experiences of sexuality or gender identity please do get in touch. Talking to a MindOut worker can be a helpful way to explore how you are feeling and to think about what support or help you might like. Our peer support services can be a good way to meet others with similar experiences, identities or dealing with similar issues as you.

MINDOUT INFO

MindOut services are confidential, nonjudgemental and independent.

You can contact us on

) Email: info@mindout.org.uk

) Call: 01273 234839

) Visit: www.mindout.org.uk

We are open every week day and our online support service is open in the evenings and at weekends, see our website for more details.

SERVICES DIRECTORY

LGBT SERVICES

● ALLSORTS YOUTH PROJECT

Drop-in for LGBT or unsure young people under 26 Tues 5 30–8 30pm 01273 721211 or email info@allsor tsyouth org uk, www allsor tsyouth org uk

● BRIGHTON GEMS

Social group for gay men over 50 with several events every month inc meeting at Dorset Gardens 2nd Monday of month 2 30pm last Fri of month 7-9pm For info email info@brightongems com www brightongems com

● BRIGHTON & HOVE POLICE

Repor t all homophobic, biphobic or transphobic incidents to: 24/7 assistance call Police on 101 (emergencies 999) Repor t online at: www sussex police uk LGBT team (not 24/7) email: LGBT@sussex pnn police uk

• LGBT Officer PC James Breeds: Tel: 101 ext 558168 James breeds@sussex pnn police uk

● BRIGHTON & HOVE LGBT SAFETY FORUM

Independent LGBT forum working within the communities to address and improve safety and access issues in Brighton & Hove 01273 855620 or info@lgbt-help com www lgbt-help com

● BRIGHTON & HOVE LGBT SWITCHBOARD

Help-line with email & webchat facility 01273 204 050

Opening times see www switchboard org uk/brighton

• LGBT Older Peoples' Project

• LGBT Health Improvement and Engagement Project

• LGBTQ Disabilities Project

• Rainbow Cafe: suppor t for LGBT+ people with Dementia

• Volunteering oppor tunities 01273 234 009

● BRIGHTON ONEBODYONEFAITH

Formerly The Gay Christian Movement Contact: Nigel Nash nigelnash@me com www onebodyonefaith org uk

● BRIGHTON WOMEN’S CENTRE

Info, counselling, drop-in space, suppor t groups 01273 698036 or visit www womenscentre org uk

● LESBIAN & GAY A A

12-step self-help programme for alcohol addictions: Sun, 7 30pm, Chapel Royal, Nor th St, Btn (side entrance) 01273 203 343 (general AA line)

● LGBT NA GROUP

Brighton-based LGBT (welcomes others) Narcotics Anonymous group every Tue 6 30–8pm, Millwood Centre, Nelson Row, Kingswood St 0300 999 1212

● LGBT+ MEDITATION GROUP

Meditation & discussion, every 2nd & 4th Thur, 5 30–7pm, Anahata Clinic, 119 Edward St, Brighton 07789 861 367 or www bodhitreebrighton org uk

● LUNCH POSITIVE

Lunch club for people with HIV Meet/make friends, find peer suppor t in safe space Every Fri, noon–2 30pm, Community Room, Dorset Gdns Methodist Church, Dorset Gdns, Brighton Lunch £1 50 07846 464 384 or www lunchpositive org

● MCC BRIGHTON

Inclusive, affirming space where all are invited to come as they are to explore their spirituality without judgement 01273 515572 or info@mccbrighton org uk www mccbrighton org uk

● MINDOUT

Independent, impar tial services run by and for LGBTQ people with experience of mental health issues 24 hr confidential answerphone: 01273 234839 or email

info@mindout.org.uk and out of hours online chat www mindout org uk

● NAVIGATE

Social/peer suppor t group for FTM, transmasculine & gender queer people, every 1st Wed 7-9pm & 3rd Sat of month 1-3pm at Space for Change, Windlesham Venue, BN1 3AH For info see https://navigatebrighton wordpress com/

● PEER ACTION

Regular low cost yoga, therapies, swimming, meditation & social groups for people with HIV contact@peeraction.net or www.peeraction.net

● RAINBOW FAMILIES

Suppor t group for lesbian and/or gay parents 07951 082013 or info@rainbowfamilies org uk www rainbowfamilies org uk

● RAINBOW HUB

Information, contact, help and guidance to services for LGBT+ communities in Brighton, Hove and Sussex at Rainbow Hub drop in LGBT+ one-stop shop: 93 St James Street, BN2 1TP , 01273 675445 or visit www therainbowhubbrighton com

● SOME PEOPLE

Social/suppor t group for LGB or questioning aged 14-19, Tue 5 30-7 30pm, Hastings

Call/text Cathrine Connelly 0797 3255076 or email somepeople@eastsussex gov uk

● TAGS – THE ARUN GAY SOCIETY

Social Group welcome all inEast & West Sussex Areas Call/Text 07539 513171 www tagsonline org uk

● VICTIM SUPPORT

Practical, emotional suppor t for victims of crime 08453 899 528

● THE VILLAGE MCC

Christian church serving the LGBTQ community Sundays 6pm, Somerset Day Centre, Kemptown 07476 667353 www thevillagemcc org

HIV PREVENTION, CARE & TREATMENT SERVICES

● AVERT

Sussex HIV & AIDS info service 01403 210202 or email confidential@aver t org

● BRIGHTON & HOVE CAB HIV PROJECT

Money, benefits, employment, housing, info, advocacy Appointments: Tue-Thur 9am-4pm, Wed 9am-12 30pm

Brighton & Hove Citizens Advice Bureau, Brighton Town Hall 01273 733390 ext 520 or www brightonhovecab org uk

● CLINIC M

Free confidential testing & treatment for STIs including HIV, plus Hep A & B vaccinations Claude Nicol Centre, Sussex County Hospital, on Weds from 5-8pm 01273 664 721 or www brightonsexualhealth com

● LAWSON UNIT

Medical advice, treatment for HIV+, specialist clinics, diet & welfare advice, drug trials 01273 664 722

● SUBSTANCE MISUSE SERVICE

Pavillions Par tnership Info, advice, appointments & referrals 01273 731 900 Drop-in: Richmond House, Richmond Rd, Brighton, Mon-Wed & Fri 10am-4pm, Thur 10am-7pm, Sat 10am-1pm; 9 The Drive, Hove 01273 680714 Mon & Wed 10am-12pm & 1pm-3pm, Tue & Thu 10am-4pm, info & advice only (no assessments), Fri 10am-12pm & 1pm-3pm

• Gary Smith (LGBT* Suppor t) 07884 476634 or email gsmith@pavilions org uk

For more info visit weblink: pavilions org uk/ser vices/treatment-recover y-options/

● SUSSEX BEACON

24 hour nursing & medical care, day care 01273 694222 or www.sussexbeacon.org.uk

● TERRENCE HIGGINS TRUST SERVICES

For more info about these free services go to the THT office, 61 Ship St, Brighton, Mon–Fri, 10am–5pm 01273 764200 or info brighton@tht org uk

• Venue Outreach: info on HIV, sexual health, personal safety, safer drug/alcohol use, free condoms/lubricant for men who have sex with men

• The Bushes Outreach Ser vice @ Dukes Mound: advice, suppor t, info on HIV & sexual health, and free condoms & lube

• Netreach (online/mobile app outreach in Brighton & Hove): info/advice on HIV/sexual health/local services THT Brighton Outreach workers online on Grindr, Scruff, & Squir t

• Condom Male: discreet, confidential service posts free condoms/lube/sexual health info to men who have sex with men without access to East Sussex commercial gay scene

• Positive Voices: volunteers who go to organisations to talk about personal experiences of living with HIV

• Fastest (HIV testing): walk-in, (no appointment) rapid HIV testing service open to MSM (Men who have sex with Men) Anyone from the African communities, male and female sex workers and anyone who identifies as Trans or non-binary We now offer rapid 15 minutes results for HIV/Syphilis: Mon 10am-8pm, Tues-Fri 10am-5pm, Thurs 10am-8pm (STI testing available)

• Sauna Fastest at The Brighton Sauna (HIV testing): walk-in, (no appointment) rapid HIV testing service for men who have sex with men, results in 20 minutes: Wed: 6–8pm (STI testing available)

• Face2Face: confidential info & advice on sexual health & HIV for men who have sex with men, up to 6 one hour appointments

• Specialist Training: wide range of courses for groups/ individuals, specific courses to suit needs

• Counselling: from qualified counsellors for up to 12 sessions for people living with/affected by HIV

• What Next? Thurs eve, 6 week peer suppor t group work programme for newly diagnosed HIV+ gay men

• HIV Suppor t Ser vices: info, suppor t & practical advice for people living with/affected by HIV

• HIV Welfare Rights Advice: Find out about benefits or benefit changes Advice line: Tue–Thur 1:30-2:30pm 1-2-1 appts for advice & workshops on key benefits

● TERRENCE HIGGINS EA STBOURNE

• Web suppor t & info on HIV, sexual health & local services via netreach and myhiv org uk

• Free condom postal ser vice contact Grace Coughlan on 07584086590 or grace coughlan@tht org uk

● SEXUAL HEALTH WORTHING

Free confidential tests & treatment for STIs inc HIV; Hep A & B vaccinations Wor thing based 0845 111345645

NATIONAL HELPLINES

● NATIONAL LGBT DOMESTIC ABUSE HELPLINE at galop org uk and 0800 999 5428

● SWITCHBOARD 0300 330 0630

● POSITIVELINE (EDDIE SURMAN TRUST) Mon-Fri 11am-10pm, Sat & Sun 4-10pm 0800 1696806

● MAINLINERS 02075 825226

● NATIONAL AIDS HELPLINE 08005 67123

● NATIONAL DRUGS HELPLINE 08007 76600

● THT AIDS Treatment phoneline 08459 470047

● THT direct 0845 1221200

1 AFFINITY BAR

129 St James’s St, www affinitygaybar co uk

2 AMSTERDAM BAR & KITCHEN 11-12 Marine Parade, 01273 688 826

www amsterdambrighton com

3 BAR BROADWAY

10 Steine Street, 01273 609777

www barbroadway co uk

4 BEDFORD TAVERN

30 Western Street, 01273 739495

5 BOUTIQUE BAR

2 Boyces St @ West St, 01273 327607

www boutiqueclubbrighton com

6 CAMELFORD ARMS

30-31 Camelford St, 01273 622386 www camelford-arms co uk

7 CHARLES STREET TAP

8-9 Marine Parade, 01273 624091

www charles-street com

8 THE CROWN

24 Grafton St, 07949590001

9 GROSVENOR BAR

16 Western Street, 01273 438587

10 LEGENDS BAR

31-34 Marine Parade, 01273 624462

www legendsbrighton com

11 MARINE TAVERN

13 Broad St, 01273 681284

www marinetavern co uk

12 PARIS HOUSE 21 Western Rod, 01273 724195 www parishouse com

13 QUEEN’S ARMS 7 George St, 01273 696873 www theqabrighton com

14 REGENCY TAVERN 32-34 Russell Sq, 01273 325 652

15 ROT TINGDEAN CLUB

89 High St Rottingdean, BN2 7HE 01273 309529 f Therottingdeanclub

16 SUBLINE 129 St James’s St, 01273 624100 www sublinebrighton co uk

17 THREE JOLLY BUTCHERS 59 Nor th Rd, 01273 608571

www three-jolly-butchers co uk

18 VELVET JACKS

50 Norfolk Square, 07720 661290 http://tinyurl com/VelvetJacks

19 ZONE 33 St James’s St, 01273 682249 www zonebrighton co uk

) CLUBS

10 BASEMENT CLUB (below Legends)

31-34 Marine Parade 01273 624462 www legendsbrighton com

5 BOUTIQUE CLUB

2 Boyces St @ West St, 01273 327607 www boutiqueclubbrighton com

GSCENE ADVERTISERS’ MAP

7 ENVY (above Charles St Tap)

8-9 Marine Parade, 01273 624091

www charles-street com

) FOOD

2 AMSTERDAM BAR & KITCHEN

11-12 Marine Parade, 01273 688 826 www amsterdambrighton com

6 CAMELFORD ARMS

30-31 Camelford St, 01273 622386

www camelford-arms co uk

7 CHARLES STREET TAP

8-9 Marine Parade, 01273 624091

www charles-street com

20 CUP OF JOE

28 St George’s Rd, 01273 698873

www cupofjoebrighton co uk

10 LEGENDS BAR

31-34 Marine Parade, 01273 624462

www legendsbrighton com

11 MARINE TAVERN

13 Broad St, 01273 681284

www marinetavern co uk

21 NEW STEINE BISTRO 12a New Steine, 01273 681546 www newsteinehotel com

23 JURYS INN

Stroudley Rd, 01273 862121 24

Rd, 01273 206700 10

HOTEL 31-34 Marine Parade, 01273 624462 www legendsbrighton com

21 NEW STEINE HOTEL 10/11 New Steine, 01273 681546 www newsteinehotel com

25 QUEENS HOTEL 1/3 Kings Rd, 01273 321222 www queenshotelbrighton com

) HEALTH & BEAUTY

26 BARBER BLACKSHEEP

18 St Georges Rd, 01273 623408 wwww barberblacksheep com

27 DENTAL HEALTH SPA 14–15 Queens Rd 01273 710831 www dentalhealthspa co uk

28 VELVET TAT TOO 50 Norfolk Square, 07720 661290 http://tinyurl com/VelvetJacks

) SEXUAL HEALTH

29 CLINIC M Claude Nicol Abbey Rd, 01273 664721 www brightonsexualhealth com/node/11

30 THT BRIGHTON 61 Ship St, 01273 764200

) SAUNA S

31 BRIGHTON SAUNA

75 Grand Parade, 01273 689966 www thebrightonsauna com

) SHOPS

32 BARBARY LANE 95 St George’s Rd, Kemptown

33 PROWLER 112 St James’ St, 01273 683680

34 SUSSEX BEACON Charity Shop

130 St James’s St, 01273 682992

35 SUSSEX BEACON Home Store

72-73 London Rd, 01273 680264 www sussexbeacon org uk

) LEGAL SERVICES

36 ENGLEHARTS

49 Vallance Hall, Hove St, 01273 204411

) COMMUNITY

39 BRIGHTON WOMEN’S CENTRE

72 High St, 01273 698036 www womenscentre org uk

40 LUNCH POSITIVE

07846 464384

01273 675445