Scene Magazine (March 2023) - West Midlands by Scene Magazine

New podcast shines a light on the history of LGBTQ+ spaces -

Memories From The Dancefloor explores the history of these incredible spaces.

Birmingham’s Southside strategy to support future as diverse cultural centre

The home to Birmingham’s gay village has unveiled an ambitious new strategic vision.

Finnish Gender Recognition law ‘major step’ towards protecting trans rights

Lawmakers in Finland have removed the requirement for trans people to be sterilised and obtain a psychiatric diagnosis in order for them to obtain legal gender recognition.

Richard Angell appointed as new Chief Executive of Terrence Higgins Trust

Richard will take over on Wednesday, March 1 when current CEO, Ian Green OBE, steps down at the end of February after seven years in the role.

New documentary musical, After the Act, examines dark days of Section 28

Catch After the Act at New Diorama Theatre, 15-16 Triton St, London NW1 3BF till April 1.

Galop launches UK’s first dedicated helpline to support LGBTQ+ victims and survivors of sexual violence and abuse

New research from the charity shows that over half (53%) of LGBTQ+ people in the UK have been subjected to sexual violence in their lives.

POWER IN PRIDE

Dreams can come true... Plans hot up for Birmingham Pride 2023. Catherine Muxworthy investigates...

) Ahead of Birmingham Pride 2023 – which will take place over the May Bank Holiday –organisers have released the acts performing on Sunday, May 28.

On the Main Stage – in partnership with Jaguar – Birmingham Pride will see performances from: Gabrielle, B*witched, Atomic Kitten, Boney M, a DJ set from Rylan, Liberty X, Caity Baser, star of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Black Peppa, and Sweet Female Attitude.

On the Conrad Guest Cabaret Stage, don’t miss: Sandra, Son of a Tutu, Brenda La Beau, Martha D’Arthur, Jodie Doody as Kylie, Michelle Lawson as Whitney, Flick, Lady Imelda, Donna Trump, Pam Catz, Fatt Butcher and Blanche

What was previously known as the Community Stage will get a rebrand in 2023 as the Carlos Medina Stage in commemoration of a legend of Birmingham’s LGBTQ+ community who sadly passed away last September. The line-up includes: Virgo, The Enby Show, Jenna Davinci, Tristan Treble, Alesha Tried, Ula Lah, Blü Romantic, Mr Peach, House of Andre, Samosa, and Yshee Black

In the Dance Area, bust moves to tunes from Jess Bays, Joe Hunt, Forbid, Paul Morrell, Nick Charles, Chunky B, Marcus James, Lisa Sharred, and Yan Simonski. While the Future Stage will feature performances from: Mnelia, Eddy Luna, Darkwah, Sophielou, Zoellz, APW, Lesia, and local DJs.

The theme of this year’s Birmingham Pride – supported by HSBC UK – is Power in Pride and it will be held Saturday, May 27 –Sunday, May 28

Wolverhampton Pride to return "bigger and better than ever" in 2023

The event takes place on Saturday, June 10 from 12 - 10pm in School Street; the heart of the city’s LGBTQ+ community.

Expect a parade, main stage, drag artists and DJs, food, bars and community stalls.

Innovative projects to receive vital funding to trial new ways to improve sexual health and HIV outcomes

Brighton & Hove Switchboard, Terrence Higgins Trust, Love Tank and Birmingham LGBT are among 14 organisations to benefit from a new fund.

TRANSforming Futures Fund now accepting applications

The focus of the Fund is communities-led, grassroots organisations that are led by and for trans people.

Start your engines for the UK premiere of Drag Race Sverige!

Drag Race Sverige premieres on WOW Presents Plus on Saturday, March 4 at 8.30pm.

Wales sets out plan to become the most LGBTQ+ friendly nation in Europe

The Welsh Government sets out how it will "make a difference" to the lives, prospects, and outcomes for all LGBTQ+ people.

Brighton study reveals risks facing LGBTQ+ people in immigration detention

New research from the University of Brighton has revealed that LGBTQ+ people continue to face harassment, bullying and deteriorating mental health while in immigration detention.

Trans Pride Brighton & Hove wins Grassroots Pride of the Year at the inaugural Gaydio Pride Awards

Other winners included Brighton & Hove Pride, Peter Tatchell, Janusz Domagala and George House Trust.

International Family Equality Day 2023: Power up Families!

With the motto Power up Families, this year’s International Family Equality Day (IFED) calls on all families to embrace their uniqueness and to stand up to claim equality and justice.

Joe Lycett to host new series of live shows from Birmingham

Following Channel 4’s Joe Lycett’s Big Pride Party, The Joe Lycett Live Show has been commissioned by the broadcaster.

Gscene archive donated to the Bishopsgate Institute

It’s fitting that during LGBT+ History Month the G/ Scene archive should find a permanent home at the Bishopsgate Institute, to be digitised and made available to be enjoyed by everyone online.

The Bishopsgate Institute's mission is to inspire independent thought, connect past and present. Bishopsgate Library contains 150,000 books, and holds nationally-important archives on activism, feminism, LGBTQ+ history, free thought and humanism.

Czech Republic International footballer Jakub Jankto comes out as gay

The footballer becomes the highest-profile current male footballer to publicly come out after Josh Cavallo of Adelaide United and Jake Daniels of Blackpool revealed their sexuality in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

Birmingham vigil for Brianna Ghey attacked by LGBTQ+ hate

The Birmingham vigil was one of many across the UK being held to mourn Brianna and unite in supporting trans rights

Birmingham LGBT+ Centre targeted with queerphobic graffiti

During LGBT+ History Month, Birmingham’s inclusive hub, the LGBT centre, was vandalised with homophobic graffiti.

Lady Phyll hosts panel on LGBTQ+ Asylum & Immigration Detention at National Student Pride

National Student Pride, in association with Rainbow Migration, platformed a panel of individuals with knowledge and experience of asylum and immigration detention, calling for the audience to use their voices to stop "the government’s dehumanisation of asylum seekers".

Joe Lycett, Harry Styles, Rod Stewart and Alex Scott among British LGBT Awards 2023 nominees

The British LGBT Awards take place on June 23.

Appeal granted following decision over trans waiting times

Birmingham Pride’s Eva Echo shared the news following the High Court ruling in a case regarding NHS waiting times for transgender patients.

Greater Fort Lauderdale: Welcome Nature Lovers

A breathtaking journey through nature awaits in Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida’s LGBTQ+ capital and home to the ‘gayborhood’ of Wilton Manors

) A breathtaking journey through nature awaits in Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida’s LGBTQ+ capital and home to the ‘gayborhood’ of Wilton Manors, which has hundreds of businesses owned and operated by LGBTQ+ residents – all ready to give UK visitors a warm welcome. This community is just one of many reasons why the area is so popular. Another stand-out offering that’s sure to make your holiday unforgettable is the spectacular nature that awaits your exploration throughout the area.

Don’t miss two of Greater Fort Lauderdale’s top nature attractions: Butterfly World and Flamingo Gardens. Butterfly World is the

largest butterfly park in the world, where you can see more than 20,000 live butterflies from every corner of the globe. Explore six different Free-Flight Aviaries filled with hundreds of exotic birds, including lorikeets that you can feed by hand. Flamingo Gardens offers 60 acres of native and exotic plants and some of Florida’s largest and oldest trees – numbering more than 3,000 different species. You can also see more than 90 species of Florida native animals, from alligators, otters, bobcats and flamingoes (obviously) to even a Florida black bear.

Greater Fort Lauderdale is home to the worldfamous Everglades and offers vast, untouched

wilderness like no place else on earth. You can enjoy an exhilarating airboat ride for an amazing look at wildlife, from exotic birds like peacocks, bald eagles and wading birds to alligators and Florida panthers. Dozens of other parks, preserves and nature centres also offer pristine settings to marvel at tropical beauty, where you can hike, bike, kayak and more.

Just one of these parks, Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, offers full moon kayak tours – an experience you won’t soon forget! This popular park has direct access to Fort Lauderdale beach, a freshwater lagoon, nature trails, shaded picnic areas and rentals for kayaks, paddleboards and bikes. It’s home to butterflies, gopher tortoises, sea turtles, grey squirrels and marsh rabbits, plus more than 200 species of wading birds, hawks and ducks. Stop by the visitor centre, which was formerly the Art Deco home of the park’s namesake, Hugh Taylor Birch, a Chicago attorney who fell in love with this part of the Sunshine State, acquired 180 acres, and built his dream home in 1940, naming it ‘Terramar’ (‘land to the sea’). Today the park is revered by locals and visitors as Fort Lauderdale’s Central Park.

Visit the Anne Kolb Nature Center at West Lake Park to see one of the largest urban parks in Florida that stretches 20 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway. Climb (or take the elevator) to the 68-foot observation tower or follow the boardwalk to see wading birds and other native wildlife. Drop a line at the Intracoastal fishing pier, explore nature trails or paddle through this park’s mangrove estuary. More unforgettable nature encounters await at Snake Warrior’s Island, a 53.3-acre nature preserve along the Great Florida Birding Trail; and Tree Tops Park featuring 23 acres of nature trails.

The area’s 38 kilometres of golden beaches and 482 kilometres of scenic waterways also provide unforgettable nature encounters with the chance to see dolphins, manatees and more. Scuba divers can explore the largest collection of warm-water wrecks in the Western world, where thousands of fish and other creatures abound. Or dive or snorkel among living coral reefs just 100 yards off the beach in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea and Hollywood, the only places in the continental USA where you can do this straight off the beach.

Boating is another popular way to get a fascinating view of nature in this water wonderland, whether you arrive by boat, charter one or take one of the many eco-tours. Endless waterways give you the chance to see natural beauty and wildlife at every turn. Tours and rentals are also available for kayaking and standup paddleboarding for an even closer view of sea life.

D Learn more about all of the exciting possibilities for your next holiday at www.VisitLauderdale.com/lgbt

Birmingham’s Boltz Nightclub could soon be demolished

Boltz nightclub – a fetish club on in Birmingham’s gay village – could be demolished to accommodate a new 15-storey apartment block.

Boltz, which describes itself as the Midlands' “horniest club”, is currently located near the Nightingale Club and has a capacity for 900 people.

Fierce Festival’s artistic director Aaron Wright to step down

“It has been the honour of my life to steer this remarkable organisation for the past seven years."

Film on trans comedian Julia Scotti to be released on Trans Day of Visibility

This is... #DaleyPop!

Buckle up bitches!

"I was subjected to over 100 violent assaults": Peter Tatchell remembers the Bermondsey by-election of 1983

"The most dirty, violent and homophobic election in British history" READ MORE

The Brighton Half Marathon 2023

Thousands turn out for the Brighton Half Marathon, the biggest fundraising event for the Sussex Beacon.

REVIEW:

'The Way Old Friends Do' @ Birmingham Repertory Theatre

With a sharply funny, high-camp, and dragged-up script, this production is full of laugh-out-loud moments woven alongside the heart-warming story of friendship, coming outs, and love.

LGBTQ+ people in the UK asked to consider the number of vulnerable children they could adopt or foster.

Beverley Knight MBE nominated for an Olivier Award for her role in 'Sylvia'

Beverley plays Emmeline Pankhurst in the Old Vic’s Sylvia, a role which she has reprised, having also played the historic feminist figure on the West End in 2018.

Brighton & Hove comes together in solidarity at vigil for Brianna Ghey

Over 400 people in Brighton & Hove came together in solidarity on Wednesday, February 15 at a vigil for 16-year-old trans girl Brianna Ghey, who was found stabbed to death in a Cheshire park.