Tag Archives: London LGBT Scene

‘She’s In London’ is the UK’s First LBQ Web Series

In the past few years, we’ve enjoyed binge watching our way through several fabulous LGBTQ web series.

There’s the likes of Carmilla, the vampire/human love story, the hilarious Plus One which has got plenty of friendship drama, and there’s Rent Controlled about a difficult living situation and a difficult personal life.

What these three web series (as well as so many others) have in common,though, is that they’re all set in North America, with there being no web series that represent queer life on this side of the pond. But that’s what Tello Films’ new series She’s In London aims to fix.

As the title denotes, this one’s set in the English capital and it “follows the fight to save a lesbian bar from closure by the Soho gentrification brigade”.

Gentrification is a serious issue for the LGBTQ community in the capital right now, with many queer establishments being either bought out or squeezed out of the city/out of existence as pricier developments pop up all around them, so She’s In London’s plot line is true to the city it’s set in.

She’s In London isn’t just about lesbian and bi women protesting, handing out some leaflets and starting a Twitter hashtag or two, though, as there’s plenty of drama within the group that’s trying to save the bar.

For example, Theo, who works at the bar, gets involved with Mel. Mel, as well as being the ex of Theo’s best friend, Sam, also happens to be the developer who’s trying to get the bar shut down, so you can understand that that throws a spanner, if not the entire flippin’ tool box into the works.

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Those who’ve seen She’s In London‘s six episodes mostly have positive things to say – it’s the first globally distributed LBQ series, it’s made by London’s LGBT community and there are several UK LBQ artists on the soundtrack too.

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They also say that it does a good job of representing a real struggle that London’s LGBTQ community is facing, even if it doesn’t do a great job of representing London’s LGBTQ community itself.

Indeed, one of the biggest criticisms of She’s In London is that the cast is overwhelmingly white, with just one person of colour (a black woman) on the cast, and she plays a supporting role.

That’s not particularly indicative of how multicultural London is at all, which is a shame, but hopefully the show’s producers will consider this should She’s In London get a second season.

She’s In London premiered on Tello Films on Sunday, September 27. Episodes will be released weekly and you can access them with a Tello Films subscription (around £3 a month).

 

2015 Sees Surge In Homophobic Attacks In London

According to data from the Metropolitan police, homophobic crimes have surged by nearly a third in London in the past year.

The data comes from the force’s latest annual crime figures – which allow types of reports to be broken down by borough and by crime type.

Overall, homophobic crime has risen, year on year, 29.3% in the capital. However this may be a result of more reports of crimes, however it does signify a worrying trend.

Racist, anti-Semitic and Islamophobic attacks all also saw a rise – though the number of homophobic incidents recorded was nearly double those of Islamophobic crimes, and three times the number of anti-Semitic crimes.

The Met states:

A Homophobic Offence is any offence which is perceived to be homophobic by the victim or any other person, that is intended to impact upon those known or perceived to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual.”

Westminster and Vauxhall, two of London’s main LGBT areas have been revealed as having the most homophobic hate crimes reported.

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Both locations are known to home the majority of London’s LGBTI spaces. Crimes in Westminster have soared 23% while in Lambeth, which homes Vauxhall’s gay scene, anti-gay crimes have risen 25%.

When Hackney, which homes another important LGBTI centre (Shoreditch) is included in the number of crimes reported up to July 2015 rises to 406 – over 1 crime per day.

Of course these figures do not reflect the true scale of the problem – as many crimes against LGBTI’s go unreported. Research from University of Leicester’s Centre for Hate Studies reveals that 88 per cent of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people had experienced some form of hate incident and that over 35,000 of these crimes go unreported across the UK.

Shockingly some boroughs have seen increases of up to 217% (Bromley) and 185% in Croydon. Almost every borough has seen an increase of anti-gay crimes.

Meet Yvonne Taylor, Laidback Party Queen

‘I love to party,’ says Yvonne Taylor as she hugs each of her friends in turn. ‘I just want to enjoy life’. Cool and laidback, Yvonne isn’t your typical pushy promoter, even though she has been organising Sunday Happy Day (SHD) for 7 years now.

LGBT London’s hottest happening, the SHD club night is known for its zany showgirls, flamboyant pole dancers, and irresistible house and soul music. Yvonne describes SHD’s home, the warehouse-like Soho Theatre Bar, as her ‘church … I always feel like I’ve found a great party [when I come here].’

SHD’s punters are an eclectic bunch. Alongside the Londoners busting their moves, you’ll find Americans, Egyptians, Spaniards and Bahamians having a blast too. Yvonne works hard to create a chilled-out atmosphere that welcomes everyone, whoever they are, wherever they’re from. For Yvonne a good party should not be ‘defined by issues like sexuality, gender and race. Just because I’m a gay woman, I don’t want to be defined by my sexuality. Many of the people that come to my events define themselves as gay, but they also bring their straight sister, brother or cousin.’

You might be surprised by Yvonne’s background. Born and brought up in Nottingham, she joined the British Army aged just 18 and started putting on events after being promoted to the rank of corporal. ‘I was being punished,’ she laughs, ‘and was sent off to some empty barracks where we decided to create our own club.’ A record collector from the earliest age, the then-Corporal Taylor had no problem enticing her colleagues onto the dancefloor.

Having a good time is ‘in my DNA’, she claims, and she’d be right. Her father was nicknamed “Party” in his younger days and her mother was a New York It Girl back in the 1970s.

Returning to civvy street in the early eighties, Yvonne carried on doing what she loved most: giving people a fantastic night out. ‘When I first came to London,’ she recalls, ‘it was a segregated community. You could only go to certain places if you were this colour or that sexuality. I wanted to change that.’ And she did, firstly as a successful DJ and now as one of the capital’s best-loved promoters.

SHD’s next party is this Sunday and  promises to be Yvonne’s best bash yet!

Source – www.colourfulpink.com

London LGBT choir celebrates same-sex marriage

On Sunday 30th March, the UK law will change and Gay marriages will be official. To celebrate London LGBT Fourth choir have release this video – ‘This Marriage’.

The Fourth choir was formed in September 2013, and their aim from the outset has been to represent the LGBT community on London’s world-class classical music scene.

The Artistic Director, Dominic Peckham, is one of the UK’s leading choral conductors and works with both professional groups, such as the English National Opera chorus, and highly-respected educational groups such as the National Youth Choir.