Lloyd Russell-Moyle, MP for Brighton Kemptown, has launched a petition to ‘save’ Brighton & Hove Pride from Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) after the train company announced it is planning to “disrupt the journeys of tens of thousands of visitors to Pride by cancelling all trains south of Three Bridges on Saturday, August 5“.
Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP says: “GTR are claiming they can’t get the extra drivers for increase capacity due to the overtime ban implemented by ASLEF train drivers. The company has known for months this was going to happen and instead of making alternative plans they have taken the nuclear option of mass cancellations.
“ASLEF have acknowledged that it would be possible to design a shift pattern that could accommodate the event but GTR are refusing to engage.
“GTR have enough drivers to cover the event if they were to reallocate from the Peterborough or Cambridge routes and run a shuttle service to London.
“Their decision to cancel all trains to Brighton will leave tens of thousands of people stranded and will be dangerous for those trying to get home.
“GTR can create a shift pattern that works but are instead cancelling all trains, they must urgently act to save Brighton Pride.”
Legendary drag artist, songstress and performer Divina De Campo has been announced as the host of The Stage Debut Awards 2023, in association with Ambassador Theatre Group.
The Stage Debut Awards, the only dedicated awards recognising breakthrough theatre talent, takes place in London on Sunday, October 1 and is a prestigious event bringing together the previous 12 months’ most exciting and emerging performers and creatives in a special ceremony celebrating their outstanding professional debuts.
Since competing in the very first season of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK in 2019, Divina, who is currently performing in the nationwide tour of TheSpongeBob Musical, has starred in a series of major theatrical productions, most recently enjoying critical acclaim cast as Mary Sunshine in Chicago and also in her award-winning role in the revival of cult musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Upcoming, Divina will lead the cast of Snow White at the Wyvern Theatre in this year’s pantomime as the evil Queen Morgiana.
Copyright David Monteith
Divina comments: “I am so proud and honoured to be hosting The Stage Debut Awards this year because they really do shine a vital light on those at the start of their careers. This awards ceremony gives an important platform to the breakthrough talent in the industry and it lets the rest of us know they’re coming for us! I can’t wait to celebrate with all the deserved nominees on the night.”
The eight awards champion performers, directors, designers, writers, composers and lyricists.
The award categories include: Best Performer in a Play; Best Performer in a Musical; Best Creative West End Debut; Best Director; Best Designer; Best Writer and Best Composer/Lyricist or Book Writer. The winner of the Best West End Debut Performer is the only category to be determined by a public vote.
Darren Little from Prowler Brighton, the gay lifestyle store offering a selection of underwear, sex toys, fashion, gifts, lube, aromas, films and more, handed over a cheque for £300 to Dr Gillian Dean from the Martin Fisher Foundation recently, which was raised from the sale of T-shirts.
The Martin Fisher Foundation was founded in 2015 to take forward the work of Professor Martin Fisher. It continues to promote Martin’s ethos of treating people living with HIV with dignity, compassion and respect, and is developing new strategies for effective HIV prevention, treatment and care.
Prowler said: “The funds were raised by the customers from the sale of T shirts. The Martin Fisher Foundation is working towards zero new HIV infections, zero HIV-Related deaths and zero HIV stigma in Brighton & Hove”.
Demolition of the ruined section of the Royal Albion Hotel continues while the response team remain faced with complex challenges.
Visiting the site to see first-hand the response to the council’s ongoing response to the fire, Brighton & Hove City Council leader, Councillor Bella Sankey, said: “The scale, seriousness and complexity of the huge operation was astonishing.
“The ruined section of the hotel is dangerously unstable and the team are having to demolish a structure which is already in a state of collapse.
“It’s vital that people keep away from the area while the area is made safe and secure and that is also why some residents are unfortunately unable to return to their homes while the work continues.
“However, I was really impressed by the professionalism and skill shown by the team on the ground in managing the demolition.
“They have a plan in place to make sure they remove the sections that are the most vulnerable and unsafe while doing everything they can to salvage and scan heritage features.
“With a structure in such a perilous, ruined state there’s clearly many variables outside of our control, but I want to recognise their careful progress.
“I’m also really sorry for the disruption that continues to be caused to the residents that were displaced from their homes and for people travelling across the city.
“When the fire service evacuated local residents for the immediate area no-one could have known the impact of the devastation now unfolding and complexity of reluctantly demolishing parts of this heritage building.”
Royal Albion Hotel Fire with Cllr Bella Sankey on site
The properties directly behind the Royal Albion Hotel will remain inaccessible while this essential work takes place.
Any residents who are displaced by the fire can call the council on 01273 292000 for advice or information.
Anyone who was a guest at the Royal Albion Hotel who need to collect their belongings should call Britannia Hotels on 0333 323 1574 or email royalalbionproperty@britanniahotels.com.
The Chief Constable of Sussex, Jo Shiner, has made a “full and unreserved apology” to the LGBTQ+ community for past, historic “prejudice, ill- treatment, bias, discrimination, harm, (and) injustices” by the police.
Sussex covers the city of Brighton, often referred to as Britain’s gay capital.
She is only the second UK Chief Constable to do so, following a similar apology by the Met Police Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, on 7 June.
The campaign was backed by the comedian and TV presenter Paul O’Grady before his death.
Responding to an appeal for an apology by the Peter Tatchell Foundation and following discussions with Peter Tatchell, Jo Shiner has written to him as follows:
“Dear Peter… In response, I write on behalf of Sussex Police to offer an apology and to express my sincere regret for historical prejudice and ill-treatment directed towards LGBTQ+ people in Sussex.
“As Chief Constable, I believe it is crucial to address past injustices and acknowledge the harm caused to individuals and minority groups by discriminatory systems, processes and unacceptable behaviours in policing.
“It is clear that the approach taken in Sussex to enforcing the laws of the day demonstrated bias that impacted uniquely and immeasurably members of the LGBTQ+ community.
“It is my hope that this apology will mark a significant step towards a more inclusive and compassionate future, where the rights and dignity of every individual are recognised, respected and protected…” she said.
CLICK HERE for the Sussex Chief Constable’s letter
Peter Tatchell responded with praise for the Chief Constable’s statement, saying: “It is a moving, generous apology that comes across as passionate, heartfelt and sincere, which I know it is.
“Some people in power find it hard to say sorry for past wrongs. Jo Shiner didn’t. That marks her out as a forthright and commendable Chief Constable.
“This apology does the Sussex Police proud and will win much appreciation and praise from the LGBTQ+ community.
“Having drawn a line under past police homophobia, I hope this will boost LGBTQ+ confidence in the police and encourage more LGBTs to report hate crime, domestic violence and sexual assault,” said Peter Tatchell, Director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation.
The Sussex Chief Constable’s apology is in response to the #ApologiseNow campaign organised by the Peter Tatchell Foundation. It is asking every Chief Constable in the UK to say sorry for past homophobic persecution.
Peter Tatchell added: “We are not asking the police to apologise for enforcing the law, but to apologise for the often illegal and abusive way they enforced it.
“If the police say they have changed, they need to show it by acknowledging past wrongs.”
“Officers raided gay bars, clubs and even private birthday parties, insulting LGBTs as ‘poofs’ and ‘queers’. They gave the names and addresses of arrested gay men to local papers, which led to some being evicted, sacked and violently beaten. Police harassed LGBTs leaving gay venues and arrested same-sex couples for kissing, cuddling and holding hands, right up until the 1990s.
“The police did not make the law but they chose to enforce it in ways that today would be deemed illegal and unacceptable. They went out of their way to target gay and bisexual men to boost their arrest figures and ‘crime fighting’ reputation. Young handsome male officers were sent into public toilets and parks, where they lured gay men into committing offences and then arrested them. These so-called ‘pretty police’ acted as agents provocateurs.
“The yearly average of homosexual offences recorded by the police in England and Wales was nearly three times greater after the partial decriminalisation of male homosexuality in 1967, than it was in the previous eight decades of total criminalisation – clear evidence of a police witch-hunt.
“At the height of this post-1967 persecution, in 1989 there were 1,718 convictions and cautions for so-called ‘gross indecency’ between men – almost as many as in 1954-55 when male homosexuality was totally illegal, and the country was gripped by a McCarthyite-style anti-gay witch hunt.
“If the police say they have changed, they need to show it by acknowledging past wrongs. They need to follow the laudable lead of the Sussex Chief Constable and the Met Police Commissioner. All Chief Constables should apologise for the many decades of past police harassment. Apologise now!”
The #ApologiseNow petition is now live. Other police services across the UK are currently engaging with the #ApologiseNow campaign, but as discussions are on-going, Peter Tatchell Foundation will not be naming them.
The ‘unprecedented’ success of the first International LGBTQIA+ Conference has led to a collaboration of global experts joining forces to tackle crimes and address the rights of sexual and gender minorities.
With delegates coming from Kyrgyzstan, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, and from all over the UK, as well as speakers beaming in from Nigeria, Pakistan and Bangladesh, the event saw over 20+ nation states represented during the first Safer To Be Me Symposium, organised by human rights charity ReportOUT in partnership with the University of Sunderland.
Guests attend the first International LGBTQIA+ Community Conference at Hope Street Xchange Picture: DAVID WOOD
Some of the most important issues facing international LGBTQ+ human rights were explored and discussed on the University’s campus in Sunderland, an event which was launched with the unveiling of the world-famous Amsterdam Rainbow Dress, appearing in the UK for the first time.
Encouraging a call-to-action during Pride Month in June, the Symposium has led to the launch of a Global LGBTQI+ Human Rights Research and Knowledge Exchange Group, working together on a joint project involving police forces, academics, LGBTQ+ activists and campaigners.
Drew Dalton, Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Programme Leader MSc Inequality and Society from the University of Sunderland speaks during the first International LGBTQIA+ Community Conference at Hope Street Xchange Picture: DAVID WOOD
Conference organiser Drew Dalton, Chair of north-east based ReportOUT and Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University, says: “#SaferToBeMe was an unprecedented success. From our launch event, which hosted the Amsterdam Rainbow Dress, to our online satellite events and main Symposium Day, we reached over 100+ attendees in total.
“This was not just a day to sit and listen, it was an open opportunity to get involved, and has resulted in the launch of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Group where we will work together on a joint project involving police forces, academics, LGBTQ+ activists and campaigners, to share our skills and knowledge to tackle brutality against LGBTQ+ people worldwide, as it was a common theme emerging time and time again in many of our talks.
“We need to make nation states safer for LGBTQI+ people worldwide, and so this is a start. We look forward to launching this project in September.”
The keynote speaker was Mark Gevisser, one of South Africa’s foremost writers, whose books include: Lost and Found in Johannesburg: A Memoir (2014) and The Pink Line: The World’s Queer Frontiers (2020). His journalism has appeared in many publications, including Guardian, New York Times, Granta, and New York Review of Books.
Guests attend the first International LGBTQIA+ Community Conference at Hope Street Xchange Picture: DAVID WOOD
In Mark’s address, he said: “When it comes to LGBTQ+ rights globally, we need to understand that the motion is more one of a pendulum swinging than ’the long arc of the moral universe bending towards justice. Rights are asserted, space is claimed – and then there is backlash. This is especially the case in societies where the foundation texts of monotheistic religions can be abused to fuel moral panics against queer people for political purposes.”
He added: “I was honoured to be invited to participate in the conference, as I have deep respect for ReportOUT’s international approach, and the way the #Safertobeme situated British LGBTQ+ struggles within a global context.”
Also attending were representatives from the country’s leading LGBTQ+ charities, including Stonewall, as well as academics, activists, and civil society leaders.
The Amsterdam Rainbow Dress, made of all the national flags from countries where being LGBTIQ+ is illegal, on penalty of imprisonment, torture or capital punishment, was on display at the National Glass Centre (NGC), for one night only.
Drew Dalton with the Rainbow Dress
Sunderland now joins a list of worldwide locations where it’s been photographed including Amsterdam, San Francisco, Madrid, Athens, Seoul, Antwerp, Johannesburg and Brussels, sharing its global message of inclusion and equal rights. When a country adopts LGBTIQ+ inclusive legislation, the respective flag is replaced with a rainbow flag.
Director at the Rainbow Dress Foundation, Arnout Van Krimpen, said: “It was great to bring the dress here for the first time in the UK.
“When ReportOUT contacted us to explain more about their conference during Pride Month, I thought ‘yes’ we need to be here. Sunderland just seemed like the natural choice for the Rainbow Dress to be shown for the first time to a UK audience.”
Celebrating a wealth of genres and forms, including memoir, poetry, historical fiction and gripping thrillers, the UK and Ireland’s only dedicated prize for LGBTQ+ literature has announced its 2023 longlists for the Polari Prize and Polari First Book Prize.
This year’s longlists feature notable debuts and highly acclaimed titles including the Sunday Times bestselling memoir A Visible Manby Edward Enninful (Bloomsbury), the Orwell prize-winning The New Lifeby Tom Crewe (Chatto & Windus) and Travis Alabanza’s None of the Above (Canongate).
A dash of historical fiction appears across both longlists including the previously mentioned debut from Crewe as well as Patrick Gale’s Mother’s Boy (Tinder Press) as well as taut and gripping crime thrillers such as No Country for Girlsby Emma Style (Sphere) and The Schoolhouse by Sophie Ward (Corsair). As for poetry, Caroline Bird presents work composed over two decades in Rookie (Carcanet Press) while poet Seán Hewitt turns his hand to memoir with All Down Darkness Wide (Jonathan Cape).
Paul Burston, Prize founder, said: “This year’s Polari Prize long lists demonstrate a diverse range of LGBTQ+ literary talent, writing across many different genres and from a wide variety of perspectives. The volume and quality of submissions was extremely high this year, and the judges really had their work cut out.
“But these are long lists we can all be proud of. At a time when LGBTQ+ people are under attack, our stories matter more than ever. These are our stories. Read them. Learn from them. Celebrate them.”
This year’s shortlists will be announced on September 27, 2023 at Polari on Sea in Hastings.
The winner’s Prize ceremony will once again return to the British Library, taking place on November 24, 2023.
Brighton & Hove Pride is celebrating a milestone 50th Anniversary of the first Pride march in the city with their Pride at 50 – Dare To Be Different campaign taking place on lampposts across the city and an exhibition at Brighton’s Jubilee Library.
Organised by the Sussex Gay Liberation Front (SGLF), the first Brighton Gay Pride March took place in July 1973, and was composed of students and staff at the University of Sussex, along with LGBTQ+ people in the area.
A series of over 50 lampposts can be seen on Queen’s Road and Old Steine, leading partially on the Pride Parade route towards Preston Park. The lampposts feature portraits of some of the incredible trailblazers who began this movement in our city and allowed us to be here celebrating, 50 years on.
From Monday, July 31, a photo exhibition will be taking place at Jubilee Library until Sunday, August 27, featuring archival photographs from the first Pride March in the city, and nine new photos of Sussex Gay Liberation Front veterans by award-winning photographer, Chris Jepson.
Brighton & Hove Pride say: “Campaigning has always been at the forefront of Pride, and we couldn’t have achieved the advances in both civil society and legal terms without the thousands of LGBTQ+ trailblazers who have made a stand and Dared To Be Different.
“Whilst we commemorate 50 years of progress and the trailblazers who came before us, we also find ourselves as a community in a challenging period with our rights and progress under threat, such as Uganda’s widely condemned new anti-LGBTQ law that includes the death penalty.
“As a community, now more than ever we need to stand together with our friends and allies around the world to call out the hatred and injustices particularly those being directed to our trans siblings. #TransPeopleAreLoved.”
More information about the Pride at 50 – Dare To Be Different campaign can be found HERE
Remove The Doubt, a dedicated cervical screening awareness campaign created by and for LGBTQ+ people, has been launched to help address the inequalities and misinformation around cervical screening. Over the summer, phase 2 of the campaign is being launched, running for eight weeks from July 10.
Remove The Doubt is delivered by Live Through This, a charity that supports and advocates for LGBTQ+ people affected by cancer, and the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance. The aims of the campaign are to:
Increase awareness and understanding of cervical screening, eligibility, and inclusive treatment of patients
Educate health professionals about the LGBTQ+ community and their experiences through webinars as part of the drive to increase screening rates
Remove The Doubt wants LGBTQ+ people who have a cervix to know that they have a right to be screened. This may include women, trans men, non-binary people assigned female at birth, and some intersex people. If someone does not have a cervix (e.g., because they have had a total hysterectomy), they will not need cervical screening.
To truly understand the barriers that LGBTQ+ people feel around cervical screening, Live Through This and the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance held workshops with members of the community, the findings of which include:
Fear of judgement and misunderstanding during screening
Anecdotes of mistreatment on the basis of their identity
Anxiety around gendered associations when coming to book appointments, especially about reproductive health
Community myths about the need for screening
Mistrust of healthcare professionals in relation to inappropriate questions being asked
Live Through This and the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Cancer Alliance are rallying together to improve cervical screening rates and the health outcomes for the LGBTQ+ community and have decided to take their vital health message out into the community they so passionately serve.
This summer, Remove The Doubt will attend Happy Valley Pride in Hebden Bridge, on Saturday, July 29. Uptake for cervical screening in this area is 71.5% in comparison to the national target which is 80%; this area also has a significantly higher representation of the LGBTQ+ patient group than other areas of West Yorkshire.
Stewart O’Callaghan, CEO and Founder of Live Through This, said: “Remove The Doubt aims to empower LGBTQ+ people and by taking this message out into the community we hope to educate, inform and free them of the worries they are feeling towards cervical screening. We shouldn’t be living in a world whereby someone’s gender or how they identify can negatively impact their health but sadly that is the case for so many people. We will be at Happy Valley Pride, providing a safe space for anyone to come and learn more about cervical screening and what it involves.”
Hayley Snowden, Health Inequalities Programme Manager for the West Yorkshire & Harrogate Cancer Alliance, said: “It’s great to be working alongside members of the LGBTQ+ community on Remove The Doubt and we’d like to say a huge thank you to all those featured for helping us to promote positive messages around cervical screening.
“There’s no doubt that cancer screening saves lives but sadly, research shows that trans men don’t know they are eligible for cervical screening if they still have a cervix. Fear that they will have a bad experience, or that healthcare staff attitudes will be inappropriate can often prevent them from attending. As a Cancer Alliance, we want to shine a light on this important area of prevention – raise awareness around eligibility and educate our healthcare professional colleagues about the issues facing the LGBTQ community and how they can help and support.”
Lead Pic: Billie Gold to perform at Queer Town on Saturday, August 5
Brash, beautiful and brilliant, Brighton & Hove Pride returns for another year in August! Main events are back and better than ever for 2023, including: FABULOSO In The Park, a two-day official fundraiser event for the Brighton Rainbow Fund at Brighton’s Preston Park on Saturday, August 5 and Saturday, August 6 featuring Black Eyed Peas, STEPS, Zara Larsson, Mae Muller, Melanie C, Louise and more.
Brighton & Hove Pride say: “FABULOSO In The Park is our most inclusive and diverse yet, including over 150 LGBTQ+ artists as well as our essential LGBTQ+ allies performing across 12 different stages and areas of entertainment. All our performers are members of or allies of our glorious rainbow family.”
“Firmly established as the UK’s biggest Pride celebration, Brighton & Hove Pride is as famous, vibrant, popular and unique as the city itself. Our sole ethos is to promote diversity, inclusion and education within our communities. Putting the beautiful diversity of our community at the heart of this year’s event, our Pride celebration theme is Dare To Be Different.”
Brighton & Hove Pride 2023
FABULOSO In The Park– Saturday, August 5 and Sunday, August 6. Click HERE for info
Described by The Guardian as “the country’s most popular LGBTQ+ event,” FABULOSO In The Park will run over two days with a main stage featuring world class artists including Black Eyed Peas, Zara Larsson, Jax Jones, Confidence Man, Mae Muller and more on Saturday, August 5, followed by STEPS, Louise, B*Witched, The Vivienne, Harleymoon Kemp and more on Sunday, August 6.
STEPS
Featuring over 150 LGBTQ+ artists, other areas of the park will see the return of the Gaydio Dance Tent with headliner Honey Dijon joining Gok Wan, Freemasons and more; the Legends Cabaret Big Top with it’s always stellar line-up; the the Cocoa Butter Club stage with it’s a-list showcasing and celebrating performers of colour; the DIVA Dance Tent; the Brüt Dance Tent; and a host of other tents, cabaret stages, amazing live music and community areas to create a festival that celebrates diversity and delivers an unforgettable Pride experience.
Pride LGBTQ+ Community Parade – ‘Dare To Be Different’ – Saturday, August 5. Click HERE for info
The Pride LGBTQ+ Community Parade is one of the undisputed highlights of the Brighton & Hove Pride weekend and is a glorious showcase of the city’s charities, community groups and small businesses as well as emergency services, the NHS and statutory partners.
Chris Jepson Photography
It is one of the biggest and brightest events in Brighton & Hove’s calendar, with over 300,000 people thronging the city’s streets to participate in and watch the parade of community and campaign groups, and the all-singing, all-dancing carnival of colour as it winds its way from Hove Lawns to Preston Park for FABULOSO In The Park, the official Brighton & Hove Pride charity fundraiser.
Fifty years on from the first Pride march in Brighton – organised by Sussex Gay Liberation Front – Brighton & Hove Pride challenges you to Dare To Be Different so come together to remember, celebrate and most importantly, to campaign.
Pride Village Party – Saturday, August 5 and Sunday, August 6. Click HERE for more info
The Pride Village Party in Kemptown, Brighton sees businesses across St James’ Street and Marine Parade come together to celebrate Pride and raise extra funds for the Brighton Rainbow Fund and Pride Social Impact Fund. With DJs and performers across the area on closed streets, the heart of the village comes alive for two days of fun with a fundraising purpose.
Pride Community Day & Dog Show – Sunday, August 27. Click HERE for more info
The annual canine highlight of fun and barking frolics where dog owners pamper their pooches and paw their way to one of Brighton & Hove Pride’s most wonderfully accessible events. You’d be barking mad to miss this celebration of our four-legged best friends where dogs and dog lovers come together and shine with Pride.
Judged novelty classes include categories such as Cutest Puppy, Golden Oldie, Best Rescue and the Pride Special: Best Drag Dog (Queen/King) – an unmissable show of paw-fect pooches and waggy tails. Industry professionals oversee all entries and judge each category, ensuring every star pooch gets the recognition their proud paws deserve.
In addition to the dog show, a whole host of community and family-friendly activities will be available including food provided by local HIV charity Lunch Positive, community stalls, a fully licensed bar and an unmissable (free) doggy photo booth, run by award-winning local photographer, Chris Jepson.
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