Gay News: Celebs Rumors

Melbourne City Councillors last week took the next steps to fulfil their rainbow pledges, including setting up an LGBTQI advisory committee. A motion asking the management to provide a briefing paper on steps taken to set up an LGBTQI advisory committee, develop and implement an LGBTQI action plan and achieve Rainbow Tick accreditation for its services passed unanimously. The motion moved by Councillor Rohan Leppert and seconded by out councillor Jamal Hakim was unanimously passed by the council on March 15. The motion also noted the services and programs run by the City of Melbourne council for the LGBTQI committee.Nine out of the 11 elected Melbourne councillors had signed Victorian Pride Lobby’s Rainbow pledge before the council elections in 2020.

NSW government and ACON on Wednesday announced that it was setting up the first state-funded health care centre for the LGBTQI community. Schembri said that he felt “uncomfortable” as a gay patient. Schembri was speaking at the launch of the LGBTQI Health Strategy at Kinghorn Cancer Centre at St Vincent’s Hospital, Darlinghurst, Sydney.Earlier this year in January, he was diagnosed with “a rare and random life changing illness” and spent eight weeks  “in and out of hospitals across the public and private systems”. Schembri said he had come out at the age of 14 and had lived and worked for over 25 years in clinical, managerial and chief executive roles in the New South Wales health system.“I thought I knew our public and private systems well. What I wasn’t prepared for was the number of times as a patient, I was asked if my wife was coming to pick me up after a procedure or whether my partner –  pronoun, ‘she or her’ – was joining the consultation,” said Schembri, who rejoined work last week. The historic NSW LGBTIQ+ Health Strategy 2022-2027 is built on the voices, experiences and insights of over 1,600 LGBTIQ+ people across the State and more than 750 NSW Health staff.

 Or going on a “bush walk” with a Grindr date, which is actually a thinly veiled excuse to give each other a gobby on the go, in between dodging tree roots and fellow “bush walkers”, who are mostly out to actually walk the bush. It’s a common theme the people that anonymously contributed to this piece shared between them and seemingly one of the main attractions to this particular kink, the technical term for which is Agoraphilia.Agoraphilia, which is a Greek word made up of a combination of the word agora, meaning public place or assembly, and philia, meaning love or attraction – hence the urge to park a car and go down to the woods today, where you’ll be sure to find a big surprise!But other, less obvious issues can arise.Like the shocking self revelation one contributor had about how much time one can while away whilst waiting for a toilet door to open. “It occurred to me out of the blue one day while sitting in a city toilet, waiting and willing the door to open and for someone, anyone to come in so that I could get my release and move on with my day, just how much time I spent in the pursuit of hot urinal action with a stranger and an erection,” said one contributor. “It actually really shocked me when I added it all up, enough to make me stop for a long time, though I sometimes can’t help walking into a random toilet hoping that I’ll be greeted by a burley gentleman with rough hands and a rougher disposition, who is lingering a little too long”Beaches, not all of them nudist, can attract a certain crowd too.

A gay couple living in Dudley, United Kingdom were targeted by a gang of homophobic teenagers, who hurled vile abuse at them and threw rocks at their house. The West Midlands Police said they are investigating the case as a “hate crime”. Trigger Warning: This story has details of a homophobic attack, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.The married couple Kieran (24) and Steven Douglas-Lane (33) had recently moved from Liverpool to Dudley to start a new life, reported Pink News. “It’s understood a group of youngsters followed two men from a shop on Birmingham Road at around 4pm, shouting abuse,” a West Midlands Police spokesperson said in a statement. “Objects including stones were also thrown at the home but thankfully no one was injured and no damage reported.

A rainbow pathway in Newtown may be just around the corner, after a motion to begin plans for a new pathway in time for next year’s Sydney WorldPride event was carried unanimously by Inner West Council last week.The motion, which was moved by Independent Pauline Lockie and seconded by the Greens Liz Atkins, noted that installing a rainbow crossing in Newtown would be “a visible sign of pride and support for our LGBTQ community”.“Symbols representing our community make it clear that queer people are welcome in our community and, are in fact, to be celebrated,” Cr Atkins told Star Observer when asked about the significance of installing the new rainbow pathway.Cr Pauline LockThis follows a previously resolved motion by council in December 2019, where prospects for a rainbow crossing at the intersection of King Street and Enmore Road in Newtown were being investigated.Although the motion was then approved by councillors, an installation required the approval of Transport for NSW, who “advised Council that it would not support a rainbow crossing in this location and is also unlikely to approve other locations for on-road rainbow crossings”.“That’s quite a complicated intersection anyway, there are multiple sets of lights; multiple crossing points; emergency access points; a train station there”, Cr Lockie told City Hub.Alternative options suggested in the motion included lighting one of the pathways in Camperdown Memorial Rest Park with rainbow lights, painting one of the existing pathways in the park in rainbow colours, and painting a rainbow pathway outside Newtown Town Hall.Two amendments were moved by Cr Mat Howard, who called on council to “submit a request to the Geographical Names Board to rename the public square

A Catholic Church in the United Kingdom has banned an award-winning gay author from visiting and speaking at two schools near London. The Archdiocese of Southwark cancelled the talks by young adult fiction writer Simon James Green at the two schools. Green was scheduled to speak at The John Fisher School in Purley, South London on March 7 and at St John’s Primary School in Gravesend, Kent on March 9.

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras chief executive Albert Kruger has called for a full NSW police investigation into the circumstances that led to the ejection of one of the original ‘78ers Barbara Karpinski from her seat in the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) during the Mardi Gras parade on Saturday night. He has also initiated an internal Mardi Gras investigation. Kruger told the Star Observer that he is in no doubt that the incident happened. He said that the police action was “unacceptable” and that he is “upset about it to be honest”. Karpinski was removed after standing briefly in the stadium seating area holding a handmade poster calling for peace and an end to the war in Ukraine.

Trigger Warning: This story has details of transphobic conduct and transphobic slurs, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.The Moscow Times reported that the church leader made the statements during a ‘Forgiveness Sunday’ sermon and said that the war launched by Russia was about “which side of God humanity will be on”.Patriarch Kirill said that the holding of Pride parades were a “loyalty test” to Western countries.“Pride parades are designed to demonstrate that sin is one variation of human behavior.

A Melbourne Magistrate’s court on Tuesday dismissed the case against a senior Victorian police officer, who was charged with sharing photos and details of former AFL coach Danielle Laidley’s arrest. Trigger Warning: This story has details of transphobic conduct and transphobic slurs, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Detective Leading Senior Constable Murray Gentner (43) was one of the three police officers charged, after photos of Laidley’s arrest in May 2020, including mugshots, were widely shared on social media and by media organisations. The officers were charged with unauthorised access of police information, unauthorised disclosure of police information without reasonable excuse and misconduct in public office.

As Mardi Gras festivities set their place onto my calendar I always save some space to hold my annual “camp” film festival. Camp films are an integral part of LGBTQI culture, and while “camp” films are often mistaken as bad films, this isn’t entirely correct. Many “camp” films (including some on this list) are excellent but are considered camp due to highly exaggerated elements, particularly in the script or performances.

Actor Sam Elliott, has made headlines after going on a foul-mouthed tirade over the critically acclaimed film The Power of the Dog, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons. Elliott appeared to be particularly incensed by the homosexual subtext of the film.Elliott, 77, was appearing on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast on Monday when Maron asked about his thoughts on the film.

Singapore’s highest court on Monday declined to overturn a colonial-era law that criminalises sex between men. The Court of Appeal left it up to the Parliament to change laws and pointed to the government’s promise to not enforce the law.LGBTQI advocacy group Pink Dot SG called the court’s refusal to strike down section 377A of the country’s penal code “a devastating blow” to the community. The petition was filed by retired medical practitioner Dr.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought to the fore heartwarming stories of courage shown by ordinary Ukrainians. Now, a report in The Israel Hayom has revealed details about Ukrainian LGBTQI activists finding Russian soldiers hiding in their office in Kharkiv. The Israel Hayom , a widely distributed newspaper in Israel, said the information about the encounter was provided to them by Ukrainian LGBTQI activist Viktor Pylypenko.According to Pylypenko, the activists beat up the soldiers and captured them.

Weeks after Victoria Police arrested six teenagers for a series of gay-bashing attacks in the parklands in Ashwood, the Monash City council on Tuesday passed a motion condemning homophobia.Trigger Warning: This story has details of homophobia and homophobic slurs, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.The councillors unanimously passed a motion in a council meeting on February 22 to fly the Pride flag across the municipality till March 7, in solidarity with the LGBTQI community. “One of the worst things about these sorts of incidents is the isolation and vulnerability that people feel. Everyone needs to feel secure and needs to feel that they belong.

Months before the 21-year-prison term of Sydney serial killer dubbed ‘The Mutilator’ is due to expire, the NSW Supreme Court has ordered Damien Anthony Peters to undergo a mandatory psychiatric and psychological examination. Peters was held guilty of murdering and dismembering the bodies of two of his ex boy friends. Trigger Warning: This story has details of a violent murder, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.The judge agreed to the state’s request to subject Peters to an interim detention order of 28 days and committed him to a correctional home for that period. “Safety and protection of the community is the paramount consideration (under the law),” said the judge. The court said that it was “satisfied that the risk (Peters) presents of committing a serious violent offence is unacceptable in that the seriousness of the potential harm is high given his proven capacity for extreme violence”.The state had applied for a continuing detention order of one year for Peters, whose 21-year-prison term expires in September 2022, followed by a five year extended supervision order. Peters had stabbed his boyfriend of four years Akai in the neck before cutting up his body at their apartment in Northcott in Surry Hills, Sydney around January or February 2001.

Actor, model and socialite Christian Wilkins has slammed media coverage of his dress at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Fair Day event on Sunday.Trigger Warning: This story has details of homophobic media coverage and homophobic slurs, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Christian, son of veteran Channel Nine reporter Richard Wilkins, was dressed in a fabulous, pink halter neck mini dress for a Fair Day event at Victoria Park, Sydney. Christian Wilkins (left) calls out the Daily Telegraph’s homophobic headline (right).The experience was however marred, when on Monday Daily Telegraph’s Sydney Confidential section featured Christian’s photos with a homophobic headline.“Dude looks like a lady! Richard Wilkins’ flamboyant son Christian flaunts his VERY toned figure in a skin-tight pink mini dress with daring cut-outs”, the headline screamed. Christian, who came out as gay in public in March 2018 on the front cover of a magazine, did not mince his words when calling out the publication over its homophobic coverage.   A post shared by CHRISTIAN WILKINS (@theprincewilkins)In 2021, Christian had made his acting debut in the Stan Original series Eden, in an LGBTQI role, playing a twin named Leander. Christian has previously been a fashion correspondent for E News and starred in shows Dancing With The Stars and Filthy Rich and Homeless. In his coming out interview, Christian had said that he had “taken it upon myself to become the best damn gay I can be!”  A post shared by CHRISTIAN WILKINS (@theprincewilkins)Christian had in an interview said that he had never come

A serial killer, dubbed by the media as ‘The Mutilator’ for murdering and dismembering the bodies of two of his boyfriends in Sydney, is due to be released in September 2022 after his 21-year prison term expires. The NSW police, however, want 53-year-old Damien Anthony Peters’ detention to be continued over fears that he could reoffend. Trigger Warning: This story has details of  a gruesome double murder, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Justice Julia Lonergan of the NSW Supreme Court heard an application for Peters’ interim continuing detention last week.

Trigger Warning: This story discusses domestic violence, murder and self harm, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.Police said in a statement that Glen, who is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, was charged with one count of “murder, arson and unlawful stalking”.Glen Tipler (38) was known for posting storm chasing videos online.Police will allege that on February 9, 2022, around 11 pm,  “a fire was deliberately lit at a Leichardt Street residence causing the death of a 21-year-old Coomera man.”On February 9, Queensland Fire and Emergency Service were called after neighbours heard a smoke alarm go off and saw smoke coming from the Leichardt Street address where Glen lived. The police found Adam’s body inside the residence.The same night around 11.50 pm, police were called to a Pioneer Road, Sheldon residence, after a man reported that his work colleague Glen had turned up at his house with significant burn injuries.

“We know that you’re a homosexual, we’ve been following you.”Trigger Warning: This story has details of suicidal ideation and might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.This is what Yvonne Sillett,  a former Australian soldier and cipher operator, was told during a 1988 interrogation into her sexuality in relation to her security clearance. The royal commission is gathering evidence from ADF members who have had suicidal ideation or from surviving family members of those who have died.  Describing her interrogation, Sillett said that “after several hours of this questioning they said they would be taking the matter further and that, based on my sexuality, I could no longer be in Signal Corps as I’d be open to blackmail, and that they were downgrading my security clearance which was needed to do that job. They told me I’d never instruct women again.”According to The Guardian, during her interrogation, she was asked to give up the names of other homosexual military personnel but she refused to do so.With the help of a partner at the time, Sillett was able to “pull through.

By Dr Luke BeckThe Religious Discrimination Bill plays word games to address hurt feelings rather than provide sensible protections against religious discrimination. In doing so, the bill exposes the culture war within Australia’s biggest religious groups, and runs into constitutional problems.After the marriage equality vote in 2017, then PM Malcolm Turnbull offered conservatives a religious freedom inquiry as a consolation prize.

It’s 2022 and it’s never been a worse time to be an older person or indeed, to be getting older!And it’s a place that we are all going to be, eventually and yet, the level of shrug about the challenges that older Australians face is bewildering to many of us who are facing the prospect of ending up in these places in the next 20, 30, 40 years time.It’s especially tough for LGBTQI Australians who are already accessing home care or currently living in an aged care facility. Not only do older LGBTQI Australians have to contend with all the challenges that heterosexual older Australians do, they have their own set of unique challenges to overcome.Nicky Bath, Chief Executive Officer of LGBTIQ+ Health Australia spoke to Star Observer about the distinctive challenges that the older members of our communities are facing.

Grindr has removed its gay dating and hookup app from multiple app stores as the Communist Party cracks down on LGBTQI content as part of its month-long censorship campaign.The Guardian reported this campaign is happening during the Lunar New Year holiday and as the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games begin. It is being conducted by China’s Cyberspace Administration. Grindr disappears from app stores in China On the eve of the Winter Olympics, let us protest in front of Chinese embassies the world over.

Sitting in a soft pink cardigan, surrounded by enormous, pink iced cakes with pink butterflies on the kitchen wall behind her, Dolly Paron cuts an imposing figure as she chats on to HollywoodLife’s musical editor, Jason Browe.This feisty, well renown and celebrated song writer weighed into the reported Damon Albam feud with Taylor Swift. “I don’t care what people think about my songs. Taylor Swift is a great writer, with or without anybody else.

“It’s been the most beautiful thing, where people are like ‘this is an official welcome’. It’s been so wonderful – and it’s exciting because now the dating pool has expanded!…It’s the most liberating thing. It’s like life has just opened up because I had the courage to say: ‘This is me.’”Maria Thattil is effusive when she talks about the response from the LGBTQI community to her very public coming out as bisexual.

Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK Judge Alan Carr’s estranged husband Paul Drayton won his appeal against a fourteen-week prison sentence for a drink driving offence.Drayton spent two nights in prison after he was convicted on Wednesday for reversing a 4X4 into a police car last year. Drayton had reportedly registered an alcohol test reading that was “off the scale”.Judge Shane Barnes, heard the appeal and agreed that Drayton’s two days in prison would have been “harrowing”, reported The Daily Mail.“Yes, of course, it is right that we give you an opportunity to make amends and turn your life around,” Judge Barnes said and ruled that the prison sentence would be suspended suspended for two years.

Slate advice podcast How to Do It signed ‘Coming Up Short’. A thirty-year-old heterosexual (don’t know if that is a determining factor) complained that after he got out of hospital after contracting COVID in July last year he suffered some erectile dysfunction, which got better with medical attention.Unfortunately, he was left with a lasting problem.“My penis has shrunk. Before I got sick, I was above average.

Ian Carlos Gonçalves de Matos, Brazil’s out diving star who competed in the 2016  Olympics, died Tuesday in Rio De Janeiro, following complications  from a throat infection. Matos was 32 years old. Matos had been in the hospital for two months for a throat infection, which ultimately spread to his stomach and lungs. “We are profoundly saddened to have received the news of the  premature death of the Olympic diver Ian Matos, aged just 32,”  Brazil’s Olympic Committee said in a statement. “Team Brazil acknowledges his contribution to the evolution of the  discipline.

During the pandemic I performed a silent transformation. While some people bettered themselves through learning a new skill, I did so by binge watching a multitude of ‘Boys Love’ shows. ‘Boys Love’ is a term that refers to the spectrum of gay dramas from Asia.

Max Appenroth, a trans activist and diversity consultant has been named  Mr Gay Germany for 2021. Appenroth, 35, won the title Monday at Cologne’s Queer Christmas  market, Heavenue Cologne, and is the first trans man to win the title.  Appenroth won over six other contestants who were vying for the title. “This is just such a big symbolic effect for the trans community. I as a trans  person, as the first Mr.

Former out gay Socceroo player, Stephen Laybutt, 44, texted Ian Pavey, 67, a was a patient at St Vincent’s Hospital where he was working in its rehabilitation unit. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the message said, “Hey mate it’s Steve from St Vincent’s. I want to investigate if I could give you a kidney.

Remember the Tom of Finland rip-offs? And the triple-fold-out cute twink with a big bow wrapped around his (always) enormous donger, the proud-to-be-gay ones that used some form of variation of the rainbow colours, the bears, leathermen, the bitchy queens, and of course, the butt with the candle or fairy-light deeply ensconced therein?Classic messages accompanying photos ranged from a big penis (“I hope this present fits”), naked men cuddling (“A perfect fit…you and I”), a naked butt (“Dear Smart Ass”), and the hunk in hot jocks (“To someone who is young, hung and dumb. Well, one out of three ain’t bad”).

Steve Bronski, one-third of the influential British synth-pop band and gay pop pioneers  Bronski Beat, has passed away at the age of 61. No cause of death  was released. Bandmate Jimmy Somerville posted on social media, “Sad to hear Steve Bronski has  died.

Sydney’s first gay and lesbian radio program Gaywaves has been inducted into NFSA Sounds of Australia for 2021.The ground-breaking LGBTQIA+ radio show was one of 10 sound recordings, which also included the National Apology to the Stolen Generations and the most successful Australian song of the 2010s added to the collection.Gaywaves first aired November 1979, at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in Australia, and aired their final show in 2005.Prue Borthwick. Image: SuppliedPrue Borthwick first joined the collective when she moved from Melbourne to Sydney in 1980.

Now living near Monaco and working in high-end real estate and villa rentals, Jameson refers back to the extensive diaries he kept during this time – required just to be able to sort through all the craziness happening in the moment, to write his tell-all book.James Farn“And then there are the supposedly straight men who pop in for a Lucky At Lunch Special…”Farn tells of his experiences after looking back at this period in his life, with the forced time off during the pandemic compelling him to put it all into a book to share with the LGBTQI community, with the long term view of helping to contribute to our cultural history.The result is an amusing collection of sometimes shocking and always entertaining anecdotes, some of which will have

Actor Colton Haynes, in a provocative and disturbing self-penned  essay for New York magazine, is exposing Hollywood’s dark and  seamy side, and the emotional abuse he suffered in his quest for  stardom.  “Before I came to Hollywood, I was confidently queer,” writes Haynes,  in Losing a Teenage Dream.

 Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson recently named 51-year-old Lina Axelsson Kihlblom as the country’s new Schools Minister. Kihblom is the first transgender government minister in not only Sweden but all of Scandinavia.“This is a huge and exciting task and I’m ready to take it on,” Kihblom said at a press conference on last week.Before her entry into politics, Kihlblom was known for achieving a great deal of success through her work as a principal.