The original television series Queer as Folk turned twenty this year. As part of their Nineties: Young Cinema Rebels programme, London’s British Film Institute (BFI) brought show creator Russell T. Davies on stage (hailed as a TV Gamechanger) for a fun and freewheeling discussion about the show that marked a landmark change in LGBTQ representation.... Continue Reading →
What do you call a rom-com without the com? Technically From Zero to I Love You isn’t a comedy. It’s a gay romance through and through, but it has all the tropes of a rom-com. From the meet-cute, the therapist, the art-gallery job, the zippy title, the improbable scenarios, the side-kicks whose only function is... Continue Reading →
It was a sweltering 38+ degrees celsius (100+ fahrenheit) outside so I grabbed a last minute ticket to the Soho Theatre on the promise of air-conditioning and showtunes. Turns out the air-con was either not working, or was so weak it made no difference. So I wasn’t exactly excited to sit through an hour and... Continue Reading →
Lucio Castro’s debut feature End of the Century has the essence of a fleeting affair that burns itself into your memory for years to come, and shows a confident authorial voice that holds a lot of promise. Ocho (Juan Barberini) checks into an Airbnb in Barcelona spying a good looking man in the neighbourhood. Later... Continue Reading →
Peter Shaffer’s Equus is as dark and complex as ever in this London revival, throwing god, sex, psychology and horses into a heady mix. I promise, I won’t make any “horse-hung” jokes. Throwing religious repression and sex together has always been an intoxicating mix, from classic plays like Spring Awakening to the early hits of... Continue Reading →
Are you proud? It’s a simple question with a lot of long and complicated answers, as highlighted in Ashley Joiner’s fascinating but unfocused documentary on the state of the LGBTQ movement in the United Kingdom. The film begins with a personal look at the state of queer Britain in the mid 20th century. A former... Continue Reading →
There is something utterly joyous and enlightening about Maia Kobabe’s graphic novel, Gender Queer: A Memoir. In part an autobiography, as well as a primer on non-binary gender issues, Kobabe unveils a personal story with such warmth and beauty it’s impossible not to love. It’s the paradox of art that specificity creates universality (the more... Continue Reading →
As I sit here, in 2019, wearing a Kylie Minogue t-shirt, staring at a bookshelf littered with queer literature, fashion biographies and tasteful portfolios of homo-erotic art, there is no doubt to the world around me that I am a homosexual. Trust me, my Netflix and Amazon algorithms are well aware. While watching filmmaker Josh... Continue Reading →
