Issue 117 - ScotsGay Magazine

dùn deagh
DUNDEE
Hey folks. It is with some shock and
much sadness that I have to report the
sudden passing of James “Jimmy” Grubb.
A regular on the Dundee scene for many
years, most of us will know him best from
behind the bar in Charlie’s and then the
Gauger, and it is only a few months since we
were all wishing him and his partner Jackie
well with their move to Turkey. Our thoughts
are with Jackie, family and friends.
Back on the Dundee scene, Bar Klozet
has had a very successful opening month,
attracting some big crowds with a great mix
of events such as live music. The place is
looking great, with a modern, more open
and lighter feeling than its past incarnations.
There is still some work in progress, most
notably in the toilets, but this is all planned
work. It is open 7 days a week, 11am-
Midnight Mon-Sat and 12.30pm-Midnight
Sun. Look out for a great wine list offering
some of the best wines around at the
moment, and the addition of a dart board to
go with the pool table.
Along the road in the Abode there is a
new team in place behind the bar headed up
by Allan. There is the usual karaoke with
Ruby on a Fri and Sat, and some great
events planned such as the Queer Quiz with
Lexi Lush on Thu 25th Aug, and a comedy
drag show with Lexi Lush and Ruby Rox on
Sat 27th Aug. Look out for 50p house shots
every day all day and other special offers,
details at the bar.
The Salty Dog are hosting an evening
for the Women Out Wild on Sat 27th Aug,
starting at 8pm. It will be women only for
the night, and include karaoke/disco and a
free VIP pass for discounted entry to Out
afterwards. Entry is £5, and get in before
9pm and get a free cocktail. Plans are also
coming along for getting
in guest DJ’s, with many
of them playing in Ibiza at
the moment it will
probably be another
month or so before the
first of these. As with the
Abode, the Salty also has
50p house shots on offer
all day every day, as well
as other house specials at
£1.85, and this month’s
new creation behind the
bar is a Pepper Bomb
(sound familiar!?). Also
look out for Salty Dog t-shirts going on sale,
from what I hear about the slogans that are
on them probably not the sort of thing to
wear when visiting your granny!
Brooks will be celebrating their first
anniversary since Brian took the reins, so
look out for some special plans to help
celebrate this on Fri 2nd Sep. This is
followed by a Back To Skool party on Sat 3rd
Sep, with the usual range of bombs being
joined by a limited edition Skool Bomb for
the night. In the more distant future, Scarlet
Diamonte and Cherry Bakewell will be back
by popular demand, returning on 13th Oct.
There are also plans afoot for tribute acts to
come later in the year, so look out for more
GayScene
details of these in the coming months. Look
out for all the usual drinks offers including a
great offer on the Bacardi Cocktail bottles, 2
for £3; very refreshing, although the air con
does also do a good job of keeping the bar
at a reasonable temperature on
those hot evenings when the
bar is packed out. Also look
out for a change behind the bar
with Debbie joining the team as
Amanda moves on.
Finally reports are just
coming in from a very
successful beach part themed
Shorts and Shades night at
Out. I was in earlier in the
night and the guys and gals
were putting in a lot of effort in
getting the place ready, so a
great night was guaranteed!
However there is no resting, as they get
ready for Freshers’ Week at the beginning of
Sep when the club will be open every night
right through to Sun 11th. There will be
Freshers’ packs for the new students, as
well as great drink offers for all including all
drinks £1.50 on the Mon, Tue and Wed
nights of that week. The first of the theme
nights is also set to kick off, with a “Monster
Ball” Lady Gaga themed night on Sat 17th
Sep. For those with an adventurous enough
fashion sense there will be £100 for best
dressed and cash prizes for runner ups just
remember to preserve the steak before
making an outfit out of it though!
speak to a real person
Diversitay
Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Group
a’ ghaidhealtach
HIGH LANDS
There was a big crowd at Inverness
Highland Games in Jul and the Highland
LGBT Forum ran an information stall which
was very well attended by locals and tourists
alike all the way from Austria to Arizona.
Many positive comments were made saying
how good it was to see a visible LGBT
presence. Thanks go to Matthew for
stopping the gazebo from flying away on a
windy afternoon! The Forum also ran a stall
at Aberdeen Pride in Aug and it was great to
see such a successful day in the North of
Scotland.
Wed 31st Aug sees the start of a new
LGBT running group called the Wednesday
Gay 5K. Every Wed from 31st Aug, Morgan
will be leading a jog of just over 3 miles for
any members of the LGBT community and
friends. Starts at 7pm sharp from just
outside the main entrance of Inverness
Leisure Centre. Look for the man in the
captain’s hat! Over 16’s only. E-mail:
morgan@tramstop.org
Morgan will complete his Jog Leader
qualification via Jog Scotland prior to the
launch of the group. Inverness Leisure have
kindly offered the group free use of
changing and showering facilities on Wed
nights for at least the first 12 weeks. Just
bring 20p for locker use. Why not join the
runners afterwards at the Maple Court Hotel
for drink/bar nosh/social?
Morgan also facilitates the Pink Castle
Philosophy Club (second Tue of each
month) and organises regular local walks in
the summer months for LGBT folks and
friends.
Joanne
MacKenzie-Winters
highlands@scotsgay.co.uk
Girlzone is back in Wetherspoons
(Church Street, Inverness) on the first Sat of
the month. A couple of new faces came
along in Aug and it was great to meet them.
Rev Peter Nimmo at the Old High St
Stephen’s Church in Inverness organised a
visit in August by the Rev Blair Robertson
who is Convenor of Affirmation Scotland,
which seeks ‘the affirmation and dignity of
lesbian and gay Christians within the
church’. Plans are underway for a seminar
presenting an inclusive and accepting
Christian approach to homosexuality; and
exploring the spiritual and pastoral issues
which affect people of faith who struggle
with their sexuality and sexual identity. This
will be hosted by the Highland LGBT Forum
and facilitated by Ruairidh Macrae (Courage
SCOTLAND) and Rev Nimmo.
Good to see that Stonewall Scotland
now has a Gaelic version of their ‘Some
people are gay. Get over it!’ posters.
The Equality Network is coming up to
Inverness in Sep for a focus group as part of
their Out to Access Project to improve
awareness of the needs of disabled LGBT
people and access to the services they use.
The date/venue will be advertised on the
events page on www.gay-ness.org.uk
01382 20 26 20
Mondays 7-9pm
contact@diversitay.org.uk
www.diversitay.org.uk #diversitaylgbt
For the last 17 years Diversitay has provided a weekly
confidential helpline for LGBT people, or their friends
and families. Although the technology and our services
have changed across the years, we are still here to
listen to you, wherever you are,
and however you choose to contact us.
Registered Scottish Charity NO SC022425