LGBT month - out! northeast magazine

PLEASE TAKE ONE 

issue 

14 

In this issue .... a true icon 

Sir ian 

McKellan 

LGBT month 

| Theatre 

| Health 

| Law 

| and much more 

Gay, Lesbian and Out in the North East 

Issue 14 - February / March 2009 // FREE www.outnortheast.com

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content 

issue 14 - February / March 2009 

The only gay press dedicated to the North East of England. 

10 

12 

Editor - Simon Hatfield 

Scene News and Listings Editor 

Anita Collins 

Editorial Assistant 

Jamie Robinson / Michelle Mattisson 

Sales and Marketing - Philip Douglas 

Design - Radim Malinic 

Office Manager - Juliet Clark 

Contributors 

Janet Owen, Sian Broadhurst, Steve Paske, 

Paul Corduex, David Longstaff, Cris McCurley, 

Catherine Weare, Keith Ward, Nick Baker, 

Dr Mark Casey, James Barr, Miss Trixie, 

Ophelia Balls. 

Out Northeast is published by: 

Think Pink Limited 

72-80 Corporation Road 

Middlesbrough TS1 2RF 

T: 01642 220040 

F: 01642 337500 

W: outnortheast.com 

E: editorial@outnortheast.com 

Cover Image by Ellis Parrinder / 

Attitude – Courtesy of Stonewall 

Next Issue: 31st March 2009 

©Think Pink Limited 2009 

All material is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. 

Reproduction in whole or in part without the written 

permission of Think Pink Limited is strictly forbidden. The 

greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of 

information in this magazine at time of going to press, but 

we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors. The 

views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily 

those of Think Pink Limited. The inclusion of images of 

people does not represent their individual sexuality. 

17 

LGBT MONTH 

22 

SIR IAN MCKELLAN 

TRAVEL 

FITNESS 

26 30 

THEATRE REVIEWS 

SCENE OUT 

www.outnortheast.com 

4. Out NorthEast

gordonbrown 

A S S O C I A T E S 

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Legal Services for Individuals 

residential property • wills and estate planning 

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employment 

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starting, buying and selling a business 

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www.gordon-brown.co.uk 

Offices at: Chester le Street • Gateshead • Houghton le Spring • Newcastle upon Tyne • Stanley • Sunderland

news 

News from the North East – www.outnortheast.com 

6 

find the help 

you need at 

Wear Body 

Positive 

Everyone needs a little help and support at 

some point in their lives, especially those 

that are young and vulnerable, and in need 

of some guidance. Wear Body Positive is 

one such group that can help, aiding gay 

and lesbian people, aged 16-25, cope with 

issues ranging from bullying to housing. 

Established in 1983, Wear Body Positive 

was set up for the sole purpose to help gay 

and bi-sexual young people with issues 

of the day, particularly when it came to 

the relatively new disease HIV/AIDs. Over 

the years, this group has developed and 

progressed, raising awareness of this ever 

growing disease, as well as maintaining their 

promise to help vulnerable young people. 

Covering the areas of Sunderland and 

County Durham, Wear BP is a self-funded 

organisation, which gets no help from the 

local council, and every penny raised is 

through kind contributions, donations, and 

fundraisers. Their main aim is to offer support 

to anyone affected or infected by HIV/AIDs, 

offered by staff and trained volunteers in the 

strictest confidence. 

Wear BP is conveniently situated in the City 

Centre of Sunderland, where they offer easy, 

convenient, and unobtrusive access to those 

in need of support and information. Their 

main focus is to ensure that young people 

know the risks of unprotected sex and how 

diseases, such as HIV and AIDs can spread. 

David Mullen, of Wear BP, told us: “We aim to 

raise awareness of safer sex and safer drug 

use, highlighting the risks to both individuals 

and particular groups. This is much needed, 

as these days, there seems to be a relaxed 

approach to sex, with STIs increasing 

drastically within the younger generation. 

We educate them by raising the issue of 

how these diseases spread, particularly with 

the dangers involved, such as contracting 

HIV/AIDs. Unfortunately, even with such a 

deadly disease, there now seems to be a 

lax approach to contracting HIV, with many 

thinking that they are untouchable, believing 

only gay people are at risk, or that medication 

can handle the infection. However, what 

most forget is that there is no cure and that 

life expectancy is greatly diminished.” 

Wear BP focus on young people, infected, 

affected, or at risk of contracting this disease. 

They help in a whole variety of ways; rehoming 

those on the streets, reducing risks 

by offering shelter and counselling for those 

facing sexual abuse, and aiding those coming 

to terms with their sexuality. 

David adds: “Being based in the North-East 

means that those from smaller communities 

can find the help they need, and can get on 

with their lives. However, it’s not just people 

from poor backgrounds, or those from broken 

homes, we find that a whole variety of people 

come to us for support; whether they are 

middle-class, black or white, or just a regular 

student!” 

Wear BP are a great mechanism of support 

to the young and vulnerable, assessing 

each individual and steering them in the 

right direction with a whole host of services 

available, including… 

• Personal Listening 

• Emotional Support 

• Home Visiting 

• Help in the Home 

• Volunteer Training 

• Housing and Legal Advice 

• Social Support 

• Welfare and Benefit Information 

• Public Information Service 

• Education 

SR2 Housing Project. 

Established in 2004, this project aims 

to support the needs of those who may 

be at high risk within Sunderland and 

County Durham. Wear BP provide a warm, 

comfortable space for those, who through 

no fault of their own, are fleeing domestic 

violence, sexual abuse and homophobic 

attacks. 

This project offers: 

- 24hr support 

- Counselling 

- Budget Management 

- Benefits Advice 

- General Housekeeping 

- Food & Hygiene 

Finally, David comments: “I encourage 

anyone, no matter how big or small the 

problem, whether it’s boosting their 

confidence, or seeking shelter from abuse, to 

contact us. That’s what we are here for and 

we have staff ready to aid them in anyway 

possible.” 

For more information, please call 0191 

5101805 or visit www.wearbp.force9.co.uk 

Icons 

See page 10 for 

article about Sir Ian McKellan 

6. Out NorthEast www.outnortheast.com

news 


7 

groups for 

young people 

at MESMAC 

north east 

Wowi! 

Wansbeck Out With It! or Wowi! to it’s 

members, is a social and support group for 

young LGBT people (lesbian, gay, bisexual, 

transgender or those questioning their sexual 

orientation or gender identity) aged 13 to 19 

who live in Wansbeck or the surrounding 

areas of Northumberland. 

The group is held once a fortnight in a safe 

space in Ashington and run by staff from 

MESMAC North East (male) and Fourth Action 

(female). 

It is a place to meet other LGBT people of a 

similar age, make new friends, to have fun and 

learn about some of the key issues that may 

affect us and people like us. We can also help 

you during those times when you may feel you 

need some support. 

The group’s activities have included themed 

parties, Northern Pride, trips out, film nights, 

mask making as well as sexual health and 

chill out sessions. 

For more information please contact Neil at 

MESMAC’s Newcastle office on 

0191 233 1333. 

G.A.P. 

G.A.P. (Gay And Proud) is a group for young 

men aged 15-19 who are (or think they may 

be) gay or bisexual. The group meets once a 

week and is a fun, friendly and safe space to 

make friends, socialise and be yourself. Some 

of the things we discuss during our sessions 

are coming out, relationships, legal issues, 

safer sex etc so you can get information and 

feel supported as well as having fun. We also 

have social activities and trips out like going 

to the cinema, Northern Pride, going to theme 

parks, going to events etc. 

If you want to find out more about G.A.P. 

give MESMAC’s Newcastle office a call 

Tel: 0191 233 1333 

T.G.V. (Tees Gay Valley) 

The MESMAC office at Middlesbrough runs 

2 youth groups which are open to all young 

men who are (or think they are) gay or 

bisexual. The groups are aimed at different 

age brackets (under 16’s and 16 - 24’s) 

however they both have the same aims: 

*to provide a fun, friendly and safe place to 

make friends, socialise and be yourself 

*offer a safe space to discuss coming out, gay 

men and the law, HIV, safer sex, 

relationships etc. 

As well as the above, the groups offer regular 

social activities and trips out, and 2008 saw 

them make a significant input to “Supergay 

Weekend”, something which is hoped will 

continue with further pride events. The young 

men’s group also hold an annual residential 

weekend offering all sorts of activities, a youth 

week which consists of a week long series 

of fun events and visits to places like “Wet 

and Wild” and “Flamingo Land”. Throughout 

these and many other fun and exciting events 

it is hoped to promote positive emotional well 

being and social skills amongst the young 

men, as well as offering them sexual health 

advice, drug and alcohol awareness sessions 

and healthy eating classes and much more!! 

The groups meet every week and new 

members are always welcome!! For any 

further information please call the MESMAC 

Teesside office on 01642 804400. 

stonewall 

workplace 

Newcastle City Council listed 

in the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index 

Top 100 employers for LGB Staff 

Newcastle City Council has been working with 

Stonewall to achieve equality for lesbians, gay 

men and bisexual people. As a result of this 

the Council entered the Stonewall Workplace 

Equality index which is an index of top 100 

employers for LGB staff. The competition was 

fierce and they were placed in the Top 100 

showing their commitment to LGB equality 

and to ensuring that the Council is a place 

where improvement matters. 

The Council came 61st in the 2009 index 

compared to 78th last year. They were 

assessed on their policies on sexual 

orientation; how they engage with the LGB 

community; the work of their LGBT Staff 

Group; policies they have in place for bullying 

and harassment; whether they monitor staff’ 

sexual orientation, amongst many other things. 

The Council is working with Stonewall to 

discuss areas for improvement and learn from 

best practice in other organisations. 

In addition, the Council is listed as an 

employer in a publication entitled “Starting 

Out” which is a recruitment guide for LGB 

people. This consists of information about 

various employers and provides an outline of 

the job opportunities available at Newcastle 

City Council and some quotes from LGB staff 

about working for them. 


7. Out NorthEast

news 8 


LGBT Business 

Out North East Magazine publishers have 

become actively involved in a new group 

facilitated by the LGBT Federation aiming 

to Champion LGBT Businesses based and 

serving the North East. 

Ideas already on the table include a number 

of seminars, networking meetings and a 

website including a Directory of Gay and Gay 

Friendly businesses. Do you feel you may be 

able to help? 

Maybe you are interested in shaping the 

future of this group, or just want to come 

along to seminars/networking meetings 

or register your business or service on the 

Website Directory. To find out more, contact 

the LGBT Federation by email: 

lgbtfed@google.com 

Pride 

Festival seeks 

New 

Volunteers 

A Pride event doesn’t just happen. It 

takes a huge amount of organisation and 

work to make it successful. If you want a 

successful Northern Pride event in 2009 

we need your help to make it happen. 

There are a number of ways you can get 

involved. You might want to become part of 

the organising committee, and you would be 

very welcome, it meets once a fortnight in 

central Gateshead, on a Thursday evening. 

If you want to help but not be part of a 

committee you could join the community 

involvement team, which will meet less often 

but will help to train and organise the team 

of volunteers. 

We also want people who can help with 

fundraising, anything from organising a 

sponsored event to going round your local 

bars and shaking a tin or bucket. 

Perhaps you’d like to organise a satellite 

event as part of the Pride celebrations, 

anywhere in the northeast region. Or help 

organise part of the main event, the Pink 

Picnic in Leazes Park. If you know how to 

manage a stage, we want to hear from you! 

There will be publicity to be distributed, 

taking flyers round the scene, or contacting 

websites, or helping maintain the website 

presence of Northern Pride. 

There’s also loads of jobs to do on the day 

itself, from helping to set up, direct people, 

keeping the march and the site safe and 

clean, to clearing up at the end. 

If you think you could help with any 

of these, please contact me at 

steve.paske@northernpride.org.uk 

Discovery 

Museum 

Newcastle’s museum is currently home to an 

exhibition exploring gay life in the Merchant 

Navy between the 1950s and the 1980s. 

Hello Sailor! is a National Museums Liverpool 

touring exhibition which reveals the hidden 

history of crew life in the Merchant Navy, 

when being at sea was one of the few places 

gay men could be themselves. 

The exhibition shows the great diversity 

amongst gay men at sea between the 1950s 

and 1980s. Some were out, camp and casual 

while others remained in the closet and 

wary - gay men were welcomed in catering 

but engineers, pursers and officers had to be 

more cautious as they could face hostility or 

lose their jobs. 

It also features examples of Polari, a secret 

language used by gay men in public places. 

Discovery Museum is open Monday to 

Saturday, 10am to 5pm and Sundays 2pm to 

5pm. Admission is free. 

Health 


Steve Pask’s this mothts article 

8. Out NorthEast www.outnortheast.com www.outnortheast.com 8. Out NorthEast

Free entry 

Discovery Museum, Blandford Square 

Newcastle upon Tyne 

Tel: (0191) 232 6789 

Textphone: 18001 0191 232 6789 

Fax: (0191) 230 2614 

www.twmuseums.org.uk/discovery 

A touring exhibition from 

28 January - 19 April 2009 

Civil 

Partnerships 

Domestic Violence 

Children 

Adoption 

Finances 

Civil Partnerships 

FREE INITIAL 

APPOINTMENTS 

Telephone 

0191 565 3112 

Email 

advice@benhoarebell.co.uk 

Website 

www.benhoarebell.co.uk 

Whatever the reason, 

family breakdown can 

be a nightmare. 

You don’t have to go it 

alone. We’re on your side , 

so come and talk. 

For advice on civil 

partnerships 

OFFICES IN NEW CASTLE & SUNDERLAND

10 

Sir Ian McKellan is appearing in 

‘Waiting for Godot’ at the Newcastle 

Theatre Royal in April, for tickets 

call 08448 11 21 21 or visit 

www.theatreroyal.co.uk 


ICONS – Out Northeast Icons. Words - Paul Corduex 

Sir Ian 

McKellen 

11 

As he prepares to celebrate his 

70th birthday in May of this year, 

you might think Sir Ian McKellen 

would be tempted to slow down a little 

and take things easy. But you’d be wrong. 

He is starting off his seventh decade on the 

planet with a new role alongside Patrick 

Stewart in a UK tour and West End run of 

Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot. His 

diverse acting ability and keen wit have been 

on show in everything from Shakespearian 

lead roles to a cameo in Extras with Ricky 

Gervais. But there is a lot more to Sir Ian 

than you think you know already. Yes, he is 

the guy who played Magnito in the X-Men 

films, but he is also a longstanding gay rights 

activist and as such deserves a place amongst 

the Great British Gay Icons. 

Initially turning to acting at 18, he won 

a scholarship to St. Catherine’s College, 

Cambridge, Sir Ian went on to star in many 

West End productions and won critical 

acclaim for almost every role he played. His 

love, particularly of the theatre, was born 

when he was young. His sister took him to 

see plays as a youngster in Wigan. Having 

moved there from Burnley where McKellen 

was born. His Mother and Father were both 

dead by the time he turned 24, but had 

ignited within him an appreciation of acting 

and actors as well as the magic of 

the theatre itself. 

Despite films roles as early in his career as 

1969, Sir Ian was only able to gain popular 

success from the 1990s onwards with major 

roles in amongst other production, Last Action 

Hero, Gods and Monsters and the X-Men 

trilogy. His most famous films role for most 

people will be as Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s 

monumental works The Fellowship of the 

Ring, The Two Towers and Return of the 

King¬ – known collectively as The Lord of 

the Rings. His prominent roles in these and 

other productions led to critical acclaim and 

a trophy cabinet weighed down with Golden 

Globes, Tony Awards, Olivier Awards and 

Screen Actors Guild Awards. 

There is another side to Sir Ian’s personality 

however. Alongside cameos in Coronation 

Street, 2005, and star roles in 2006’s The 

Da Vinci Code, McKellen has been tirelessly 

campaigning for Gay rights and equality. 

He rose to our attention in 1983 when he 

outed himself on Radio 3. He maintains 

that his family and colleagues were aware 

of his sexuality long before this, but his 

public admission opened the door to the 

foundation of Stonewall UK, which he 

founded alongside other prominent public 

gay of the time including Michael Cashman. 

We owe a debt of gratitude to these men 

and in particular Sir Ian, because of the 

way they have selflessly publicised the gay 

cause with pride and courage in what were 

occasionally very hostile times. The name 

Stonewall comes from the Stonewall Inn in 

New York City where in 1969 riots broke 

out over the treatment and marginalisation 

of homosexuals. Stonewall UK successfully 

lobby to this day for improved gay, lesbian 

and transgender rights and equality and it 

is all down to those early pioneers, Sir Ian 

included. 

In his personal life, which he quite 

rightly guards and protects, McKellen has 

had occasional long term relationships 

including an unrequited alleged attraction 

to Derek Jacobi and in 1964 his first serious 

relationship with Brian Taylor a History 

Teacher. In the late 1970s he has a ten year 

relationship with Sean Mathias by whom he 

will be directed in Waiting for Godot when 

he takes to the stage in The Theatre Royal in 

Newcastle in April 2009. Because of Sir Ian’s 

attempts to keep his private life private, little 

more information appears, he did attend the 

Academy Awards in 2002 with Nick Cuthell 

his boyfriend at the time. 

So as 70 approaches, and yet another 

nationwide tour gets underway, what does 

the future hold for Sir Ian McKellen? It’s 

easy to comment that he has achieved so 

much with a 40 year career in theatre and 

film under his belt. He took-on and nailed 

the role of King Lear in Shakespeare’s play 

of the same name – considered by many on 

the stage to be the pinnacle of an actor’s 

career. He was given much critical acclaim 

for the part that he played in 2007 into 

2008, for which he appeared naked on the 

stage and raised more than few eyebrows. 

With that trademark twinkle in his eyes and 

an easy and unflappable persona Sir Ian is 

undoubtedly our longest most 

deserving gay icon. 

www.outnortheast.com 11. Out NorthEast

news 12 


lgbt 

month 

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) 

History Month happens every February in the 

UK. It is an opportunity for us to claim our 

past, celebrate our present and create our 

future throughout the LGBT community. 

The group behind LGBT History Month 

believe that the textbooks have made 

us invisible and it’s time to reclaim our 

rightful place in history. You can find further 

information on the groups’ website at 

www.lgbthistorymonth.org.uk. Go along 

and take a browse. While you’re at it, if you 

are interested in LGBT people and education, 

why not visit out mother ship, www.schoolsout.org.uk 

where you will find a host of 

resources, including a student toolkit for 

dealing with being LGBT in school. 

The group works throughout the year 

supporting events up and down the country, 

you can receive news as it happens into your 

in-box via the electronic paper round from 

the website. LGBT History Month is themed 

this year around Education, the month was 

launched last November at London School, 

‘The Hackney Free and Parochial.’ The launch 

aptly took place in the middle of Anti- 

Bullying Week. 

LGBT History Month Joins Anti-Bullying Week 

with a November Pre-Launch On November 

19th we will be holding the Pre-Launch for 

LGBT History Month 2009 at a London school: 

The Hackney Free and Parochial. 

This will take place in the middle of Anti- 

Bullying Week. What makes this rally exciting 

is that Ed Balls said in his speech to the 

Labour Party Conference that all forms of 

bullying in schools were to be recorded and 

monitored, and that Kevin Brennan would be 

elaborating on this in the near future. 

Find out more about 

the LGBT Federation, 

the latest news and events at 

www.lgbtnetworknortheast.co.uk 

How to get involved in LGBT History Month? 

If you want to get involved in LGBT History 

Month you can do a little or you can do a lot. 

You can work alone or get a team together. 

Soon there will be a toolkit for schools and a 

toolkit for the general public to organize an 

event for LGBT History Month. Meanwhile 

here are 20 ideas, from the simple to the 

slightly-more-complex. 

20 ideas ... 

1. Ask your school/library/museum/union branch 

etc. to do something for LGBT history month 

2. Go to our website and buy a badge 

3. Go to our website and buy a T shirt 

4. Buy both 

5. Buy lots of both and sell them to your mates 

6. Organize a social evening 

7. Organise a pub quiz 

8. Invite a famous LGBT person to speak 

9. Have an oral local history evening 

10. Devise an LGBT history timeline and offer 

it for display in your local museum or library 

11. Organise a film show 

12. Put up an LGBT stall in your local shopping centre 

13. Put up an LGBT stall wherever you are 

14. Ask us to come and speak to an audience 

in your local group (we love the sound of our own voices) 

15. Have an LGBT day in your workplace 

16. Have a sponsored silence or a sponsored 

shout for victims of trans/homophobia 

17. Have a cabaret evening 

18. Organise a group outing (by which I mean an excursion!) 

19. Organise a walking tour 

20. Get a group together and have a think-tank 

There are LGBT History Month events up and 

down the country, log on to the History Month website at 

www.lgbthistorymonth.org.uk to find out more 


outlaw 

14 

roundup 

Cris McCurley, Partner, Ben Haore Bell Solicitors 

What a start to 2009: Milk in the cinema and Obama in the White House, could it get any better than 

this? Well yes, actually, it could. I was as delighted as everybody else when Barack Obama won the 

American election back in November, but let’s not forget that the very same day Proposition 8 was voted 

in in California. 

In Gus Van Sandt’s film Milk, Sean Penn plays 

Harvey Milk, hero of the 70’s gay and civil 

rights movement in San Francisco. It details 

his battle against California’s Proposition 6, 

not unlike our Clause 28 (Local Government 

Act), but making it illegal for gays and 

lesbians to teach in public schools. Harvey 

Milk beat Proposition 6 into to the ground. It 

is ironic therefore that 30 years later, and in 

what is arguably a much more enlightened 

climate, the religious and moral right argued 

successfully under Proposition 8 that the 

definition of marriage is a union between 

one man and one woman. This is now law, 

apparently. 

Very disappointingly, our hero, Barack 

Obama, is broadly in agreement with 

Propostion 8, stating that he is not against 

civil partnership, but that his religion states 

that to be a marriage it has to be between 

a man and a woman. This is doubly ironic 

coming from someone who has benefited 

personally by the gains made from the Civil 

Rights Movement in terms of equality, but 

it seems that for Mr. Obama, some are more 

equal than others. He would do well to 

remember that there is an extremely powerful 

pink voting lobby in the States which will 

not be won round cheaply, certainly not 

by his conciliatory invitation to the right 

Reverend Jean Robinson, the very gay Bishop 

of New Hampshire, to say a prayer at the 

beginning of the inauguration. In an article 

in the Guardian on the 14th January 2009, 

Reverend Robinson describes his offence that 

he will be sharing the platform with Rick 

Warren (friend of Obama and senior pastor of 

an evangelical mega-church) who supported 

Proposition 8. Robinson describes this as “a 

slap in the face.” 

Also on the 14th January, the Times cited 

the case of the weird lesbian litigants or, 

to give them their full title, the residents of 

the island of Lesbos, who are going to court 

to claim back their name. It seems that the 

poor dears are finally at the end of their 

tether after all these centuries of women 

loving women being called lesbians and 

their lawsuit is attempting to prevent the 

Greek gay and lesbian union from using the 

name lesbian. According to the wonderfully 

named Gary Slapper who wrote the article 

in the Times, their claim to the court is of 

“psychological and moral rape” – oh dear, 

don’t they know legally that lesbians, indeed 

any woman, cannot be charged with rape 

because the legal definition of rape demands 

the forcing of an unwelcome penis (male) into 

an unwelcoming vagina (female)? See how 

silly it gets? 

Not that there is anything silly or remotely 

funny about a member of our royal family 

in direct line to the throne coming out with 

racist and homophobic comments. Granted, 

so much of the coverage concentrated on 

his appalling racism that it was virtually 

overlooked that he had also been very 

homophobic, using comments such as “how 

do you feel? Gay? Queer on the side?” to a 

fellow member of his squad. That boy clearly 

spends too much time with his grandfather, 

and he could do with some good legal advice 

himself that, although I’m sure he knows in 

reality that discrimination on the grounds 

of sexuality at work is against current 

legislation. 

Can we really blame Harry though, when 

someone plenty old enough to know 

better keeps coming out with really stupid 

statements? Yes, I am talking about His 

Holiness himself. The man in the dress in 

Rome. According to him, the biggest threat 

to the world today is not global warming or 

war, drought, famine, or indeed anything else 

that might spring to the mind of a sensible 

person: no, it’s lesbian and gay relationships. 

Words fail me. I can only say that I didn’t 

know that same sex loving relationships were 

so cataclysmically powerful just by mere fact 

of their existence. Who’d have thought it? 

Now for some good news: this week the 

European Parliament’s Committee on 

Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs 

welcomed the publication of the report 

by the Fundamental Rights Agency, 

“Homophobia and Discrimination on the 

grounds of sexual orientation in the EU 

member states.” This document makes a 

number of recommendations to the European 

Commission, including a demand that 

the Commission make sure that Member 

States grant asylum to people fleeing 

from persecution on the grounds of sexual 

orientation in the country of birth, recognise 

the equality of lesbian and gay relationships 

and takes the view that discriminatory 

comments against gay people by social or 

political leaders fuel hatred and violence and 

makes a demand of the relevant governing 

bodies to condemn them: His Holiness really 

should take note of this. To quote Stonewall, 

“some people are gay, get over it.” 

Anyone who’s been to Dubai lately and has 

seen these billboards by a men’s outfitters 

could be forgiven for thinking that the sharia 

law against homosexuality has been revoked 

– but be warned this is not the case! 


health 15 

By Steve Pask 

choose 

life 

Happy New year everyone. Many of us 

think about making resolutions to change 

something in our lives at this time of year. 

But now, I thought about places I wanted 

to see, things I wanted to do before I died. 

I had always wanted to travel more, so I 

did. I’ve been lucky enough to go all over 

the world, though there are still loads of 

places I want to go. I was 38 when my first 

partner died, my first target was to survive 

to 40, and to enjoy my 40th birthday. I did, 

even if I don’t remember much about it (not 

just because it was so long ago!!) Once I got 

there I really wanted to survive to see in the 

millennium, and although I have to say that 

New Year’s Eve 1999 ended up being a very 

disappointing one because no-one could 

decide how to celebrate it, I made it. I then 

decided that I really wanted to get back into 

full-time paid work, and that I’d really like to 

work in sexual health. 

I took a course, qualified, and got the job. 

Then, because I’d enjoyed my 40th birthday 

so much, I decided that for my 50th I would 

have to spend it on the highest, fastest roller 

coaster I could find. So I did, three times! 

Then I decided to study more, and took a 

Master’s degree. Last year I married a man 

half my age. I’m about to celebrate my 57th 

birthday and I’m aiming for retirement at 

60, this time by choice, not forced through 

ill-health. Maybe after that I’ll do a PhD, then 

after that…….. 

Several years ago I attended a national 

conference for people living with HIV. At one 

of the workshops I was amazed to hear a guy 

talking about his experiences of life describe 

HIV as ‘the cherry on top of the icing on the 

cake.’ Looking around the audience then, I 

saw almost entirely gay men, many looking 

unhealthily gaunt, a lot walking with the 

support of sticks, some looking severely ill, 

and it seemed hard to equate what he was 

saying with what I was seeing. And yet I had 

had similar thoughts. 

It’s a bit of a cliché to say we take life for 

granted, but being told you have a life 

threatening infection, thinking that your 

future is two or three of years of reasonable 

health, followed by two or three more of 

pretty poor health, followed by an unpleasant 

and drawn out death does make you think 

hard about the life you have left. I really did 

start to value every day, and I also started to 

think about what I wanted to achieve in the 

time I had left. 

I have never been a hugely ambitious person, 

in terms of making huge amounts of money 

or having a job which gives me inordinate 

amounts of power. All I ever really asked 

from a job was enough money to enjoy the 

life I wanted, and satisfaction from doing the 

job itself. Why else would I have become a 

teacher? 


15. Out NorthEast

feature 

16 

By Catherine Weare / Gordon Brown Associates 

Inheritance? 

Will? 

For most, civil partnerships are done for 

the traditional reasons of love and to mark 

a lifelong commitment. 

However, what many people don’t realise 

is that there are important legal benefits of 

taking such a step, offering peace of mind 

and protection to both parties. 

It is now a little more than three years since 

the Civil Partnership Act 2004 came into 

being in December 2005, radically changing 

English law by granting gay couples 

comparable rights to married couples through 

civil partnerships. 

These cover new rights on inheritance, 

as cohabiting gay couples, like unmarried 

heterosexual couples, have no automatic right 

of inheritance. This can lead to substantial 

hardship for the surviving partner, who risks 

losing income or even his or her home if 

the deceased had not made a Will. Sadly, 

many people only discover these pitfalls on 

the death of their loved one. The survivor’s 

only remedy is to make an expensive court 

application, with no guarantee of success. 

By contrast, if a couple registers a civil 

partnership, they gain comparable rights on 

inheritance to married couples. Even if the 

deceased has not made a Will, the surviving 

civil partner will automatically inherit part of 

his estate under the law of intestacy. 

While this provision forms a valuable safety 

net, it is preferable for civil partners to make 

Wills where they can specify the amount 

the other will receive, and can take full 

advantage of exemptions from Inheritance 

Tax (IHT) available to them. 

Like married couples, any assets one civil 

partner leaves to another are exempt from 

IHT. In addition they can use their personal 

exemption from IHT (£312,000 in this tax 

year) when leaving property to other friends 

or relatives. If a Will is structured to take full 

advantage of these provisions, it can result 

in considerable tax savings. By contrast 

cohabiting couples will use up their personal 

exemption when they leave assets to the 

other, and if an estate has a higher value 

than the personal exemption, which can 

easily happen given current property prices, 

IHT is charged at 40% on the excess. 

If one partner has not used up all of his 

personal exemption and has left at least 

part of his estate to the survivor, then, on 

the survivor’s death, his or her personal 

exemption from IHT can be increased by 

part or all the unused proportion of the 

personal exemption of the first to die with 

considerable potential tax savings. 

HM Customs & Revenue will demand a 

number of documents as evidence, before 

they will permit the transfer of any personal 

exemption. Ensuring that all paperwork 

in place is essential and legal advice is 

recommended. 

Finally, those who have made Wills before 

taking a legal commitment should be aware 

that, unless a Will specifically states that it is 

made in contemplation of registering a civil 

partnership, it becomes void upon doing so. 

Legal advice is again recommended. 

Catherine Weare is a family lawyer at 

Gordon Brown Associates law firm, which 

has offices in Chester-le-Street, Houghton 

le Spring, Sunderland, Newcastle and 

Stanley. For more information, contact the 

firm on 0191-3881778. 

Scene 

News now on page 34 

check out what’s coming up 


fitness 

17 

By Keith Ward 

Top tips for 

New Year 

weight loss. 

As a fitness instructor I find that January 

is one of the busiest months of the year. 

Gyms are full to bursting and exercise 

classes are jumping (no pun intended). To 

a greater or lesser extent we all let things 

slip in December and pay the price for this 

by having a little more of ourselves to go 

around come the New Year. 

Before you reach for the latest diet book to 

hit the shelves, ask yourself if you know 

anybody who has managed to lose weight 

and, more importantly, to keep it off for a 

sustained period using one of these diets. The 

fact is that in the long term most are at best 

ineffective and at worst can lead to actual 

weight gain. 

Research proves that your best chance of 

losing weight and keeping it off is to adopt 

healthier eating habits and do some exercise. 

With this in mind, here are my New Year top 

tips that will have you in shape well in time 

for the summer beaches. 

• Don’t eat less, eat more! If you eat the 

right foods you should never feel hungry. 

Use the hand rule, a portion of protein (e.g. 

chicken, fish etc.) the size of half of your 

palm, a portion of starchy carbohydrate (e.g. 

pasta, rice potatoes etc.) the size of your palm 

and fill the rest of the plate with as much veg 

as you can eat. 

• A little of what you fancy is fine 

occasionally. Denying yourself certain foods 

will only make you crave them more. The key 

words are “a little” and “occasionally”. 

• Read the labels on your food. ‘Reduced 

fat’ only means it has less than the original 

and can still be high in both fat and calories. 

Also, just because something is ‘low fat’ it 

doesn’t mean it isn’t high in calories (a bag 

of sugar is completely fat free!). A quick scan 

of the label allows for a much more informed 

choice and can save you hundreds of 

calories a day. 

• Swap fizzy drinks for water, tea or diet 

options. Be careful with fruit juices, many 

people are amazed to find out that a glass of 

orange or apple juice has more calories in it 

than the same volume of full fat coke. 

• Do some exercise! If you are serious 

about losing weight then this is essential. 

Aim for three 30 minute sessions per week. 

Choose whatever sort you prefer, but it needs 

to be of an intensity that gets you hot and 

sweaty. 

• Stick with it. Ideal weight loss is about 

1-2 pounds a week through diet alone (2-3 if 

combined with vigorous exercise), any more 

and you risk losing muscle mass 

rather than fat. 

• Eat more often. The body is designed to 

be fed about five times a day with breakfast 

being essential. Smaller, more regular meals 

will help keep your metabolism ticking over. 

Keith is a personal trainer and fitness instructor, running exercise classes 

at ‘The Studio’ at Bodymechanixs in Morpeth. He has also run weight 

management classes for Rosemary Conley Diet & Fitness Clubs 


17. Out NorthEast

lads 

english 

Name: Rick Lewis 

Stats : 22/5’9”/38”/30”/7.5” 

Are you straight or gay? str8 

Why did you get into modelling? 

I was approached after a football match 

and given a card and said I should contact 

the website on the card about potential 

modelling work. I didn’t know it was adult 

work, but when I met Nick he showed me a 

few example videos and I thought why not 

When did you start modelling for Englishlads? 

Just over two years ago 

Do you have a day job? 

I am a salesman 

It must have been terrifying stripping off in 

front of the camera for the first time… How 

did you combat your nerves? 

The first time I was a little nervous, but I strip 

every saturday in front of the lads at football 

and I am proud of my body so I wasn’t too 

worried about showing it. I was real nervous 

I wouldn’t be able to get hard, in the end as 

soon as my boxers came off I got a massive 

hard on and that kind of broke the ice! 

Does it turn you on to see yourself naked 

and/or having sex on film? 

Yeah I like seeing myself on film, though it 

always feels like it isn’t me as I sometimes 

cant believe i do it! 

Do you find it easy to perform on cue? 

Every time I get in front of the camera i get a 

hard on 

What’s your favourite part of your body? 

My abs 

Is there anything you wouldn’t do on film? 

I didn’t think I would do any thing with 

another lad, but after doing a few solo films 

for Nick he suggested I let a lad suck my 

cock... since then I have done loads, been 

fucked and fucked and I never thought I 

would do that. 

What do your mates think of you 

modelling? 

Only a few of them know and they are proud 

of me for doing it... though I haven’t told 

them everything... they assume its just solo 

work! 

Any advice for anyone who’s thinking of 

starting modelling? 

I think its something for lads who enjoy 

showing their bodies, if you are proud of your 

body then go approach one of the bigger 

companies, Nick made it so easy for me, 

otherwise I would never have done so much. 

I think as long as you know exactly what 

your expected to do and agree about the pay 

and how it will be paid then it will avoid 

surprises! 

Name : Liam James 

Stats 19/6’0”/40”/30”/7.5” 

Are you straight or gay? Str8 

Why did you get into modelling? 

I was having my hair cut at my local barbers 

and when I left the guy that had been sat 

next to me having his hair cut gave me a 

card. He was a talent scout for Nick’s website 

and about a week later I was on Nick’s roof 

wanking in the fresh air! 

When did you start modelling for 

Englishlads? 

3 years ago 

Do you have a day job? 

Yeah I am a barman 

It must have been terrifying stripping off in 

front of the camera for the first time… How 

did you combat your nerves? 

I dont mind stripping, if lads want to look 

at me I find it flattering, after all we are all 

similar. During the first shoot I was really 

turned on at the idea of wanking outside and 

being filmed, yeah I was a bit nervous but 

that didn’t stop my cock performing! 

Does it turn you on to see yourself naked 

and/or having sex on film? 

I have seen some of my videos, it doesn’t turn 

me on but I quite like watching what I do 

on camera and seeing my reactions to Nick’s 

requests! 

Do you find it easy to perform on cue? 

Yeah I am always horny and when ever I 

touch my cock it goes up like a rocket 

What’s your favourite part of your body? 

I am always told I have a great smile 

Is there anything you wouldn’t do on film? 

I am straight so I have only done solos and 

wanking next to a lad. I have let a lad suck 

and wank me. I enjoyed it but didn’t get the 

urge to return the favour, I just love great 

blow jobs! 

What do your mates think of you 

modelling? 

They all know I do porn... but I haven’t 

told them the rest! They just assume I am 

shagging girls every time I go off for a shoot! 

Any advice for anyone who’s thinking of 

starting modelling? 

I have enjoyed all the work I have done for 

englishlads because they never push me out 

of my comfort zone and I always seem to do 

things for them that i wouldn’t predict, like 

letting a guy suck my cock! Because I always 

know what they want me to do in a shoot 

and how much I am being paid, I think they 

are some of the most important things for 

me, know exactly who you are working for, if 

they run a professional business your unlikely 

to be able to go wrong. 


life 

interview by Simon Hatfield 

20 

On the face of it Nick Molloy had it all – 

athletic body, a loving girlfriend, a fast car 

and a well-paid job... 

So why did he decide to turn his back on 

a bright future and the “corporate slave 

nation” to forge a career in stripping? 

From a writer who abhors prejudice in 

all its forms, Nick Molloy bares all about 

the UK male strip scene in his new book, 

‘RoadWarrior: Confessions of a Male Stripper’. 

From the back stage bitchiness of the drag 

queens, to the agents who demand ‘extras’ in 

return for booking. 

hope people will respect what I have said 

and I feel I can justify my position against all 

comers. All too often I read biographies that 

have been sanitised for a naïve readership. 

I certainly wasn’t going to write something 

that I found mildly nauseating, even if that 

meant sacrificing the financial backing and 

clout of a big publisher. 

Many of you will be familiar with Nick as he 

can often be seen performing at The Eagle in 

Newcastle, we caught up with him to find out 

more about the book. 

RoadWarrior: 

Confessions of a Male Stripper 

interview with Nick Molloy 

Why did you write the book? 

It began as an anti-prejudicial project. Male 

strippers are boxed and categorized in the 

extreme. For example, all strippers are gay, 

all strippers are prostitutes, all strippers have 

slept with thousands of women, all strippers 

are thick/mentally disturbed, etc. I have an IQ 

of 153 and don’t fit any of the above boxes. 

I had a six figure salary in my early twenties 

with a FTSE 250 company. I gave it all up to 

be a ‘drop out’ in many people’s eyes, yet I 

have never been happier. I wanted to write 

something that challenged so many people’s 

pre-conceived notions. 

Why did you go with a small publisher ? 

I approached some ‘bigger fish’ but was told 

that nearly all books of this type are ghost 

written these days to a market specification. 

Far too many books in this genre are fiction 

loosely based on fact rather than the other 

way around. I was determined to present an 

accurate portrayal. I’m not trying to win a 

popularity contest. Some people will agree 

with what I have to say, others will not. I 

Why would anybody read it ? 

I suppose there are a plethora of reasons. 

I guess the key one would be curiosity. 

Nobody that I am aware of has written 

candidly about this off-shoot of the sex 

industry before. Here you have it, warts 

and all. Although far less so these days, 

strippers were once very minor celebrities 

generating tabloid coverage (eg The 

Chippendales). We now live in a celebrityobsessed 

culture and this book documents 

life at the very bottom of the showbiz ladder. 

Also, sex sells and this book has plenty of it. 

Whilst it has a gossipy element to it, lots of 

thoughtful analysis is thrown into the mix the 

psyche of the male stripper. 

Where can the book be bought? 

www.Amazon.co.uk, 

www.waterstones.co.uk, 

www.tesco.com 

and via all good bookshops. 


ead 

By Paul Courdoux 

Jpod 

Douglas 

Coupland, 

Bloomsbury 

2007 

Did you have a nice Christmas? Did Santa empty his 

sack all over your carpet? Sorry, I’ve been telling 

that joke for years and it never gets a laugh. I’ve got 

loads more, including one about Eggnog just in case 

I ever find myself in the USA at Crimbo. Unoriginal? 

Me? Never! 

I had a good one, Christmas that is, with the family 

and got everything I wanted. Apart from a million 

quid and Hugh Jackman, but hey mustn’t grumble I 

saw him recently in the film Australia and still haven’t 

recovered. He is a God! He could be my drover any day. 

What has all this got to do with the next book review? 

Nothing, but it’s amazing how my mind wanders when I 

think about Jackman and a big sack. Douglas Coupland 

doesn’t have this trouble, because he is an astonishing 

writer who in my opinion doesn’t get nearly enough 

acclaim. His era-defining book Generation X was 

reviewed previously and is a brilliant read, as is Jpod, 

his 2007 work detailing the thought and feelings 

of a group of disheartened members of the Google 

generation. 

Generation X set the tone for the 1990s following a 

group of disenfranchised 20somethings thorough the 

chemical and consumer fall-out of the 1980s. Jpod picks 

up a similar thread ten years later with new and slightly 

older, though no less familiar characters discovering 

ways to amuse themselves while pretending to do 

important work for the large computer games company 

they work for. 

Shakespeare 

My Butt! 

John Donoghue 

Matador07 

2008 

Pressure, stress and strain. They all take their toll. 

i should be paid danger money for doing these 

book reviews, or at least given some kind of health 

insurance just in case my pulmonary artery goes 

bang, or worse I start to get wrinkles! So imagine 

my horror when i discovered that a local writer had 

taken the time to send over a free copy of his book 

for me to review! Oh no! What if I don’t like it! I can’t 

lie so I’d have to burn it, eat it or secrete it away in 

some orifice or other. Gulp. 

Like a true coward I sank half a bottle of Irish Mist 

(like Bailey’s only way cheaper – shush though, don’t 

tell anyone) and set about reading John Donoghue’s 

Shakespeare My Butt! To say I was wary doesn’t even 

get near the truth, you see Donoghue had sent the book 

over to the office several months before I was given the 

copy, so I was off to a bad start regardless, anyway I 

digress. 

The book: introduced by it’s own back-cover blurb as 

the ‘…confessions of a man with too much time on his 

hands…’ and proudly displaying the word ‘Humour’ 

next to the barcode, it left me not quite knowing 

what to expect. The narrative begins slowly with a 

general introduction in which the writer admits that 

it was never meant for public consumption (no that’s 

not a typing mistake) and tells us about his dog and 

goldfish… Hmm. 

It was only after a couple of pages that I started to slow 

down a little and connect with the pace of the book. 

Donoghue will be the first to admit that it is leisurely 

and that the meanderings and deviations do take a 

patient mind to read, but my advice is to stay with it! 

Shakespeare My Butt! is a heart-warming and funny 

collection of anecdotes that is a pleasure to read. I 

genuinely laughed out loud and would recommend it to 

anyone as a thoroughly different and individual read. 

As such Jpod feels current and as relevant as any of 

Coupland’s previous work. It represent the mainstream 

of popular culture, of middle Americans everywhere, 

yet it sets itself apart from the usual offerings both in 

style and content. The layout of the book is unique and 

includes ‘…the first hundred thousand digits of pi…’ set 

Our Rating 4/5 

out over 27 pages! Brilliant, original and more relevant 

than I dared hope. Read it. 

21 

Our Rating 5/5 


21. Out NorthEast

travel 

By Dr Mark Casey 

Catalonia 

I HAVE SUNG THE PRAISES 

OF BARCELONA MANy TIMES 

AND VISIT THE CITy QUITE 

FREQUENTLy, HOWEVER I HAD 

NEVER STEPPED OUT OF ITS 

URBAN SPRAWL TO INVESTIGATE 

WHAT THE PROVINCE OF 

CATALONIA HAS TO OFFER 

UNTIL VERy RECENTLy. 

Heading away with friends for a 10 day 

break we decided to fly to Girona, about an 

hour north of Barcelona, and rent a threestorey 

village house in the village of Biure 

near to Figueres, the home of Spain´s most 

visited attraction, the Dali museum. We were 

there in August which is painfully hot, but it 

offered a great escape from the sorry excuse 

of a summer we´ve just had. Arriving in the 

village we soon realised that the village was 

in full swing of its fiesta weekend, which the 

locals warmly invited us to get involved in. 

The first activity was racing a clapped out, 

retro Chopper bike up the village´s steepest 

hill. Now, I am not one for macho stunts, 

although my friends and partner are. The 

contest consisted of the village´s children 

and men competing fiercly against each other 

and the unsuspecting ´turistas´! Surprisingly 

my partner came third, which won him the 

respect of the whole village for the duration 

of our stay, along with the fact he speaks 

Spanish well and could also engage with the 

locals in broken Catalan. 

Staying inland most days was impossible due 

to the fierce heat, but having hired a car we 

headed to the coast for some welcome relief 

from the heat. One of the last major resorts 

in Spain before hitting France, Empuriabrava, 

was nearby which was grim to say the least. 


But beyond that heading to the French border 

there are many unspoilt beaches which 

offer a glimpse into Spain long before the 

large-scale tourist development which blots 

much of its coast. For swimmers the sea here 

is pristine and for the sun worshippers there 

are many quiet little coves to give you a little 

piece of your own heaven for an hour or two. 

The region offers some great food from 

the basic and cheap ´menu del dia´ that 

can be found in most bars and resturants 

at lunchtime. This offers three courses of 

lovingly home-prepared food with wine for 

a few Euros which is a great excuse for a 

cheap and delicous lunch - that has to be 

followed by a siesta! At the other end of the 

scale the swanky resort of Roses is home 

to El Bulli, Adria Ferran´s award winning 

restaurant holder of the prestigous ´World´s 

Best Restaurant´ award. Unfortunately we 

didn´t eat there; I heard it was well, how do 

you say, a little expensive? But nearly every 

local delighted in telling us how great their 

´local´eatery was! 

Getting to Girona from the North East is 

cheap and easy with Ryanair flying from both 

Teesside and Newcastle for a song. So if this 

summer is another washout, I would highly 

recomend a break in this region, although 

a car is essential so if you don´t drive make 

sure you travel with someone who can do all 

the driving - it´ll give you the excuse to drink 

all the wine included in your menu del dia! 

Enjoy. 

23 


23. Out NorthEast

listen 

Music - Galaxy’s James Barr listens to .... 

Well shave off your pubes in celebration the 

Bush has gone... Obama’s in the White House, 

“change has come to America”. What does 

that mean for the rest of the world? It means 

there’s a more trustworthy finger over the 

red button, Middle Easterners can keep their 

shoes on and Gordon Brown has a new pen 

pal. Mint. 

2009’s gonna be a fantastic year, and it’s 

starting with some class tunes... 

See you on the dance floor! 

James x 

Music – James Barr 

You can hear James Barr across the North East on Galaxy, 

on FM, DAB and online, weekdays 4pm –7pm 

and Sunday night on the Galaxy Network from 7pm - 10pm 

For more info log on to 

www.galaxynortheast.com/james 

KELLy CLARKSON – 

My LIFE REALLy SUCKS WITHOUT yOU 

Finally she’s back, and she’s realised the error of her ways and is 

no longer writing her own material... Let’s forget her last album, 

which I can’t remember the name of and quite frankly I should 

google it but why bother when it disapointed me more than I 

dissapointed my Dad when I came out?! ‘All I Ever Wanted’ is her 

new album and it will definatly recapture her some ‘Since You’ve 

Been Gone’ glory! The first single, ‘My Life Really Sucks Without 

You’ is very Pink/Katy Perry... Very Kelly Clarkson! I can’t wait for 

a super ‘poppers o clock’ remix to come on in a club! 

LADy GAGA - 

POKER FACE 

She performed at G-A-Y London in January and threw cake at 

the audience! She is quite cleary a mess and I love her... This is 

her next single and it’s already been number one in the home 

of Kylie so trust me it’s good. “He can’t read my poker face”, it’s 

about playing it cool and showing no emotion! In the video she 

has a mirror ball hat, come on it’s amazing! 

24 


listen 

Music - Galaxy’s James Barr listens to .... 

SEPTEMBER – 

CAN’T GET OVER (WIDEBOyS REMIX) 

‘Cry For You’ was the soundtrack to any good divorce in 2008 but for 

some reason September are having a moment of weakness on the 

whole “You’ll never seen me again” front. In this, their next single 

they’re finding it hard to move on (I know it’s only a meaningless 

dance song but I really get into my lyrics). ‘Can’t Get Over’ is literally 

about that and the wideboys remix is totally worth bumming. It was 

getting some random airplay in clubs at the back end of last year and 

now it’s got a March release date it’ll be back! 

STEVE ANGELLO – 

SHOW ME LOVE 

This has finally got a release date after what seems like an eternity... 

It first appeared in early summer last year as a bootleg of ‘Show Me 

Love’ and a song called ‘Be’. Now they’ve pretty much ditched the 

‘Be’ part of it and given it back it’s original 90’s ‘Robin S’ vocals. It’s 

really worked, the song finally feels complete. 

25 

Advertise with us 

For your advert in the North Easts ONLy Gay Press call 01642 220040. 

Discounted rates for Small Businesses, Charities and Community Groups. 

Health 


tips how to shed the Xmas pounds 


25. Out NorthEast

theatre 

Ophelia Balls searches up and down the country for the must sees 

Greeting’s one and all to this, 

our first Magazine of 2009, 

Hope you all had a soopa 

doopa Xmas etc. 

Moving on, I’ve spotted some 

up and coming theatrical 

entertainment that some of you 

may say OMG! 

I just gotta see that 

Newcastle. Theatre Royal.”Les 

EDarlington Civic Theatre Victoria 

Ballets Trockadero De Monte Carlo” Woods “Dinner Ladies” 

26th to 28th Feb 2009. 

18th to 23rd May 2009. 

Affectionately know as “The Trocks”, this Starring the original Tony and Anita 

company of professional male dancers (Andrew Dunn and Shobna Gulati). Blend 

presents an inspired blend of their loving Victoria Wood’s writing and whisk in crazy 

knowledge of dance, their brilliant comic characters and plop onstage, you get the 

approach, and the astounding fact that men reluctant love story of Bren and Tony egged 

indeed, can dance en- Pointe without falling on by Dolly, Jean, Twinkle and Anita, add a 

flat on their bums. Founded in 1974 by a caretaker called Stan and coat with regular 

group of ballet enthusiasts, presenting a appearances from Philippa (HR) and Petula 

playful view of classical ballet in parody form, and you have an instant recipe for madness 

now these great comedians and dancers are 

treasured all around the world. 

in the kitchen (with 12 rounds of brown...!) 

26 

Julie Walters role will be played by Josie 

Lawrence on the tour and if you want to see 

this, like me, you’re going to have to get to 

Darlo. Camp with a capital K... 


theatre 

Ophelia Balls searches up and down the country for the must sees 

Well I’m off on a well deserved 

rest in a few days, so when this 

dition comes out someone keep me a 

copy....! 

Till the next time 

Lots a lurv 

Ophelia B 

Balls Mansions 

www.opheliaballs.com 

THE LONDON PALLADIUM 

“SISTER ACT THE MUSICAL.” 

FROM 2ND JUNE 2009 

PREVIEWS FROM 7TH MAy, ONGOING.... 

I knew it was in the pipeline, it just had to be 

really, with everything else just jumping from 

stage to screen and visa versa, although no 

casting has been confirmed, Whoopi will not 

be playing Deloris Van Cartier,(who who..??? 

answers on a postcard.) but she will be 

producing the west end production. The new 

musical features a score by Alan Menken, 

(Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid, Little 

Shop of Horrors, to name a few.) Currently 

occupying this theatre is the home to The 

Sound Of Music and as yet there has been no 

official statement that this show is moving 

or closing, so double check for both prior to 

booking wont you. 

SUNDERLAND EMPIRE “THE WITCHES OF 

EASTWICK” 

17TH MARCH TO 21ST MARCH 2009 

3 sexy ladies 1 lucky devil, and that devil is 

Wet Wet Wet’s Marti Pellow, (some mothers 

will go just for him I betcha!) I loved the film 

and did not get a chance to see it in London; 

mixed reports caused this show to have quite 

a short run too. Same at Sunderland it’s only 

here for 5 nights, so make sure you get a 

ticket soon as... 

When 3 desperate housewives in small town 

America wish for the man of their dreams, 

they get far more than they bargained for 

when Darryl Van Horne arrives...! 

THE SAGE GATESHEAD “RHyDIAN.” 

14TH MAy 2009. 

Mmmm love him or loath him, he certainly 

has a voice to talk about, from his flamboyant 

“Go West” to his “Phantom” from X Factor 

a couple of years back, along with a few 

others he’s actually made a name for himself. 

His fast paced tour of nearly all of May and 

the end of April means this guy is non stop 

trying to promote his first CD which has such 

hits as Who Wants To Live Forever, Bridge 

Over Troubled Water and Somewhere from 

West Side Story, he will also be performing 

material especially written for him too. Must 

tell ya too, also arriving at The Empire in 

November is “The Sound of Music” with yep 

you guessed it Connie Fisher, she has come 

27 

back to do the tour, canny Xmas present for 

ya Gran eh...? 


trixie 

miss 

Miss Trixie 

Hi Boys and Girls. 

Hi guys. Well I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year and 

you have spent all that spare cash in the sales. If you still have some 

left you can always send it to me HA HA. Well I had a great time over 

the holidays; my head and waistline have still not got back to normal. 

Why do we do it? 

Well it’s now getting to that love time of the year with Valentines 

Day just around the corner, so if you are with someone don’t forget to 

show them how much you love them. If you’re on your own (like me) 

then let’s get out there and start looking for Mr or Miss perfect. I still 

believe there out there for us if we look. Let’s have some fun looking 

for them!!!!! Here are a few of this issues letters that I have received. 

Hope you get the answer you want. 

3years of upset hurt and loss you are allowed to feel the way you do at 

the moment. You are on the way back up that hill of life by talking about 

it. You need to talk to someone about your loss and the pain and hurt that 

that is doing to your life. We can never turn back the clock and no one 

can ever take away your memories of your partner, Mam and your dog. 

You can and I’m sure you will re build your life but it will take time. Talk to 

your doctor and tell him your problems, he will be able put you in contact 

with the right people that can give you help and advice. You seem to have 

lost not just the most important people in your life and your pet but also 

your confidence. Let’s look at the good things in your life at the moment 

and build on them. You are still a young guy you have a good job and also 

your own home. Trusts me talk to people tell them your problems and im 

quite sure by this time next year you will be a new person. Good luck and 

make 2009 the year for you. 

Hi Trixie, I am a gay man that can’t live how I want to, I long 

to “come out” and be myself, but I’m frightened by what that 

would do to my family. It’s so hard wanting to do the right 

thing but not cause unnecessary suffering or embarrassment 

to my family. As I am still at home and can’t afford a place of 

my own yet such a revelation would be costly in more ways 

than one. I love the magazine and think you look fab. This 

poem expresses my true feelings more than I could say to 

anyone. 

Thank you so much for sharing your feelings with me I have not 

printed your poem as I felt it was a personnel poem that should not 

be shared with everyone. The first thing I could say to you is be true 

to yourself. You will NEVER be really happy with your life if you live 

it for the feelings of other people. Every gay person has had to live 

there life like you at some point and its not easy, reading between 

the lines of your poem I feel that this way of life you are living at the 

moment is not healthy for you. When or if you tell your family you may 

upset them a lot but you will need to give them the time to come to 

terms with what you have told them. Being gay is not a crime you are 

not sick and you can not live your life to make everyone else happy 

and you sad. I feel for you and if you would like to talk more you can 

contact me via email trixietreat@hotmail.com anything you write to 

me will stay with me and I think you already know you have that trust 

by sharing your poem with me. Please keep in touch and if I can help 

at all I’m here for you. Good luck and be happy love Trixie xxx 

Help I’m going to lose my partner. There is not an easy way to say 

this but I have got a problem with sex for about the last six months 

I’ve been unable to get a hard on. My partner is getting so upset that 

I think he will leave me and find someone else that can give him the 

sex life that he wants. I just don’t know what to do. I can’t go to the 

doctors as my doctor is a lady and I would die rather than talk to her 

about it. What I’m I going to do. I love my partner and could not bear 

to be without him. HELP. 

Well there are lots of reasons why you could be having this problem in 

the bedroom. It could be a medical problem but there are so many other 

reasons around it to. You don’t tell me your age and if you’re an older 

guy sometimes things don’t work as well as they did. Sorry but that’s 

just life, but there are lots of products on the market that could help you. 

Other things that might be a problem are if you have had any upset in the 

last few months, or are you very stressed or worried about something. 

Drinking to much will never help your performance in the bedroom, and 

also worrying about your partner leaving you because of the problem is 

not going to help. The first thing you must do is talk to your partner about 

this and also the doctor. I’m sure your lady doctor has come across this 

problem before, but if you really cant talk to a lady about it then ask to see 

another doctor or go to a NHS drop in centre and ask to see a male doctor. 

Don’t hide away from this problem as it wont go away on its own also 

don’t take ANY products that are around without first talking to a doctor. 

Good luck. Xxx 

Hi Trixie I’m 41 a gay man and feel that my life is a total mess. 

I lost my partner 3 years ago to cancer, then 18 months ago my 

mother died of a heart problem. I’ve been trying to get my life 

back together and then two weeks before Christmas my dog of 

18yrs died. I have my own home and a good job, but I feel so 

alone and don’t have any friends. I don’t go out to the gay bars 

much and don’t speak to anyone when I do. I just feel like my life 

is worth nothing and I don’t know what to do. Please help me 

That’s about all for this issue I hope that my advise has helped 

you. Keep them letters coming in and i will do my best to help 

wherever I can. Until the next issue be good and safe out 

there and remember it’s nice to be nice. Lets make 2009 

a year of love and happy times for all of us. 

Love always ... Miss Trixie xxxxx 

You have just done the best thing you could have done. You have told 

someone about your unhappiness. That’s the first thing you needed to 

do to be able to move on and put your life back together. You have had 


community listings 

Sponsor our listings - call 01642 220040 

A-Z of Information, Support & Groups 

Berwick Community Support 

Group 

Monthly social group 

07980260345 

Body Positive NE 

Drugs Outreach, counselling, 

welfare benefits, HIV/AIDS 

support 

0191 232 2855 

Cross + Roads GID 

Support & social events for TS & 

inter-sexed people on a gender 

re-assignment program. 

0191 295 5313 

Derwentside LGB Group 

Monthly social meetings 

0788746352 

Durham Young Mens Group 

Weekly support and socials for 

gay/bi men under 25 www. 

dygmg.org.uk 

0191 383 1414 

Dykehikes 

Walking groups 

www.dykehikes.org.uk 

0191 261 2277 

Gay Men Tyneside 

Social group for gay/bi men 

20yrs+ 

0191 233 1333 

Gay Advice Darlington/ 

Durham 

Info, Support, Advice, varied 

social groups, Helpline, HIV/AIDS 

positive living support. TV/TS 

Support 

01325 355551 www. 

gayadvicedarlington.co.uk 

G.A.P 

16 – 19yr olds discussions, 

socials & trips out 

Meets weekly 0191 233 1333 

Gender Trust 

Info & counselling for TS 

0700 0790 347 

Get Real 

Weekly LGBT social groups 

South Tyneside 

Tony on 0191 4835606 

Dave on 0191 4162324 

Dave at lgbtsouthtyneside@yahoo. 

co.uk 

Hart Gables 

Advice, support, Social groups, 

trips for LGBT people 

0142 923 6790 

www.hartgables.org.uk 

Lbi Northeast 

Support for Lesbian & Bisexual 

women’s groups 

0191 277 2045 

LBWN 

Develops & Support to lesbian & 

bisexual womens groups 

0164 280 3607 www.lbwn.co.uk 

L-Birds @ Hart Gables 

Lesbian & bi women Fortnightly 

meetings. Joanne 

0142 923 6790 

Lesbian Line 

Info, advice, referrals 

0191 261 2277 

Lesbian Walking Group 

www.dykehikes.org.uk 

Metropolitan Community 

Church 

Run for & by Gay men & lesbians 

6.30pm @ St.James United 

Reform Church 

07770543407 

Macgree Helpline 

Info & Support for TV/TS 

01325 266 062 

Mesmac Northeast 

Promotes Sexual &mental health. 

1-1 counselling, general support 

for gay & bi men, support groups. 

0191 233 1333 / 0164 280 4400 

Monday Night Mix @ Hart 

Gables 

Everyone welcome 

Alan - 01429 236 790 

Morpeth LGBT Support group 

Fortnightly meetings 

0798 026 0345 

NE Transgender 

Social & psychological support 

for TS/TV 

Emma - 0779 959 8843 

NE Aids Care 

Practical help for HIV/AIDS 

Sufferers 

NEOLN 

40yrs+ lesbian women group 

Tel : 0191 261 2277 (Tues 

7-10pm) 

Northallerton Gay Mens 

support group 

Monthly meetings, socials 

Pete 0190 462 0400 

Parents Enquiry NE 

Advice, support group, and free 

literature for parents of LGBT. Joan 

0191 4552868 

Jill on 01642 370230 (After 6pm) 

penejoan@supanet.com 

www.parentsofgays.co.uk 

Plus Group, for LGB people under 

25, meets every Tuesday 6-8pm 

Central Gateshead, call Pam, Mark 

or Steve, 0191 490 1699 

Positive Living 

Support services for HIV+ people, 

partners, family & carers in 

Darlington & Co. Durham. 

01325 252522 

R2B @ Hart Gables 

18 – 25 yrs LGBT people twice 

monthly meeting 

Georgia – 0142 923 6790 

Sistahood.org.uk 

Website for lesbian & bi women 

in rural locations. 

Stag Project 

Safer sex, advice and support/ 

social group for gay and bi men, 

meets in Gateshead. Call Mark or 

Steve 0191 490 1699 

Street level 

Support group for HIV/AIDS 

people, partners, family & carers 

women only session avail. 

0191 455 3027 

T-sides out 

Over 21s Gay and bisexual mens 

groups meets @Mesmac Teeside 

Thurs 7-9pm 

01642 804400 

Teesside Positive Action 

Support group for HIV/AIDS 

people, partners, family & carers, 

complimentry therapies and 

education. 

0164 254 598 

Teesside Trans Group 

@ Hart Gables 

Social support, Activities 

and much more 

Contact Joanne on 01429 236790 

UNISON 

Regional LGBT Group for UNISON 

members meets in Newcastle 

0191 245 0806 

Women On Women 

Support, friendship, monthly 

drop-ins & socials for lesbian & 

bi women 

07939 946645 

Women @ GAD 

Women’s Drop-in @ GAD Support 

& social 18yrs+ 

01325 355551 

www.gayadvicedarlington.co.uk 

Young lesbian group 

Lesbian and curious/confused 

group, Socials & support for 

under 25’s 

01912612277 

+ve Men’s group 

Trips, socials, Group chats 

Mark – 0191 233 1333 

Free Confidential Services for GAY & BISEXUAL MEN 

Covering the North East region, including: 

Groups, Counselling, One-to-one Support, Free Condoms & Lube, 

Phone Information & Advice and now 1 Hour HIV Testing 

Newcastle: 0191 233 1333 Middlesbrough: 01642 80 44 00 

Check out our new look website with great new 


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29. Out NorthEast

\ \ \ \ have you been scene out? www.outnortheast.com / / / / 




news 

scene 

Scene news with Anita – www.outnortheast.com 

32 

Lesbilicious Comedy 

for the North East 

An all-lesbian all-star stand-up comedy 

special is hitting Newcastle upon Tyne in 

February 2009. ‘Lesbilicious Comedy’ is 

the start of several non-scene events for 

gay women in the North East of England, 

organised by Lesbilicious.co.uk. 

Starring at the first lesbian comedy night 

on Thursday 26 February 2009 will be 

Brighton’s Zoe Lyons, who the Observer 

Magazine calls “Confident and razor sharp” 

and Time Out says is “One to watch”. Zoe 

regularly performs on Sandi Toksvig’s and 

Jenny Éclair’s radio shows, and has appeared 

on BBC Two’s Mock the Week. Zoe also 

scooped the award for the funniest joke at 

the Edinburgh Fringe earlier this year (“I 

can’t believe Amy Winehouse self-harms. 

She’s so irritating she must be able to find 

someone to do it for her…”) Joining Zoe Lyons 

at Lesbilicious Comedy will be BBC 6music 

regular Jen Brister and “bloody funny lesbian 

goth” Bethany Black. 

“It’s time Newcastle had a queer comedy 

scene like Brighton, Manchester and London,” 

says Lesbilicious.co.uk co-founder Georgia 

Rooney. “The North East has a great gay 

scene, but it’s all about drinking and dancing. 

That’s why we’ve started putting on events 

– to offer something new and different for 

lesbian and bisexual women. 

“There is a massive gay community in 

Newcastle who we feel deserve a bit more 

variety. Comedy is just the beginning. News of 

the comedy event has been spreading by word 

of mouth, and we’ve already had people asking 

where they can buy tickets from!” 

Inside Out bring a 

taste of Manchester 

to Darlington 

Darlingtons favourite Monday Night, Inside 

Out is now host to Manchester Gay Scenes 

most recognised face, Cyber Sensation 

Chrissy Darling. 

Now the first Monday of every month sees 

the award winning drag sensation heading 

up from Manchester to ‘whore’ the doors 

of the North Easts busiest mid-week night, 

alongside this, Chrissy hosts a Dance Off 

Competition giving the best movers a free 

bottle of bubbly! Not bad for a club that 

won’t charge you a penny to get in! 

Gay Mondays, Every Monday at Seen and 

Inside Out - Darlington. 

Lesbilicious Comedy is taking place on 

Thursday 26 February 2009 at the Hyena 

Comedy Club, Leazes Lane, Newcastle upon 

Tyne, NE1 4PF. Tickets start from £10 and 

can be bought from 0191 232 6030, www. 

thehyena.com and www.lesbilicious.co.uk 

Kelly Llorenna 

at SATUR-GAY 

As the Tees Valleys Biggest Gay Night 

continues Middlesbrough is about to 

welcome ‘Kelly Llorenna’ live at the 

Cornerhouse on 28th March performing 

Tell It To My Heart, Set You Free, Forever 

and True Love Never Dies to what will 

undoubtedly be a capacity crowd. 

Promoter Philip Douglas told Out North East 

Magazine SATUR-GAY wants to constantly 

surprise, ‘This is the first of many BIG acts we 

will be hosting this year, it puts us on a par 

with much bigger clubs. 

We don’t want our customers to feel as 

though they need to head off to big Cities to 

experience the best, we are creating it right 

here in Middlesbrough.’ 

Kelly Llorenna @ SATUR-GAY - Saturday 

28th March 2009, The Cornerhouse, 

Middlesbrough. 11pm - 3.30am Entry £6 

Travel 


article about Catalonia 






listings 


newcastle 

@one 

1 Marlborough Crescent 

MONDAy 

TUESDAy 

WEDNESDAy 

0191 260 3841 

The Bank 

12-14 Scotswood Road 

0191 261 8880 

Camp David 

8-10 Westmorland Road 

0191 222 0646 

The Yard 

1pm – 1am 

Cabaret on stage from 11pm 

The Dog 

12noon – Midnight 

The Eagle 

5pm – 11pm 

The Yard 

1pm – 1am 

The Dog 

12noon – Midnight. 

The Eagle 

Limp Rizted 

10.30pm – 3am 

Sea Nightclub, Quayside £5/£4 NUS 

2 Rms/Cheap Drinks 

The Yard 

1pm – 1am 

The Dog 

5 Marlborough Crescent 

0191 221 0775 

The Eagle 

42 Scotswood Road 

0191 222 1682 

Eclipse / Bar Magic 

48 Clayton Street West 

0191 222 0183 

Gossip 


0191 261 6824 

Heavens Above 


0191 232 2037 

Powerhouse 


0191 261 6824 

Switch/The Loft 

4-10 Scotswood Road 

0191 230 3863 

The Vault 


0191 261 6824 

The Yard 


0191 232 2037 

Heavens Above 

8pm – 1am 

Switch 

11am – 1am 

DJ Owen from 9pm + Happy Hour all 

night. 

The Bank 

12noon – 1am 

Sing for your supper with Top Katz. 

Eclipse 

11am – Midnight 

@ne 

5pm – 1am 

DJ Cris with the Pop Party 

Buy 1 get 1 Free on the Bar 

Bar Magic 

7pm – 1.30am 

Deal Or No Deal with Shelley 

Shagnasty. 

Gossip 

11am – 1am 

The Vault 

11am – 11pm 

Karaoke with Honey Lingus 

Powerhouse 

PH:D 11pm – 3am, £5 entry 

5pm – 11pm. 

Switch 

11am – 1am, Cabaret Night 

hosted by MissRory 

The Bank 

Top Katz open mic night 


Eclipse 


@one 

1pm – 1am 

80’s + 90’s Pop 

The Vault 

Karaoke with Anna Mosity 

11am – 11pm 

Gossip 

11am – 3am 

The Dog 


The Eagle 

5pm – 1am. 

Male Stripper live at 11pm. 

Heavens Above 

8pm – 1am 

Karaoke from 9pm 

Switch 

11am – 1am 

DJ Ross with Chart and Dance 

Eclipse 


@ne 

5pm – 1am, Pop Party, Buy 1 get 1 

Free on the Bar 

The Vault - 

Wind back Wednesdays 

11am – 11pm, Free Entry 

Gossip 

11am – 3am 

The Bank 

12noon – 1am Drag e okee 

Happy Hour all night. 

BoreD of tHe saMe scene? 

satur-gay Middlesbrough’s Biggest gay club night

listings 


newcastle 

THURSDAy 

FRIDAy 

SATURDAy 

SUNDAy 

The Yard 

1pm – 1am 

The Dog 


The Eagle 

5pm – 1am. 

SUITS YOU, SIR! Every last 

The Yard 

Noon – 1am 

The Dog 


The Eagle 

5pm – 2am. 

Male Stripper live at 11pm. 

The Yard 

Noon – 1am 

The Dog 


The Eagle 

5pm – 2am 

MEN ONLY NIGHT Last Saturday of 

the month 

The Yard 

1pm – 1am, Karaoke from 3pm 

Cabaret on stage from 11pm 

The Dog 

12noon – Midnight 

The Eagle 

5pm – Midnight 

MALE STRIPPER Live at 10:30pm 

Heavens Above 9pm-1am 

Flawless with DJ Vicky Vegas 

(Funky House and Dance Classics) 

Switch 

11am – 1am 

Live International Cabaret 

hosted by DJ Cris 

The Bank 


Karaoke 

Eclipse 


@ne 

5pm – 1am, DJ Owen, Buy 1 get 1 

Free on the Bar 

Bar Magic 

7pm – 1.30am, Karaoke Carnival 

The Vault 

11am – 11pm 

Karaoke with Queen Phillis 

Gossip 

11am – 1am 

Powerhouse 

11pm – 3am, £5 Entry, Skool Disco 

Heavens Above 

8pm – 1am. 

Switch 

The Weekend Lands 

11am – 1am 

Eclipse 


@ne 

5pm – 1am 

Back to the Old School with 

DJ Ross 

Bar Magic 

7pm – 1.30am, Fiesta 

Gossip 

11am – 1am 

The Vault 

11am – 3am 

Gail Force with 70s and 80s 

Powerhouse - School Disco 

Cheap Drinks . Dress to impress 

11pm – 4am £6 

The Bank 

9pm – 1am, Outrageous 

Switch 

11am – 1am, DJ Cris from 9pm 

Heavens Above 

8pm – 1am 

Switch 

11am – 1.30am 

DJ Owen from 9pm 

The Bank 

Vicky Paris’s Saturday Party 


Eclipse 


@ne 

5pm – 1am, DJ John Hays and Lady 

Kay, Upfront and Classic House 

Bar Magic 

7pm – 1.30am 

Dance City 

Gossip 

9am – 1am 

The Vault 

11am – 11pm 

Boggys saturday night party 

The Loft 

FREE Entry 

9pm until 2am 

Powerhouse - Frixon/Pop Garden 

£8 with flyer / £10 without 

11pm until 6am 

Heavens Above 

BOGOF Sundays 

8pm – 1am 

Switch 

11am - 1am Sex on The Beach with 

Dj Cris 

Eclipse 


@ne 

Newcastle’s Got Talent 

8.30pm - 1am 

Bar Magic 

7pm – 1.30am 

Outrageous - Top drinks offers! 

Gossip 

The Breakfast Club 

6am – 1am 

The Vault 

11am – 11pm 

Sunday Funday with Queen Phillis + 

Free Food 

Powerhouse - Religion 

It’s what Sundays were made for! 

11pm – 4am 

Bank Bar 

5-9 Miss kittys Dragoke, 9pm-1am 

Miss B Fun and Cabaret 

BoreD of tHe saMe scene? 

satur-gay Middlesbrough’s Biggest gay club night

listings 


middlesbrough 

MONDAy 

H’s Bar 

12 noon – 11pm 

The Oak 

12 noon – 11pm 

Quid’s In @ The Crown 

9pm – 2am, £ 3(NUS) /4, DJ Bob + Joel with 

Pop, Dance + Indie + drinks from £1.50 

TUESDAy 

H’s Bar 

12noon – 12pm, Disco Karaoke from 8pm 

The Oak 

12noon – 11pm 

Poptarts @ The Crown 

9pm – 2am, £ FREE, DJ Bob + Joel with Pop, 

Dance + Indie + drinks from £1.50 

WEDNESDAy 

H’s Bar 

12noon – 11pm, Disco Karaoke 

from 8pm 

The Oak 

12noon – 11pm 

THURSDAy 

H’s Bar 

12noon – 11pm , Band Night 

The Oak 

12noon – Midnight with Matt Nevin 

FRIDAy 

H’s Bar 

12noon – 12pm, Disco Karaoke from 8pm 

The Oak 12noon – 2am, Dj Jigs 

Onyx Rooms - ‘Pout’ 

11pm until 3am - Entry £5 

DJs Matt Nevin + Erin 

(Last Friday of the Month only) 

SATURDAy 

H’s Bar 

12noon til 12pm, SATUR-GAY Warm Up Party 

The Oak 

12noon til 2am, DJ Matt Nevin 

SATURGAy @ Cornerhouse, Exchange Place 

£5 Entry., 11pm - 3.30am 

Drag Queens, DJs, Silly Drinks Prices, 

The Best of the Best! 

SUNDAy 

H’s Bar 

6pm – 11pm, Chill out with free pool. 

The Oak 7pm – 2am 

Cherry Pop 

with DJ JIGs + Guests 

darlington & county durham 

Mardi Bum Pre-Party @ Seen 

Every Monday, 

with DJ Michelle 

Free Entry, 8pm - 1am, 

Mardi Bum @ inside Out 

Every Monday, Beaumont Street, 

Dj Michelle, Free Entry, 10pm -3am 

Gaylicious @ Joes Bar . Every Monday, Grange Road, 

Free Entertainment Every Week! 8pm until Midnight 

‘Blasphemy’ @ Harvey’s 

Richardsons Yard 8pm until Late Drinks Promos/Dance floor Classics 

Dirty - Chambers // Entry £5 

Duke Street Darlington Every Saturday. 10pm – 4am 

Look out for new nights coming soon 


listings 


sunderland 

Free Entry! 

Crisco Disco @ Ttonic 

8pm – 1am Every Tuesday With Miss Trixie 

0191 565 5755 Vine Place 

Glass Spider 

10pm til 3am Every Tuesday 

Crisco Disco after party 

0191 567 7272 3-5 Green Terrace 

The Black Bull 

309 High Street West, Veronika Venemous Dragoke. 

Every Tuesday, 0191 567 5702 

Lumalicious, Every Tusday 

Luma, Sunderland 

From 9pm, Free Entry 

Drag and Cabaret 






your Horoscopes with Jasmine Starr 

horoscopes 

Aries 

March 21st - April 19th 

You might be feeling a little low and in need of some cheering 

up. What’s worse is that you probably blame yourself for a recent 

spat with a lover or friend, so your confidence is down as well. 

Chances are you’re not wholly to blame, and your friends will 

see this. In time they’ll convince you that you’re not the bad guy, 

and your mood will start to improve. 

Taurus 

April 20th - May 20th 

You want to please those closest to you, but you fear you are 

pushing away your nearest and dearest. Now it could be that 

you have just blown this one well out of size. Your partner is still 

here! They haven’t left yet and probably won’t unless you do 

something daft. If you’re not in a relationship then watch out for 

someone showing more than a passing interest in you! 

Gemini 

May 21st - June 20th 

Someone is making a nuicance of themselves. You can’t move 

but for their scrutiny. It could all be innocent attention seeking 

with a romantic twist, but you are not so sure. You will find 

yourself getting more and more wound up by it. Your partner 

might find this a little unsettling, leading to some pressure in 

your relationship. Time for you to set the record straight. 

Cancer 

June 21st - July 22nd 

Someone close is nagging you constantly, and you just want to 

restore karma. You may have to disappear for a short break on 

your own to get the peace you crave. Upon your return harmony 

should be returned, as long as you make it crystal clear why you 

went away. You might have used the break to re-evaluate your 

personal situation, and your partner might well have to watch 

their step! 

Leo 

July 23rd - August 22nd 

You are brimming with innovation and are full of ideas to make 

your work life more efficient. However, don’t hide your light 

under a bushel. Let your colleagues know and work with them 

to make some progress. Share it with the boss as well. You’ll 

be pleasantly surprised at willingness to join in and make your 

ideas work. 

Virgo 

August 23rd - September 22nd 

You have some bad memories of a previous situation or encounter, 

which may be holding you back. It might have been with a 

previous partner, so you’re understandably protective with your 

current one. But your current partner might take this as you being 

too clingy and back off. Try not to compare one relationship 

with another - they all have their merits and pitfalls, but all are 

different. 

Libra 

September 23rd - October 22nd 

You have had some good times with a partner and have shared 

some great memories. You are feeling very positive about your 

relationship at the moment, and this positivity extends into 

other areas of your life. At work and socially you will be the 

centre of attention, so make the most of now, enjoy being popular 

and have a ball! 

Scorpio 

October 23rd - November 21st 

You might be feeling down in the dumps over an aspect of your 

If you can take the sting out of your tail for a while and find 

some unsolicited compassion and kindness towards a loved 

one, it will be noted, and repaid. Similarly, if you’ve left a friend 

out in the cold recently, try a change of tack. You’ll be surprised 

at the results, particularly if you do something completely 

unexpected! 

Sagittarius 

November 22nd - December 21st 

If you have some issues with a friend or colleague then the best 

way to sort them out is face to face. And I don’t mean at full 

volume. Sit down and discuss it. Gentle persuasion is likely to get 

the point across far more decisively. Your problems will soon be a 

distant memory, and you might have actually made the friendship 

stronger. 

Capricorn 

December 22nd - January 19th 

Networking might well be a very good option at work. Mix with 

those you feel have something to offer you. You might get some 

extra work out of it, but it could reap rewards later on! Deal 

positively with any change to procedure or routine at work 

rather than moaning about it. Long term the effects of this positive 

attitude could mean much more for you! 

Aquarius 

January 20th - February 18th 

A close relative is being very stubborn, and it’s fallen to you to try 

to make them see sense over a touchy subject. They are on their 

way to a monumental misjudgement, and will not be swayed. 

It will take all your powers of persuasion to make them change 

their mind, but in the end it will be down to their willingness or 

otherwise to see the bigger picture. 

Pisces 

February 19th - March 20th 

You and your partner might have got yourselves stuck in a rut. 

Things might have become a little tedious, so some spicing up 

is required! Try arranging a short break or a surprise or two 

and see if things change. With the right attitude and a bit of effort 

on both sides, you and yours could rejuvenate your love life! 

• love & romance • destiny & mind • 

body & spirit • tarot & pschic • 

YOUR North East Stars with Russell Grant 

~ CALL 0905 235 149 ~ 

Calls cost £1/min at all times. Service provided by JMedia (UK) London PO Box 56394, SE1 0WT 


B O Y F R I E N D 

Are you looking for a 

boyfriend? Fed up with 

relationships that only 

last a couple of months? 

Getting a Boyfriend is a 

one day course designed 

to help you approach 

relationships with a better 

understanding of yourself 

and what you want from 

your love-life. 

CITIES AND DATES 

BSL Interpreters available by arrangement. 

COURSES FOR GAY MEN 

Saturday 4 April 



We are running the ‘Getting a Boyfriend’ 

CITY 

AGENCY 

CITY 

AGENCY 

CITY 

AGENCY 

Course in cities in England & Wales. 

All places on the course are free of 

charge. The course starts at 10am 

and finishes at 5pm. 

Book your place online at 

www.gmfa.org.uk/national 

or call 020 7738 3712. 

Brighton 

Leeds 

Mesmac 

Newcastle 

East 

Norwich 

THT South 

Yorkshire 

Mesmac North 

Ten 

Birmingham 

Cardiff 

Liverpool 

London 

THT Midlands 

THT Cymru 

Armistead Project 

GMFA 

Bristol 

Leicester 

Manchester 

Sheffield 

Southampton 

THT West 

Trade 

LGF 

Centre for HIV 

& Sexual Health 

GCHS 

GMFA courses delivered nationally in partnership with 

Registered Charity No. 1076854

Pink 

With Plenty of Topping 

Commit and celebrate 

beneath the natural beauty 

spot of Roseberry Topping. 

Our next Wedding Fayre: 10 May 

11 o’clock until 4 o’clock 

Come and meet our staff, explore our grounds 

and sample our hospitality. Our co-ordinators 

will be on hand to chat and answer any queries 

you may have. 

Alternatively, why not arrange a meeting with a 

co-ordinator today? 

Limited Saturdays available this year. 

Discounts available for selected months. 

01287 630200 

www.pinchinthorpehall.co.uk 

Pinchinthorpe Hall, Nr Guisborough, North Yorkshire, TS14 8HG

LGBT month - out! northeast magazine

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