LGBTQ news and entertainment
Britain’s same-sex marriage bill has cleared its last major hurdle, passing through the House of Lords and prompting celebrations from campaigners outside Parliament.
Supporters of the bill in Parliament’s upper house wore pink carnations Monday as the Lords agreed to send it back to the House of Commons, where lawmakers will review government amendments before it becomes law.
That is expected to go without a hitch, as the House of Commons earlier passed the bill 390 to 148.
(via CBS News)
The marriage equality bill has passed in the UK House of Commons by a vote of 366-161.
Next the bill heads to the House of Lords.
Stay tuned.
Eight pro soccer players in the UK have revealed to the Professional Footballers Association they are gay, but remain closeted out of fear of fan reactions. From the Guardian:
Gay campaigners told the Observer that Clarke Carlisle, chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association, had revealed that eight players had approached him to disclose that they were gay. Seven told him that the reason they would not reveal their sexual orientation publicly was not the reaction from the dressing room or club, but the potential reaction from the media and supporters.
Chris Basiurski, chair of the Gay Football Supporters’ Network, said that, although progressive attitudes had begun to infiltrate the dressing room, the fear of how supporters would react remained a problem.
American Robbie Rogers, who had played for Leeds United, came out earlier this year and simultaneously retired saying he didn’t think it possible to continue to play and be out. Recently, he’s begun training with the LA Galaxy and may return to the game. Time will tell.
The Guardian goes on to say there are reports of players in the pro soccer world who are openly gay within their team organizations but continue to be closeted to the world due to concerns regarding pressures and reactions in the aftermath of coming out:
“We have anecdotal evidence that players are out within their clubs and don’t have a problem. But we are trying to create an atmosphere for people to come out safely, but at the moment there is a big barrier. The fact is, we have never really tested the fans, both home or away, on this.
“The danger is what happens when a player comes out and gets loads of support and attention, but then start playing badly. The worry is that fans will start getting on their backs and they may lose the confidence of their manager and it could be connected to their sexuality.”
Vicious is a brand new studio sitcom comedy coming soon to ITV starring respected luminaries of British stage and screen Ian McKellen, Derek Jacobi and Frances de la Tour.
Sir Ian and Derek play a couple who have been together for almost 50 years.
The show is written by Gary Janetti, the Emmy nominated writer/producer behind hit shows Family Guy and Will & Grace.
From the Hollywood Reporter:
For both McKellen and Jacobi, who have been friends since university and are both openly gay, Vicious is groundbreaking in another way. The show marks the first time the two acclaimed actors — McKellen’s credits include the X-Men and The Hobbit while Jacobi appeared in such films as Gladiator (2000) and The King’s Speech (2010) — have acted together. Vicious is also, aside from Jacobi’s single, Emmy-winning, guest appearance on Frasier in 2001, the first time either of them has performed in a TV sitcom.
“Neither of them had ever done a multi-camera sitcom,” says Janetti “but its very theatrical. Doing a multi-camera sitcom in front of an audience is very much like live theater. And when you have such extraordinary theater actors and you are doing a comedy, my feeling is you have to put them in front of an audience”.
Olivia Newton-John, currently on tour in the UK, incorporates a bit of ABBA’s “Waterloo” into her concert in honor of her experience as Britain’s entry in the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest. Olivia explains that she’s quite proud to have been a runner-up to ABBA 🙂
Thanks to Nabil for the video!
Appearance in support of Olivia’s current UK tour.
Olivia sings her classic hit “I Honestly Love You” – live in Cardiff, Wales, March 10, 2013
This tour is her first in the UK in 35 years.
Spent the morning tagging along with Michael and Olivia Newton-John doing radio interviews for her UK concert tour starting this Sunday in Cardiff.
First up was at LBC Radio where Olivia chatted with Steve Allen. Olivia’s visit with Steve will air this Sunday, March 10. You can listen then, or download the podcast once it airs by going to this link.
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| Olivia with LBC Radio host Steve Allen |
Next up was a visit to BBC2 Radio where Olivia sat down with The Steve Wright Show. You can hear Olivia’s chat with Steve and Tim Smith on Friday, March 8, live online by clicking here. The afternoon show begins at 2pm London time.
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| Olivia chatting with Steve Wright and Tim Smith on BBC2 Radio |
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| Olivia chatting with Steve Wright and Tim Smith on BBC2 Radio |
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| Olivia Newton-John with the hosts of BBC’s The ONE Show and Billy Bragg |
Took a few pics backstage while Olivia Newton-John was doing BBC’s The One Show last night. It’s always fascinating to me how the “magic” happens behind the cameras. You can watch the episode online by clicking here. I think the link is good for about a week.
Very nice folks there. Olivia really enjoyed it and even sang with Billy Bragg a bit on “If Not For You.”
The show did a segment on dogs who help firemen sniff out the causes of fires. The dogs were adorable and of course, Olivia had to say “hello” to them.
Did I mention they had wine in the green room?
Sweet!
According to a poll conducted for The Guardian, 62% of Britain’s voting public endorses Prime Minister David Cameron’s plan for marriage equality:
The ICM poll conducted just before Christmas found 62% of voters now support the proposals, with half this number – 31% – opposed. Most previous polls have found opinion leaning the same way, although the two-to-one margin revealed on Wednesday is particularly emphatic. An ICM online survey for the Sunday Telegraph in March asked the identical question – which expressly reminds people that the option of civil partnerships already exists for gay couples – and established a 45%-36% lead for the reformers.