Pink Mafia: News Update

Daily Mail 11th November 2008

Student unions ban blood donation advertising posters... because they discriminate against gay men

Complaints pour into BBC after EastEnders screens gay kiss before the watershed

Daily Mail 9th October 2008

The BBC has been flooded with 145 complaints after screening a gay kiss on EastEnders before the 9pm watershed.

The 'offensive' scenes were screened on Tuesday's episode of the soap and showed Christian Clarke (John Partridge, 36) and Lee Thompson (Carl Ferguson, 27) engage in a passionate kiss.

In a statement the BBC defended itself by saying it was down to parents to decide whether the content of the show was suitable for children to watch.

Christian Clarke (John Partridge ) and Lee Thompson (Carl Ferguson ) engage in a passionate kiss. The scene was screen before the 9pm watershed

But some viewers were left deeply unimpressed.

One viewer wrote on the BBC’s Points Of View internet messageboard: 'I am appalled by the display of homosexual kissing before the watershed shown on EastEnders.

'This is disgraceful whilst young children are watching and sets the wrong example.'

Another, Pat, wrote: 'I had to explain to my seven-year-old son what was happening.

'He now thinks he is gay because he kisses his dad.'

Caught in the act: Dot catches the couple canoodling

And another angry fan added: 'I think pre-watershed standards have been irresponsibly lowered in recent years.'

Tuesday night's scenes saw Christian and Lee caught in the act by busybody Dot Cotton as they kisses on Arthur Fowler's memorial bench.

EastEnders past: Michael Cashman

She tells them that she is as liberal as the next person, but does not approve of canoodling in public places.

The latest outrage comes 21 years after EastEnders screened the first gay kiss in a British soap.

Back then, Colin Russell – played by Michael Cashman, 57, who is now a Labour MEP – gave Barry Clark (Gary Hailes, 42) a kiss on the forehead.

The move resulted in a record number of complaints and there were even questions asked in Parliament about whether the scene was appropriate.

In a statement the BBC confirmed it had received complaints - but refused to say how many.

The statement read: 'We approach our portrayal of homosexual relationships in the same way as we do heterosexual relationships.

'We believe that the general tone and content of EastEnders is now widely recognised.

'Parents can make an informed decision as to whether they want their children to watch.'

Former Mr Gay UK 'slit lover's throat then marinated his diced flesh with fresh herbs'

Daily Mail 7th October 2008

A gay chef murdered his lover, cut out part of his leg, seasoned it with herbs and fried it, a court has heard.

Anthony Morley, 35, chewed one of the pieces before throwing it into his kitchen bin.

Morley, a former holder of the Mr Gay UK title, then walked to a nearby takeaway restaurant and told horrified staff: 'I have killed someone, call the police'.

Former Mr Gay UK Anthony Morley (l) allegedly murdered Damian Oldfield before chewing part of his thigh

Officers found the naked body of 33-year-old Damian Oldfield on the floor of Morley's bedroom, Leeds Crown Court was told.

He had been stabbed 20 times and his throat cut.

Morley later claimed Mr Oldfield had tried to rape him.

Prosecutor Andrew Stubbs QC, warned jurors that details of the case were 'unpleasant and disturbing.'

He added: 'In carrying out your task in this trial you must not allow the horror of what took place to cloud your calm assessment of the evidence.'

He said the two men had known each other for some years.

Mr Oldfield was openly gay and worked selling advertising space for a homosexual lifestyle magazine.

He was described as ' flirtatious, promiscuous, naturally outgoing and bubbly'.

Morley was 'less sure about his sexuality' and had had relationships with both men and women.

He had won the first Mr Gay UK contest in 1993.

On the day of the murder, in April, the two exchanged text messages during the afternoon and later met in a bar in Leeds, where they both lived.

In the texts Morley told Mr Oldfield he had 'never been properly happy being gay'. Mr Oldfield replied: 'Try me...I'm not your average poof.'

They exchanged increasingly affectionate messages and arranged to meet, with Morley stressing he 'wanted to take it slow'.

Later that night they ended up in Morley's bedroom, the court heard. They had been drinking beer and were both around three times the legal limit for driving.

Forensic experts later found evidence that there had been sexual activity.

Mr Stubbs said Morley used two knives taken from the kitchen downstairs to kill Mr Oldfield.

He slit his throat, cutting a vein and an artery in the process, stabbed him with great force in the chest and 19 times in the back.

The evidence indicated that Mr Oldfield had been lying under the duvet when he was attacked from behind.

Mr Stubbs said that after Mr Oldfield died Morley cut a section of flesh from his thigh, took it down to the kitchen and cooked it.

The jury heard that Morley was wearing only a bloodstained dressing gown and flip-flops when he arrived at the takeaway. His face and hands were spattered with blood.

He later told police: 'I know what I have done is wrong, he tried to rape me, at least he won't be able to do it again.'

Morley denies murder. The court was told he was 'at the very least' guilty of manslaughter, but the jury would have to consider issues of provocation and diminished responsibility.

The case continues.

Sir Ian McKellen tours schools to tell children being gay is OK

Daily Mail 23rd September 2008

It's OK to be gay: Sir Ian McKellan, who played Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings, has visited schools to talk to pupils

Actor Sir Ian McKellen has revealed he is to tour Britain's schools preaching about gay tolerance.

The openly gay star, who is best known to youngsters as Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings blockbusters, wants to encourage other homosexual men to go back to their former schools and lecture pupils on homophobia.

Revealing his campaign in gay magazine Attitude, Sir Ian said: 'I’ve been busy at quite a few schools recently. I went to a wonderful co-ed faith school in Harpenden.

'They were Christians and absolutely determined that their pupils did not discriminate.
They invited me to come and give prizes to 13-year-olds in front of the parents and to talk, partly, about being gay.

'I said that we are all part of a minority group – be it for being short, or tall or fat or thin, or having red hair or whatever. I said hands up who thinks they are part of a minority group and all the hands went up.

The actor, 69, went on: 'I had Gandalf’s sword with me and I knighted a pair of children Sir Minority and Dame Minority and it went down very well.

'It is essential  to talk to 12 and 13-year-olds because they absorb what’s thrown at them, whether it be homophobia or tolerance - and we have to make sure it’s positive stuff.'

Sir Ian added: 'But there are 30,000 schools. I think this campaign is right – any openly gay person should consider whether they have a duty of contacting their old school and saying, "You may not know, but I am gay and I was when I was at school and what is your policy with regard to homophobic bullying?".

'One school invited me down, as two pupils had come out and the headmaster didn’t know what to do about it. I said, "How many students here are gay?" and he said, "Just these two." Clearly not. "How many gay members of staff have you got?"

'He had no idea. And this was a concerned man. There is a need to make it clear that there are gay kids in school.'

Sir Ian says he has met Gordon Brown at No 10 to talk about the subject  and met Tory leader David Cameron, adding: 'Only once, backstage at Parkinson. I told him I was very worried about faith schools.

'The Tory party has clearly had a big change of heart at the top but as Labour MEP Michael Cashman will tell you, the Conservative MEPs do not vote the right way on equality issues.'

He went on: 'That’s worrying. But on the face of it, all the parties are now behind equality. The party of Section 28 (which forbade gay lessons in schools) doesn’t seem to exist at the moment.'

Sir Ian publicly came out as gay on the BBC Radio 4 program, in 1998 while discussing Margaret Thatcher's 'section 28' legislation which would make public promotion of homosexuality a crime. It was reason enough for McKellen to take a stand, and he has been active in the gay rights movement ever since.

Two years after coming out, he was knighted.

Veterans' parade cancelled due to 'lack of facilities' but gay pride march goes ahead

Daily Mail 22nd August 2008

War veterans who had to abandon plans for a parade after a lack of official support are furious that councillors gave their backing to other marches.

Councillors in Doncaster were involved in a gay pride march at the weekend. And dignitaries were the focal point of the annual civic parade.

But when the Royal British Legion approached officials, they were told their event could not be staged because of a 'lack of amenities'.

On and off: Kate Medland (top) entertains at the gay pride event in Doncaster but the Royal British Legion members were told they cannot hold a march because of 'lack of amenities'

Last year, about 3,000 former and current servicemen and women marched through the town centre on its inaugural Veterans' Day celebration.

Organisers never expected that staging a repeat parade would cause problems. But they said they were given a number of reasons why the march could not go ahead, including problems policing it.

Ken Wood, 46, a Coldstream Guards gunner who served in the Gulf War and is the district secretary of the Royal British Legion, said: 'One of our Legion members spoke to an official at the civic offices who told him we couldn't have a parade this year because the council did not have the amenities.

'I rang the official and she effectively told me the police couldn't afford the staff to block off the roads. We just wanted to parade our standards and colours.

'The council do not seem to care about the achievements of servicemen and women. It supported both Doncaster Pride and the mayor's civic parade.

'The council and the police appear to be passing the buck between themselves. All I can say is that our parade will not be going ahead. Our members are fuming.'

Veterans' Day was introduced by the Government on June 27, 2006, to celebrate the contribution of ex-servicemen and women. But events can be held throughout the year.

Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council initially told the veterans that police would provide officers only for Remembrance Sunday, the St George's Day parade and the civic parade.

Pride parade goes ahead: But march for ex-servicemen and women is cancelled

But yesterday, the council and the police issued a joint statement saying they had not received an official request to stage the Veterans' Day parade.

Then the council said: 'It is not a matter of finance or the council not wanting to do it. The police look into the number of parades being held and give the go-ahead on a case-by-case basis. We are quite happy to hold the veterans' parade provided the police are happy.'

Second World War veteran Legay Shipley, 87, from Dunscroft, Doncaster, said: 'The people who are elected have a responsibility to recognise what people went through.

'I think they should go and look at the graves of some of the war dead and think about their decision.'

Diane Dernie is the mother of severely injured paratrooper 23- year-old Ben Parkinson, of Leeds, who lost both legs and suffered brain damage serving in southern Afghanistan.

She battled for improved compensation for her son, helped by Daily Mail readers.

She said of the abandoned veterans' parade: 'It is a terrible shame. We've seen in the past that people in general have been very supportive of the Armed Forces. Ben would have been very keen to take part.'

When the gay pride event was held in Doncaster, several thousand marched through the town. Mayor Martin Winter and other councillors joined in.

The organising committee held discussions with South Yorkshire Police and Doncaster Council in planning the event.

Gay members of the police also took part in the 'walk of unity'. The event's official website listed the police force and the Home Office as being sponsors of the day.