Gay's The Word bookshop is one of the final few remaining LGBT orientated book shops in the country. It is home to keeping the LGBT literary scene alive for everyone interested It's set to star in a new film, Pride, that recounts the story of gay activism involvement in supporting the 1984 Miner's Strikes. This appearance marks the place of Gay's the Word as a significant part of LGBTQ history.
As we well know, independent print book retailers are a dying breed. With the advent of e-publishing and the diminishing of the high street and independent retailers following the economic downturn of 2008 onwards, specialist shops like this are at risk.
They need loyal purchasing customers to survive. Although Gay's the Word is more than a book selling entity, it's a home for LGBT literature and its fans, a part of the community and a part of our history, it can't keep going without customers.
Established in 1979 and located in the historic Bloomsbury district of London, Gay's The Word happily stocks an enormous range of books; from the profound to the frivolous, from the liberating to the indulgent. Our fiction ranges from prize-winning literary works through to crime, romance and erotic fiction. They have books on gay subject-matter across all genres.
Gay's the Word also hosts exciting book readings and signings of known and yet to be known LGBT authors, as well as a number of regular community events such as a weekly lesbian discussion group, a monthly trans book group and a monthly LGBT book group.
4 rooms of sapphic goings on, taking
over Scala in Kings Cross, LONDON.
Featuring Headline Acts: Charli XCX performing Lauren Mayberry (Chvrches) DJ Set
The
Lesbian Prom is the first event of its kind. Brought to you by MissFit
we are going to fill Scala full of hot women, epic music and lots of drinks.
In
the Main Room we have a big lineup of TLC DJs and a main act that
we are keeping tightly under wraps. Expect great music with lots of pop,
R&B and classics from the 80s and 90s plus a stunning show.
In
the Alternative Room we will have a mental mix of ‘electronica, indie,
coldwave, disco punk and Daft Punk'. We also have a special guest DJ joining
the Culture Clash DJS as they take over this room.
Greeting
you in the Reception Room will be top Drag King Adam All and his
sidekick who loves leopard print and shouting, Apple Derrierès. There
will be games, stalls, a year book and a big photo booth to save the memories
that tequila will make you forget. Also the very important crowning of the Prom
King and Queen so dress up in your shit hot suits and sparkly dresses.
Finally
we have our VIP Room where you can watch everything that’s going on
while sipping your Champagne in the comfort of this leather seated area
overlooking the Main Room. Each VIP gets a complimentary glass of Verve
Cliquot N.V. on arrival plus an exclusive goodie bag sponsored by FemmeFace.com. This contains deliciously sexy
things to play with - probably not at the actual party however - places are
strictly limited.
This
is going to be epic and it's not just us being cocky, we've done this before (g3:pm
with Peaches).
Tickets
are: Limited Early Bird £16, then £22. VIP £45.
Early
Bird tickets are only available by tracking us MissFit Girls down and
purchasing them directly. We don't accept major credit cards but cash is very
welcome. Follow us @effimai and @djsandradj and you
will know when we are out. Ruby Tuesdaysis a weekly safe bet, as are our other club
nights TLC and Culture Clash.
Time:
9pm until 5am
Admission: Limited
Early Bird Advance £16 / £22 General Admission / £45 VIP in advance. Age 18+ ID
Required.
Tickets:
Buy online www.ticketweb.co.uk
or by phone 08444 771 000 (booking fees apply) or by person at Scala Box Office (no booking fees & cash only). Scala's
Box Office is open 10am until 6pm Monday to Friday. Scala, 275
Pentonville Rd, London N1 9NL. Nearest Tube is Kings Cross (Thameslink
Entrance).
We popped in for a quick chat with Gary Henshaw, current owner of the Candy Bar that will close in January, which Henshaw describes as the "End of an era". All the current events on the regular Candy schedule will have one last blast throughout January until the venue closes, including big plans for New Years Eve. The new evening venue in Soho for lesbians will open in mid January. It is going to be like nothing we've had before - bringing the best of the current scene taste of lesbian, bi and queer women to Soho. Whilst running in the basement space of Ku Bar Frith Street, the space is being completely remodelled, and will be designed to incorporate existing (and new) events from the old Candy venue.
There will be take over nights, where big events will use the whole of the Ku Bar Frith Street space and incorporate a 3am venue. Ku Bar Frith Street will stay open as a mixed LGBT day time cafe-style venue. Henshaw is committed to maintaining a women's venue and women's events. Ruby Tuesday's has run successfully at Ku Bar for ten years and there is a commitment to uphold what women want. The new venue will continue to offer free space to LGBT community and not-for-profit groups for meetings and socials.
Share your ideas of the best ever lesbian, bi & queer venue with us below!
L Festive, Nov 30th All day event Birmingham, Tickets £20
L
Festive is back for the third year, packed with all your L Fest favourites. A
great all day event all wrapped up as one big festive party .
L
Festive 2013 will have some fabulous author workshops, solos lunch, acoustic
live music stage, the NEW L Fest awards ceremony, all day DJ's, stalls
& dating games. The full line up is on our website: http://www.lfest.co.uk/#!l-festive-2013/c1bgp
L
Fest Del Mar is the NEW festival for 2014..... Del Mar is 'sea' in Spanish.
May 30th
- June 1st + fringe festival.
Tickets
£95, only 300 available, tickets on sale Nov 30th.
Planet London is very pleased to announce that we are a preferred Media Partner for The Dinah 2014 - the biggest all-girl event in the world
*** Line up Update ***
The Dinah Comedy Night brings together three
of the most acclaimed female stand up comics, Thursday, April 3, 2014 at 8:00pm
at The Palm Springs Convention Center, in what is poised to be an unforgettable
evening of hilarious stand-up comedy.
Fortune Feimster, who landed her
writer/performer spot with "Chelsea Lately" six months after her
appearance on "Last Comic Standing" where she was a semifinalist,
will be joined by another Last Comic Standing alumni, British comic Gina
Yashere, and stand up’s fastest rising star, Erin Foley.
The 2014 Original Dinah Shore Weekend is set to be as celeb-packed and sun soaked as ever. Names already announced include funny woman Fortune Feimster. We met Jill Bennett there this year. Enough said. Events to expect are the infamous Wet and Wild Pool Party and the classic Friday night 'White Party'. Saturday is The Main Event which has seen performances in the past from Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Ke$ha. Expect big names!
And as for Palm Springs? This beautiful desert town, just 2 hours drive from Los Angeles, full of pools, hot springs and 20,000+ lesbians with NO attitude - what more could you want from a sun-filled break?
(2013 Trailer)
We spoke to Mariah Hanson, Founder of Club Skirts and the modern day Dinah Shore Weekend, to find out why the lesbians, bi and queer women of the UK should go to Palm Springs in April.
The Dinah began in Palm Springs over 20 years ago and continues to go from strength to strength. We wondered what makes this event stay at the top of it's game. Mariah says "We try to think outside the box and present an event program
that at its base is a huge party, but on many different levels is unique,
cutting edge, and broad reaching...We are growing it to become a reputable music festival and film festival
as well as insuring we remain the world's largest lesbian party."
So much so, that The Dinah and Mariah recently won a business award for Palm Springs. Mariah says "The Club Skirts Dinah
Shore Weekend has a huge financial impact on Palm Springs. We are
considered one of the city's signature events and certainly are one of the top
five largest citywide events. Palm Springs loves its lesbians!...
"The city, dubbed
"the new Gay Mecca", boasts more gay and gay-friendly
restaurants, nightclubs, hotels, retailers and other businesses than any other
one gay destination in the world. Nowhere else in the world do lesbians get such
a strong sense of community, solidarity and acceptance, feeling as much as
home within the walls of the event as anywhere else on Palm Springs'
playground. We truly couldn't have found a better city/community to host
The Dinah - Palm Springs is a magical place where unforgettable memories,
comraderies and unbreakable bonds are created and cherished forever."
And Mariah's been there since the beginning. What keeps her coming back year on year to ensure the event continues to be the highest quality for all lesbians and queer women, whatever their taste. "I try to create a weekend that stays on the cutting edge of music,
fashion and trends. So for me it's different every year and exciting to
present. For instance, when everyone wanted a picture on their facebook
page by Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley - the photographers/ creators of the NO
H8 campaign - we brought them out to The Dinah to photograph our all weekend
and make that wish come true." Mariah recounts. In her spare time, Mariah is an avid trail rider, with four horses. "By night a fashionable event entrepreneur. By day, a cowgirl!"
And 2014 sounds like it might be one of the best years yet, Mariah compares it to previous front runner, 2009, and previous talent on the line up..."Lady Ga Ga was the oddest and certainly one of the most talented. Katy Perry was the friendliest. Salt and Pepa were the greatest as far as flawless concert production. But they all were great. This year reminds me a lot of 2009 when we had the perfect line up. We're expecting one of our best years." Mariah's (and I'm sure most women's) dream act on the Main Event Stage, would be P!nk - maybe one day she'll succumb to our request.
For Mariah, it's a no brainer that the lovely UK lesbians should want to attend "Why not? Across the pond, an oasis of women, wine and song
awaits. Plus, your accents are the best chick magnet alive. Again, WHY NOT?????" Will we see you there? Follow the official facebook page for updates and announcements.
When: Sunday 15 December 7pm Where: Hideaway 2 Empire Mews, Streatham, SW16 2ED Tickets: £12.50 from event brite When Rose Collis and VG
Lee put their heads together one night, and came up with an alternative
pre-Christmas show for those of us not completely taken up with
Christmas festivities, they did not imagine the event would end up in a
social media storm. The show - a blend of
comedic and fun songs and sketches both fiction and non-fiction - is a
celebration of all that is not festive, with a queer slant. Two
established performers, coming together with an eclectic mix of
performance, mince pies, canapes and wine. However, when Rose tried
to publicise the Brighton peformance via a students' union facebook
page, the word dyke was met with malcontent to say the least and Rose
and VG were asked to remove either the flyer or the word dyke from it,
claiming the group found the word 'dyke' offensive as a term for
lesbians. And the twittersphere has picked up this debate over calling the word dyke offensive, with coverage on sites such as GScene and the Huffington Post.
All in agreement that the only controversy is the lack of acceptance
for the term that we as lesbians have a complete right to use. The good news is that more people than ever know about the show and will hopefully go and see it. VG Lee has recently been
on the Polari First Book Prize panel and is currently doing stand up
comedy and working on her next novel Mr Oliver and Miss Francis. By Katie
Gay's The Word bookshop is one of the final few remaining LGBT orientated book shops in the country. It is home to keeping the LGBT literary scene alive for everyone interested 
Established in 1979 and located in the historic Bloomsbury district of London, Gay's The Word happily stocks an enormous range of books; from the profound to the frivolous, from the liberating to the indulgent. Our fiction ranges from prize-winning literary works through to crime, romance and erotic fiction. They have books on gay subject-matter across all genres.
Gay's the Word also hosts exciting book readings and signings of known and yet to be known LGBT authors, as well as a number of regular community events such as a weekly lesbian discussion group, a monthly trans book group and a monthly LGBT book group.
