Solo Out On The Scene

A scenic round-up

PLAYING THE GAY CARD
Remember when being gay in Hollywood meant no work? It was like the kiss of death. Ellen DeGeneres made this discovery in 1998. But that was the ’90s and these days the situation appears to be a whole lot different with some celebrities quite happy to play the gay card when it suits them. Of course there are certain Hollywood heavyweights who bring in the lawyers at the merest hint of homosexuality, but aside from them being a bit gay seems to be rather a cool thing now to admit to. Or allude to, depending on the situation. Take Lindsay Lohan. She was a child star with a pushy mother before took the high road to rehab more than once. Sober and healthy now, she’s cavorting with her openly gay BFF Samantha Ronson, neither confirming nor denying that they’re a couple. And guess what? Since attaching herself to Ronson’s hip, Li-Lo’s press is the most postive it’s been in ages. Another one playing the gay card recently is Pete Wentz. Wentz, for those who don’t know, is the lead singer of a band called Fall Out Boy, who just got hitched to Ashlee Simpson. Oh and he got her pregnant. First. ‘Twas the classic shotgun wedding. Anyway, now that he’s happily married he felt the need to give an interview to a US gay magazine Out, where he spoke about making out with boys, his hatred of homophobia and the constant rumours he might be into men. Jeez, talk about fuelling those rumours. According to Simpson’s new hubby, it is easier to say he is gay than deny it.
“When I said that I make out with dudes, there was a slight sense of sexual rebellion in that,” he said. “And I probably even made it a bigger deal than it was.”

FIRST CELEB DIVORCE
Speaking of gay and celebrity, Little Britain star Matt Lucas has been given the unfortunate title of first gay celebrity divorcee. Lucas announced recently that his 18-month marriage had come to and end and that the ‘separation is amicable’. The comedian and his long-term boyfriend Kevin McGee have reportedly begun proceedings to dissolve their civil partnership, which they celebrated in December 2006 with a pantomime-themed reception. They will be one of the first high profile couples to end their civil partnership, since new laws enabling same-sex unions came into force in December 2005. As in traditional divorce law, a court will decide how the wealth they have accrued together will be split, taking into account any pre-civil partnership financial agreements.

SCRUB CLEARANCE INTERRUPTED?
Scrub clearance work on the Downs area of Bristol in the UK has been delayed because of complaints from gay men who use the area for sex, said the city council, which is now reportedly concerned it could be accused of discrimination after a warning from its own lesbian, gay and bisexual advisory group. Work has been suspended on the Circular Road above Avon Gorge, which would open up the area to wildlife and visitors and talks are being held in an attempt to resolve the situation.
Plans to clear the overgrown landscape came about after consultations three years ago, when some Downs users complained about ‘inappropriate sexual activity’. The head of parks has said that the council had strong equality policies to protect the interests of all groups, irrespective of their sexuality.
“The general public are unhappy about people taking part in lewd behaviour in public spaces, whether it’s between men and women or people of the same sex,” said Peter Wilkinson. “We are working together with the Terence Higgins Trust (HIV charity) to make sure any work we will do is sensitive. We’re making sure people know what we are doing so we are not seen to be discriminating.”
Although having sex in a public place could give rise to a criminal charge such as indecent exposure, police have said they are unlikely to investigate unless a formal complaint is made.

CLASHES AT PRIDE IN BUDAPEST
The 12th annual Gay Pride parade in Budapest ends in clashes with anti-gay demonstrators and riot police. Parade participants were heavily guarded by police as they marched through the streets of the Hungarian capital, however their presence failed to deter right-wing extremists who’d threatened to disrupt the annual event in the days leading up to it.

GAY WINE LAUNCHES
France’s first gay wine – TendreBulle Gay Vin by Domaine de Boyer – has launched. The wine, a sparkling rosé from Languedoc-Roussillon, shows two stylised heads, almost kissing, on the bottle. Underneath are the words ‘Gay Vin’. The letters G and L, for gay and lesbian, appear on the capsule.
“I added the letters after some women at a wine fair told me the wine is only for boys,” said the wine’s creator, Jacques-Edouard Pailles, a winemaker whose property is in Saint Martin de Villereglan, in the department of Aude. Pailles said he started out wanting to make a rosé wine that would be called the gay wine of Malpierre, one of the local place names, but could not, because of AOC regulations.
“So then I thought it would be fun to make a happy wine, something festive, as in happy which is what gay used to mean in the middle ages,” he said.