The 40th BFI Flare begins on 18 March and runs through to 29 March, at the BFI Southbank. As well as films, there’s plenty of events to partake in, from Heartstopper Forever!, a talk with Alice Oseman, to a screen talk with Russell T Davies.

Here are 13 of the films you should catch at the LGBTQ+ film festival:

Big Girls Don’t Cry

Through the eyes of a teenage girl in early 2000s New Zealand, Big Girls Don’t Cry charts burgeoning desire over the course of a summer holiday. Sid (Ani Palmer) spends her days ignoring her father and perusing online chatrooms. The 14-year-old is adrift, caught between childhood and adolescence; she’s desperate to locate her identity. 

When she becomes enamoured with a group of older teens, Sid begins to navigate her burgeoning desires. Paloma Schneideman, who was mentored by filmmaking legend Jane Campion, arrives with this engrossing debut. It’s sure to be one of the highlights of the festival, especially after it screened to critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival.

Find out when Big Girls Don’t Cry is screening at BFI Flare here.

Black Burns Fast

The Closing Night film of BFI Flare is Sandulela Asanda’s directorial debut, a portrait of queer identity in a prestigious South African boarding school. Black Burns Fast charts the sexual awakening of nerdy 17-year-old Luthando (Esihle Ndleleni). She’s set on good grades until the arrival of rebellious new girl Ayanda (Muadi Ilung). 

The pair begin a clandestine romance. With Ayanda, Luthando gets a taste of the freedom she craves. Though as jealousy threatens to rear its head, Luthando’s exciting relationship and the bond she has with her family are put under threat. 

Find out when Black Burns Fast is screening at BFI Flare here.

Hunky Jesus

The Opening Night film of BFI Flare, Hunky Jesus, is a documentary chronicling the legacy of the San Francisco chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. The group, an order of queer and trans ‘nuns’, are serving their communities while redefining spirituality.

The radical documentary shines a light on the origins of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence movement in 1979 and its historical significance, including their role during the AIDS crisis. The movement continues today, and the film captures the colourful 2023 festival, sitting down with some of the group’s key members. 

Find out when Hunky Jesus is screening at BFI Flare here.

ìfé (The Sequel)

Director Pamela Adie’s Ìfé is regarded as Nigeria’s first lesbian film. Released in 2020, the film shone a spotlight on queer life in Africa despite censorship issues. Now, the filmmaker returns with the feature-length film ìfé (The Sequel), which reunites with the beloved queer characters. 

Adaora (Gbubemi Ejeye) and ífé (Uzoamaka Aniunoh) have seemingly moved on after their intense love story, each in a separate committed relationship. However, when they reconnect in a chance meeting, they cannot ignore their lingering bond. The waves of their love come crashing down, and they’re left to decide if love is worth risking everything.

Find out when ìfé (The Sequel) is screening at BFI Flare here.

Julian

Cato Kusters’ feature debut, executive produced by Close’s Lukas Dhont, follows a Belgian couple’s fight for marriage equality. Adapted from Fleur Pierets’ acclaimed memoir, the film follows the true-life love story of Fleur (Nina Meurisse) and Julian (Laurence Roothooft).

As their connection deepens, the pair begin thinking about next steps, including marriage. This is where the 22 Project, named after the number of nations where gay marriage was legal in 2017, was created. However, not everything is plain sailing, which leads them to question whether the power of love is enough to overcome anything.

Find out when Julian is screening at BFI Flare here.

Lunar Sway

In Nick Butler’s offbeat comedy, Lunar Sway, the mother-son connection is one of emotional chaos. The film charts Cliff, a bisexual man who watches life pass him by in a small town named Mooncrest, shocked when a woman (Gilmore Girls’ Liza Weil) arrives claiming to be his mother.

His birth mother lures him into a dubious world of con-artist tricks. It may be morally wrong, but the excitement of this new world gives Cliff a new sense of belonging. The film also stars Big Little Lies’ Douglas Smith and Heated Rivalry’s Kaden Connors.

Find out when Lunar Sway is screening at BFI Flare here. 

Madfabulous

Celyn Jones’ Madfabulous is a historical drama all about the fabulous life of Henry Paget, 5th Marquess of Anglesey (Callum Scott Howells). Set in the late 19th century, Henry’s love of flamboyant fashion and extravagant behaviour sets him apart. This unlikely British aristocrat flounced past society’s notions of class, gender and decorum.

Howells, who got his breakout with It’s A Sin, breathes exuberance into this riotous historical figure. The film charts Lord Paget as he squandered his multi-million-pound inheritance on a lavish social life while racking up massive debts (around £70 million today).

Find out when Madfabulous is screening at BFI Flare here.

Satisfaction

The blue ocean and the stunning white architecture of the Greek Isles serve as the backdrop for the poignant psychological drama Satisfaction. The film boasts impressively bristling performances from The Brutalists’ Emma Laird and Dunkirk’s Fionn Whitehead as British composers Lola and Philip. 

Satisfaction flits between the start of their romance at a London film school and their haunting, present-day struggles. Slowly, the film unravels the silent rift that has torn these two music lovers apart. On a search for self-discovery, Lola meets Elena (Zar Amir Embrahimi) on a nudist beach. This connection ignites a new lease of life in Lola, which leads to a confrontation with Philip about their relationship.

Find out when Satisfaction is screening at BFI Flare here.

The Serpent’s Skin

Do you love horror? With lesbian goths and bloodthirsty monsters, The Serpent’s Skin may be the perfect film for you. Alice Maio Mackay’s trans-led rip-roaring queer horror aligns the director as an exciting voice in independent trans cinema.

The Serpent’s Skin follows trans teen Anna (Alexandra McVicker) as she runs away from home, meeting goth tattoo artist Gen (Avalon Fast) and their goth-adjacent found family. As she gets to grips with tattooing ink into skin, she accidentally releases a demon who embarks on a killing spree. What unfolds is a tale of lesbians, supernatural powers, and dark underworlds.

Find out when The Serpent’s Skin is screening at BFI Flare here.

To Dance is to Resist 

Julian Lautenbacher’s film spotlights two Ukrainian dancers who seek freedom in the shadow of Russia’s invasion. To Dance is to Resist sees Lautenbacher chart the lives and artistic pursuits of dancers Jay and Vol’demar as they face personal struggle and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In Kyiv’s underground queer scene, Jay and Vol’demar wrestle with the reality of everyday life when their queer identities and relationships aren’t legally recognised. An intimately lyrical documentary, To Dance is to Resist shows the clash of the personal and political with urgency.

Find out when To Dance is to Resist is screening at BFI Flare here.

Out Laws

In June 2022, Friedel Dausab filed a lawsuit against the Namibian government. He set out to protect people like him who were unfairly suffering under anti-LGBTQIA+ laws. Lexi Powner and James Lewis’ film chronicles the valiant battle of a gay Namibian man who took it upon himself to change things.

Out Laws is a reminder that the fight for LGBTQ+ equality in the world is far from over. The film also tracks Friedel as he traces the history of homophobia in the Global South to Tudor-era laws.

Find out when Out Laws is screening at BFI Flare here.

We Are Pat

In the 1990s, Julia Sweeney’s Pat was a beloved character on Saturday Night Live. The androgynous figure may have sparked laughter, but with We Are Pat, director Rowan Haber reflects on Pat’s legacy today. The documentary invites trans comedians to recreate and reclaim Pat.

The character was built around defying gender norms, which was oddly comforting to Haber. With so little non-binary representation on screen, Pat was an accidental icon. We Are Pat seeks not to erase Pat’s character, but to recontextualise and transform them into an emblem of empowerment.

Find out when We Are Pat is screening at BFI Flare here.

What Will I Become?

Lexie Bean and Logan Rozos’ What Will I Become? sets out to explore the vulnerability of the transmasculine community. The film traces the lives of Kyler Prescott and Blake Brockington, two trans boys who died by suicide: “two high-profile examples of approximately 50% of trans boys in the USA who did not survive a suicide attempt.”

While reflective in tone, What Will I Become? also endeavours to uplift the LGBTQ+ community. The film highlights the joy prevalent in the transmasculine community, with the directors delving into their personal experiences to inform interweaving narratives of identity.

Find out when What Will I Become? is screening at BFI Flare here.

The 40th BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival takes place from 18-29 March at BFI Southbank.

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It’s bittersweet. After exiting her original series, Drag Race Germany season one, pretty much immediately, she came back to the contest and slayed pretty much every challenge. Sure, she didn’t get a RuPeter Badge, but did she need one? Is the fact of doing so well, and gaining so many more fans, enough?

PinkNews spoke to The Only Naomy hours after her elimination following this week’s ‘Olympian Makeover’ challenge about her friction with her cast mates, whether her exit was justified, and why she almost nearly wasn’t on this season at all.

Hi Naomy! How are you feeling?

I don’t quite know how I feel to be honest. It’s a very bittersweet moment because for me right now two things are true at the same time: I am incredibly grateful for getting the opportunity to come back and to show what I showed and to make it as far as I did [but at] the same time [I was] so close to the finale and I did so consistently good that I really wanted to go there. It is a very sad moment in a way but on the other hand, I’m in all episodes. At least I got that!

It’s a tale of two halves. Your storyline was that you didn’t win a badge, but you were consistently in the top. How do you think you’ll feel overall about this season in time?

I do feel very proud of myself. To be fair, I did not think I had that in me. When I got the first call [to be on Drag Race UK vs The World], I initially said no. They had to talk to me for an hour [to] make me feel better until I said yes. Going from that to now being in the top five? I feel incredible. I’ve shown my personality, the way I am, all facets. I have been very nice. I’ve been a little bit c***y. I’ve been very happy. I’ve been sour. I managed to show a very well-rounded human being.

Why did you say no initially?

When they called me, I was wholeheartedly saying to myself, even the year before, let me take some more time, work on my craft, work on the things that I realised during Drag Race Germany that I’m not great at yet. When I’ve managed those, I want to go back. In a weird way, it was really a situation where they knew I was ready before I knew I was ready.

There were so many challenges you didn’t get to do on Drag Race Germany. Getting to show sides of yourself that no one had seen must feel special.

On Drag Race Germany I did not majorly enjoy the whole experience because I [knew] it was over so soon. Going to Drag Race in the right mindset is definitely key and for that alone I am very proud of myself. But then all of these challenges…  I thought I would be so intimidated by them but then week by week, I was like let’s just take it for what it is. Except for a design challenge, I never did anything of what I did this season before. It was so much fun and I want to do it again. I’m ready to do it again!

Canada’s Drag Race vs The World, give her a call.

Down Under Vs The World! Global All Stars! Latina Royale, put me in!

Your storyline was that you hadn’t won a badge. This episode, you were given a badge – by Kate Butch – that said you were the queen on the thinnest ice. Was the writing on the wall for you this week?

To be very honest, I thought there was two chances: either I win this week or I go home this week. I was pretty sure there would be nothing between that just because we know Drag Race. Someone would have had to really really f*** up for a non-badged queen to be in the finale. As soon as they paired me with Kate for the bottom two lip-sync, I was like, ‘[She] is the only UK queen left. I will give it my all, but I’m not going to expect to win this lip-sync for two reasons: Number one, I don’t have a badge; number two, she’s the last UK queen on UK vs the World.

Sometimes you have to put two and two together.

At the same time, I’m very happy that the person that sent me home was Kate because Kate and me had the closest relationship during the whole thing. I was pleased that if I have to leave, she gets to go on. She’s my favorite girl.

One of the highlights of this week’s episode was you meeting and bonding with your Olympian makeover subject, BMXer Shanaze Reade. Have you stayed in touch post the show?

I have not spoken to her to be very fair. I think that’s a very disappointing thing. I haven’t found her online. I was kind of hoping they would tag her somewhere, but Drag Race hasn’t tagged her yet. I really want to talk to her again. She has been a really lovely presence and very much a breath of fresh air at that moment in the competition.

We need to find Shanaze on socials!

Find her and send her my way!

You had some testier relationships with others in the cast, including Sminty Drop and Zahirah Zapanta. Why do you think you were in the middle of the friction, and how are those relationships now?

First of all, I’m great with basically everyone in the cast. There’s no grudges because we were very clear on set about a lot of things, where here is TV and then comes the line and the rest is private. I love Zahirah. She has been one of the ones that checked in with me the most. She’s an angel. Even though she was a little firestarter on the show, there is a whole other side to her that’s incredibly loving and supporting. After Kate, she definitely has to be my closest one. I don’t [know] why all of these moments happened during the season. I don’t think that in most of the situations I was the trigger point. I just feel like some of them had a lot of opinions and they wanted to voice them and I was like, ‘OK girl, go off! Now let’s move on.’

Even though in last week’s episode a thing was made of you saying that you didn’t care about making the finale, at certain points it seemed like you wanted to be in the finale the most.

It was a huge thing for me. This literally meant the world. In episode two, when I had to lip-sync for my life and I plead my case in the Werk Room – they once again have to cut it down, but I said the same thing I’m going to say now – I was from the least known franchise. This was a huge opportunity for me. I realised that a queen like me doesn’t usually get a call for a huge franchise like that. So I spent every last Euro I had to make this thing happen and pulled all of my friends together. Over 35 people worked to get me to that point. It was a really huge team. I wanted to make them proud, but at the same time I wanted to see how far I can go. That’s why I said I don’t care about the finale. I thought from the beginning that my chances of winning are realistically pretty f****** small, and I’m not mad about that because on Drag Race, it’s not about winning. It’s about what you show of yourself.

Speaking of that painful lip-sync, where you tried a back bend… how is your head?!

Oh my God, so many complaints. Even Michelle asked if I was fine. I didn’t fully realise how painful it looked cos I didn’t really feel anything!

Lastly, online, you have been branded the robbed queen of the season. Especially this week, everyone seems to think your Versace siblings look was nowhere near a bottom two look. Was it fair for you to be in the bottom?

To be fair to the judges, all of these queens on that stage are f****** incredible. The level of drag is so high that [they had to] fall back to either tiny details or things [they] personally did not enjoy as much. I am very happy that I got to show that look because to be fair, I thought I was the smartest. They said family resemblance and here is [a] literal family. How much more family resemblance can you show? I don’t feel like I fully got my flowers for that. I would have loved for them to have a moment of giving me a little bit of plot armour, forgetting about everything they didn’t like and be like ‘Naomy, you won the challenge,’ like being edged until the very end [and at] the very last possibility to get a badge and move to the final. That would have been my fantasy. That was not RuPaul’s fantasy!

This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World continues on BBC iPlayer and WOW Presents Plus on Tuesdays.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

The post The Only Naomy on why she initially turned down Drag Race UK vs the World appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.

Labour minister Darren Jones relaunched the government’s controversial digital ID scheme on Tuesday (10 March).

Originally announced in September, the scheme was compulsory for working UK citizens, but was quickly shuttered following widespread backlash.

The relaunched programme, which is now voluntary, contains several amendments which ministers say would turn it into a “one stop” app allowing anything from managing childcare to filing tax returns.

A report outlining the changes, published on the government’s website, confirms that information regarding a citizen’s sex or gender identity was “not necessary” for a digital ID to function.

According to the report, the digital ID app will require users to “programmatically” do biometric scans, such as fingerprint or face scans, to check whether the ID belongs to them. These checks will not require data on sex or gender, officials say, making the information unnecessary to collect.

“For these reasons, and in line with data minimisation principles, we do not intend to include sex or gender information in the digital ID,” the report reads.

Concerns over digital IDs outing trans people

Concerns were raised over whether the IDs would forcibly out trans UK citizens after prime minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the scheme in September. Many questioned whether Gender Recognition Certificates (GRCs) – documents that allow a trans person to use the correct gender markers on government documents – would be accepted.

Several members of the public expressed fears that the IDs would force citizens to designate their sex assigned at birth following the UK Supreme Court’s judgment that the Equality Act’s definition of a woman referred to biology only.

A section of the newly published report on groups that need specific support lists trans and non-binary people, as well as those who have recently changed their name or have “mismatched records.” Other groups include people in prison, sex workers, and low income individuals.

Jones told the BBC said the newly relaunched scheme focused on ensuring that “public services work for you.”

“ID will make that possible, allowing you to log on and prove who you are to access public services more quickly, easily and securely.”

He confirmed that the government scheme was still primarily designed to “crack down” on immigration, adding that digital right-to-work checks would become compulsory by 2029. However, digital IDs will no longer be the sole way of completing a check.

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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The convicted individuals, known as Abel Meli & Another, were handed a 15-year prison sentence for robbery with violence at Milimani law courts in Nairobi on 3 March.

The victims in the case were two men, both in their mid-20s, who experienced hours of violence after they met up with a man they had been speaking to on Facebook.

After they arrived at the man’s home, three other men arrived at the property and the victims were beaten, with their phones, wallets and clothes were taken.

During the attack, the men were made to call family and friends to get them to transfer as much money as possible to the blackmailers’ accounts. They were threatened with being outed to their families and killed if they did not comply.

“I tried to resist and I wanted to fight back,” one of the victims – named as Anyango – told The Guardian. “That’s when one of them took a knife, held it at me and said: ‘If you don’t cooperate now, I will stab you and throw you out the window.’”

In the end, 100,000 Kenyan shillings (£576) was sen to the blackmailers’ accounts by friends and family of the victims.

After the incident, the men were supported in reporting the matter to the police and subsequently the attackers were arrested.

Also speaking to the outlet, a paralegal from Ishtar – an organisation providing health and wellbeing services to gay men – who went with the victims to the police said how when LGBTQ+ people go to the police they are often “harassed and discriminated against”.

“They tell you that you are not a normal citizen and they throw away your case,” they admitted.

Kenya is not a friendly country to members of the LGBTQ+ community.

The east African nation is one of 31 countries in Africa which still criminalise homosexuality, with consensual same-sex acts in the country being punishable by up to 21 years in prison with hard labor and fines.

More widely, LGBTQ+ rights are thin on the ground in the country with censorship of LGBTQ+ topics state enforced, access to gender-affirming care is often denied by doctors and no protections from discrimination in housing or employment contexts.

Njeri Gateru, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission – which supports LGBTQ+ people in Kenya – said the attackers were part of a larger criminal organisation which prey on queer men across Kenya.

She told The Guardian: “There’s always that fear of self-incrimination. If I say that I met with a man on Grindr and I was hoping to engage in a romantic or an intimate relationship with this man, then obviously I’m evidence against myself. So the blackmailers rely on that.

“They also rely on the pervasive homophobia and homophobic attitudes within public institutions and also within the general public. And so this creates a situation that makes it possible for them to operate with quite a bit of impunity.”

“We had so many files against them,” Gateru said of the group. “We’ve had cases where these two men were arrested for other cases and later released.

“This can now serve as a deterrent to other gang members who have seen that the law has finally caught up.”

Gateru noted the queer community in the country faces great prejudice but “some of us still trust that we can find justice, so this case encourages us”.

The second victim in the case, named as Ochieng, said he has been “emotionally and physically damaged” by the ordeal.

However, they urged others who experience similar attacks to come forward and seek justice.

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Oseman shared that the forthcoming film will not be released before her final book is published. The writer and illustrator of the graphic novels was speaking at the London Book Fair on Tuesday (10 March).

Answering Deadline‘s question about the film’s release date, Oseman shared: “It won’t be coming out before the book.

“It was so important to me that the book comes out first, so people can experience the end of the story in the book. The series was the adaptation, not the other way around.”

Oseman’s final book in the series, Heartstopper Volume 6, will be released on 2 July in the UK, and 7 July in America and Canada. So we have a few months to wait before the film hits the streaming platform.

The books and show have chronicled the teen love story of Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) and Charlie Spring (Joe Locke).

The film, based on Volume 6 and the novella Nick and Charlie, will see the young couple face new challenges.

“Nick and Charlie are inseparable, but with Nick preparing to leave for university and Charlie finding new independence at school, the reality of a long-distance relationship begins to weigh on them,” a synopsis of the film reads.

‘It was so important to me that the book comes out first.’

“Doubts take hold, and their relationship faces its biggest challenge yet. Meanwhile, their friends are also navigating the ups and downs of love and friendship, confronting the bittersweet challenges of growing up and moving on. Can first loves really last forever?”

Locke and Connor were spotted over the summer filming scenes at Leeds train station, suggesting that Nick chooses to attend Leeds University.

Speaking about progress on the film, Oseman noted it’s in the final post-production stages.

“We are literally days away from it being finished,” the writer noted.

“We are doing the final little bits of VFX and animation, and hopefully by the end of next week is going to be sent to be dubbed in various languages and quality-checked by Netflix, but my work on it will be done.”

Previously speaking about the film, Oseman shared she was “very nervous” about the fan reaction.

“I’m very nervous and scared about what you’ll think of it… but that’s probably normal! 2026 will be a big year for Heartstopper,” Oseman shared in December.

Heartstopper seasons one, two and three are streaming now on Netflix.

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Trans-led nonprofit TransActual said the public health service’s recent decisions on trans healthcare had been “driven by bigotry” after it announced a ban on new hormone prescriptions for transgender teenagers earlier this week.

Officials confirmed on Monday (9 March) that 16-17 year olds would no longer be able to access masculinising and feminising (MAF) hormone prescriptions through its services, claiming that evidence regarding the treatment’s benefits remain “really weak.”

MAF hormones are primarily given to trans adults alongside hormone blockers as part of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which helps to affirm a patient’s gender identity. In rare cases, they are given to teenagers aged 16 and up who have been on puberty blockers for sufficient periods to help minimise the side effects of immediately switching treatments.

Alongside its announcement, NHS England also said it plans to launch a public consultation on proposed changes to its youth gender, suggested as part of its plan to implement widely-criticised recommendations brought by Dr Hilary Cass.

An Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment (EHIA) report, published on the same day, revealed that the service is also launching an evidence review into the benefits and drawbacks of MAF hormones for trans adults.

NHS England ignores ‘decades of evidence’, policy expert argues

Responding to the wave of announcements, TransActual policy lead Tammy Hymas accused NHS England of ignoring “decades of evidence and experience” that show gender-affirming care is safe and effective.

“Whether you want to transition, access contraception, or have an abortion, everyone has the absolute right to bodily autonomy,” she told PinkNews. “It is concerning that, in recent years, the NHS is increasingly capitulating to a small group of well-funded anti-trans campaigners.”

The policy expert said it was “clear” that several high profile figures within equalities and health departments had been “handpicked for their anti-trans views” and were driven to attack trans healthcare by “an ideological belief that LGBTQ+ people should be stripped of their rights.”

“As the NHS embarks on their evidence review of gender-affirming hormone treatments for adults, we call on them to ensure that they do not cast aside the human right to self-determination.”

Following its announcement, NHS England’s medical director for specialised service, James Palmer, said that clinicians had been instructed to review existing prescriptions for transgender patients.

The reviews will reportedly look at the evidence reviews which led to the ban, and make a shared decision with individual patients on whether they can continue taking the medication.

A TransActual report published earlier this month found that a staggering ninety-seven per cent of trans people in the UK say they have been treated differently by their GPs because of their gender identity. Nearly three-quarters say they avoid their GPs altogether.

In its EHIA report, NHS England said it did not believe these decisions amounted to direct or indirect discrimination, claiming they had “properly and rationally” acted on evidence it had received.

Gender Plus, the UK’s only CQC Outstanding trans healthcare provider, objected to this claim, saying that the ban contradicts the recommendations given by “every reputable expert body” in trans healthcare.

“We will assess their policy document and evidence-based review to better understand how they arrived at this decision,” a spokesperson said. “Gender Plus continues to adhere to international best practices.”

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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The HRC dinner will be held at Fairmont Century Plaza on 28 March. Alongside RuPaul, 62-year-old actor Lisa Kudrow, who played Phoebe in Friends, will be a special guest.

Kudrow has long been a staunch LGBTQ+ ally. She is the star, writer and executive producer on The Comeback. The sitcom, which first premiered in 2005, will return with season three later this month.

65-year-old RuPaul, best known for RuPaul’s Drag Race, is one of the most famous drag queens in the US – an the world.

Also at the event, Sex and the City writer-director Michael Patrick King will attend as an honouree. King will receive the HRC’s Visibility Award for spotlighting LGBTQ+ stories in the entertainment world.

“We are so pleased to host icons RuPaul and Lisa Kudrow, whose talents and brilliance have helped to expand equality on and off screen,” said Kelley Robinson, HRC President. 

Robinson also praised King for his work that’s “brought so much joy, laughter and heart to our community.”

Robinson added: “This event will truly be a night to remember.”

‘It is important that we continue to unapologetically make our voices heard’

“As our community faces targeted attacks on our rights and freedoms, it is more important than ever that we come together under the shared mission of building better and brighter futures in California and beyond.”

Ahead of being honoured at the dinner, King noted: “Our stories are an undeniable part of the human experience and they deserve to be told in every medium.

“As our community faces attempts to exclude us on and off screen, it is important that we continue to unapologetically make our voices heard.

“I’m thrilled to have my accomplishments recognized and to be joined in this work by advocates from Los Angeles and beyond.”  

The HRC dinner will also feature a live auction hosted by comedian and Out 100 honouree Dana Goldberg. Crucially, funds will be raised to support LGBTQ+ equality.

The night will also “bring together HRC’s most active advocates, members and supporters across the state.” Additional honorees and guests will be announced in the upcoming weeks.

Tickets and further information are available here.

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On Tuesday (10 March), the 14th annual LGBTQ Queerties Awards also honoured Jonathan Bailey, Lady Gaga and Cynthia Erivo.

After winning the Outstanding New TV Series award at the 2026 GLAAD Awards just last week, Heated Rivalry now adds a Queertie to its trophy cabinet.

The steamy queer ice hockey drama follows lya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) and Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams). The pair are rivals on the ice but secret lovers in private. Alongside their burgeoning enemies-to-lovers story, the show also spotlights the subplot of Kip Grady (Robbie GK) and Scott Hunter (Arnaud).

Episode three focuses on smoothie king Kip and hockey player Scott as the pair negotiate their relationship away from the spotlight. 

Arnaud was not there in person but appeared in a pre-recorded acceptance speech. “This really means a lot to me,” Arnaud began.

“I think probably the most important and political thing that we can do right now is just unapologetically be.”

‘I want to share this with my scene partner Robbie GK.’

“I want to share this with my scene partner Robbie GK, because whatever I did in there, we did it together. This is for you, buddy.”

Also at the awards, Bailey received the Badass award, considered the ceremony’s top honour.

Gaga’s “Abracadabra” was named best anthem. Meanwhile, Erivo nabbed two awards, Film Performance for her work in Wicked: For Good and the Read award for her memoir Simply More.

Furthermore, Margaret Cho won the Icon Award, Megan Stalter nabbed the Vanguard Award and Mae Martin won the Groundbreaker Award.

KATSEYE also won the Breakout Musical Artist. The award comes after singer Manon Bannerman took a hiatus from the girl group.

The Queerties Awards were hosted by Trixie Mattel and will stream on WOW Presents Plus from March 19.

As the Queerties proved, the hyped around Heated Rivalry isn’t even close to slowing down. Season two, which will adapt Rachel Reid’s sixth novel, The Long Game, in her Game Changers book series, is set to film this summer, with a 2027 release date.

The book picks up with Shane and Ilya’s romance ten years on from the Heated Rivalry novel, with the pair still together but still publicly closeted.

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37-year-old political commentator Kirk, who has no military experience, was picked by the US president to replace her late husband on the advisory board after he was shot dead last year.

Charlie Kirk, an infamous far-right conservative pundit, was fatally shot in the neck in September 2025 while defending the Second Amendment at an open-air debate in Utah Valley University.

According to a report from The Independent, Erika Kirk was selected to fill the vacant seat left by her husband at some point over the weekend.

The US Air Force Academy Board of Visitors consists of 16 members, six of which are appointed by the US president. It primarily acts as an advisory board for any logistical matters that the Academy wishes to consider.

One of its main duties is to prepare a semiannual report for the Secretary of War on recommendations regarding moral, disciplinary, instructional, and logistical matters for the academy.

Other members include Clark Success Systems CEO Dan Clark – known for his public speaking during the US military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan – retired Air Force colonel Doug Nikolai, and former US National Security advisor Dina Powell.

Charlie Kirk a ‘hateful racist’, college professor says

A spokesperson for the White House said that Kirk, a former beauty pageant titleholder and CEO of clothing brand Proclaim Streetwear, was the “perfect choice” for the job.

“Charlie Kirk served proudly on the Board, inspiring not only the next generation of service members, but millions around the world with his bold Christian faith, defence of the truth, and deep love of the country,” spokesperson Olivia Wales said.

“Erika Kirk will continue his legacy, and be a fearless advocate for the most elite airpower force in the history of the world whose warriors keep our Nation safe, strong, and free.”

Prior to his death, Charlie Kirk’s conservative punditry included creating a ‘Professor Watchlist‘ of academics he believed were pushing so-called ‘leftist propaganda’ – a list which college professor Stacey Patton said was used as a harassment “hit list” by his supporters.

Patton, who dubbed Kirk a “hateful racist” following his death, said she endured a near-endless barrage of death threats, racism, and misogyny after she was added to the list in 2024.

“For weeks, my inbox and voicemail were deluged,” Patton said at the time. “Mostly white men spat venom through the phone… They threatened all manner of violence.”

Charlie Kirk’s transphobic views were so prolific, he continue to push anti-trans conspiracy theories in the seconds before he was shot in the neck, falsely claiming that “too many” mass shooters in the US were transgender.

His death only emboldened right-wing politicans to continue pushing this false conspiracy theory. Just days following Kirk’s assassination, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said it was “worth looking into” claims there had been a rise in violence caused by trans people.

In a December memo, US attorney general Pam Bondi called on the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) to place bounties on those pushing so-called “radical gender ideology.”

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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Two months after rumours began to swirl about Hahn’s involvement in the new film, the  52-year-old WandaVision star seemed to confirm the news yesterday (10 March) by adding “mother knows best” to her Instagram bio.

The line references the song of the same name, which is sung by Mother Gothel in the original, animated Tangled.

Walt Disney Studios later confirmed the casting by sharing a video of Kathryn Hahn showing off her outfit of the day: a black T-shirt imprinted with photos of Mother Gothel.

“Here’s my outfit of the day. Simple jeans, glasses, T-shirt, this is easy,” she said, showing off her branded tee, which was slathered with Mother Gothel stills and the word “Mother” at the top.

“You want her to be the bad guy? FINE. Kathryn Hahn is Mother Gothel in Disney’s live-action Tangled,” Disney confirmed in the video’s caption.

In Tangled, Mother Gothel is the selfish, villainous antagonist who has managed to retain her youth by hoarding the healing powers of the magic golden flower. When Rapunzel was born, the powers transferred to the young child’s hair, enabling it to grow to an unnatural length.

In her attempts to control the power, Mother Gothel kidnaps Rapunzel and keeps her imprisoned in a tower, all while putting up a facade as her overprotective mother, who is only keeping her hostage to protect her from the outside world.

Considering her prominent role as Marvel antiheroine Agatha Harkness, social media is ablaze with people lauding Hahn’s “perfect” casting as Mother Gothel. The actress has also been something of a sapphic awakening for some queer women, so there’s a lot of love for her new role from the lesbian community, too.

“Kathryn Hahn officially casted as Mother Gothel,” wrote one fan on X, formerly Twitter. “If God hates the lesbians then why do we keep winning?”

“Gonna need separate viewing for children and lesbians,” a second wrote.

A third celebrated: “Today is a historic day for Kathryn Hahn’s lesbian army.”

“The lesbian in your life is beaming over Kathryn Hahn in Tangled. celebrate with them,” a fourth wrote, with a fifth adding: “Kathryn Hahn being cast as Mother Gothel was the best thing that could ever happen to all the lesbians. I’m the happiest lesbian ever.”

Others praised Hahn’s casting for non-lesbian reasons, with one writing: “PERFECT casting, literally Margot Robbie as Barbie levels of perfect. THANK YOU CASTING DIRECTOR.”

“Jesus has been casted in the live action of Bible,” another joked.

Teagan Croft is set to play Rapunzel in the live action Tangled remake, with Milo Manheim playing Flynn Ryder. No release date for the film has been confirmed.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

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Decades worth of photographed eyes gaze out from images of mustachioed lesbians, tattooed lovers and adolescent football players, observing us as we do them, making us subject as much as they are. It renegotiates the dynamic of who is being seen and who is doing the seeing. It makes queer bodies, identities and lived-experiences centred in their visibility, when so often they are relegated to the periphery.   

At a time when the LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans, non-binary and gender-nonconforming folks, face increased censorship, surveillance and legislation in the public sphere, Opie’s work is more resonant than ever. 

Catherine Opie: To Be Seen runs from 5 March to 31 May at the National Portrait Gallery in London and is the first major museum exhibition of her work in the UK.

It is a “dream come true”, Opie told PinkNews at a press preview of the exhibition.

“This is what artists, especially an artist like myself that loves portraiture so much, would hope that they could have their work in an institution like this,” she explains. 

“It’s really moving. I’m never going to forget it.” 

Born in Ohio, Opie lived there during the early part of her childhood before moving to California with her family in 1975. 

Inspired by the work of Lewis Hine, she told her parents she wanted to be a photographer when she was just nine-years-old and so they purchased her a Kodak instamatic camera. 

One of the first photographs she took was a self-portrait and the black-and-white image shows Opie standing in front of their family home in Sandusky, Ohio, her hair short, wearing thick-rimmed glasses and flexing her muscles. 

It is this image, entitled Self-Portrait, that greets you as you enter the exhibition. 

Opie readily admitted that the young child in that image could never have imagined displaying their work somewhere like the National Portrait Gallery. 

“I don’t think that you ever think as an artist, even when you go to art school, that you’ll ever be a success, whatever, not an exhibiting artist. 

“I won’t say a ‘successful’ artist, because I don’t like that terminology, but an exhibiting artist. 

“It’s humbling. It’s always humbling,” she adds. “One should never assume that they get to have this, this ability within their work but I work really hard as an artist, and I’m really grateful that my work moves so many people and it’s so important to the public.” 

The image of Opie as a child is positioned slightly opposite to Bo, another self-portrait of Opie taken years later in 1994 as her titular male alter-ego. 

In that photograph, Opie is looking squarely at the camera, her thumbs hooked into the pockets of dark jeans, a thick black belt holding them up with a sleeveless plaid shirt tucked in. There were no thick-rimmed glasses but Opie’s hair was still short, and this time she donned a mustache. 

It is an unabashedly queer self-portrait, pulling focus to a gender-nonconforming body and making us interrogate strict the binary of gender expression – both for ourselves and others. 

Speaking to The Guardian, Opie said at the time the photograph was taken she and her friends would “put on moustaches and ride our motorcycles to a lesbian bar in LA and we would offer women rides home”.  

“Drag was not really that big then,” Opie told the outlet, “it was in a certain dyke subculture but not in LA – so they were all like, ‘Ahhh, I don’t know what to do with you!’” 

Opie has previously described herself in Self-Portrait as where she “definitely looked like a little baby dyke” and Bo could be viewed as the natural progression of that; childhood and adulthood, the past and (then) present. But nothing about Opie’s work is so dyadic. 

While she is the artist, she is not separate from her art. While the photograph is a self-portrait, it is no different from the portraits she takes of others. She is part of her community, and her community is part of her. 

Much of Opie’s work sees her represent and engage with queerness, in all its intersectional, complex and sometimes contradictory reality, alongside wider ideas of home, intimacy and family. 

Lesbians at the kitchen table, leather, scars, a naked Diana Nyad, Opie breastfeeding her son Oliver, all of this uniqueness and normalcy features in Opie’s work.

This is best exemplified in Being and Having (1991) – a stand-out part of the exhibition in my opinion – which is a collection of 13 close-up photographs of Opie and her queer friends wearing faux facial hair and other stereotypical masculine accessories. Taken on a yellow background, the works were inspired by portraits by 16th century court painter Hans Holbein. 

From a distance the images could be mistaken to be of cis men but as you approach clues and details – purposefully included and made visible by Opie – can be identified, such as the webbing of the facial hair’s glue. In this way, the images come to be revealed to represent a performance of gender identity and masculinity that seeks to make us, the viewer, question our own conceptions of what it constitutes and how we navigate that.  

The collection came at a time when traditional Western concepts of gender, and the binary of male/female, was being fundamentally destabilised. Notably, Judith Butler’s seminal text Gender Trouble was only released a year earlier. 

Opie’s work has often been described as “radical” but to the artist herself that is inherently the problem “because I’m just a girl from the Midwest who grew up across from cornfield”. 

In this, she goes on to note Domestic (1995-1998) – a series that captured the everyday lives of lesbian families in their homes and some works of which are featured in To Be Seen – and describes how she lectured on that series and would point out to the audience washer and dryer in the photograph and call it a “lesbian washer and dryer”. 

“Half the audience would laugh and the other half of the audience didn’t understand that reference, but my reference was that we have the same washer and dryers as you,” she says. 

“We have the same everything, but then you have this perception that we’re the Other. We’ve never been radical. 

Opie continues: “I think there’s far more f**ked up radical things. Quite honestly, look at what’s happening in terms of [the Epstein Files].” 

Opie is no stranger to the culture wars, she explained as much in a talk given to the press about her career and the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. 

As someone who lived through the AIDS crisis, when her community was ravaged by a virus that was politically convenient to ignore, Opie has seen first-hand how queer lives are systematically subjugated as lesser. 

It is something we are acutely aware of today, happening to our trans siblings who are being legislated out of public life.     

“We thought when we were doing this, it would go to the US,” Opie says of the exhibition. 

“We didn’t know Trump was going to win. I really had all the hope in the world that it would end up in the Smithsonian, at the National Portrait Gallery. 

“It’s more important now with both the show in Germany and here, that I’m an American artist representing this moment in an incredibly horrible time within my country.”

Opie says she is “proud” to be American and acknowledged her family moved to the country in 1690, so “it’s a very long country that I’ve had a relationship to historically within my own family lineage”. 

“Then to also be who I am as a lesbian and as a butch dyke, to be able to have this moment in an institution such as this, I think there’s still a radicality to that,” Opie said. 

She added: “I don’t think I’ll ever change somebody from being homophobic, but I think that at least they’ll have to question their own ideas of what humanity is.”

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The 12-foot statue was erected on the National Mall and sees the two men re-enacting the iconic moment from James Cameron’s hit 1997 romance film, where the characters of Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) stand on the bow of the ship.

Jack holds Rose from behind as she extends her arms out, famously shouting “I’m flying, Jack!” as the ship moves through the open-ocean.

Entitled ‘KING OF THE WORLD’, a plaque affixed to the installation reads, as quoted by PEOPLE: “The tragic love story between Jack and Rose was built on luxurious travel, raucous parties, and secret nude sketches.

“This monument honors the bond between Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, a friendship seemingly built on luxurious travel, raucous parties, and secret nude sketches.”

The art installation comes amid ongoing pressure on the US president over his relationship with convicted sex offender Epstein, given the fact his name appears thousands of times in the Epstein Files.

Being named in the Epstein Files, in itself, does not imply wrongdoing or criminality.

Financer Epstein kept a raft of wealthy and influential friends, including Donald Trump and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, Duke of York, during his life and career. These relationships continue to be the centre of ongoing controversy and speculation.

The “Epstein files” refers to the huge collection of documents amassed during criminal investigations into Epstein’s sex trafficking of women and children, and include transcripts, records, and items confiscated during raids of his luxury properties.

Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008. He died on 10 August 2019 while in federal custody and awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, with his death officially ruled a suicide.

The organisation that has taken credit for the statue, Secret Handshake, told local news outlets alongside the statue they had hung 10 banners nearby to commemorate the men’s relationship.

“Why? Because 2026 has been a banner year for President Trump,” Secret Handshake told WUSA9.

“Meaning… he’s added giant banners of his face to federal buildings all across DC. We want to help him on his mission by tossing a few of our own in the mix.”

This is not the first time Secret Handshake has created an art installation about Trump and Epstein’s relationship.

Last September the group produced a statue of the two men holding hands and positioned in a way that made it look like they were giddily dancing, which the group said was made “in honour of Friendship Month”.

That statue’s title was ‘Best Friends Forever’ and its attached plaque read: “We celebrate the long-lasting bond between President Donald J. Trump and his ‘closest friend,’ Jeffrey Epstein.”

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George weighed in after Roan accused the paparazzi of stalking her as she went out to dinner during Paris Fashion Week over the week. 28-year-old Grammy winner Roan began filming in selfie mode as she was swarmed by photographers.

In the viral video, which has amassed more than 27.5 million views, Roan can be heard saying she feels “disregarded as a human.” She continues: “I’m just trying to go to dinner, and I’ve asked these people several times to get away from me.”

Despite her words, the camera flashes continue with others asking for her autograph. “This person I’ve asked several times to go away, and they will not,” Roan also adds. “They’re hiding their face, because they’re ashamed.

“These are all the people that are completely disregarding my boundaries.

“All of you, I’m asking you kindly to please leave me alone and stop following me and harassing me. No, I’m not gonna sign.”

‘Break them with the magic of kindness!’

Events in Paris have prompted a resurgence of online discussion about the singer’s requests and the paparazzi’s behaviour. Now, 64-year-old “Karma Chameleon” hitmaker George has weighed in. 

On Tuesday (10 March), George posted to X: “It’s probably not helpful but I have been doing this fame thing for a while and you learn slowly and painfully that you don’t get a free pass once you turn yourself into a bird of paradise.

“I watched [Chappell Roan] filming the paps in Paris and I laughed because I have kicked off at them many times.

“The trick is to own your fame. yes, it’s annoying at times but so is being ignored and told your a ‘has-been. Life is always now and I think Chappell looks great but cheer up girl.

“The world is at your feet stop kicking it! It takes so much more time to say no to a picture or a signature. Boundaries are boring. Break them with the magic of kindness!”

‘Chappell looks great but cheer up girl.’

Not everyone is happy with George’s post. “Why is everyone so eager to tell women to just take unwanted attention,” one commenter replied to the post.

Another pushed back against the singer’s comment: “When a woman ask to stop being followed a man tells her hey, boundaries are boring. Cheer up while I continue to harass you after you said no! Do you hear yourself?”

This is not the first time Roan has called out photographers for their behaviour towards her. In 2024, as she rose up the charts with “Good Luck Babe!” and “Pink Pony Club”, Roan a series of TikToks urging her fans to stop “harassing” her in public.

Then, at MTV’s Video Music Awards – where Roan won Best New Artist – she had an altercation with a photographer on the red carpet.

In the viral clip, a photographer was captured reportedly telling Roan to “shut the f*** up”. In response, she pointed at the photographer and said: “No, you shut the f*** up. Don’t! Not me, b***.”

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In a statement, first published by The Sun, the BBC stated that there are “no current plans” for either show to return after season two of I Kissed A Girl, which is set to return to screens in the spring.

A spokesperson blamed “funding challenges” for the shows getting the chop.

“We are exceptionally proud of I Kissed A Boy/Girl, the UK’s first dating show for the LGBTQ+ community. We would like to thank our fabulous cupid Dannii Minogue and the entire team at Twofour for bringing the series to screen,” the statement reads.

“Unfortunately, we have to make difficult choices in light of our funding challenges and there are no current plans for the show to return.”

In a statement, pop star Dannii Minogue, who hosts the show, said that making the show has been “the most special experience” in her TV career.

“Thank you Twofour Productions and BBC for allowing me to be a part of I Kissed A Boy and I Kissed A Girl series, it is such a powerful and important show,” she said.

“I’m so proud that this show has given us the chance to celebrate so many people from the LGBTQ+ community who have made up our wonderful cast. 

“I can’t wait for you to see the brand new series of I Kissed A Girl, bringing all the excitement and joy that this show represents. The integrity and intention of why I Kissed A… was created, along with the love and care from the crew and production over the four seasons, has made it the most special experience for me in almost 40 years of television.”

I Kissed A Boy, which was the first dating show on British TV to exclusively feature LGBTQ+ men, first aired in 2023. The groundbreaking series returned for a second season in 2025.

I Kissed A Girl, which followed the same format but featured queer women, aired its first season in 2024.

The premise of both shows sees ten singletons enter an Italian masseria before being instantly matched up with someone they might be compatible with. Before even learning each other’s names, they kiss, and then meet the other couples in their pairs.

During their masseria stay, the singletones mingle with each other and build new friendships and romantic connections. At the ‘kiss off’, each pair decides whether they want to stay together by sealing the deal with a kiss. Those who remain unkissed leave the show, while new bachelors and bachelorettes enter at various points.

The second season of I Kissed A Boy proved to be even more groundbreaking, by featuring Lars Fellows, its first trans contestant.

In addition to being hosted by Minogue, Strictly Come Dancing star Layton Williams and presenter Charley Marlowe narrated I Kissed A Boy and I Kissed A Girl respectively.

The show’s cancellation comes amid a turbulent time for LGBTQ+ representation on screen. Last year, Netflix’s prominent queer dating show The Ultimatum: Queer Love was axed after just two seasons, while other queer-led shows including Boots and Olympo also got the chop.

According to GLAAD, four in ten queer characters who were on our TV screens between 2024 and 2025 won’t return in 2026.

Meanwhile, stars including Olivia Colman, Alan Cumming and Bowen Yang have spoken out about TV and film commissioners being ‘too nervous’ to champion LGBTQ+ stories in an age of increasing DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) rollbacks.

Online, fans and former stars of I Kissed A Boy and I Kissed A Girl have lamented the show’s cancellation.

“Sad too [sic] see. A show that needed to happen,” wrote Mikey Connor on X, who appeared on season one of I Kissed A Boy.

“Everyone should be PROUD who has been involved from the BBC, Casting, Producers all us cast in both seasons and everyone who supported it.”

“I’ve never seen lesbians more united than during IKAG month what the f****** f*** is this,” one fan raged.

“This needs to be picked up by E4 immediately,” urged another. “The format is great, and it’s been super important for the community whilst also instrumental in the telling of a wide spectrum of LGBTQ+ stories.”

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

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Arizona governor Katie Hobbs rejected a GOP-led Senate bill that would have donated $17 from a range of $25 licence plates honouring the late right-wing pundit to the young conservative organisation.

Turning Point USA has been accused of pushing anti-trans and anti immigration rhetoric.

In her 6 March veto letter, Hobbs said the bill did not help anyone in Arizona and unnecessarily brought “politics into a function of government that should remain non-partisan.”

TPUSA raised $84 million in 2024 and its political action committee Turning Point Action (which supports far-right Republican candidates and registers conservative voters) raised over $27 million that same year, according to the Arizona Mirror.

Democratic legislators expressed concerns about the bill’s implications, particularly given TPUSA’s substantial financial resources, and the fact that similar proposals for LGBTQ+ Pride license plates, that would provide donations to local queer rights organisations, have been repeatedly blocked by Republican lawmakers.

Kirk was shot dead during a crowded open-air debate on gun violence at Utah Valley University in September last year.

Just moments before being shot in the neck, Kirk was answering a question on mass shootings in the US, falsely claiming that the majority of mass shooters in the US were transgender.

His death prompted widespread furore among right-wing politicians and pundits, many of whom began calling for trans activists to be labelled as extremists.

The right-wing commentator was no stranger to expressing his homophobic and transphobic views. He was also accused of racism on multiple occasions, including after he insulted the “brain processing power” of Black women.

In another tirade, he said: “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, ‘Boy, I hope he’s qualified.”

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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The couple, 25 and 31, adopted their mixed-race daughters when they were three and four. They decided to adopt the girls after being told that, by the summer of 2024, the children would have been spilt up – a fate that often befalls siblings in care, driven by the mindset that adopters are more willing to take on only one child. 

Monique and Alice shared their excitement and joy over this life-changing decision with PinkNews. 

According to figures published by the government’s Race Disparity Unit in December 2021, Black and mixed-heritage children represent around seven per cent of children with a plan for adoption, but account for only two per cent of adopted children. The number of Black children adopted also fell from 120 (2.2 per cent) in 2015 to 60 (1.7 per cent) of the total number of children adopted in 2023.

Alice, who is White British, and Monique, who is Black Caribbean, wanted to adopt a child who reflected their own backgrounds in an effort to challenge the overrepresentation of Black and mixed-heritage children in the care system.

Monique recalls that the response to their desire to adopt an ethnic minority child was “overwhelming.”

“We were bombarded with people who had children who were Black or of dual heritage,” she says.

“It made us realise that there were so many children who looked like us, but at the same time, it was quite sad to know that there were that many and we couldn’t take them all home.”

Although the couple agree that it’s not necessary for a child to resemble their parents in order for adoption to succeed, they explain that, as a same-sex couple, they wanted to make things as “normal” as possible for their children.

“We felt that us looking like them would be helpful to them, but it’s not something you need,” Monique adds.

Alice also stresses that adopting children whose backgrounds differ from your own is entirely fine — as long as you “respect that you’re different, learn about their history and their background, and be willing to support them through it.”

Monique reflects on the unpredictability of adoption: “What you set out to do is likely not what you’ll end up doing. We set out to adopt a little boy, and we got two daughters. We were open to it, and I think we’ve learned to be open-minded in a positive way.”

Alice adds that they have also learnt: “People aren’t as judgmental as you probably think”.

‘You don’t need to live in a big fancy house’

The couple emphasise that they would not love a biological child any more than their adopted children, and in a bid to encourage others to consider adoption, Alice says: “There are thousands of children in the UK alone who need adopting and wait a really long time.

“Children need permanency and stability in their lives. You don’t need to live in a big fancy house or have millions in the bank, you just need to be able to provide a safe place for them and love them.”

“We tell them that we waited for them, and they waited for us,” Alice says of their special bond with their children, while Monique shares that both daughters take pride in having them as parents.

Looking to the future, the couple hope to grow their family further through adoption, with Alice expressing a desire to carry a child herself.

To learn more about becoming an adoptive parent, visit Adoption Focus.

The post ‘You don’t need millions in the bank to adopt – children just need love and a safe place’ appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.

The public health service confirmed the evidence review and several others in a report published as part of an upcoming public consultation into proposed changes to NHS youth gender services.

The Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment (EHIA) report was published after NHS England announced the decision to ban new masculinising and feminising (MAF) hormone prescriptions for under-18s, claiming the evidence for the medication’s benefits are “really weak.”

Transgender teenagers aged 16-17 are gradually given MAF hormones such as testosterone or oestrogen after they have been on puberty suppressant hormones for a sufficient period. MAF hormones do not include puberty blockers, which remain inaccessible under directives from the Health Department.

MAF hormones are the primary medication given to trans adults, alongside hormone blockers, as part of hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

According to a recommendation submitted in the EHIA report, NHS England is “separately reviewing the evidence for the use of MAF in adults with gender dysphoria” with the aim of launching a consultation on its findings in late 2026.

A separate section clarifies that its ban on new prescriptions will only apply to youth gender services, adding that the NHS will continue to prescribe hormones for adult patients in its gender identity clinics (GICs).

Hormone prescription ban is not discriminatory, NHS England insists

The evidence review is one of ten commissioned by NHS England that will review the benefits and drawbacks of its gender-affirming care provision.

The array of recommendations, as well as the ban, were brought as officials continue the process of applying proposals made by Dr Hilary Cass in her controversial four-year review of NHS youth gender services, published in 2024.

Clinicians have also been instructed to review existing MAF hormone prescriptions for under-18s. It is unclear what these reviews will involve.

While NHS England acknowledges the adverse mental health effects its ban will likely have, the EHIA report insists that these decisions do not amount to direct or indirect unlawful discrimination, calling its proposals “reasonable and rational and clinically necessary.”

“NHS England has concluded that no direct or indirect discrimination would occur to children and young people under 18 years by adoption of [a ban on MAF hormone prescriptions] notwithstanding that MAF hormones will remain an intervention through the service specification for Adult Gender Services,” it reads.

“NHS England is, properly and rationally, acting upon the updated evidence recently received that related only to individuals who are predominantly seen in paediatric gender services. Adoption of the proposed policy would be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.”

Trans healthcare experts ‘dismayed’ at NHS prescription ban

Research published in June last year suggests that gender-affirming care restrictions are having an “extensive” impact on transgender youngsters in the UK, while another found that trans youth suicides surged around the same time that the government banned puberty blockers.

Gender Plus, the UK’s only CQC Outstanding registered trans healthcare provider, voiced its objections to NHS England’s decision, arguing it is contradictory to “every reputable expert body” in the field.

A spokesperson for its senior leadership said they were “dismayed” at the announcement, adding that the service prescribes MAF hormones “following a rigorous process, in line with international best practice and guidance.”

“NHS England’s interpretation of the evidence is in contrast to every reputable expert body in the field of transgender healthcare,” they continued, adding that the service would assess relevant documents to better understand how the public health service came to its conclusion.

In a statement to PinkNews, NHS England’s national medical director for specialised services, professor James Palmer, said that its review established that the public consultation would determine whether any key evidence provided may need to be reviewed.

“The NHS has exercised extreme caution when considering starting people on this treatment,” he said. “As part of this action, we will now be pausing any new referrals for this treatment for 16-17 year olds. Patients currently receiving these treatments on the NHS can continue, but this will need to be reviewed individually with their clinical team.”

A Cass-style review into adult gender clinics, headed by Dr David Levy, was published in December and made several recommendations primarily focused on minimising the staggering wait times for a first appointment.

It was criticised by campaigners and health experts who described it as a “missed opportunity” to implement an informed consent model recommended by leading trans healthcare bodies in the UK and beyond.

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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A survey of 25,000 adults by “AI-lationships” platform Joi AI revealed that 55 per cent of respondents were open to sexually experimenting with AI or find it a turn on. 

The data shared by the platform further revealed that 45 per cent of participants found the idea of threesomes with their partner and an AI “third” hot, while 61 per cent admitted to feeling more comfortable sharing their sexual desires with AI than with another person. 

Furthermore, 61 per cent said AI helped them discover kinks or sexual interests they didn’t know they had. 

However, concerns remain around the use of AI for sexual gratification. Most recently, X was widely condemned for allowing Grok to digitally undress people without their consent and generate sexualised images of children at users’ request.

Amid the criticism, Musk stated on 3 January anyone who was using Grok to “make illegal content” would “suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content”.

X’s official Safety account subsequently shared a statement, which read: “We take action against illegal content on X, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), by removing it, permanently suspending accounts, and working with local governments and law enforcement as necessary.

“Anyone using or prompting Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content,” it added, echoing Musk’s own post from a day earlier.

Additionally, AI has increasingly been linked to the spread of misinformation and the reinforcement of online bias. 

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.   

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Eurovision 2026 – the 70th edition of the contest – will take place in Vienna, after Austrian singer JJ won last year with his operatic ballad, “Wasted Love”. 

The contest will feature 35 countries and culminate with a live show on Saturday 16 May. 

Five countries – Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain – will be boycotting this year’s contest over the decision to let Israel take part. 

The UK’s entrant, Look Mum No Computer, born Sam Battle, promises to lean into the song contest’s history of platforming the mesmerisingly whacky, while, bizarrely, British pop icon Boy George will represent the tiny republic of San Marino alongside Senhit.

However, according to the betting markets on oddchecker.com, there are a few contenders for the title – although one country is a clear favourite to win at the time of writing. Here are the top entrants most likely to win Eurovision 2026. 

Finland – “Liekinheitin” by Linda Lampenius & Pete Parkkonen

Finland, represented by the duo of classical violinist Linda Lampenius and pop star Pete Parkkonen, is leading the betting odds as favourites to win, with 12/5 betting odds – almost 30 per cent chance of winning. 

As Parkkonen’s vocals hold down the track “Liekinheitin”, Lampenius’s prowess on the violin is exceptional. Potentially, this may also be the most high-pitched violin playing the contest has ever heard.

The pair are hot favourites to win this year’s contest. 

Australia – “Eclipse” by Delta Goodrem

Hot on Finland’s heels is Australia, which has gained popularity after Delta Goodrem was announced as the country’s representative with her song “Eclipse”. 

Goodrem’s track “Eclipse” has already made it into the charts in Australia. With a key change and dramatic use of the harp, the classic love song has earned the country odds of 13/2 – just over 13 per cent chance of victory. 

Denmark – “Før vi går hjem” by Søren Torpegaard Lund

Denmark also has odds of 13/2 – just over 13 per cent chance of victory. 

The country will be represented by Søren Torpegaard who will perform “Før vi går hjem”. The song appears to be a fairly subdued dance track until its final moments, when he breaks out the big notes. 

Greece – “Ferto” by Akylas

Greece falls in at fourth place with betting odds of 10/1 – representing just over a nine per cent chance of winning. 

The county will be represented by Akylas’s “Ferto”, and the performer could steal the show with his eye-catching outfit, dances destined for TikTok virality and a backdrop full of gaming references. 

Israel – “Michelle” by Noam Bettan

Israel is sitting in fifth place in the betting odds with odds of 12/1 – an under-eight per cent chance of winning. 

The country’s inclusion in this year’s Eurovision remains highly controversial in the face of the war in Gaza. Several countries are boycotting this year’s contest over Israel being allowed to compete.

Bettan’s track is said to tell the story of choosing to break free from a toxic emotional cycle.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.   

The post Eurovision 2026 betting odds show a clear favourite to win appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.

A report by the Pew Research Center found that Americans are far more likely than people in other Western countries to say that being gay is morally unacceptable.

The research surveyed 25 countries in 2025 and asked respondents whether behaviours such as abortion, drinking alcohol and homosexuality were ‘morally acceptable’, ‘morally unacceptable’, or ‘not a moral issue at all’. 

Around 39 per cent of Americans said homosexuality was ‘morally wrong’. Comparable proportions were recorded in Israel (47 per cent), Hungary (34 per cent) and Greece (30 per cent). 

By contrast, attitudes were far more accepting in Western Europe. In Sweden, Germany, Spain and Netherlands, more than 90 per cent of people said homosexuality was morally acceptable.

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The findings follow a survey shared by YouGov in February that showed US adults are split on whether they believe LGBTQ+ discrimination is a serious problem in the country. 

A report published in January revealed that Pride month in 2025 was one of the most dangerous for LGBTQ+ Americans in history. 

LGBTQ+ rights group GLAAD reported a staggering 268 anti-LGBTQ+ incidents across the country in June 2025 alone – a nearly 400 per cent increase compared to the last few years.

Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD’s president and CEO, accused politicians from across the political spectrum of fuelling these incidents through their policies and rhetoric.

“Instead of growing divides that lead to this violence, politicians should recognise that all Americans deserve freedom, fairness, and safety,” she said.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.   

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The former Welsh world-record 110m hurdler won an Olympic silver in Seoul in 1988, World Championship gold medals in Stuttgart and Seville in 1993 and 1999, an World Indoor Championships gold in 1999 as well as four European Championships and European Indoor Championships between 1989 and 2002.

Jackson, 59, came out publicly as gay in 2017 after having previously denied his sexuality publicly following the publication of a kiss-and-tell story in 2006, where an air steward claimed in a national newspaper that he had a secret affair with him.

In a new interview with the Irish Independent, Jackson – who visited University College Dublin to mark St David’s Day, in partnership with the Welsh government office in Ireland – opened up about what it was like to be a young, gay athlete and wanting to keep his private life private.

“When you’re a young athlete coming through, I want to talk about my athletics and my athletic skills and my world title and my world records, etc. I didn’t want to be explaining to people what I was doing in my bedroom, because you wouldn’t ask a straight person the same question,” Jackson told the outlet.

“So that’s when I was younger, I had no interest in bringing that to the ­general public, because I genuinely thought it was nobody else’s business anyway.”

However, he said that young queer athletes nowadays should not feel “fearful” about coming out.

“All of a sudden, you feel like, well, I’m part of this society. And the answer is, yes, you are part of this society,” he said.

“You can give, you can have a dream, and you can achieve your dream. Don’t be fearful just because it’s sexuality.”

During the interview, Jackson also opened up about struggling with disordered eating and body dysmorphia during his career.

“I was looking at athletes and looking at myself and thinking, ‘I don’t look like these other athletes’. So you start to get that body dysmorphia as well. And when that kind of happens, then you’re in big trouble,” Jackson said.

He described how in order in order to be a world-class athlete one of the “natural traits” you have to have is “obsession”.

He explained: “You’ve got to be obsessed about what you do. You’re obsessed about your training, about your sleeping. To do everything right. But once you push obsession over the other side, it becomes quite dangerous. And it was affecting lots of elements of my life.”

Discussing being in Ireland for St David’s Day, Jackson said it was nice to be back.

“I was so pleased to come over and to celebrate St David’s Day,” he said.

“I had not been here since lockdown. I used to spend a lot of time in Limerick, I trained in the University of Limerick and my physio was based in Limerick so it is always nice to come back.”

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In a post on Instagram Stories on Monday (10 March), the Academy Award-nominated star casually shared her thoughts on the furore surrounding Chalamet, who is in hot water for stating during an interview that “no one cares” about art forms like ballet and opera.

Gascón shared an internet meme which placed a still of her titular Emilia Pérez character talking on the phone alongside an image of Chalamet’s titular Marty Supreme character, also speaking on the phone. 

The meme had been shared alongside the caption “Hola Karla, do u think they gonna make me pass the red carpet at the Oscars?”. It references the fact that Gascón’s presence at last year’s Academy Awards was tempered down after she was embroiled in a racism row following the resurfacing of some of her old posts on X, formerly twitter. 

She had been nominated in the Best Actress category for her role in Emilia Pérez, making her the first publicly trans person to be nominated in an acting category at the Oscars.

Adding her own commentary to the meme, Gascón wrote: “Are you a Trans woman? Then don’t worry about it, Tim.”

She added wryly: “Besides, I love ballet slippers and I’ve seen Phantom of the Opera ten times. Not sure if that counts for anything. Best of luck with the awards.”

In her final comment on the Chalamet debacle, Gascón noted that the A Complete Unknown star’s remarks had been captured on film, during a conversation with his Interstellar co-star Matthew McConaughey. In her case though, she protested that “no one has seen or heard [her] say anything” offensive.

“Even though no one has seen or heard me say anything, while they have both seen and heard you, people still seem to prefer believing whatever the bad guys claim I said,” she wrote.

Karla Sofia Gascón’s Oscars campaign was upended last January after a slew of X posts, posted between 2016 and 2021, were unearthed, some of which contained a​​nti-Islamic sentiment. Others included offensive remarks about diversity at the Academy Awards, Black Lives Matter and George Floyd.

The history-making actress swiftly deleted the posts and later apologised for them, telling CNN in a tearful interview that she was “deeply sorry” for her remarks. She was later removed from promotional duties for Emilia Pérez ahead of the Oscars, and mocked at the ceremony.

Over the weekend, Marty Supreme star Timothée Chalamet, who is nominated for Best Actor at this years Academy Awards, whipped up controversy for his remarks about opera and ballet.

“I don’t wanna be working in ballet or opera or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive even though no one cares about this anymore,’” he said during his chat with McConaughey, which centred on preserving cinema and took place at the University of Texas in February. 

“All respect to the ballet and opera people out there. I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason,” he added mockingly.

Opera and ballet stars including Deepa Johnny and Martin Chaix rejected Chalamet’s remarks, while his acting contemporaries – including Jamie Lee Curtis and Whoopie Goldberg – condemned him for speaking poorly about another art form.

Conversely, the actor has also been invited to attend ballet and opera shows and learn about the art forms, with invitations coming from institutions including the Royal Ballet and Opera, the English National Ballet, Sadler’s Wells and Scottish Opera.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

The post Karla Sofía Gascón responds to Timothée Chalamet ballet controversy: ‘Are you trans? Then don’t worry’ appeared first on PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news.

The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, also known as the SAVE Act, is a bill which would require every American to provide documentary proof of citizenship to register or re-register to vote in federal elections.

Despite both federal and state law already banning non-American citizens from voting in federal and state elections respectively, supportive Republicans believe the act will halt voter fraud – and stop elections allegedly being “stolen”.

However, it has been warned that because many US citizens do not have citizenship documents readily available – as they do not own a passport or have a paper copy of their birth certificate – they will be unable to register to vote, leaving potentially millions disenfranchised.

“The SAVE Act would disenfranchise Americans of all ages and races, but younger voters and voters of color would suffer disproportionately,” Eliza Sweren-Becker and Owen Bacskai outlined for the Brennan Center for Justice. “Likewise, millions of women whose married names aren’t on their birth certificates or passports would face extra steps just to make their voices heard.”

On his Truth Social platform on Sunday (8 March), Trump vowed to cease signing other bills into law until the SAVE Act is passed.

“Great Job by hard working Scott Pressler on Fox & Friends talking about using the Filibuster, or Talking Filibuster, in order to pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT. an 88% issue with ALL VOTERS.” Trump wrote, referencing Pressler’s appearance on appearance on the Fox News show.

“It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else.”

Trump continued: “MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE. I, as President, will not sign other Bills until this is passed, AND NOT THE WATERED DOWN VERSION – GO FOR THE GOLD: MUST SHOW VOTER I.D. & PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP: NO MAIL-IN BALLOTS EXCEPT FOR MILITARY – ILLNESS, DISABILITY, TRAVEL.”

Trump then add calls for additional, unrelated, provisions to be added to the bill: “NO MEN IN WOMEN’S SPORTS: NO TRANSGENDER MUTILIZATION FOR CHILDREN! DO NOT FAIL!!!”

Since returning to the White House for his second term in office in January 2025, the Trump administration swiftly enacted a raft of anti-trans policies.

These orders included proclaiming the official policy of the US is that there are “only two sexes”, banning transgender people from serving in the military, restricting gender-affirming healthcare for trans youngsters under the age 19 and barring trans women and girls from female sports.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt noted last week that the president “added on some priorities” to the bill, such as the ban on “transgender transition surgeries for minors”.

“We are not gonna tolerate the mutilation of young children in this country. No men in women’s sports,” she said.

“The president putting all of these priorities together speaks to how common sense they are.”

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Presenter Nana Akua claimed during an episode of The Interview that potential advertisers were being “scared off” by human rights groups that argue the news and opinion channel is pushing division in the UK.

During an interview with former professional football coach, Steve Harrison, the 54-year-old said: “We’ve been through the whole thing where, you know, there was this [call], ‘Well, they’re horrible, don’t advertise with them’. Some were scared off from advertising on the channel.”

GB News has reportedly lost over £131 million since its launch in 2021 as major brands join a boycott started by the political pressure group Stop Funding Hate, which argued the channel uses “fear and division” to gain viewers.

The broadcaster has routinely come under fire for airing anti-LGBTQ+ views. Most notably was GB News host Josh Howie’s remark that the LGBTQ+ acronym includes “paedos,” as well as is on-air apology that denied the existence of trans people.

Stop Funding Hatemade a call to boycott the right-wing broadcaster in February 2021 – four months before the broadcaster officially launched – calling for prospective advertisers to pull support in the lead-up to its first broadcast.

Major brands including Ikea, Nivea and OVO Energy pulled advertising almost immediately following the channel’s launch, with many more pulling their sponsorships over the next few years.

During the broadcast, Harrison claimed that advertisers were “complicit” in the channel’s losses for “not standing up to Stop Funding Hate.”

Responding in a post on social media, the political pressure group called on GB News to “reflect on whether the content of GB News might explain this reluctance” for brands to advertise on the channel.

“We’ve seen time and time again that when enough of us speak out & urge advertisers to avoid GB News, companies will respond,” they added. “This only works because it’s also very clear how toxic an environment GB News is – advertisers can see that the public has a point and is right to be concerned.”

Akua’s comments came just a week after fellow GB News host Charlie Downes claimed she was not truly British, despite being born in Newcastle.

During a heated debate, Downes claimed that Akua was not truly British because, in his view, “there’s a difference between someone who has come here within the last five years and gotten themselves a passport and somebody like me whose family have been in this country for thousands of years.”

The pair clashed after Downes claimed that Britishness is not defined by a “set of abstract, corporate values like democracy,” claiming instead that it was defined by what he called the “ancient peoples” of Britain.

Akua responded by citing Cheddar Man – a Mesolithic human male whose skeleton was found in Cheddar Gorge and is believed to be the oldest complete skeleton of a human found in Britain. In 2018, DNA analysis found that Cheddar Man was Black.

After Downes said he disagreed because of his Christian beliefs, Akua responded: “You might believe that, but science says otherwise.”

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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“The Giver” singer went viral over the weekend after confronting photographers who would not leave her alone outside a restaurant Paris Fashion Week.

However, instead of attempting to ignore or avoid the photographers, your favourite artist’s favourite artist pulled her own phone out and started recording them.

“When you’re disregarded as a human, this is what it’s like,” Roan said as she spun the camera around.

“I’m just trying to go to dinner and I’ve asked these people several times to get away from me.”

Roan went on to say the group of paparazzi are “all the people who are completely disregarding all of my boundaries”, adding she had asked them to stop “following” and “harassing” her.

Chappell Roan films the paparazzi after repeatedly asking them to leave her alone.pic.twitter.com/74psDYMyXO

— Pop Base (@PopBase) March 9, 2026

This is not the first time Roan has called out photographers for their behaviour towards her, sparking much conversation amongst fans about how celebrities are expected to accept the treatment of aggressive paparazzis.

Back in the summer of 2024, after her stratospheric rise to fame thanks to sapphic pop bangers “Good Luck Babe!” and “Pink Pony Club”, Roan a series of TikToks urging her fans to stop “harassing” her in public and sought to set her personal boundaries.

In the videos, Roan listed off several instances which led up to the public plea with her fanbase and over parasocial relationships with celebrities, including fans kissing her without her consent, following her to hotel rooms and turning up at her parents house.

A few months later, at MTV’s Video Music Awards – where Roan won her first “Moonman” for Best New Artist – she had an altercation with a photographer on the red carpet.

In the viral clip, a photographer was captured reportedly telling Roan to “shut the f*** up”.

In response, she pointed at the photographer and said: “No, you shut the f*** up. Don’t! Not me, b***.”

Roan later clarified she was not upset about her success as an artist but about the abuse she is experiencing as someone in the public spotlight.

She told The Guardian: “I’m very turned off by the celebrity of it all. Some girls have been in this so long that they’re used to that, but I’m not that girl. I’m not gonna be a sweetie pie to a man who’s telling me to ‘shut the f*** up’.

“They think I’m complaining about my success. I’m complaining about being abused,” Roan concluded.

A month later, on the red carpet at the Olivia Rodrigo: GUTS World Tour concert movie premiere Roan called out a photographer who she alleged was abusive towards her at the Grammys earlier in the year.

“You were so disrespectful to me at the Grammys,” she said.

“You yelled at me at the Grammy party. Yes, I remember. You were so rude to me and I deserve an apology for that. You need to apologise to me.”

A staffer attempted to intervene but Roan was not backing down and could be heard saying: “No, no, no, you need to apologise.”

It is unclear if Roan ever got her apology.

In response to Roan’s latest criticism of paparazzi culture, fans were quick to support her.

“She’s so necessary for the culture actually like i need her to never shut up about things like these,” one fan wrote on X in a reply that gained more than 60,000 likes.

“i’ll always be on her side on this. paparazzi culture isn’t normal, it’s straight-up harassment. acting and singing are just jobs at the end of the day. stop hounding these people,” another said.

Actor and YouTuber Tyler Oakley even weighed in on the incident, writing: “personally, i like chappell roan establishing her boundaries & not just putting up with those who don’t adhere to them she already changed how photographers treat celebrities on red carpets, maybe this will change how paparazzi treat celebrities simply existing in public”

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Spoiler alert! This article contains spoilers for The Long Game by Rachel Reid, and thus for season two of Heated Rivalry.

During a conversation with romance novelist Talia Hibbert at an event in London on Sunday (8 March), Reid reportedly told fans in attendance that the explicit trophy room scene, which features in The Long Game, the sixth book in her series, will be adapted in season two.

According to those in attendance, the author told the crowd that she didn’t have to “fight” the Heated Rivalry creative team to include the steamy scene, and that everyone involved in the scene is “excited” to film it.

The trophy room scene arrives during a pivotal moment of Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov’s (Connor Storrie) relationship, after Shane’s close friend and ice hockey teammate Hayden (Callan Potter) accidentally outs the couple to a fan.

Hayden records a video for a fan and sends it off to them, without realising that he caught Shane and Ilya kissing in the background. After the video arrives in the fan’s inbox, it quickly becomes a viral sensation.

Struggling with the publicity and having to come out in such a manner, Shane is down and in need of a pick me up. Thankfully, Ilya has just what he needs, but he can only give it to him in Shane’s team’s trophy room.

In there, surrounded by all of Shane’s various medals, trophies and career keepsakes, Ilya bends Shane over a chair, and gives him “a couple of slow thrusts”.

“Are you all turned on thinking about your… many. Accomplishments,” Ilya says in the book, thrusting into Shane.

“I feel like I am f****** a king right now,” Ilya says, grabbing Shane’s hair. “Do you know how powerful this feels, f***** a king in his throne room? You are Shane f****** Hollander. If you ever forget that, I will drag you back in here and f*** you until you remember.”

At some point during the raunchy scene, Ilya grabs a vibrating sex toy to slide over Shane’s manhood, taking their encounter one step further.

How Crave and HBO plan on bringing the jaw-dropping moment to the big screen, we have no idea, but it’s happening.

In fairness, it would’ve been hard for the show’s director Jacob Tierney to leave on the cutting room floor. In addition to being a solid fan favourite moment, it’s also one of Hudson Williams’ most anticipated scenes in season two.

Speaking to The Cut, Williams said that he read The Long Game after wrapping filming on season one of Heated Rivalry, adding that the trophy room scene was the one he’s most looking forward to adapting.

“If you know you know,” he added with a cheeky smile.

The Long Game will be adapted for season two of Heated Rivalry. It zooms forward ten years into the future, with Ilya and Shane still in the closet publicly, but thankfully still together. It focuses on the couple working out how to navigate taking their romance into the public eye.

Heated Rivalry season two is set to film this summer and will premiere in April 2027.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

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The 43-year-old actor spoke her truth during a Tuesday (10 March) guest spot on I’ve Never Said This Before with Tommy DiDario, published in a PEOPLE exclusive.

“As a 43-year-old woman, I’m very proud of myself for owning my sexuality at this age,” she said during the podcast.

“I am a very strong person for doing it in somewhat of a spotlight with people criticising and judging and making assumptions. I’m really proud to be bisexual.”

The Pitch Perfect star said she discovered she was queer very recently, saying she had a “major evolution” in her 40s, which she wasn’t afraid of.

“Sure, there are times I feel like I am taking a risk and this is scary, and I’m doing it in a public forum. But to say, ‘No, I only get one life and I want to be happy’, that’s what life is about,” she continued.

Camp made waves in May last year after confirming her relationship with 24-year-old writer Jade Whipkey during a red-carpet event at the premiere of her film Bride Hard. However, she wouldn’t address her sexuality until her appearance on the podcast.

The actor went on to say that the revelation had given her the courage to “continue to evolve and to learn.”

“You think you’ve got this idea of who you are and that’s how your life is going to go. And that’s happened to me several times in my life, where I thought that I knew what was happening,” she said. “It could have stopped in that way. I could have settled. I could have said no, I’m done evolving.”

Camp has previously been married to actor Michael Mosley from 2010-2013. She then married Pitch Perfect co-star Skylar Astin in 2016 before the pair split in 2019.

Speaking to Cosmopolitan in July, Camp said she and Whipkey were surprised by the wave of support and attention after they publicly revealed their relationship, but were grateful nonetheless.

“We’ve been a bit surprised by all of the hubbub, but there’s been a lot of support so we’re very grateful and thankful for everybody who is supportive of us. It’s lovely,” she said at the time.

Share your story! Do you have an important, exciting or uplifting story to tell? Email us at news@pinknews.co.uk

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In matching posts shared on their Instagram Stories yesterday (9 March), Hudson Williams and Francois Arnaud wrote: “Don’t call yourself a fan if you share racist/homophobic/biphobic/misogynist/ageist/ableist/parasocial/bigoted comments of any kind.

“None of us need your hateful ‘love’,” the post continues. “We all respect and support and love each other and are on the same side. If you can’t accept that gtfoh [get the f*** outta here]”.

The posts were reshared by fellow Heated Rivalry star Robbie G.K. who tagged Williams and added a crown emoji. 

Williams and Connor Storrie play ice hockey rivals turned lovers Shane Hollander and Ilya Rosanov in the viral show, while Arnaud and G.K. play Scott Hunter and Kip Grady, who find love off of the hockey pitch.

All four actors have been subjected to intense speculation and rumours about their personal lives and relationships since becoming overnight sensations due to the success of the series.

Actress Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova, who plays Shane’s friend Svetlana Vetrova in the queer ice hockey romance, also added her thoughts to the conversation around toxic fan culture.

“Please don’t make a show that’s about love be hateful online,” she wrote on Instagram, sharing Williams’ original post.

“So much love was poured into this project and we all genuinely have so much respect for everyone involved in making this. We’re not characters and neither are our real friends, partners, family and making up false narratives about us isn’t ‘love.’”

Kharlamova’s statement came one day after she posted on X, formerly Twitter, urging fans not to forget about the necessity of the female stars in Heated Rivalry.

“Since it’s Women’s Day I want to say the women you see at industry events are there bcuz they are just as deserving of being in those rooms!” she wrote.

“The assumption that we are there because our male costars invited us takes away the work we also put in. Celebrate women’s achievements!”

After some fans appeared not to grasp what the actress was saying, she was forced to offer a follow up statement, writing: “Also if you’re using this tweet to criticize my cast mates you missed the point! They are amazing!! I said CELEBRATE WOMEN not hate on male actors.”

Despite originally dropping on Crave in Canada in November, the hype around Heated Rivalry appears to be here to stay. Season two, which will adapt Rachel Reid’s sixth novel The Long Game in her Game Changers book series, is set to film this summer, with an April 2027 release date.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.

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The 35-year-old former Years & Years frontman took aim at UK leadership’s “spinelessness” while discussing his upcoming benefit concert Transmission Live.

Featuring performances from over 24 artists, the London concert, hosted by Alexander and Mighty Hoopla, is set to take place at the OVO Arena in Wembley on Wednesday (11 March).

The fundraiser, which will raise money for Not A Phase and Good Law Project, plans to push back against the rising transphobia that has swept across the UK through a “night of solidarity for a lifetime of change.”

It comes in response to the UK Supreme Court’s controversial ruling on FWS v Scottish Ministers, which determined the 2010 Equality Act’s definition of a woman referred to biological sex only. The government is currently considering whether to implement legislation based on this ruling, which campaigners fear could result in a blanket ban on trans people using public facilities.

Speaking to The Guardian, Alexander said Labour “cowardice” was responsible for the number of anti-trans actions the party had taken since rising to power, including delaying a trans-inclusive conversion therapy ban and restricting life-saving puberty blockers for trans youngsters.

“I’d say it was cowardice,” he said. “For a Labour government to be so scared to have a line on this just shows the spinelessness of our leadership.”

‘Transphobia is the cousin of homophobia, which is the cousin of misogyny’

The performer went on to compare Starmer’s Labour to the Thatcher government of the 1980s, which was notoriously anti-LGBTQ+.

“Some of the things that are said about trans people are literally lifted from what was said about gay men back in the 80s,” he said. “Those messages have been used against queer people throughout history. I see transphobia as the cousin of homophobia, which is the cousin of misogyny. I think we’re all in this together.”

The prime minister’s record on LGBTQ+ rights has been widely criticised by the community and human rights campaigners. In April last year, following the Supreme Court’s sex ruling, Starmer said he no longer believed that trans women are women.

Health secretary Wes Streeting made that same statement on multiple occasions, first saying it in 2024 during an interview with The Sun.

Alexander says he’s increasingly worried about rising anti-trans rhetoric in mainstream media, adding that he hopes the concert will be a “beacon” for the community.

“I’m hoping that this is a beacon that will say: ‘Well, actually, there are lots of people who love and support trans people, and we’re not going to be quiet either’,” he said.

Echoing this sentiment, Not A Phase founder Dani St James said she hopes the night will be a moment of progress for all the trans people facing hardship.

“it’s basically a super sped-up Royal Variety Performance, but with me and Olly double-kissing them and not Charles shaking their hands,” she said.

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This is Handcuffed: Last Pair Standing, hosted by TV presenter Jonathan Ross, who believes that the show could “go a small way to healing a fractured Britain”.

The premise is simple: 18 Britons are paired up with a stranger they don’t know, each of whom have entirely different opinions, habits and ways of living to them.

They are handcuffed, and tested to see how long they can stay chained together. Yes, that includes eating, showering and sleeping next to each other. The winners take home £100,000. The hope is that along the way, the handcuffed pair will listen and begin to understand the lives and perspectives of their total opposites.

In last week’s first two episodes, Channel 4 viewers were introduced to Rob, a 32-year-old heterosexual OnlyFans star who makes explicit content for the gay porn industry. He’s handcuffed to Charlie, a 44-year-old prudish Sussex housewife who is far from impressed by his career choices.

While Charlie wasn’t initially told about Rob’s job, he decided to be open and be honest about the reality of his profession. 

“I’ve had many jobs in the past. And then it was just like, ‘This isn’t making me money. What can I do? So there is this website called OnlyFans,” the tattooed Rob explains to Charlie over dinner. 

“OK…” Charlie says, sounding perturbed, before Rob bites the bullet: “And I make gay porn for the gay industry.”

In the clip, Charlie describes the revelation as “a bit of a shock” before the pair opt to tell her husband, Simon. In a terse exchange, Simon calls Rob’s industry “sleazy”.

“I couldn’t give a f*** to be honest about what people think about what I do as a job,” Rob hits back. 

Charlie says she feels “really uncomfortable” in the partnership, while Simon says he is “anxious about the fallout” before crying. Charlie, in response, contemplates exiting the experiment.

The episode ended with a cliffhanger, leaving viewers uncertain whether Rob and Charlie would be able to put their huge differences aside and continue on.

There’s hope still yet, as in a statement ahead of the show premiering, Rob said that the experience could lead to strangers becoming “great friends”.

He said that he was surprised “that two people, living two completely different lives worlds apart can become great friends”.

He added: “We put our judgements aside and listened to our hearts.”

Elsewhere in the toe-curling episode, Charlie had to wear a blindfold while Rob showered and worried about how she would wash, telling the cameras: “I don’t even like my husband seeing me with nothing on.”

In a press statement when Handcuffed was announced last year, Jonathan Ross said the the bizarre show might be able to encourage people to understand each other better.

“I believe this experiment will go a small way to healing a fractured Britain; after all, to know is to love,” he said. “I’m rooting for our couples to go the distance and not let our differences overpower us.”

Episode three of Handcuffed: Last Pair Standing airs on Channel 4 at 9pm.

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