SCOTSGAY MAGAZINE ================= ScotsGay is a bi-monthly magazine for lesbians, gay men and bisexuals. Edited, printed and published in Scotland Issue 22 - June 1998 ELECTRONIC EDITION ***Now available on the Web: http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/ How to Subscribe and Unsubscribe information is now at the END of the magazine. All Material Copyright (c) Pageprint Limited 1998. Permission is hereby given to distribute this material provided that this copyright notice is included and that distribution is specifically for non-profitmaking reasons. Distribution for profit must be done only with prior written consent of the magazine any deviation from this will be seen as an infringement of copyright. Hardcopies are limited to one per person for personal use only and such hard copies are subject to the same copyright restrictions as laid out above. The printed edition of ScotsGay is available by post at the following rates: 6 issue sub (UK & EC) 6ukp 6 issue sub (Overseas) 12ukp 12 issue sub (UK & EC) 10ukp 12 issue sub (Overseas) 22ukp Make Cheques and POs payable to 'Pageprint Limited'or 'ScotsGay'and send them to: Subscriptions ScotsGay Pageprint Limited PO Box 666 Edinburgh Scotland EH7 5YW In this issue: Editorial - about bloody time News - AoC report & Pride Scotland pics News Feature - Christian "science" Otton On... - summertime... and the living is sleazy! Ogg's View - beware the backlash International - news from around the world The Nice Bit - genetically modified Story - an afternoon in Stirling Outlook - a gay dad speaks out Reviews - toys & books & video & film Music - Joy DJ Alan's latest chart ScotsDyke - all change at the Stag & Turret ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITORIAL ========= Well, there we are. Sex at 16. The first big step on the road to equality. After 24 years of campaigning, this bugger should be grateful. But I'm not. In Scotland, we've effectively had an AoC of 16 for several years - thanks to succesive Lord Advocates' prosecution guidelines - so the recent Commons vote merely goes to formalising that position (not that that is anything to be sneered at). But there's a lot more to equality than the right to have sex at 16. There's the right to inherit when our partners die intestate, the right to join the military and kill people, the right to marry our partners and drag them through the divorce courts, the right to adopt children, the right to lose benefit when the Social Security find we're co-habiting! With rights come responsibilities. And some of these responsibilities I'm not sure that I really want. The notion that simply because I've lived with the same man for eleven years, I could be held to be in a Common Law Marriage fills me with horror. In such an event, if we were to split up, I could suddenly find myself having to pay aliment and maybe even losing my house to my former partner. If I want to give him rights, that is a matter for ourselves to resolve by legal agreement or even by positively opting into a marriage. In the absence of such affirmative action, it should not be the function of the state to regulate our financial arrangements with a set of standard rules we have not agreed to and which we cannot vary. Up until now, it is only heterosexuals who have suffered in this way - equality will drag us in too. With luck, equality may mean changes which will benefit heterosexuals too - it will soon be legal for 17 and 18 year old women to consent to anal sex in England and Wales (as it has been in Scotland for several years). Those of us who have worked at homosexual law reform for so long could do well to link up with like minded folk who seek an end to Victorian sexual values generally. At least I'll now soon be free to advertise in our Meet Market for my secret desire: a cute 16 year old guy with poor eyesight and his own well endowed account with a merchant bank! I will, however, be prepared to settle for two out of three of these attributes if anybody is interested... John Hein --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NEWS ==== THE BUGGERS ARE LEGAL NOW? On a free vote, 465 MPs of all parties trotted through the Commons division lobbies on Monday 22nd June to give a majority of 207 to an amendment to the Crime and Disorder Bill intended to bring the gay male age of consent down to 16 in Great Britain. In Northern Ireland, it will become 17, which is the same as the AoC for heterosexuals there. 43 Scottish MPs cast their vote but only one, Labour's Tam Dalyell, voted against equality - he's apparently changed his mind since the matter last came up for a vote. Best speech of the three and a half hour debate came from veteran Labour MP Gerald Kaufman who told the House that passing the amendment "will not be a brave step at all; it will be a belated step, a reluctant step and a step that should have been taken in equity and fairness and decency long ago." Sadly, those of us in the House that evening waited in vain for Mr Kaufman to take a certain brave step himself! A badly drafted amendment from Joe Ashton would have had not only the unintentional effect of making sex within some existing heterosexual marriages illegal but would have outlawed sex, both hetero and homo for 16 and 17 year olds if their partner was "in a position of authority, influence or trust". It too was defeated, but by a much smaller majority. Amendments by Dr. Evan Harris which sought to lift the ban on gay sex involving more than two men, and to remove from the Sex Offenders' (pædophile) Register men convicted of consenting gay sex with youths aged 16 and 17 were not voted on and fell. MPs then went on to debate the Fishing and Cockle Industry in Essex. The amendment to the Bill now has to go to the House of Lords, but already homophobes are poring on the pressure for the Lords to throw it out. The Roman Catholic Church has been in the forefront of outraged moans about "children of 16" being exposed to moral dangers which, bearing in mind the expertise of their Priests and Nuns in abusing and raping children over the years (and then covering it up) seems remarkably odd. However, although the Government has expressed its intention of getting the whole Bill into law by the end of July, a Lords defeat could clog up the Parliamentary timetable and, despite Tony Blair personally voting for equality, it's not clear if Ministers are prepared to go to the wall over this one small part of the Bill. There will, however, be a review of the law relating to sexual offences generally - which will, hopefully, clear up a number of anomalies. The new legislation will not apply to Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man, and campaigning group OutRage! claims that Tony Blair is unwilling to press the local parliaments to equalise their ages of consent at 16, to bring them into line with the rest of GB. OutRage! is also warning that despite the equalisation of the age of consent, men of 20 or over convicted of consensual "buggery" and "gross indecency" with 16 and 17 year olds in situations where more than two persons are present or where the sex takes place in parks, backrooms, toilets and other "public" places will still be branded as pædophiles and forced to sign the sex offenders' register. HEY, JIMMY! It was a lovely day indeed when thousands of pooves, dykes, bicycles and our bairns, parents, families and friends descended on Glasgow Green for the annual Pride Scotland celebration following a leisurely stroll from Blythswood Square. The pictures tell the story... HAPPY WALK The Pride Festival in London on 4th July has been cancelled amidst acrid recriminations on all sides. However, the Pride March will go ahead starting at Hyde Park at Noon. Although re-scheduled for 15th of August, the Festival seems dead in the water. ADVICE Wendy Michie, a qualified nurse and professional councillor with Lanarkshire Health Board, is now regularly attending Lanarkshire Gay Men's Group to give confidential advice. THEY DO A Scottish Church has gone on the Internet to advertise homosexual, bisexual and transgendered weddings. The Holy Trinity Metropolitan Community Church in Edinburgh is the first in Scotland to offer religious blessings to same-sex couples. Its Web page says: "We offer relationship blessings to couples irrespective of gender identification or sexuality." The Church claims in its advertising that "some of the earliest recorded Christian marriages were between people of the same gender". REVOLT A recent demo outside the Scottish Office in Edinburgh protesting at 10 years of Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 was `hijacked' by Edinburgh students who led an impromptu march to the Mound where the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland was in session. Kirk Commissioners were treated to a call for the end of church homophobia. OUTRIGHT OUTRIGHT Scotland is now in a secure financial position following the discovery that it will receive the proceeds of the late Ian Dunn's life assurance policies. WEB ScotsGay's Internet Web Site (http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/) has won several major awards. Not only has it been given the Freedom Award - awarded to sites that contribute to the UK lgb community - but it is Freedom's site of the month. And it has just been put into GaySeek's Gold Site list. HYSTERIA Body Positive Strathclyde has secured funding from the Hysteria Trust to set up a vocational education project. FIRE The Haven, the HIV/AIDS facility at Glasgow's Gartnavel General Hospital, was the subject of a successful arson attack on Saturday 6th June which has put it out of action. CENSORSHIP Stuart Burgess, who wanted to place an advertisement in the Pride Scotland brochure for photographic models, has condemned the Pride Committee for refusing his ad. DOCTOR Dr Keith Wardrop, a former Honorary Vice President of OUTRIGHT Scotland died recently. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- CHRISTIAN "SCIENCE" =================== ScotsGay 21 featured an article about anti-gay posters flyposted around Edinburgh by "ex-gay" Clay Garner. Entitled "Five things you did not know about gay men", the poster listed a number of `statistics', such as gay men average 110 sex partners a year ("I wish!" was the universal response to that one) and that 70% admitted eating their partner's excrement. Although the culprit refused to name his sources, the `statistics' are based on the work of discredited psychologist/sociologist Paul Cameron. Feòrag NicBhrìde investigates... A favourite of American Christian fundamentalists and `family values' campaigners, Cameron is an ex-psychology lecturer who, set up his own organisation, the "Institute for the Scientific Investigation of Sexuality" (ISIS), now the Family Research Institute, in 1980. He published a number of extremely homophobic pamphlets linking homosexuality to violence, murder, bestiality and child abuse. At the same time, Cameron presented himself as an expert on the matter. By 1985, the Advocate warned he "just may be the most dangerous anti-gay voice in the United States today". He was directly involved in anti-gay campaigns and when `statistics' were not enough, resorted to outright lies to further his hatred. In one notable case, he told a public meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska "Right now here in Lincoln, there is a 4-year-old boy who has had his genitals almost severed from his body…in a restroom with a homosexual act". The local newspapers and police, to their credit, actually checked out the claim and found no evidence to support it. Cameron finally admitted that the rumour had no basis but insisted "it could be true". His attitude towards AIDS is equally charming. He proposes tattooing people with AIDS, and has suggested that, should a vaccine be discovered, gay men be castrated "to prevent them cheating on nature". He has even advocated his own final solution to prevent the spread of AIDS. The bulk of the infamous `statistics', come from research conducted by ISIS in 1983 and 1984. More serious researchers have pointed out several serious errors in the methodology which make the results meaningless, including a sample so small it would take just 3 liars in each of eight cities to alter the findings dramatically. Only 41 respondents claimed to be gay men. A good example of the problems caused by sample size is Cameron's claim that 29% of people with a gay parent had also experienced incest. A total of 17 respondents claimed to have a gay parent. Only 5 of the adults reporting incest also had a gay parent, so the percentage of such people in the population as a whole could be anywhere between -4% and +62%! Another concern is the length of the questionnaire and the complexity of the format. Respondents filled in forms on their own which asked 550 questions and took over an hour to complete. It is usual to repeat early questions towards the end of a questionnaire as a check. Cameron did not include any such safeguards. Just to make life more difficult, medical terms for the genitals and bodily functions were used and not explained. Obvious bias played a part in both the phrasing of the questionnaire and in the collection of data. An article about the survey was published by the Omaha World Herald while data was still being collected in that city. Cameron said the survey was to provide "ammunition for those who want laws adopted banning homosexual acts throughout the United States". He also made the national news, as data was being collected in Dallas, over a public remark that gays should be quarantined. Another famous `study' by Cameron was of obituaries in the gay press, from which he extrapolated an average life expectancy. He claimed that both lesbians and gay men have shorter lives than straights. His figures were obtained by comparing the ages in paid-for death notices in local newspapers with obituaries in the gay press, which mostly focused on community activists and deaths from AIDS-related illnesses, a bit like comparing apples and avocados. When the ISIS pamphlets were published, a number of the psychologists cited complained that Cameron had deliberately distorted the results of their studies. Dr. A. Nicholas Groth, director of the Sex Offender Program at the Connecticut Department of Corrections and a genuine child sex abuse expert was particularly angry at the way Cameron had misrepresented his research. Other researchers complained that he had over-generalised their work, taking specific studies of gay men being treated at VD clinics, self-professed `delinquents' and other small, non-random samples and treating them as if they were representative of the homosexual population as a whole, even when the researchers had specifically stated that this was not possible. The American Psychological Association investigated and found that, in addition to misrepresenting the work of others, his own research left a lot to be desired. Cameron was dropped from APA membership "for a violation of the Preamble to the Ethical Principles of Psychologists" in December 1983. He claims he resigned before then but, in reality, he tried to resign while under investigation - prohibited by the APA by-laws. The Nebraska Psychological Association has censured him twice. After this rejection by psychologists he pretended to be a sociologist, but not for long. In 1985, the American Sociological Association adopted a resolution criticising Cameron and set up a committee to critically evaluate and respond to his work. The eventual report was accepted and a resolution passed asserting that "Paul Cameron is not a sociologist, and [the ASA] condemns his consistent misrepresentation of sociological research." The sloppiness of Cameron's work is reflected in his publication record. Gregory Herek surveyed the outlets for Cameron's research and the impact of those journals based on the Journal Citation Reports: "none of the Cameron group's research reports have been published in highly-respected, scientifically rigorous, and highly influential psychological journals". All of his papers have appeared in low-ranked journals, many vanity published in the pay-for-publication "Psychological Reports". The status of the journal alone is not necessarily the measure of a scientific paper. The number of times a paper is cited in other papers shows its influence. It seems that serious psychologists paid little attention to his work. Excluding self-citations, Cameron's papers enjoyed a total of 14 citations between 1983 and 1996, mostly letters contesting his findings and literature reviews. So who does take Cameron seriously? Not surprisingly, his most enthusiastic fans are the religious right. The `statistics' are used by opponents of measures to ensure equality for all, and by proponents of countermeasures specifically to deny rights to lesbians and gay men. A video, The Gay Agenda was distributed to service personnel and politicians, and sold via Pat Robertson's 700 Club, when Bill Clinton tried to lift the ban on lesbians and gay men in the military. Described as "a splendid teaching tool" by one 2-star general, The Gay Agenda is a watered-down version of a tape produced for the Oregon Citizens' Alliance: Dangerous Behaviors: A Growing Pattern of Abuse which featured direct quotes from Cameron's work as pictures of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer flashed on screen. As well as the better known Christian organisations such as Focus on the Family and the Coalition for Family Values, Cameron associates with some very dubious characters indeed. David Caton, is director of the Idaho Citizens' Alliance and a former cocaine user who claims to have been addicted to pornography. A $300 (ukp450) habit apparently caused him to masturbate uncontrollably. He now uses Cameron's statistics to support his claim that gay men are sexually-obsessed perverts. Cameron regularly speaks at Human Life International's conferences and their founder, Fr. Paul Marx, is on the advisory board of the Family Research Institute. A militant anti-abortion group, HLI also promotes some more embarrassing opinions. In his Confessions of a Prolife Ministry, Marx declares "The same segment of the Jewish community that accuses the Pope of insensitivity to the Jewish Holocaust, not only condones but has more or less led the greatest holocaust of all time, the war on unborn babies". But what about the statistics on the Edinburgh poster? They are based on one of Cameron's pamphlets "Medical Consequences of What Homosexuals Do", published by the Family Research Institute. The claim that gay men average 110 partners a year and 62 rectal encounters comes from a study of gay men attending a `special' clinic, and so cannot be considered typical of the population as a whole. Cameron doesn't mention sanitary towels at all, but he considers the use of `diapers' (nappies) or colostomy bags a potential risk of fisting and inserting toys into the rectum. He doesn't actually give a single case where this has happened — the paragraph is entirely speculative. And the shit? Cameron's original claim appeared in a 1989 edition of Psychological Reports, based on data from the 1983/4 survey. It seems the original question asked if the respondent had ever experience "oral-anal contact", which is slightly different. In "Medical Consequences…" this becomes "About 80% of gays admit to licking and/or inserting their tongues into the anus of partners and thus ingesting medically significant amounts of fæces." The figures mostly come from the ISIS study, and show that 37 gay men have, at some time, engaged in oral/anal contact and another 3 have actually eaten faeces. Using Cameron's figures, I calculate that I can be 99% sure that between -32.8% and 47.5% of gay men have deliberately eaten shit. Feorag NicBhrìde --------------------------------------------- Sources The Queer Resources Directory (http://www.qrd.org/qrd/) is full of source material and articles concerning Cameron, the religious right and homophobia in general, as well as useful campaigning resources. Included is Mark E. Pietrzyk's article for the News-Telegraph "The man behind the myths: a report on the chief anti-gay researcher of the theocratic right" which provided a starting point for this piece, and pointers to Gregory M. Herek's website which provides a thorough examination of Cameron and his research methods from a scientific viewpoint. It also manages to do this using accessible language! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ OTTON ON... =========== SUMMERTIME... AND THE LIVING IS SLEAZY! (A History of Outdoor Sex In and Around Glasgow) So Glasgow wants to make it big as a European capital? Garry Otton whips out his ruler and measures her up for sexual tolerance against one of the big boys. In Amsterdam recently, a huge billboard was erected to promote the production of Mark Ravenhill's internationally acclaimed play, SHOPPING AND FUCKING. When it appeared at the Citizen's Theatre in Glasgow, discrete signs appeared, advertising only Shopping and F***ing. It was as if Glasgow's moral decadence could be halted with the insertion of a string of asterisks. In a prominent display along Buchanan Street, no one could escape the cheeky juxtaposition of the letters that abbreviate French Connection UK. Altogether, as a marketing ploy, it was fcuk-ing clever! Still, it'll be a little while yet before we'll see anyone fucking properly - spelling the word, or otherwise - in the streets of Glasgow! In any case, Amsterdam pipped it to the post two years ago when the gay club, iT promoted its d'mix night on posters round the city depicting a naked heterosexual couple on roller-skates apparently performing anal intercourse. The city burghers didn't lose any sleep and its residents lived to see another day. By the Homomonument, erected in the centre of Amsterdam to honour the gay men and women who have lost their lives in wars, there is a bridge over the Keizersgracht. It has recently been re-named Niek Engelschmann Bridge after the founder of the Dutch gay emancipation organisation, COC. There is no monument in the whole of the UK for the gay men and women who gave their lives in two World wars for a freedom that was never theirs. And all Scottish gay rights campaigner Ian Dunn received after his death were polite obituaries in The Herald and The Scotsman. Every step Glasgow takes to move forward as a liberal, progressive European capital is hampered by the dictates of well-organised religionists, an inhibited media and a moribund Labour council. When the idea of holding a fair of erotica at Glasgow's Scottish Exhibition Centre - held successfully in several European cities, including London - was first mooted, Glasgow's most sexually inhibited tabloid, The Daily Record rustled its crinoline to announce: "Sex show flops… 1700 protests flood in to stop erotic carnival." From the Scottish Daily Mail there were "red faces at sex shop show of `depravity.'" Most of the Scottish media gave a disproportionate voice to the outrage. There were the usual favourites. Father Tom Connelly, a moral spokesman for the Catholic Church thundered: "The motto of the city is `Let Glasgow flourish by the praising of God's name and the preaching of his word.' Erotica has no place in that. We have enough problems in this city without importing this depravity." Another spokesman declared his fear that if the exhibition went ahead, others would label Glasgow "a capital of sleaze." Reverend David Anderson, general secretary of the Evangelical Alliance frothed: "It is going back to an uncivilised state of savagery" and Ali Syed, chairman of the Pakistani Media Relations Committee said: "These people are capitalising on human weakness and frailty." The exhibition was banned. That the voice of religionists, helping to organise over 4,000 letters of protest, should be sought over and above gays, who far outnumber the amount of people who regularly attend church, is not surprising, and speaks volumes on the conservative nature of the Scottish media on all things sexual. Gays, amongst others, might have afforded a more liberal voice of support for the exhibition, yet it is religionists who are regularly called upon to voice their opinions in the media. John Macleod, a homophobic columnist from the Free Church of Scotland regularly writes for The Herald. The Edinburgh Evening News even employs a priest. But is Glasgow the moral, pure and sanctimonious city its media, churches and civic leaders would have its citizens believe? True, only seven years ago, a MORI poll revealed a startling 36% of Scots believed homosexuality should be made a criminal offence. And if 74% of the UK supported an equal age of consent in a Harris poll, that was only supported by a meagre 9% of Scots. But what Scots say or do in public is quite different to what they do in private. Grahame Miller, writing in Gay Times thinks this conservative attitude is "symptomatic of an endemic Scottish malaise that stems ultimately from our status as a subject nation and our consequent lack of self-confidence." But however hard Glaswegians try to hide sex, it can be found if you look hard enough. Hidden discretely away in Virginia Street, Clone Zone has been selling what heterosexuals charmingly call "marital aids," to gays for months now. No one has suffered because of it. Also, situated beside St Enoch's shopping centre, an epitaph to family values, is an unusual socio-sexual construct called Divally's. A Glasgow cinema-cum-pub where men lean up against the bar talking in voices hard enough to grate cheese before paying their money to slip through a back door and watch straight erotica. As one regular told me with a grin: "Gays have been mingling with the straight clientele here for years. Even administering some assistance when needed." Up until now, Glasgow City Council dismissed any suggestion the city had a "problem with prostitutes," whilst it supported a virulent police campaign to rid its streets of them. Not until after hundreds of arrests, repeated convictions and seven sex workers were murdered did one of its councillors, John Moyne reluctantly admit in front of reporters that he "may have been wrong." Now, in a curious dichotomy, and in what some describe as "a step forward," police are being employed to both protect and arrest sex workers at the same time. Such prudery would have surprised the eminent eighteenth century Scottish lawyer and writer, James Boswell who, like so many of his time, enjoyed sex with whores in the open. In the thirties, the Glasgow's street gangs used to turn out the gas lamps in the tenement closes and enjoy the classic `knee trembler,' up against the tiled walls. Frequently under the noses of tenants and police, turning a blind eye. Gay sex is still frequently performed in private, outdoors. This is not quite the contradiction it first seems. As in any other major cities in the world, there are parks and open spaces where men cruise, seeking sexual contact with other men. One of the reasons sex in "public places" occur is quite simply because the offer: "Would you like to come back to my place?" is rarely an option for many men hungry for gay sex. In his book, Erotics and Politics, sociologist, Tim Edwards says: "Public sex is paradoxically only public to the extent that it is not practised at home," and adds "local councils and police authorities deploy prison-like restrictions of these activities. The history of cottaging (and cruising) is, in fact, one of increasing sexual regulation whilst sexual activity has constantly widened and spread further into other areas." "We don't want it to be made public because it will attract the wrong sort of people" was a sentence I frequently heard from other gay men out cruising open spaces in and around Glasgow last summer. Such a plea for privacy was from men fearful of publicity, arrest, queer bashing or reprisals after the wave of pædophilia sweeping the nation in the wake of the Dunblane massacre of a classroom of children by a suspected pædophile. (Reports that Thomas Hamilton was gay and cruised Calton Hill in Edinburgh were fabricated by the press). Some of the men cruising seemed unaware that they were indebted to the negative media reports of arrests, beatings and police activity for attracting newcomers to the gay cruising areas. Another price paid for such discretion has been the distortion of our history. Censored, swept from view or even re-written. It is not the picnics, nude swims, beach parties, the forming of lasting relationships or brief sexual encounters on gay beaches or open spaces we read about in public records. It is reports of arrests as a consequence of moral policing and the reproachful tones of newspapers backed by the inevitable censure from chaste religious leaders. And of course the murders. The gay disco-bunnies will be quietly humping in the sand dunes at Prestwick beach as they do every year. When exposed in such a negative sense, our sexuality is further tainted by the notion we are indulging in something altogether dirty; sinful; disgusting and perverted. In modern, progressive and liberal cities like Amsterdam, reaction against sex in open spaces from either religionists, editors, the police or the public are rare. But then, unlike Britain, Holland's history of tolerance is backed by legislation. A Dutch MP is already facing prosecution for saying homosexuals are no better than thieves. Reactions from the Dutch reading the Scottish Media Monitor's web-site (http://members.aol.com/garryotton/scotmed.html) regularly reporting the Scottish media's handling of sexuality is usually one of surprise at the level of Scotland's sexual repression. Outside the Dutch City of Utrecht a new town is being built. Within the design, provisions are being made for an area where men can cruise to meet men for sex in the open. The controversy appears not so much whether men cruise but whether society can actually construct such a space! The Dutch are proud of their level of tolerance. If it were to be made compulsory to wear bathing costumes on Dutch beaches; special permission would need to be sought. Families' usually congregate nearest parked cars and amenities just like on British beaches, but most women sunbathe and swim topless. In Britain, they would face arrest. Neither is the public faced with a battery of warning signs when approaching a nudist area. It is just naturally integrated further along the beach. Gay beaches are usually tagged on at the end. Amsterdam's main gay beach is at Zandvoort with other main gay beaches like Bergen Aan Zee and Scheveningen within easy reach. During the summer in Amsterdam, trains are packed with gay day-trippers heading for the coast. They are not all heading out for ice creams and donkey-rides! Many gays are drawn by the prospect of sex in the dunes. It is not moral police or heterosexuals straying off the beaten track that constitute a problem, but a particular thistle used to keep the dunes together. One enterprising salesman trawls the beach selling tweezers to men whose arses have been penetrated by an altogether different kind of prick. Glasgow boasts three gay beaches within easy reach by train, or a thirty to forty-five minute drive away at Prestwick, Irvine and Stevenston. GAILES BEACH, NEAR IRVINE Mention Gailes and you think of golf. But go back about ten years and this was one of the most popular gay beaches in Scotland. That was before, during the summer of 1991, a photographer made public a very private act that was taking place in one of the hollows in the dunes. The Sun eagerly snapped up the photo of the recalcitrant young, married, police officer with his trousers down. He was put under investigation and suspended from duty. The result was an increase in moral policing and an attempt to wipe out nudism along this lonely stretch of the Ayrshire coast. Prohibitive attitudes to sex al fresco are underpinned in Scotland by the media, police and a moribund church, defining and regulating a code of behaviour. The police and local authorities apply authoritarian constraints, marshalling the population into practices, which conform to the political and social ideologies of the day. But the wearing of costumes on beaches has not always been so rigorously imposed. At the turn of the century, bathing naked was commonplace. It was a subject that inspired artists in the late nineteenth century, like Henry Scott Tuke whose pictures of boys bathing would raise a storm of protest in today's moral climate. There was also the internationally acclaimed impressionist painter, Seurat. His painting Bathing at Asnières perfectly captured boys swimming in the shimmering heat of a summer's afternoon on the banks of the Seine. While the National Vigilance Association busily mapped out "moral danger zones" like beaches, the Social Purity and Hygiene Movement set out to cover the nation's shame. Before women were allowed to join the police force, several thousand women patrols, initially set up by The National Union of Women's Workers and funded by the police, patrolled parks and open spaces, initially to "guide young and foolish girls" and save men from "women of evil reputation." By 1918 Sir Leonard Dunning, Inspector of Constabulary was calling them the "true guardians of the State in public morals." Two years ago, Glasgow's billboards were awash with one of them chasing a group of naked boys with a stick along a stretch of the Serpentine in London's Hyde Park, advertising the popular Scottish soft drink, Irn Bru. ARDEER BEACH, STEVENSTON If windbreaks were solely erected for the purpose of breaking wind, then the long stretch of sand with secluded dunes near the Garnock estuary at Irvine would be fortified with flapping canvases for as far as the eye could see. But the windbreak never was just about breaking wind. It is the family fortress, pitched to hide our `shame' and doing away with the inconvenience of wrestling with undergarments behind a small towel. Apart from Cleat's Shore, near Lagg on the Isle of Arran, Ardeer, near Stevenston is the only official naturist beach in Scotland. Perhaps this is why there are few windbreaks on Ardeer. Speaking volumes about Scottish attitudes to nudity, Ardeer is difficult to reach, strewn with broken concrete and backing onto a former ICI explosives manufacturing plant. As far as the quality of the water goes, with partially treated sewage gushing out of a long outfall pipe, it fails to meet even EC minimum standards. No one is very sure when it first got its reputation as a gay beach. I spoke to one of its oldest regulars who I was warned not to approach as a gay man. He was in his eighties and had been coming down to Ardeer since the thirties and remembered an arrest on the beach of a couple of people bathing nude. "The local sheriff reprimanded the police for not having something better to do." Another regular told me that "following a complaint from a member of the public last summer, a Land Rover was sweeping up and down the sands all day." In a bid for privacy, and to mark their territory, regulars have constructed their own `windbreaks' and individual enclosures from the driftwood strewn along the beach. Some of the men have been coming here for years, and I frequently heard delightful, antique expressions like "he's on," marking someone with known gay proclivities. With The Champion Shell Inn at Stevenston, a popular watering hole after a day at the beach, Stevenston could be set to compete with Prestwick as Glasgow's own Zandvoort in the 21st century. PRESTWICK BEACH In Britain during the 19th century, most villages and towns staged carnivals. Glasgow had the Glasgow Fair. If the sun was shining, many of its citizens flocked to the beaches in Ayrshire. The drinking, dancing, eating, fighting and sex provided a useful respite from the daily grind. They were celebrated throughout Scotland. Robbie Fishman, a Shetland Islander has described these rituals to a University of Essex interviewer. "People dancing into the small hours after carding of wool and `flatchies' (that is straw pellets) were spread out on the ground so that they could spend the night. This was a signal for the boys to come in." Wakes' weeks in the north and Whitsun in the south of England provided even greater opportunities for sexual encounters to take place. The Victorians linked these events with immorality and succeeded in establishing sex segregation on many beaches used for bathing. The establishment of the Social Purity Movement paraded sexual repression with moral certainty, sexual prudery and Christian zeal. As fascism became ever more assertive, this led to an unashamed desire for racially `pure' stock and a faith in science to deliver the ideal by interfering in sex lives. Of course, Brighton housed high-class courtesans and prostitutes from Regency times, but during the inter-war years, with the development of transport and the ability of single men to afford holidays, Blackpool became the seaside sex capital of the UK. Secret doors linked rooms in hostels for the lovemaking that took place at night. The sex that took place on the beach at night became a national scandal. In 1937, Mass Observation employed 23 investigators to do an anthropological study of beach sex at Blackpool. In a half an hour before midnight they found 232 cases of petting. 120 cases of sitting down and embracing. 42 cases of standing up and embracing. 46 cases of lying on sand and embracing. 25 cases of sitting and kissing. 9 cases of necking in cars. 3 cases of standing and kissing and 7 cases of girls sitting on men's knees. After lines of observers had systematically beat the sand dunes, one observer remarked: "When we began work in Blackpool we expected to see copulation everywhere. What we found was petting, feeling, masturbating one another." Interestingly, the research revealed very few cases of copulation, (only 3). This would no doubt parallel the sex that takes places on Britain's gay beaches and cruising areas today which amounts to little more than oral sex and mutual masturbation. That this alone can cause so much alarm also has its roots in latter day thinking. Professor G Stanley Hall, once the world's leading authority on adolescence, described masturbation in 1911 as an "insidious disease," the "scourge of the human race" and "an influence that seems to spring from the Prince of Darkness." On the gay beach at Prestwick, bulldozers have chomped into the sand dunes where the brazen boy-babes and muscle-Marys, bronzing-up in the hollows are peppered by spent aircraft fuel from planes taking-off and landing at Prestwick Airport. Prestwick pays the price of being the most famous of gay beaches within easy reach of Glasgow. Precious resources are ploughed into the regular moral policing of this stretch of beach which has made designer-label swimwear de rigeur. One regular told me the police regularly sweep the dunes warning gays to cover themselves, accompanied by the well-worn phrase "there have been complaints from members of the public." This would be more believable if the majority of locals didn't appear to be so unfazed by the popularity of the dunes with gays. Or even that it were not such a long walk from where families sit, cracking open cans of Tennants or licking ice cream Snickers on a stretch of beach close to their parked cars. The sight of gay bars, restaurants and gays campsites that otherwise adorn its counterpart in Zandvoort are light-years away. To be continued... (c) Garry Otton 1996 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- OGG'S VIEW ========== BEWARE THE BACKLASH So whilst we are all congratulating ourselves about the Age of Consent victory there were a few worrying straws in the wind last week that made me hesitate to open the second bottle of champagne. Firstly there was a completely uncalled for and vitriolic attack on the vote as a "pædophiles charter" by a Sun columnist, that bastion of the Old Left, Jim Sillars. Secondly a BBC Radio Scotland phone in before the vote saw phone lines jammed with anti gay callers, same thing happened on the prestigious BBC Radio 4 morning debate. Thirdly of course, when at last we have something to be proud about, for the first time in history Pride itself is cancelled by its organisers. The worrying conclusion that could be drawn is that at the very threshold of our greatest success, the enjoyment of equal rights is about to be put to a severe test as a backlash threatens to show some early shoots. I've said before in these columns and I'll keep saying it until someone listens, the average Scots punter has no patience for gay rights, gay moans and gay icons. We are, I suspect generally regarded as people with a mild to moderate personality disorder, more or less harmless except when left in charge of young boys, otherwise good for a laugh (at) providing we don't try to make a pass at them in which case we can hardly expect sympathy (or police or court protection) if a violent response occurs. We are not either regarded as good rôle models in areas of physical courage, sporting prowess, moral rectitude or parental figures. Likewise the general public, in their heart of hearts, don't want their children growing up like us, for the perfectly understandable reasons that our lives consist , to them, of tragically short disease prone, drug immersed shallow destructive relationships which end in ignominious suicides or even less glamorous AIDS related hell. Our heroes and heroines are incomprehensible to them. They either don't venerate them at all (Garland, Oscar Wilde, Doris Day) or they venerate them for all the wrong reasons (Diana, Rock Hudson, Barbra Streisand). They don't see the real joke in drag and are either terrified or sickened by the leather/SM cultural pulse in gaydom. Effeminacy is the only picture they can mentally conjure of a gay man, they have nothing later than a 50's caricature of a lesbian to picture, and frankly that suits their lazy up themselves superiority just fine. Pause to draw a deep breath. You know what I've just written is true. Don't try getting away from the truth by remembering that really understanding straight girl when you were at Uni, or how your mum sends your boyfriend a birthday card too, or how the trades union delegate said he'd fight for a crêche for every gay father in the workplace if you voted for him. Don't comfort yourself with Guardian editorials either, the Edinburgh Evening News easily outsells the whole national sale of that liberal stalwart. There is no shortage of liberal pro gay straights in middle class intellectual or arty farty circles, predominantly English for that matter. But move into the council estates, or the Wimpey estates for that matter, and an altogether different picture like the one described above emerges. One reason we know I'm writing the truth is that we secretly know even our most liberally minded mums and dads harbour, and sometimes can't help betray, these attitudes of regret and disappointment over us. These general thumb nail sketches that huge numbers of straights have of us are fertile ground for those who see votes or newspaper sales in stirring up hatred and fear of us, Expect the response to any gay led debate about a further reduction of age of consent to be represented as gay men's desire all along to get their paws on "our kids". As I said, Jim Sillars, no less, has already opened that war in the Scottish editions of the Sun. The Daily Record will come out fighting to beat the Sun on moral indignation, and you can bet our spokespeople will hand them quotes by the barrowload of politically correct liberalism to stoke up the fury of the editorials. So what's my solution? We have to stop speaking only to the fellow liberals, to our trades union chums, to our political cronies and high falutin' pals in the establishment. Keep them on side of course, keep them committed to realisation of equal rights laws, but for God's sake let's help them and ourselves by talking as a community to ordinary Scotland! Articles, letters, appearances in the media that doesn't always sympathise with us are long overdue. When such a chance arises, don't patronise the reader or viewer with college politics that go over their heads and fail to address their myths and fears. In youth and alternative media, start from the more humble basis that maybe we do as a community have some re-education and explaining to do. We should stop behaving as if only a retard could possibly think anti-gay and should consider that maybe we have failed in our propaganda over the last ten years, pissing punters off with a hectoring, smug and alienating imagery that leaves them cold and disinterested. Let's get something absolutely clear, we need straight Scots folk to want gay people to enjoy our rights. Otherwise no amount of special pleading among the great and the good at Holyrood will make a blind bit of difference to the gay boy or girl in Easterhouse or Muirhouse who wants to set up home, and family, with a lover there. It's time for us to take a tumble to ourselves and realise we tread on new and potentially hazardous ground in a devolved Scotland. Most of the mass media loathes what they say we are. Many Scots have a well nourished chip on their shoulders and are as bigoted as they want when stirred to it, and in a new Parliament there will be many willing to do the stirring. Attitudes among some misguided gays that we are not a community at all, but really just a load of individuals with widely differing aims and needs, just goes to show how woeful political comprehension is these days - (imagine blacks saying that). The concept of and the need for, 'community' is voluntary and informed by the forces at work in any one society at any given point in history. So there. So, I say at this time in our social development in Scotland we, as gays, need to strengthen our sense of community, of common effort and working together, in an act of self interested education of, and reaching out to, the rest of our people, the straight mass of Scots. It's time to say hello and introduce ourselves. Derek Ogg ----------------------------------------------------------------------- INSIDE OUT ========== THE guide to Scotland's lesbian, gay and bisexual scene. Gossip and news and wibble from all over the country. Places to go, parties to crash, and people to meet in the humungous Meet Market. In this issue: Venues - what and where Dun Eideann - scraping the shit Glaschu - speaking pish Dun-Dèagh - the mystery of the invisible librarian Inbhir Nis - ungodly goings on Moireibh - the hub of the universe Boxes - the Meet Market! ----------- VENUES ======= Aberdeen ABERDEEN WOMEN'S CENTRE Shoe Lane, off Queen Street. Tel: (01224) 625010. Fax: 01224 625777. Mon-Fri 9.30-4pm. Where the women hang out. Lesbian group meets Wed 8-10pm. CASTRO BAR AND CLUB 47 Netherkirkgate. Tel: (01224) 624472. Mon-Fri 5pm-2am, Sat-Sun 3pm-2am. Aberdeen's longest established gay venue. CLUB 2000 62 Shiprow. Tel: (01224) 596999. 9pm-2am. Aberdeen's newest gay pub/club. Small and intimate. Cabaret (drag) every Friday. DJ on Saturday. Dundee DEVA'S 75 Seagate. Tel: (01382) 226840. Mon-Sat 11am-Midnight. Dundee's long established gay bar. Dance floor with DJ Thu-Sat. Pool table. Something for everyone! LIBERTY NIGHTCLUB 124 Seagate. Tel: (01382) 200660. Wed-Sun 11pm-2.30am. Good atmosphere, very popular disco with wide selection of sounds and the occasional act/PA. Thursdays and Sundays are quieter - but not much. XS St Andrew's Lane (behind Liberty Nightclub). Tel: (01382) 200660. Mon-Sat 7pm-Midnight. Sun 7-11pm. Cafe/bar for lgbt clientele under the same successful management as Liberty to which it has its own entrance. Edinburgh BENT 100% The Shooting Gallery, Broughton Street. Infoline: 0131-467 2551. Every 4th Saturday. 10pm-3am. ukp5 B4 11pm, ukp7 after. Gay club with strict "Nae Breeder" door policy. BLACK BO'S 57/61 Blackfriars Street. Tel: 0131-557 6136. Daily Noon-2pm (in the bar) and 6pm-10.30pm. Superb little vegetarian restaurant. Friendly staff. Mixed clientele. Excellent value lunch menu. BLUE MOON 1 Barony Street/36 Broughton Street. Tel: 0131-556 2788. Mon-Thu 9am-1am, Fri-Sat 9am-1.30am, Sun 9am-Midnight. Popular lesbigay cafe/bar complex. BOBBIE'S BOOKSHOP 220 Morrison Street. Tel: 0131-538 7069. Mon-Sat 10am-5.30pm. Mixed bookshop selling a selection of UK and imported gay magazines. CAFE KUDOS 22 Greenside Place. Tel: 0131-556 4349. Daily Noon-1am. Food Noon-9pm. Fresh, stylish and always crowded. Mainly gay but tolerant of well behaved heterosexuals. CAFE LUCIA 13-29 Nicolson Street. Tel: 0131-662 1112. Generally 10am-10pm but hours vary according to performances. Mixed bar attached to the Edinburgh Festival Theatre. Full of luvvies and their friends! CATWALK CAFE 2 Picardy Place. Tel: 0131-478 7770. FAX: 0131-478 7771. Not going for a gay clientele, but still decidedly gay friendly. C.C. BLOOM'S 23 Greenside Place. Tel: 0131-556 9331. Mon-Fri 7pm-3am, Sat-Sun 2pm-3am. Karaoke on Thursday and Sunday. Male strippers Sun at 4.30pm. Disco every night from 10.30pm. CITY CAFE 19 Blair Street. Tel: 0131-220 0125. 11am-11pm. Not as outrageously mixed as it used to be, but still seriously conventional. CLAREMONT BAR & RESTAURANT 133/135 East Claremont Street. Tel: 0131-556 5662. FAX: 0131-558 3539. Bar: Mon-Sat 11am-1am, Sun 12.30pm-1am. Restaurant: Mon-Fri 11.30am-2.30pm and 6pm-10pm, Sat 11.30am-10pm, Sun 12.30pm-10pm. Gay owned, gay friendly and renowned for courtesy, comfort and good food. WWW: http://members.aol.com/scifipub E-mail: scifipub@aol.com CLOUDS 16 Forth Street. Tel: 0131-550 3808 FAX: 0131-550 3807. A gay-owned Letting Agency helping people find flatmates/tenants and tenants find flatshares/flats. WWW: http://www.wtm.co.uk/Clouds/clouds.html E-mail: cloudsacc@aol.com CYBERIA 88 Hanover Street. Tel: 0131-220 4403. Daily 10am-10pm (12pm-7pm Sun) Friendly mixed cybercafe with friendly mixed staff. Where the wired queers hang out. WWW: http://www.cybersurf.co.uk/ E-mail: edinburgh@cybersurf.co.uk DIVINE DIVA'S The Venue (Top Floor), 15 Calton Road. Tel: 0131-556 8997. Every fourth Friday - 9.30pm-3am. Women only one nighter with all proceeds going to Edinburgh Switchboard. EDINBURGH LESBIAN GAY AND BISEXUAL CENTRE 58a and 60 Broughton Street. Houses PJ's , Nexus Cafe-Bar, OUTRIGHT Scotland, Pride Scotland and Massage for Health. Also provides meeting and noticeboard space for many lesbigay organisations. Private mailboxes available. FANTASIES 8b Drummond Street. Tel/FAX: 0131-557 8336. Mon-Sat 10am-9pm, Sun Noon-9pm. Scotland's ONLY licenced SEX shop where you'll be made welcome by the very bearish Vince (who's straight) or Paddy (who isn't). Toys galore, video rental too! Glamour shop upstairs. FOUR BBBB's CLUB 26b Dublin Street. Tel: 0131-538 7775. Big Beary Bulky Boys have their own club at Intense in the New Town Bar on the 4th Friday of the month. 8-10pm - bar opens to non members 9pm-1am. FRENCH CONNECTION 89 Rose Street Lane North. Tel: 0131-225 7651. Mon-Sat Noon-1am, Sun 1pm-1am. Intimate bar just off Rose Street Crawl. Never a dull moment. Karaoke Tue/Fri. JOY Wilkie House, Cowgate. JOY Info Line: 0131-467 2551. 10pm-3am. Joy, Scotland's most upfront gay club! ukp7 members/ukp8 non-members (reduced entry of ukp5/ukp6 before 11pm). E-mail: clubjoy@hotmail.com WWW: http://freespace.virgin.net/alanjoy.dj/joyhome.htm MASSAGE FOR HEALTH 58a/60 Broughton Street. Tel: 0131-669 8039 or 0131-478 1090. By appointment only. Therapeutic massage from ITEC qualified practitioners Anne and John. Concessions available. NEW TOWN BAR 26B Dublin Street. Tel: 0131-538 7775. Mon-Thu Noon-1am. Fri-Sat Noon-2am. Sun 12.30pm-1am. Especially popular with Bears, but has wide clientele. Intense, the sub-basement leather and fetish bar is open Wed-Thu 10pm-1am, Fri-Sat 10pm-2am and Sun 10pm-1am - men only, dress code. NEXUS CAFE-BAR 60 Broughton Street. Tel: 0131-478 7069. 11am-11pm. The cafe at the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Centre. Now under new management with a new name and increasingly busy. E-mail: nexus1cb@aol.com No EIGHTEEN 18 Albert Place. Tel: 0131-553 3222. Mon-Sat Noon-10pm, Sun 2-10pm. Sauna club for gay gentlemen - run by a couple of straight Dykes! Open on Sundays - great for that aprs Kirk Session! THE OUTHOUSE Broughton Street Lane. Tel: 0131-557 6668. Mon-Sat Noon-1am. Sun 12.30pm-1am. Gay friendly cafe bar in a small lane in the gay triangle. OUT OF THE BLUE 36 Broughton Street. (Downstairs at the Blue Moon Cafe). Tel: 0131-478 7048. Noon-9pm. New gay and lesbian store selling books, mags, videos, wearing apparel, etc. Providing some welcome competition for Mrs Tubby Bear at PJ's! PERMISSION Shady Lady's, Cowgate. Next date: July 12th 11pm - 3am. Happy Hour 11pm-12am. Pan-sexual fetish club with dance floor & play space. Dress code (anything impressive and non-Nazi). E-mail: permission@hedonism.demon.co.uk Web: http://www.hedonism.demon.co.uk/permission/ PJ'S 60 Broughton Street. Tel: 0131-558 8174. Mon-Sat Noon-7pm, Sun Noon-5pm. Gifts and toys for gay boyz and girlz. ROUTE 66 6 Baxter's Place. Tel: 0131-524 0061. Mon-Sat 12.30pm-1am, Sun 3pm-1am. Misnamed - it's the best Route to a 69 that we've ever found - ask for details of where the bus stops are! A shame they've taken the real ale out. THE STAG & TURRET 1-7 Montrose Terrace. Tel: 0131-478 7231. 11am-late. Friendly gay boozer just round the corner from the Solas Centre. Under new management. SOLAS CAFE 2/4 Abbeymount. Tel: 0131-661 0982. Mon, Tue, Thur, Fri 11am-4pm, Wed 5-9pm. Attached to Solas National HIV Information Centre. Good home cooking (everything cooked on the premises). Both dead animal and veggie. TACKNO Club Mercado, 36-39 Market Street. Tel: 0131-226 4224. Last Sun of each month 11pm-4am. DJ Trendy Wendy. Mixed and crowded club night. TASTE The Honeycomb, 36-38a Blair Street. Tel: 0131-220 4381. Sun 11pm-3am. Weekly mixed members' club with DJs Fisher and Price. THEATRE ROYAL BAR 24 Greenside Place. Tel: 0131-557 2142. Mon-Sat Noon-Midnight. Basically straight, this Real Ale bar (formerly a Gas Board Showroom) in the middle of Edinburgh's Gay Triangle attracts a fair number of queers for an off-scene pint before heading for nearby fleshpots. WEB 13 13 Bread Street. Tel: 0131-229 8883. Mon-Fri 9am-10pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun Noon-6pm. Informal mixed cybercafe with homely and approachable staff. WWW: http://www.web13.co.uk/ E-mail: queries@web13.co.uk Falkirk DROOKIT DUCK 16 Grahams Road. Tel: (01324) 613644. Mon 11am-3pm and 5pm-11.30. Tue-Thu 11am-3pm and 5pm-12.30am. Fri-Sat 11am-1am. Sun 7pm-Midnight. Straight bar used by a few discrete local gays. Near to Grahamston station. Galashiels GREEN'S DINER 4 Green Street. Tel: (01896) 757667. Mon-Tue 10am-5pm. Wed-Sat 10am-10pm. Mixed. discreet trendy cafe/bar. Regular meeting place for all Border Town lesbians, gays and bisexuals. Closed Sundays. Glasgow AUSTINS 183a Hope Street. Tel: 0141-332 2707. Mon-Fri 4pm-Midnight, Sat-Sun 2pm-Midnight. Friendly and busy basement pub. Entertainment most evenings. Happy hours: Mon-Fri 4-9pm, Sat 7-10pm. BENNETS NIGHTCLUB 90 Glassford Street. Tel: 0141-552 5761. Tue-Sun 11pm-3am. Beautifully appointed busy club. Frequent PAs. Tuesdays are straight. CCA Centre for Contemporary Arts, 350 Sauchiehall Street. Tel: 0141-332 0522. Centre open Mon-Wed 9am-11pm Thur-Sat 9am-Midnight Sun Noon-5pm. Bookshop Mon-Sat 10am-6pm Sun Noon-5pm. Galleries Mon-Sat 11am-6pm Sun Noon-5pm (admission free). Two galleries, two performance spaces, cafe bar and bookshop. Lesbigay friendly place bustling with life, the universe and everything. Wheelchair accessible apart from upstairs performance space. E-mail: gen@cca-glasgow.com CAFFE LATTE 58 Virginia Street. Tel: 0141-553 2553. Mon-Sun Noon-Midnight. European style diner. Relaxed atmosphere. Wide selection of pastas, pizzas and sandwiches. CENTURION 19 Dixon Street. Tel: 0141-248 4485. Fax: 0141-400 1080. Sauna and Shop: Sun-Fri Noon-10pm, Sat Noon-Late (Allnighter). New Steam Room all the way from Peterborough. Very busy on Sundays! CLONE ZONE 35 Virginia Street. Tel: 0141-552 3103. Mon-Wed 10.30am-6pm, Thu-Sat 10.30am-10pm, Sun 1.30-7pm. The largest gay shop in Scotland. Clothes, videos, magazines, toys. WWW: http//www.czone.demon.co.uk/ COURT BAR 69 Hutcheson Street. Tel: 0141-552 2463. Mon-Sat 11am-Midnight, Sun 8.30pm-Midnight. Small bar beside former Sheriff Court. Straight until mid-evening. DELMONICA'S BAR AND GRILL 68 Virginia Street. Tel: 0141-552 4803. Daily Noon-Midnight. Busy pub with backroom area (not THAT kind of backroom!). GLASGOW GAY & LESBIAN CENTRE 11 Dixon Street. Tel/FAX: 0141-221 7203. Mon-Sat 10am-10pm, Sun Noon-5pm. Glasgow's community centre for lesbians, gay men and bisexuals. Cafe. Other businesses in the centre include Asset Mortgages. Two large meeting rooms available for hire. Not as busy as it should be - it needs your support! Fully wheelchair accessible venue. WWW: http://www.gglc.org.uk/gglc/ E-mail: gglc@gglc.org.uk INTERNET CAFE 569 Sauchiehall Street. Tel: 0141-564 1052. Mon-Fri 9am-11pm, Sat 10am-11pm, Sun 11am-11pm. Friendly staff, mixed clientele, full Internet access from ukp2 per half hour. Food served all day. WWW: http://www.linkcafe.co.uk/ E-mail: tim@linkcafe.co.uk THE LANE 60 Robertson Street Lane (off Argyle Street). Tel: 0141-221 1802. Noon-10pm. "Exotic Gay Men's Club" with sauna and private cabins. Promotional offers. Look for the green light. LOVE BOUTIQUE The Arches, Midland Street. Tel: 0141-221 9736. 11pm-3am. 1st Saturday of the month. Busy mixed club popular with the younger crowd. OVER THE RAINBOW BISTRO 6 Kersland Street. Cafe: Thur-Tue 9am-5pm. Bistro: Mon-Sat 7-11pm. Friendly cafe/bistro in the heart of the West End run by two beautiful, recently married, drama queens. Mixed clientele. Full vegetarian menu available. BYOW. Booking advised in the evening. PENELOPE'S 18 Jamaica Street. Tel: 0141-400 1423. Tue 11pm-3am. Weekly club night. DJ Boff. Regular PAs and drinks promos. Entry ukp2/ukp3. THE POLO LOUNGE 84 Wilson Street. Tel: 0141-553 1221. Mon-Thu Noon-1am, Fri-Sun Noon-3am. Upmarket bar. Piano Bar on Tuesdays, Jazz on Sundays. Trophy Room now open. Voted No.1 club in UK by Boyz. QC's CAFE-BAR GGLC, 11 Dixon Street. Tel: 0141-204 5418. Mon-Sat 10am-10pm, Sun Noon-5pm. The tastefully decorated eaterie for the Glasgow Gay and Lesbian Centre. SADIE FROST'S 8-10 West George Street. Tel: 0141-332 8005. Noon-Midnight. Bar meals Noon-7pm. Friendly staff who compliment the upmarket decor. Nice and convenient for rail travellers to the North and East of Scotland. TIN PAN ALLEY 39 Mitchell Street. Tel: 0141-248 7377. Mon-Tue. 11pm-3am. Entry ukp2/3. Drinks ukp1.50. Tacky and cruisy as ever (in the nicest possible way). TRON THEATRE CAFE BAR 63 Trongate. Tel: 0141-552 8587. Noon-Midnight. Friendly theatre bar. Mixed. VICTORIA BAR 157-159 Bridgegait. Tel: 0141-552 6040. Mon-Sat 11am-Midnight, Sun 12.30pm-Midnight. Basically straight, but justly popular with Glasgow's many Real Ale queens and dykes. THE WATERLOO 306 Argyle Street. Tel: 0141-221 7359. Daily Noon-Midnight. Semper idem! Popular, crowded, down to earth gay drinking shop. Scotland's oldest gay bar - what more can we say? Busy, busy, busy! Inverness NICO'S BAR/BISTRO Glen Mhor Hotel, Ness Bank. Tel: (01463) 234308. Wed and Fri 9-11pm. Smart relaxed bar popular with local gays especially on Wednesday and Friday nights (9.15pm onwards). Mixed clientele. Stirling BARNTON BISTRO 3 1/2 Barnton Street. Tel: (01786) 461698. Mon-Thur 10.30am-11.45pm, Fri-Sat 10.30am-12.45am, Sun Noon-11.45pm. (Food: Day and early evening). Near to railway station, Mixed, busy, bohemian and friendly bar/bistro. Popular with students and Sons/Daughters of the Rock alike. Good food. Real Ale. InsideOut: a monthly magazine for lesbians, gays and bisexuals. ISSN: 1360-9327. Edited, printed and published in Scotland. (c) Pageprint Publishing Limited, June 1998. PO Box 666, Edinburgh. EH7 5JW. In even numbered months, InsideOut appears as part of ScotsGay. Non profit use by the lesbigay community of material in the magazine will normally be permitted free of charge - but contact us first for permission. We haven't had sex with most of the people who appear in the magazine, so we don't actually know what their sexuality is. Editorial: Tel: 0131-539 0666. Fax: 0131-539 2999. E-mail: scotsgay@drink.demon.co.uk. Internet World-Wide-Web: http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/ Advertising: Tel: 0131-558 1279. Fax: 0131-539 2999. Subscribing by E-mail: Send a 'subscribe scotsgay-list' message to listserver@drink.demon.co.uk and the text files of future editions will be delivered to you by e-mail. --------------------------------------------------------------- DUN EIDEANN =========== So where were you on the day? Mmm, recuperating... a lost clubber's dream; remember - scintillating, scorching, simper-muscle deep sounds searing through a roar of undulating torso-sheen crowds at Fire Island torching the innards of the Venue... well!! damp; certainly, being the Vaults, but it was not my lungs I had in mind, an island; undoubtedly, as there were only twelve of us boyz trapped by an ukp8 door charge and a flash fire of hostile heterosexuals - toted as an event for OUR ONE weekend of the year!! Get it right else yer ass is toast, honey. Uz Gay Boyz Is Gittin' A Might Miffy With Unscrupulous Promoters. No tellin' what a boy might do with an inferno on board, no hard cash in the back o' his jeans and no place tae go! Actually, scraped my shit together for a Scotrail caffeine fix and Ian's smile, as ever impish, though Blue Moon customers will miss the party boy today. Mr & Mrs Glasgow public definitely on the cheery side of boyz & gals shrieking laldy on our burgeoning Scottish march, though my friend Vicky wiznae supported solely by the float she was on and the swali continued thereafter flowing tides of gals & boyz from beer tent to club tent. Besieging a pop icon occupied some boyz, gals thrived on surround sound torch song karoake, others kept mongoose watch in the main stage area, some slogan shopped "YES I AM" / "BOYS WHO DO BOYS" or were seduced by some salacious cockney blond into pink pound power, the Red Ribbon credit card offered by MNEB. From Universal Church through all things rainbow and pierced to baguette belly, buddies to budweiser were courted, but a bop in the club tent saved all from a barely indulgent Glasgow cloud genie who turned progressively sour at exclusion from grolsch-snogs and sheer clad toti whisper nudging on the dance floor squeeze. Even that leveller of all humanity, Portaloo had upgraded to a palatable outdoor washing facility. Revelling on, the crowd determined that moment, instinct kicked in, last minute shag-pouts were abandoned, Delmonica's scent raced through the arteries, dance divas ascended tables, chairs, whatever and we all became friends of Frankenfurter. Packing in boyz-heat even convinced this reviewer to join the half monty while fixing on the nearest shiny pecs, hopelessly outsyncing Time Warp. World Cup bar throngs titillated endless thirsty punters weaving through the Cafe Latte - Delmonicas - Polo Lounge toti trawl, until the decision couldn't be avoided... was it to be a Polo Lounging popparty / a Bennets bopdrop, or the camel run back for luscious Luvely / boyz-busting Bent? All were swamped to the nipple piercings with boyz and gals, methinks even the Southerners are developing a taste for Scottish (by head count!!). Trawling home on the 4:30am bus was not a high point, when followed by winter rain and an absence of Sunday LRT until 7am!! Rumplestiltskin arose at 7pm and still had party left in him. One cannot deny the joy of an Edinburgh peopling its summer with the happy folk from all corners of the globe, and speaking of Joy it seems a sure fire bet for straight boys to score a shag off those modern women who just have to have the gay boyfriend, but 3am is a watershed to reveal us all, body politic rules n'est pas! Nigel Chipps ------------------------------------------------------------------- GLASCHU ======= "Nation Shall Speak Pish Unto Nation" - I'm Talking, So Shut It!! Summer at last! You can always tell, can't you? Fat, horrible, ugly people trying to look trendy in shorts and skimpy T-shirts - aargh! Roll on winter when they cover all that barfy white flab back up again. Still, I suppose it does give us a chance to ogle all the pretty young bits of stuff dancing topless in the clubs at the moment. Mind you, it's been quite uncomfortable out on the town some nights, with the clubs packed full of hot, sweaty bodies, especially if you're like me (who is?) and feel a bit hot and sticky under all this hair. Yeah - I know it's my own fault for not conforming to the fashion police, and getting a nice, cool, short, trendy (boring), identikitJanet hairdo, just 'cos I'm melting under my mop! Now, is it just me, or has this warm weather brought all the arseholes crawling out from the woodwork? Seems like everywhere I go just now, some gurgling, drunken twat latches on to me, trying to engage in some totally incomprehensible load of gibberish! You know the type. They start off with "Y' awlright?", then launch into the usual "How old are youse?/What do you do?/What's your name?/Fancy a blowjob?", stop briefly to draw breath then ask the same crap all over again. Let's face it, these sad bastards are never going to get into anybody's knickers (especially mine) if they're always so fucking pissed they can't even remember somebody's name for more than five minutes! And have you noticed the number of cissies around who wouldn't normally give a shit about football who are currently twittering on and on about the World Cup? BORING! Who cares? Mind you, it was nice to see America getting their best arse-licking since Vietnam by Iran of all people, who well and truly pissed all over them. I'll be glad when it's all over, and the cissies get back to twittering on about their new frocks, hairdos, music, last night's shag, and all the other shite they usually waffle on about. Mind you, I suppose the English FootieJanets will be having a good drool over the very pretty Michael Owen. I'll bet there's a good few who wouldn't mind shagging the arse off HIM! Pride got a record attendance this year, with ten thousand lesbigays getting their arse down to Glasgow Green for the piss-up. Couldn't help but feel sorry for all those who'd been in the beer tent and had to spend ages queueing to get to the bogs - never learn, do you? As usual, ScotsGay had a stand in the market area (it was the one with all the bits of telephone equipment on it, and don't ask me why 'cos I don't know either) and we had a fair few people coming up to meet Heather, Seumas, CalMac, the Great Bald One and myself. I also got the chance to catch up on the gossip from Dod 'n' Bunty town from all those who'd come down for the day. It's actually amazing just how many Aberdonians have made it over the wire since I've been in Glasgow. The Smirnoff Dance Tent was jumping too, so I'm told, although I didn't actually go for a boogie myself 'cos I'd get slagged rotten for acting like all the disco bunnies! I heard a few moans about the music not being loud enough, but I suppose this was something to do with the noise limit being imposed. Despite this, everyone seemed to have a good time and I suspect the higher-than-expected turnout may have been due to the numbers of people not going to London Pride this year due to the admission charge. For me, the most frustrating thing about this year's Pride was the fact that the prettiest guy there was straight! Bloody marvellous. Oh, and wasn't it amazing to see how houseproud the crowd was, putting all their litter in the bins - imagine the mess that 10,000 breeders would have left. I had a bit of a moan last month about the price of soft drinks in Penelope's and was pleased (along with a good few others) to see that they're a lot more reasonable now- the power of the press and all that! I thought I was seeing things a couple of weeks ago when DJ Boff came over for a natter with his pet rat on his shoulder - you ever tried having a conversation with a furry animal twitching its gnashers inches away? Bizarre! Penelope's seems to have pretty much taken over from Tin Pans on Tuesday although they still appear to be doing OK on Monday. Which reminds me - DJ Stella has asked me to pass on his apologies for his non-appearance a couple of weeks ago, but he'd had enough of them not paying him on time and has now severed all links with the venue. And I've also been asked to mention that the Friday night JOY bash will not be going ahead 'cos they fucked Alan about too! At last the much hated curfew has been moved back an hour, to the great delight of bar staff working in other pubs who no longer have the mad dash to get their own pub cleared up, change out of their black and whites into their disco frocks and dash along to Bennets or the Poo before the doors close. Some of the clubs have started giving out pass-outs so you can go from one place to another and then back without having to pay twice. Not that us guest-list blaggers have to pay in the first place! Didn't get down to the Mr Bear UK competition as planned, but head-bear Doug tells me they hope to have things organised better next year. Anyway, they'll be looking for a lot more entrants next time around, but in the meantime they're still holding their meetings round at the Court Bar. Dates, times and contact stuff in the listings. Well now, Tony (fuck the poor and kiss Sierra-man's arse) Blair finally allowed the free vote on the age of consent, and we got 16 as predicted. Pretty tame debate really without out favourite bigots of the old days jumping on the religious bandwagon. Don't you just miss all the old, dead farts such as Nick Fairbairn and co.? Quite ironic that we used to have people like old Tricky Nicky spouting fire and brimstone according to Leviticus, yet conveniently neglecting the parts about adulterers being put to death. Predictably, the blue-rinse brigade got their knickers in a twist, quoting some dubious poll showing that the Great British Public believed no change should be made. So what? What's it for to do with them anyway? Let's face it, do we really need the Sun-reading, Blind Date-watching, brain dead proletariat sticking their noses into stuff that doesn't concern them? The great unwashed are generally incapable of forming a rational opinion about anything unaided, and only a fool could seriously claim that their views about us are relevant in the name of Democracy. Austins are arranging a Christmas party on July 25th. You'll have to excuse me for not sounding too enthusiastic, but I thought the idea of these extemporaneous piss-ups died out back in the 80s. Nil points for originality! Big box of Smarties to Mr Nash over at the Poo for the current crop of very pretty bits of fluff currently working behind the bar. Here's hoping this current crop last a bit longer than usual as there really is some serious talent on the payroll for a change! And talking of things not lasting for long, it would appear that some of the students have got those nice new advertising frames currently adorning the Poo bogs firmly in their sights as souvenirs. If my own experience of drunken students collecting pub fixtures and fittings is anything to go by, I predict some poor bugger getting landed with the job of Polyfilla-ing in all the holes after the raiding party. You can actually untwist the fittings for these between the prongs of a fork, but we used to get some punters in who'd just lever the whole bloody thing off the wall, along with a few pounds of plaster! At the moment, the rumour merchants are working overtime regarding the opening of a new gay club that was recently announced. Most of the stories doing the rounds are the usual predictable crap and yet again, ScotsGay can exclusively reveal the truth behind the rumours. Unfortunately, the deal is now off, and the club will definitely NOT be opening. Despite having given the go ahead for the new club, the owners of the building suddenly changed their minds after being made a last minute offer for the premises by the owners of another Glasgow club. This other club is looking for a new venue, as they are currently appealing against the revocatiuon of their drinks licence. Obviously, it would make sense for them to have an alternative venue up and running if the section 31 order is successful. But if the appeal is upheld, then the club may not wish to split their existing trade between two venues. In this event, they have said that they might look at running the new place as a gay club. Given the poor trading history of the new venue, this could prove to be a good option as the projected figures for running it as a gay business compare very favourably with the straight turnover the club was recently achieving. In the meantime there are long faces all around for those concerned, including Stella, who was going to be organising the music and PAs, myself as I'd been asked to manage it, and various others who had been offered jobs. Anyway, something good may yet come out of it all, depending on the outcome of the appeal to the licensing board, but don't hold your breath!! You know, one of the best things about doing this column is all these people who come up to say how much they like the mag and to give me a pat on the back for not being scared to write stuff that the pubs and clubs don't like! Unfortunately there are a few people who seem to think that I'm going to be annoyed or offended by them talking to me, so they end up apologising for troubling me and so on. Now, I know that my appearance and reputation tends to scare a few people off, but I'm not really all THAT bad, so if anybody wants me to cover anything, just grab hold of me when you see me out on the town and I'll gladly have a chat about forthcoming events, suggestions etc. You can't miss me 'cos I stick out like a sore thumb - just keep a lookout for the long-haired heavy metal nutter in the tatty old bike jacket. I don't bite people's heads off - honest! Well, except for when I get interrupted when I'm out on the prowl for a shag. Right then, I think that's about it for this month. Complaints, bribes, moans, mucky pictures (that reminds me 'Ms Maher', where's all that Internet porn you promised me?), compliments, indecent suggestions and death threats to the usual address at the back of the mag. Keep on rockin', Minerva minerva@drink.demon.co.uk ----------------------------------------------------------- DUN-DEAGH ========= Glasgow Green was host to a fair contingent of Dundonians for what all agree was a brilliant day & night out organised by Pride Scotland. The talent was cracking and I don't just mean main stagers Somerville, Horse and Mizz Dunbar. Local wimmin Vikki and Shelley were evident. Also playing in the Smirnoff Dance Tent in between Stella and a Radio Clyde DJ that none of us Eastcoasters knew was the talented Liberty spinner DJ "BP". So if you were unable to go due to the cancellation of the (dis)organised bus then you missed yourself. It was of course this very column which first broke the news that Pride Scotland may be interested in a mini event in Dundee. I understand that the matter was taken a little further along with more than a little wine by the committee and one Dundee venue owner. Size as we all know is not always the most important considerarion (shite) and with visitors from Aberdeen and further North as well as some Central Belters this has a chance. The idea of 'safety in numbers' might even bring one or two Dundonians OUT in their home town. We certainly need something to bring people out in Dundee as the scene's three venues have been rather empty on some nights. Even the inevitable pool tables and table football games have failed to entice people. Could this be due to this little football game going on in Frogland? I'm just waiting for one of the pub owners to come up to me and say "use it or lose it" 'cause that has been traditionally the kiss of death. I for one fear returning to the days of entering Oscars back passage! Poorly attended also was a benefit evening for Lisa and Jill, the 'Southwest Trains Two' who are campaigning for equal treatment. The door charge of three bucks may have appeared a little steep to some. However the venue Devas which appeared to be trying harder has left broken glass doors unrepaired and both toilets are recommended only for the desperate or those who have nasal blockage. They seek him here they seek him there but the Sheriff Officers still have not located the Chief Librarian or should it be Chief Blunderer of the Bibliotek. The trail of debt achieved in Dundee would keep a News of the World reporter busy investigating for a month. The gay community awaits with baited breath to see who takes it over and whether oor Karen will try to knock Brenda off her high horse (sorry pedestal!). Devas World Enterprises appear to be expanding with the acquisition of Butch Hostelry The Pillars. The deal will be or perhaps was by the time you read this, met with disbelief by the licensed trade. It's not only Frank Sinatra whose life terminated recently. The Women's Disco Group has lost the Sinatras pub venue after some years and an apparent change of management policy. Liberty was again begged to save the day which they did with just hours notice apparently. The Wimmin have of course thanked them in the usual style. The next Wimmins Night is in the Galleon on the 11th July. Had to make do with watching it on Top of the Pops which has harmed my street cred no end. Surprise surprise Dana International didn't quite make it to Dundee or Scotland for that matter! Was she concerned that our weather might have affected those implants? Hopefully she'll have some miming lessons before she does come as the lack of synchronisation reminded me of a ventriloquist I once knew or was it his dummy? Miss Liberty was letting what's left of her hair down at her 40th Birthday Bash. Was it giving away the free drinks, T shirts and CDs that got her crying, our rendition of Happy Birthday or that she lost out to one of her staff to see who could shag the stripper first? Local singer Blonde and local stripper Mack complimented the party atmosphere which was also experienced by some familiar faces from Glasgay. So there you have it in Bonnie Dundee. With the students away from the uni we are keen for some fresh meat that's over the legal age and under the pension age... so that excludes wur Editor!! See ya soon in the City of Discovergay! Liquid Silk ---------------------------------------------------------------------- INBHIR NIS ========== A Highland Episcopal bishop has become the latest to give his blessing to gay, lesbian and bisexual lovers as well as homosexual clergy. Bishop Gregor MacGregor of Moray, Ross and Caithness has linked up with the Scottish Primus, the Most Rev. Richard Holloway and the bishop of Brechin, The Right Rev. Neville Chamberlain. This sort of stance has caused outrage throughout the Anglican Communion and could disrupt a conference to be held in Canterbury starting July 18th. The "Lambeth Conference" is called by the Archbishop of Canterbury every 10 years. Bishop MacGregor et al support a document entitled Statement of Koinonia which claims that homosexuality is morally neutral and can be lived out with beauty, honour, holiness and integrity. A local lay reader of the church was sacked recently by the bishop for attacking his integrity and his views and also the opinion of the Primus by saying that it (homosexuality) was ungodly. The farmer from North Kessock also said it was the most controversial item on the agenda. This column is being written on the night that will see the age of consent lowered to 16 in line with heterosexuals. No doubt that will allow many sighs of relief up and down the country, let alone the Highlands, so Bishop MacGregor's comments are well timed. Other news North:- Reach Out Highlands' new centre at 34 Waterloo Place was officially opened by Roy Kilpatrick of Healthy Gay Scotland and the Scottish Voluntary HIV and AIDS Forum on Friday June 19th. A good crowd turned up, with many others popping in throughout the afternoon and the evening. Mr Kilpatrick said the Centre was "a new step forward for the Highlands". He also said that "one of the myths of HIV was that it was perceived not to be a problem in rural areas" when interviewed by ScotsGay (the only Scottish GLB publication to send a reporter to this opening). Speaking to Jackie Redding, Manager of R.O.H, about the threat from the upgraded services and new look of the G.U.M clinic at Rangmore, she said that "There is no competition", that R.O.H enjoyed "a good working relationship with the G.U.M" and that it was "good that there is a choice. Reach Out also hopes to increase its services with a new Hepatitis Clinic run by the Centre's Registered Nurse which will be testing for Hep A, B and C and vaccinating against Hep A and B. The Centre also hopes to restart the helpline which previously was aimed more at gay men and was disbanded due to the lack of calls. However, with more and more calls being received on the Centre's answering service out of hours - on all subjects and from all sexualities, it has been decided to look into a new helpline being set up. Jackie continued to say that the Centre now employs two full time and five part time staff, with two permanent volunteers. The Centre could do with more volunteers, said Jackie, so if anyone is interested, please get in touch. (See listings). Two interesting bits of news now. Speaking to an Australian tourist in Nico's recently I was delighted to hear that he had found out where to go to find gay life in the town. He had arrived not knowing where to go or what to do when he spotted and recognised the sign and emblems at R.O.H. (which had literally only been put up a couple of hours earlier that day). He went in and found out the information he needed and proceeded to have a great night at Nico's as a result. Just goes to show the power of an emblem. The other bit of news I was "tickled pink" to hear was told to me by a local young man who had missed out on reading his latest copy of ScotsGay (and this column) before going on holiday to Rome. It all ended well, though, as much to his surprise (and Calmac's delight) he came across a copy of the issue required whilst in Rome in some establishment that he visited. What can we at ScotsGay say - that really says it all, doesn't it. Now what else? Oh yes, how can I forget - a van-load of merry folk including a few local celebs all piled into a minibus organised by the newly formed Pride of Moray Firth Social Group and headed off down to this year's Pride. The mood at 7am when we met was slightly tetchy, however the Moray gang turned up on time (a world first) and the mood soon blossomed racing down the A9 screaming our tits off. (Adding to the general amusement were the several bemused garage staff and customers we left in our glittering wake along the way). Despite arriving at Glasgow Green to dump off stuff prior to the march and then the van "dying" on us and having to hot foot it (pink hair and glitter in evidence) through Glasgow to meet the march at George Square, the rest of the weekend went swimmingly (alcoholically) well. Of course nobody hardly managed to meet anyone else at the designated meeting points, but heh, the weekend was full of dramas including Calmac ending up 3 floors up a scaffolding erection at 3am Sunday morning (but the less said about that the better). Also met the gorg Minerva (Rapunzel!) - nice to see ya sweetie. Anyway, final bitz 'n' pieces now. Anyone else think the barman in the Aberdeen column in the last issue was cute? I've actually seen him in the flesh before - I went quite weak when he served me my pint. Greetings to "Welshman" who is covering for Gussie. By the way - GUSSIE, WHERE ARE YOU? - phone me soon. Moray have obviously decided they want to write their own column (exclusive bitches!) so best of luck to Dr Kenniff and Matron Hattie (two folk to write a column?? who does what??) Even Liquid Silk can write on her own (oops sorry Silky xxx) By the way, wot was our illustrious editor thinking of putting a "Good Gay sex advice 0896 numbers ad" in my column?? (Has Mrs Calmac been complaining again John?) Anyway, that's all folks, see you around, take care, and for all you 16 year olds out there..... HAVE FUN!!! (safely) Calmac calmac@drink.demon.co.uk ------------------------------------------------------------- MOIREIBH ======== Hi! from the Hub of the Universe. Did you all enjoy Pride, then? We've survived to tell you all the sordid details and pass on all the gossip from this neck of the woods! We had organised transport to take an assorted (as in "lick-or-sit" all-sorts, Mr. Bassett) bunch from Moray, Nairn and Inverness to the big day out on Glasgow Green, so we swarmed out of our caves and mud huts, rivers and lochs (hi! Calmac) in the wee sma' hoors to head for the Great Metropolis, all rigged out in our finest and cluttered up with various makeup bags, banners and paraphernalia for our stalls. To the disgust of our driver, Charlie Chicken, many of us couldn't seem to last more than ten miles without a "smoko" break (actually just an excuse to check out every possible cottage along the way!), but the merry band finally arrived at Glasgow Green at 11.30am, where the minibus promptly threw a tantrum and refused to go any further! (Bloody Queen!) So there we were in all our feather boas and glitter mincing across Glasgow, going the opposite way from everyone else on the march! However we met up with the parade in George Square and slipped ourselves into a comfortable gap (just another day!), ending up back where we'd started! Whilst most everyone else was off enjoying the festivities, the good 'Matron' was tethered to a stall dispensing condoms and femadoms to (seemingly) every pre-pubescent and hooker in Glasgow! After the stall collapsed under her weight, she was led wailing to the nearest beer tent and lavishly supplied with 'medicine' to make things better! She ended up in the company of two 'hetero' women, and later (having somehow forgotten the name of her hotel) was picked up by a 'straight' Celtic supporter and finally ended up dossing down in Central Station! Unfortunately for some, after a good night's kip the bitch is fully recovered! (At least that's what Dr. Kenniff says!) The rest of the gang scattered throughout the various pubs and clubs of Glasgow, and quite a number of hangovers were reported the next day when, after a real queens shopping trip, the weary crew wended their way back North. (At this point an apology to Calmac is in order. We mistakenly assumed that he got his 'tricks' at Loch Ness. Not a bit of it! Apparently, if you want to see his 'Tarzan' routine you need look no further than the nearest scaffolding where, by all accounts, he does it in style!!!) Oh, yes, the minibus started up first time after the rally, and gave no further problems (definitely a 'Priscilla'!). Apart from our adventures in Glasgow, we had another barbecue at Longmorn on the 20th, which was very well attended, and included a visit from some of our Invernesian buddies and also a rare, but delightful appearance by La Doyenne Tanya and her accomplice Jungle Jane. With the usual monthly bash at 'Jollity' Farm this weekend, it's been quite a hectic June! Next on the agenda is a Fancy Dress Disco on the 17th July at the Parkhouse Hotel in Elgin, and we believe that Highland Youth Gay Group are having their Second Birthday Party Disco in Inverness on the 24th July. And then, on the 1st August (courtesy of Freddie and Michael), Pride of Moray Firth Social Group are having their main event of the summer, a barbecue and summer party at the fabulous Rothes Glen Hotel, which should go on for at least twenty-four hours, so if anyone out there is interested in joining us for any of these events, please get in touch - the more the merrier, we say!! Now be good, everybody, and remember, Penilingus (better known as 'Matron Hattie'- licky, licky!) say, "If you don't use a rubber, you're liable to be erased!" Dr. Kenniff & 'Matron' Hattie jollity@jollity.demon.co.uk ---------------------------------------------------------------- SCOTSGAY VOICE PERSONALS ======================== It's completely free to place your ad on 0800 138 4121 We'll print your ad in our next few issues and you can pick up replies on 0891 556613. That's also the number for our Browse Hotline - 0891 556613. Calls to 0891 cost 50p per minute which is half the price charged by some other gay magazines! See magazine for full conditions of service. ScotsGay Voice For 1-2-1 To reply to ScotsGay Voice Ads, phone 0891 556613 (calls charged at 50p per minute) and use the number at the end of the ad. You can leave your own ad FREE on FREEphone 0800 138 4121. Aberdeenshire Dennis, mid 40's, 6' tall, medium built, good looking, athletic type. Looking for mature attractive gent medium to well built. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8823. Len 49, 5'9", brown hair, overweight, come to bed eyes, passive, loves cuddles and masculine, hairy men, non smokers. Strong friendship/1-2-1. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8819. Dundee Steve, 29, 5'11", well built, green eyes, cropped hair, clean shaven. Into most things: pubs, clubs, soccer. Looking for younger guy, 18-25, good looking and into same things pref non scene but not essential. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8803. Edinburgh Bruce, 30, good looking, slim, straight acting skinhead, 5'8", looking for bottoms under 25, any race or colour for indoor fun. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8788. Theo 33, 5'8", chubby, well endowed, short brown hair, looking for an older man who likes good fun. Can travel and accommodate. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8755. Fife 31 year old overweight Fife guy looking for 18-30 for fun and friendship. Interests are football, music and going out. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8742. Edinburgh Area David, 24, dark blond hair, a few body piercings, into leather, rubber and older guys with facial hair. Seeking guy over 5'9", 30+, into leather/rubber, preferably with facial hair. Like guys who smoke cigars but this is not essential. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8664. Bob from Montrose Please get in touch with Mike. Please call - you have my number and my pager. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8607. Tayside Peter, 5'10", early 40's, fit, brown hair, smokey grey eyes. Into most things in life, GSOH, lot of love for whoever is interested in that sort of thing. Love wine, long weekends in and then to bed. Masseur, aromatherapist, photographer and nurse. Looking for 20's to early 40's - non smoker preferred. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8522. Glasgow Wanted: Tall, lean, dominant biker to subjugate and wrestle this slim leather clad pillion into submission. Addicted to bondage and leather. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 8497. 23 Year Old Edinburgh 5'11", short brown hair, slim build, likes pubs, sport, football and music. Looking for similar 18-27 year old. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 7991. Edinburgh 23 year old, 5'11", into music, pubs, clubs, badminton. Looking for similar 18-26 year old in Edinburgh or Glasgow. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 7280. Leather Trevor, 28. Bi-curious but into leather. Ready to go the full hog with dominant leather man. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 7112. Daddy's Boy? Uncle Andy, 48, is looking for Daddy's Boys 18-35 for no strings fun. Light discipline if required. Anywhere - can travel or accommodate. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 7040. Central Scotland David, 6', 32, blond hair, blue eyes, passive, smooth skinned. Into rubber, leather, waders, etc. Seeks genuine older guy(s) - not overweight - for fun. You won't be disappointed. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 6691. Glasgow Guy in 40's seeks the company of young slim guy(s) under 26 who prefer the company of older men. Phone: 0891 556613 - Number 6411. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- BOXES - THE SCOTSGAY MEET MARKET ================================ To reply to a Contact Ad: By e-mail: We can now accept replies by e-mail for Box Numbers. They should be sent to boxreplies@drink.demon.co.uk and will be printed out and posted on by snail mail to the box number holders. There will be no charge for this service. As box number holders are unlikely to have access to e-mail, please include your name and address so that they can get back to you! And remember to include the box number that you're replying to clearly on each reply. By snail mail: Just pop your reply in an envelope with the box number written in the TOP RIGHT corner and place the envelope with your reply inside another envelope with two loose first class stamps. If you are writing from outside the UK, an International Reply Coupon (IRC) should be enclosed for each reply instead of postage stamps. International Reply Coupons are available from most Post Offices throughout the world. We are unable to send on replies without postage stamps or IRCs. Send all replies to: ScotsGay Magazine, Pageprint Limited, PO Box 666, Edinburgh. EH7 5YW. To place a Contact Ad: Write to the above address enclosing your advertisement copy. Ads are FREE of charge to the advertiser. Or you can send them by e-mail to scotsgay@drink.demon.co.uk Personal Ads in ScotsGay's Meet Market are read by more people than any other Scottish Gay Title! WOMEN Looking for friendship Transsexual, post op, 33, looking for lesbian. Likes weight training, badminton, walking, music and cinema, evenings in/out. Box SG22007. Bisexual Female Seeks Feminine Bi Female. I'm 32, have a shapely figure. 5'4" tall, have blue eyes, fair hair and am looking for friendship, passion and fun. Travel not a problem. Single mums welcome. Non-smokers please! Box SG22034. Edinburgh Gay Woman Early 40s, good-natured and easy going WLTM genuine soul-mate for lasting, caring, sharing relationship. Prefer 40+, looks or size not important. Box SG22061. MEN North East Scotland Guy looking to meet others 25 - 45 who are interested in spanking fun, giving taking or both. Frank letter with photo and phone number ensures reply. Box SG22001. Glasgow Chubby-Chaser Required 28 year old, 5'9", 19 stone, short cropped hair (what's left), green eyes in search of a 1-2-1. Interests include cinema, music and computing. ALAWP. Box SG22002. Training Partner Wanted! Hi, I'm 34, 6'6" tall, dark hair and blue eyes, seriously unfit at the moment, but I have started fencing and I am looking for a partner to come fencing with me. Like me you should be at a fairly beginner stage and around the same age +/- its up to you! Looking forward to a fitter Summer! Box SG22004. 40's The Gay world is extremely ageist. But 40+ is such a great age to be. This Chinese guy would love to meet with a bearded 40-something who has lived and is still living ! Sense of humour Box SG22005. Use Me At Your Place Hi I am 31 yo. good looking pierced and versatile and in need of some company. I cannot accommodate at present but can travel. (Central Scotland) I am into most things. I enjoy bodybuilding and motorbikes. Box SG22006. Edinburgh Guy 33 year old professional guy. Hairy, told not bad looking, straight acting and looking. 5'11' tall 32' waist 40 chest. Interests included music, books, skiing and football. Looking for guys around same age, sorted and out. For 1-2-1 committed open relationship. Box SG22008. Prime British Rump Cute English boy (25) Wants hard Scot man to give me a highland fling I won't forget Please send pics if possible. I promise you won't be disappointed. Box SG22010. Daddy Wanted Gay male, 25, TV tendencies seeks older male to keep him in check. Can travel, cannot accommodate. Box SG22011. Edinburgh Shy 24 year old guy would love to meet other guys of any age in Edinburgh for friendship. Likes cinema, music, pubs and theatre. Box SG22012. Horny Ayrshire 22 Year Old! 6' tall, brown hair, blue eyes looking for other local lads for fun, friendship and 1-2-1. Many varied interests. Despaired with the lack of gay life around and need to make new friends. ALA. Thanks. Box SG22013. Black/Asian Guys Hi I am a passive GWM, med build, balding aged 41 I would like to meet a younger Black/ Asian gay male for no-string, discrete encounters during the day. Age and looks not important. Please reply with photo. ALA. Box SG22014. Friendships and Love Tired of unreliable friends, being used and unrequited love? Have a passion for US sitcoms and adored Ab Fab; the latest Voyager and DS9; computers and e-mail; fashion; good food; MoS and cutting-edge house music? Looking for an affectionate relationship or friendship? Then maybe we might click. Preferably Glasgow. 30 or under. I'm 21, 6ft, 42c/34w. Caramel brown hair. Green/blue eyes. I'm attracted to shortish dark hair, chunky (not too fat/skinny). Initial contact by e-mail preferred: andrew@patsy.demon.co.uk. Box SG22015. Aberdeen - 21 Year Old Student I am 21 years old, 5' 10" tall, Slim/Med. build - considered good looking. I am of Asian origin. I am for a white male aged between 18-25. Good looks and a sense of humour essential. Friendship is most important to me. Give me a buzz... Box SG22016. Brazilian Seeks Mates in Glasgow I am a Brazilian guy in Glasgow, seeking friends. I am 29, straight-looking and acting and looking for the same. If you are interested in more, let me know. Your pic gets mine. Cheers mate. Box SG22019. Stirling New to the area, 23 year old male, medium built, dark hair and eyes WLTM people 18030 for fun, friendship and possible 1-2-1. Photo please, genuine ad. ALAWP. Box SG22024. Glasgow Guy Slim, 32, 5' 10", SA, SL, told good-looking, seeks other guys gay or bi, 25-35 for fun nights out and in. Your photo gets mine. ALA. Box SG22025. R.U.A. Porn Lover? U.R? O.K. I.M.2. Day, night, stopover fun with Edinburgh Guy's gay/straight collection. Show me yours, I'll show you mine. Haven't got any? Cum anyway! Own tissues please. ALA, but no access to e-mail. Box SG22026. Edinburgh - Young Guy Sought Edinburgh gay male (53) seeks young guy (22-32) as a companion for meals out, cosy evenings in etc. Possible relationship. Can accommodate. Box SG22027. Glasgow - Central Businessman seeks young, slim guy for fun and friendship. Into food, wine, nights in and out. Generous to right guy. Box SG22028. Edinburgh Edinburgh guy, 39, average looks, 10st, 5'8", GSOH, SA, N/S VWE, caring seeks horny fun, friendship, maybe more with younger S/A guy. Looks not important. Generous to right guy. Box SG22029. Black Man Wanted - Scotland Are you a gay, Black active guy, 30-50? If so, this 32 year old, white, passive guy would like to hear from you. I can accommodate and travel. ALA. Box SG22030. New in Glasgow Fallen angel (22) seeks dangerboy (20-30) to show me the dark side, and to let me show him the light side of life. Must have smile to die for. Box SG22031. Paisley - Glasgow Nice guy, early 40s, in good condition, enthusiastic about music, sci-fi, countryside, seeks slim, sensual younger guy for companionship and mutual pleasuring. Shy/inexperienced types particularly welcome. Write today! ALAWP. Box SG22032. Dundee - Tayside 27 yo active male, good-looking, W/E, hairy chest 5'8" tall. Medium build, blue eyes, brown hair WLTM cure passive 18-25 yo for safe, horny fun. Can accommodate. Box SG22033. Oriental Student Edinburgh/Glasgow. Good-looking 22 year old, 5'9", smooth, Chinese student, seeks 20-26, good-looking, sensitive, caring, intelligent guy for friendship, fun and possible 1-2-1. Interests include films, arts, shopping, nights in and out. Photo ensures reply. Box SG22035. First Timer, Angus - Fife - Any 36 year old first timer seeks top tutor for intro to O+A. Good pupil prepared to follow instructions and available for regular servicing. Pic and frank letter ensures reply. Box SG22036. Lochgelly Leather Given to delinquent youth in Tayside in the traditional manner. Come and relieve that tingling sensation. Box SG22037. Central - Glasgow - Edinburgh 25 yo VGSOH, slim and horny seeks guys 18-35 for hot sessions. You - slim, preferably smooth and W/E. Can accommodate. Come on, get yer kecks off! Box SG22038. Locals and Visitors to Edinburgh Young? Slim? Beginner? Gentle initiation offered - massage, oral, porno etc., by pleasant, understanding 52 yo guy. All limits respected, free overnight stay included of wished/convenient. Couples welcome. No e-mail please. ALAWP. Box SG22040. Glasgow - Friendship, Maybe More... Hi! I'm a 37-year old Scot, recently returned to my old stomping ground and looking to meet some nice people. Anybody else out there who likes the Citz, the GFT, books, pubs, architecture, conversation and so on? Then get in touch! I look forward to hearing from you. Box SG22041. All Men are Bastards Or so experience has led me to believe. But I'd be fair chuffed if someone could prove me wrong! I'm 21, 6'1", GL, VGSOH. I like having a laugh, a good night out, and a decent bevvy. Ideally you'd be 25-35, honest, sincere, loving, affectionate, fit, have all your own bits and be fairly well-balanced. If you have just split up with someone, don't bother! I'm looking for friendship first, but if the chemistry is right, so be it! Edinburgh area. Box SG22042. Glasgow 37 yo looking for fun, friendship, maybe 1-2-1, WE, medium build. You - 25-40, medium build, non-smoker, friendly, sincere. ALAWP, write soon. Box SG22043. Edinburgh Skinhead 34 yo skinhead wants to meet others into gob, w/s, boots, combat for hey wey fun in gear. Photo and phone number gets quick reply. Box SG22044. Nature Lover Wanted As summer comes now, is there anyone who loves sex outdoors - park, beach, hills, anywhere? You should have car. 43 years but feel younger outside. Hairy chest, 5'10", slim, from Glasgow. Box SG22045. Safe Oral Sex Glasgow guy, 38, S/A, N/S., attractive, 5'7", sincere, easy-going, reliable, GSOH, likes safe, oral sex looking for similar guy, 30-42, for long-term monogamous 1-2-1 relationship. Can travel, can't accommodate. Box SG22046. South Coast Sensible, S/A, sexy, young 45 yo, medium build, sm town guy needs younger, slim, hairy dark haired guy for whatever and more. Viewing recommended. Box SG22047. Dundee Slave 32 year old, 5'9", medium build, WLTM WE active Master. I submit to giving O and receiving A, CP, bondage, gob and WS. Can travel. Box SG22048. Islands - Edinburgh Mate sought by hunky, horny, discreet English lad. Fit, sporty, good looks, SA, SL for fun visits/friendship. ALA. Box SG22049. VGL 19-Year Old Slim, dark hair, unusual dark eyes, WLTM guy 20-30 who's good-looking, dominant and possessive for loving 1-2-1. Wild, passionate times assured. Glasgow-Edinburgh area. ALA. Box SG22050. Edinburgh Sexy Edinburgh guy, 28, into truth and dare, poker and consequence games seeks other fun guys and couples. Let's raise the stakes. Box SG22051. Abergavenny Lonely Gay Looking for someone special, maybe 1-2-1 relationship, 30, N/S, medium build, hazel eyes, VWH. Hobbies: music, reading, quiet nights. Prefer non-smoker. Box SG22052. Falkirk - Anywhere 45 year old, younger looking guy with good sense of humour seeks chubby or heavy build guys for love and friendship. Age unimportant. Hoping the hear from you. Box SG22053. Stop! Posh Spice Boy seeks Sporty for high kicks until 2 become 1. Ginger, Scary and Old Spice need not apply. Baby Spices welcome if legal. ALAWP. Box SG22054. Dundee - Tayside Mature man, 50s, S/A. N/S, 5'8", slim, friendly, healthy, passive WLTM solvent, caring, active guy 30-70 for long-term, stable friendship/relationship. Can travel/accommodate. Box SG22055. Visitor to Scotland 40s guy, attractive, good body, hairy, blue eyes, in Edinburgh and Islands in August seeks summer fun with straight-acting, hairy guys 20-40 years old. Box SG22056. Nice Guy Seeks Hunky Cuddle Chum Me: 26 yo, told VGL, S/A and VGSOH. Blond, blue eyes, 5'11". Nice physique, cultured, loathes scene. You: 24-35, manly, honest, respectful, sincere, handsome, humorous, huggable. Scene queens/slappers need not apply. ALAWP. Box SG22057. Glasgow - Central Belt Glasgow guy, mid 30s, slim, 5'11", 10st, GSOH, straight-acting, easy going, passive seeks top man for friendship and weird sex. Anyone out there? Box SG22058. Glasgow - Anywhere Friendly 30 yo guy WLTM Non-scene guy, 18-30 for friendship/1-2-1. Me: 5'10", brown hair, green eyes, fun-loving. Interests include music, sport, travel. You: cute and hones. ALAWP (returned). Write soon! Box SG22059. West is Best 25, 5'10", short dark hair, told VGL, slim, W/E, healthy, hygienic, GSOH, straight-acting and looking, passionate, affectionate and intelligent, occasional scene-goer, laid back and easy going, seeks... Damn! Box SG22060. Skinhead? Bored with Scene? Yes, us too. Let's get together for our own fun. Active and passive skins welcome. Serious boot, gob, verbal W/S. At home or outdoors. Write noe with photo and phone. Box SG22064. Skinhead Wanted by 26, zero crop, pierced, tattooed in boots, braces for some serious hot fun. Into verbal, gob, W/S, leather, army, football gear. Write now with photo and telephone number. Box SG22065. Naughty Boys Wanted Assertive guy, 45, 5'11", slim-medium build, seeks guys 25+ who require discreet regular discipline. Can accommodate or travel. ALA. Glasgow, Ayrshire. Box SG22066. Edinburgh - Anywhere 37 year old bi guy, fit and muscular (180lbs), seeks body-builder types for fun, friendship and working out. Also into combat sports. ALAWP. Box SG22067. Glasgow - Anywhere Gay guy, early twenties, SA, SL, slim, fit body, looking for friends with possible 1-2-1, honest, genuine with GSOH, can accommodate. Relatively inexperienced but willing to learn. Hard 'n' horny, ALA. Box SG22068. Friendly Bear Seeks Cub Small friendly bear, 41, very hairy (red) seeks smooth young cub for cuddles and mutual pawing sessions. Your cave or mine! Box SG22069. Clyde Coast Ayrshire, attractive, youthful, passive postman, 53, good, slim body, nice firm butt for mild spanking, smart appearance, sincere, reliable, seeks discreet, active friend 40-60 for safe relationship. Can travel weekends. Box SG22070. Passive, Obese Guy Wanted Active 40, slim-built, seeks XXXL passive guy 18-45 18st+ with outstanding measurements, huge thighs, drooping belly, breasts, nipples, double chin with large appetite. Merseyside, anywhere. ALAWP. Box SG22071. Play with Two Edinburgh/Glasgow. Two Americans, 29, blond, cute, versatile and 42, blue-eyed, handsome, active, coming to Scotland this summer seek fun passive guy for safe fun and friendship. Photo please. Box SG22072. BISEXUAL Bi Asian Guy - Aberdeen Bi Aberdeen Asian Guy needs friends. 23 years old, student, and cute. Wanted: white 18-25 year olds - good looking. Anything discussed. Send explicit and erotic letter, with photo if possible. I promise to answer all replies. Box SG22017. Love School Uniforms Hi I am a 30-something guy, lover of uniforms, schoolboy, schoolgirl, scout, guide... also sportswear lingerie and the like. Seeking fun and games in Aberdeen. Box SG22018. Dundee - 20 20y/o, 6'1", dark hair, blue eyes, attractive, seeks similar for friendship/more. Suffers from Scene-psychosis but likes to visit now and then! E-mail: uss_venture@hotmail.com ALAWP - save yourself and my time by not wasting time! Box SG22020. Dundee/Glasgow (20) Str8 Acting, 20 year old, 6'1", 10st, Dark Hair, (rather) Attractive seeks similar in Dundee/Glasgow area for someone looking for fun/friendship/more. ALAWP, No drama queens PLEASE! E-mail: johnny_bravo_20@yahoo.com. Box SG22022. Glasgow - Lanarkshire 33, blond, blue eyes, slim, smooth, 6'2", SA and SL - that's me. Looking for guys 18-35 for no strings fun indoors. Any nationality, oriental a plus! Into videos. Extremely open-minded! ALA. Box SG22063. BDSM - Edinburgh - Scotland Submissive male, 35, named paul (sic), tall 6'2", slim, fit, articulate with GSOH (although slightly shy and very new to scene) seeks Mistress to adore and take possession of his soul or, failing that, how about more BDSM friends and acquaintances (F/M, bi, gay, straight, whatever) for pleasantly depraved social nights out discussing life's knotty little problems over a few pints (atheists, pagans and real ale drinkers especially welcome!). Box SG22073. Edinburgh Mistress Dominant bi female, 31, Pagan HPs, CAMRA activist and typesetter, seeks over-specific ad-writer willing to adore and serve me unconditionally. Depraved nights out, esoteric discussions over a few firkins and severe punishment offered in return for a more appropriate supplication. Box SG22074. FRIENDS ABROAD Aussie Guy Coming To Aberdeen Aussie guy 37 arriving in Aberdeen mid June '98 for a month looking to meet local guys to 32yo for a laugh, and whatever else happens. Not into the scene, but likes a good band at a local pub. E-mail klem@bigfoot.com or write to Kel Murray, PO Box R772, Royal Exchange, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia. Darryl in Canada Wants You!!! Hi, Darryl in Canada here. 6'2" tall, blue eyes, 27 yrs old, looking for that strong masculine Scotsman who knows how to respect friendship! I have varied interests! But I do love guys!! I 'm hoping to achieve, a lasting friendship with someone in Scotland. Age 30+. I'm also looking for a possible relationship... Please take a chance on me, I promise to be true to you! E-mail: dshott@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca; ICQ Universal internet number: 12472790. Floridian Seeks Scottish Buddy GWM 33 Brown Hair/Eyes/Moustache seeks Gay Scottish penpals. I am masculine, handsome, and hairy, and will be travelling to the UK this fall. Would also enjoy visits to my home here on the beach! Drop me a line if you're interested and let's meet. Prefer masculine men like myself. E-mail: tazboy@earthlink.net or write Sam Blythe, 13315 1st St E Madeira Beach, Fl 33708 USA 34 Year Old Bear - Masculine - Outdoor Guy G'day I am an expatriate grown up in Tasmania Australia and NZ. I am returning to live/work in Scotland in the latter half of 98. I love the country - walking, highlands and isles, nature - history - skiing. Philosophy - poetry - travelling, I am open honest, passionate, multiskilled, well travelled, caring with Buddhist-leanings - seeking like open minded and together friends - especially those living in remote areas - like I always have. ALA. E-mail: rorytas@vision.net.au or write to Rhauri Hannan, P.O. Box 460, Huonville 7109, Tasmania, Australia. Two Aussie Guys We will be in Scotland in September for a couple of days and would like to have a playmate. One guy is 55 and a bear the other 48 and just an average guy. We both love great asses and the younger guy loves foreskin. Not sure of our plans yet but send some suggestions. We are both versatile and prefer non scene guys. E-mail: peter@tudogs.net.au or write to Peter MacDonald, P.O. Box 1153, Gosford, NSW, Australia. 2250. Looking for Friends in Scotland 33 year old gay guy looking for friends, likes sci-fi, movies, music, culture, etc., prefers outwardly masculine types but will answer all mails. E-mail: peds@mailcity.com or write to Ronaldo Pedrosa, B22L7 Madagascar Dr Vincent Hgts, Lanang Davao City 8000, Philippines. American Boys Visiting Scotland 2 American boys are visiting Edinburgh and Glasgow in August. We have some literature on places to visit, but would like more info, particularly on places to stay. We're interested in Gay owned or at least friendly hotels and what are the best pubs to visit. Please help us!!! E-mail: Drplaza@aol.com or write David Robinson, 175 N. Harbor Drive #4304 Chicago, Illinois 60601 USA. Iowa Boy Cute 25yr old Iowa boy, 5'10", 145lbs, slender athletic build, black hair, black eyes, versatile, 8.5" cut, Scottish heritage. Looking to make friends with cute, young Scotsmen. Send picture for mine (explicit pictures are welcome!). E-mail: TKHerriott@aol.com or write Todd Herriott, PO Box 133 Ames, IA, 50010-0133 USA WANTED Going to Prague? Are you going to Prague this summer? I've been there, and I have spare Czech money, anyone interested in exchanging them for pounds sterling? Genuine e-mails only, please. E-mail: msltd@zetnet.co.uk. Box SG22003. Personal Fitness Trainer Wanted Two guys 32/35, out of condition, seek PFI to start weight training etc. From scratch. Motherwell/Wishaw area. Box SG22023. Marriage Young Singapore gay man wishes to meet female UK citizen (any age) for mutually beneficial arrangement. Box SG22099. ACCOMMODATION WANTED Accommodation - Glasgow 20 yo Student seeks a room in shared accommodation for over coming academic year (August 98 - July 99). Approx £40 p/w. Able to pay 2 months in advance and provide references. Very easy going and easy to live with! E-mail: uss_venture@hotmail.com. Box SG22021. PASSING GLANCES Long Shot... Aberdeen Amadeus IBIZA foam party Sun 7th June. U green T-shirt with dark collar/cuffs. Box SG22009. LOOKING FOR Fabby Sorry I missed you and Robbie at the health tent at Pride. It'd be good to see you again so get in touch grrl. Plus, it's Wimbledon time and I need someone on my level of political correctness to ogle the tennis with. Marry. Box SG22062. Blue Vulcan - I Need You From Pink Rainbow. I'm very loved up with Chris and Craig Burns. Also WG-CN. I love to love you Craig. No more noise up, I'm yours Vulcan, so get in touch. Box SG22039. JOBS OFFERED Cash For Your Body Photogenic guys can earn £75 cash - or £100 with chest and arm definition - posing for Mike Arlen who has had 13 glossy magazines published called Mike Arlen's Guys. Send snapshots of your magnificent body to him: Mike Arlen, Wetherby Studios, 23 Wetherby Mansions, Earls Court Square, London. SW5 9BH or call him on 0171-373 1107. Models Wanted Previously published photographer needs good looking guys (18-25) who want to earn £20 per hour for publication work. For details please telephone Stuart on 0141-636 6556 (No withheld numbers please) or E-mail me: sborg16184@aol.com SERVICES Computers Want/need a hard/software upgrade? Scared of being Garry Glittered at PC World? Competitive rates offered on all upgrades and repairs. For a professional confidential service for all of your computing needs, E-mail: APB_Solutions@Hotmail.com All work will be carried out by this new 100% gay company in a very competitive manner. Remember! Keep the pound Pink! Contact Mag Contact Mag for adults: contains over 600 photos. Approval copy from: Matchmaker (K38), Chorley, PR7 4BS. Or ring: 01257 480155 (24 hours). Golden Wheel Seeking discreet gay or bisexual new friends, male or female? Long standing service, all areas and worldwide. Send stamp for details to: (Sadie), The Golden Wheel, Liverpool. L15 3HT. International Pen Friends Would you like to correspond with gay men all over the world? It is possible through INTERGAY, an international gay pen club. For all information, write to: INTERGAY, Voorstraat 12-A, 4033 AD, Lienden, The Netherlands. Painter And Decorator Female painter and decorator. Glasgow based. Call Zoe Smith on 0141-402 2112. Pen Friends Lesbian Gay and Bi Pen Friends, non profit service, Box numbers, Monthly listings, no out dated ad's, free voice mail, SAE PO Box 2000, Horwich, Bolton, Lancashire, England, BL6 7PG. Tel/Fax 01204 667747 or e-mail lgb@clara.net WWW: http://www.angelfire.com/ga/lgb/index.html Worldwide Penfriends Regular lists. Make friends, exchange holidays, improve your languages. For general and music lovers' lists send £3 to "The Penpal List", c/o 221B Merton Road, Southfields, London. SW18 5EE. BACK RUBS Back Rub Plus - Paisley. Handsome Hung Hunks Available For Sensual/Erotic Back Rubs. In/Out Calls - 7 Days. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Call Chic, Mike or Ian 0141-889 1764. E-mail: joe@glasgowguys.demon.co.uk Best Massage At Best Price Too! Sensual all over body massage by passive, stout and cuddly gay man. To visit: call 0131-271 0481 or leave number and name on Ansa-Phone. See you soon! Central Scotland Black, active muscular VWE lad. A discreet and friendly body rub. 12 stones, six footer. CP available. Call Chris 07020 082461. Edinburgh Masseur A caring skilled personal touch at excellent poundstretcher value. £15. Jim. 0131-556 7199. Escort - Kissogram - Massage The very best for entertainment. The ultimate in sexual fantasy. Private shows or parties: the choice is yours. Telephone: 0411 284558. Glasgow Callum Handsome hunk in a kilt, 25, hairy, hung, Scotland's longest running and finest masseur is available for in/out calls 7 days. Satisfaction guaranteed. Ex clients welcome. £30 per hour. 0421 753 677. VIDEOS Gay, Bi, TV, TS XXX Videos. Extensive range of top titles of excellent quality. £20.00 each. Send SAE for lists to EZE (SG), Box 43323, Glasgow. G12 9WB. Or call 0973 980553 for immediate delivery, Central Scotland 9am - 9pm. WHERE TO STAY Ardbeg House Ardbeg House Hotel, Dervaig, Isle of Mull. Welcome breaks, two nights or more, £27 per person per night, Dinner B&B (some en-suite rooms with four poster beds). Scenically situated. Beautiful period country house full of character, home comforts and good food. Phone Neil on 01688 400254. Birmingham, West Midlands Sebastion Guest House. Telephone: 0121-455 9459. Large Georgian house located in the city centre, close to the gay village, all rooms colour TV, double beds, tea/coffee, communal lounge, sun room and large gardens. Central Private Hotel Mixed clientele, Junction 28 M1, short distance to Nottingham, Derby, Sheffield, ALTON TOWERS, Sherwood Forest, Rooms En-suite, Licensed Restaurant, vegetarians, laundry service. Own front door key, no restrictions, Massage & Sunbed room. Weekend rates available. Phone: 01623 552373/Fax: 01623 443106. Edinburgh Mansfield House - Small elegant guest house within minutes of bars/clubs. All rooms have colour TV, tea and coffee making facilities. Basic room or En Suite. Continental breakfast available until midday. 57 Dublin Street, Edinburgh. EH3 6NL. Tel/FAX: 0131-556 7980. New York and San Francisco Pride Travel has the largest selection of gay and lesbian friendly hotels, guest houses and apartments in New York, San Francisco and throughout the USA/Canada. For brochure, phone Pride Travel-USA on 01273 606656. Provincetown USA Provincetown - America's most popular gay/lesbian resort. It's like being at Gay Pride every day of the week. Live the legend. For free brochure telephone Pride Travel-USA on 01273 606656. Rothes Glen Hotel Moray's premier country house hotel, in acres of grounds and glorious views towards the Grampian Mountains, is noted for warmth and friendly service. Six miles south of Elgin, midway between Inverness and Aberdeen. Contact Michael or Freddie, Rothes Glen Hotel, Rothes, Morayshire. AB38 7AQ. Telephone: 01340 831254. E-mail: 101516.1660@compuserve.com Southern Spain B+B. Private luxury villa, pool secluded. Stunning views to Mediterranean. Close to gay beaches, busy scene. For brochure: Tel/Fax Chris, Peter, 0034 524 73252, mobile 0034 509 55665 ------------------------------------------ INTERNATIONAL ============= by Rex Wockner ZIMBABWEAN GAY LEADER ARRESTED FOR SODOMY The programme manager of Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe, Keith Goddard, has been charged with sodomising a young man at gunpoint. The accuser, Siphephule Vuma, 20, has been charged with extortion for sending Goddard letters demanding money. Goddard went to police first to report the letters and Vuma then accused Goddard of sexual assault. Goddard denies having sex with Vuma. The two men will testify against each other in separate trials. The incident occurred as former President Canaan Banana's gay-sex trial continues. He is charged with 11 counts of sodomy, attempted sodomy and indecent assault on seven aides, a cook, a gardener and a bodyguard. The flood of alleged victims came forward after the bodyguard murdered a fellow cop for allegedly having teased him with the nickname "Banana's wife." Current President Robert Mugabe is aggressively homophobic. He has called homosexuals "repugnant to my human conscience ... immoral and repulsive," declared gay sex "an abomination" and "sub-animal behaviour," and urged citizens to "hand [gays] over to the police." "I don't believe they have any rights at all," he stated in 1995. In April, Mugabe added: "Animals in the jungle are better than these people [homosexuals] because at least they know that this is a man or a woman." AOL CANADA DUMPS GAY EROTICA SITE America Online Canada and its gay-content provider, Kiosque, have reneged on their contract to run ads for the popular gay-male erotica site http://www.chisel.com/. "Once home office in the U.S. saw the site they began to construct roadblocks," said Chisel owner Doug McClelland. "AOL invoked a rule that no adult material can be within three clicks of one of their pages and that no nudity or graphic language could appear on the link ads. Kiosque was required to interpose an additional page between the public and the hard stuff to meet the three-clicks rule and Chisel's banner ad on Kiosque's cover was toned down to an innocuous description: `Travel, News, Live Interactive, A&E, People! (you must be over 18).'" Prior to the final shutdown, AOL's "censorship" had reduced traffic to Chisel from AOL to 1,500 hits a month, McClelland said. The Kiosque site itself receives around 65,000 visits a month, he said. "Now when you enter AOL keyword `Chisel' you get the message `Sorry, Chisel is no longer available on AOL,'" McClelland said. "Thank you, Big Brother." AUSTRALIA For the first time in Australian history a gay man has won custody of his child. The man's ex-wife was found to have falsified evidence that the man sexually abused the boy, and the court said the mother's new household was dysfunctional, hysterical, stressed and crisis-ridden. The parties in the case were not named. NETHERLANDS HIV-positivity among gay-male patients under age 30 at Amsterdam's Municipal Health Service dropped from 17 percent in 1991 to 9 percent in 1996, according to a report in the May 28 issue of AIDS. More than 10,000 clinic attendees were tested. FRANCE Two thousand people turned out for the third Gay Pride March in June in Lille, France. "The demonstration's one and only message was that Prime Minister Lionel Jospin should keep his promises and introduce registered-partnership legislation for unmarried couples, gay or not," said an organizer. "Gays were in the very heart of Lille yesterday afternoon and that's where we plan to stay." The event was organized by the Committee for the Social Recognition of Homosexuals. EUROPE Following years of research by a standardization committee, the European Union has increased the length of its "standard" condom from 16 centimetres (6.3 inches) to 17 centimetres (6.7 inches). The diameter also is being increased, from 54 to 56 millimetres. FINLAND Finland's parliament last month lowered the age of consent for gay sex from 18 to 16, the legal age for straight sex, and repealed a law that prohibited promotion of homosexuality. No one spoke against the changes, which were part of a larger crime bill. ITALY Gay-pride organizers on five continents have endorsed the "World Pride Rome 2000" march scheduled for July 8, 2000. Scores of related events will run from July 1-7. The pride activities coincide with the Vatican's Christianity millennium jubilee, which is expected to attract more than 1 million pilgrims. VATICAN Pope John Paul II lashed out at gay families again during a June 6 Vatican meeting with U.S. bishops. "At a time when the very definitions of marriage and family life are endangered by attempts to enshrine in legislation alternative and distorted notions of these basic human communities, your ministry must include the clear proclamation of the truth of God's original design," he said. VIETNAM Vietnam's national assembly has banned gay marriage, Agence France-Presse reported. Legislators acted after several homosexual couples tied the knot in recent months, distressing local officials who were unable to stop them, the news service said. After the legislation passed, Communist Party officials descended on the Vinh Long home of Cao Tien Duyen, 23, and Hong Kim Huong, 30, and secured their signature on a promise that they would never again live together. The two women had wed in March in a large public ceremony. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- THE NICE BIT ============ THE GENETICALLY MODIFIED NICE BIT A simple test for you boys. Who would you rather hump? Bernard Manning or Kylie Minogue? And for the girls - Brad Pitt or The Queen Mother? Fair questions? Hardly. Weighted? Definitely. Useful none the less. Heterosexuals will one day accept that every one has at one time fancied a member of their own gender. Straight stars like Euan MacGregor have - and met with no public derision at all for saying so. And I know lesbians that have sex with their gay boy friends "OK" I hear you cry, "But that doesn't mean I'm straight does it?!" And at this point we realise what a ridiculous collection of words we're labelled with. Straight, gay, bisexual. It's all bollocks. People aren't born gay. People are not born straight. There is no gay or bisexual gene. Practising sex with another is neither moral or immoral - but as natural as blowing your nose. Who you chose to sleep with is no one's business but your own. The label is irrelevant. People, when coming out to themselves don't have neuroses about the sex act itself, but what it's called. A boy might reasonably think, in the current climate, that if he sleeps with a man once, then he will be gay for ever and everyone will see him as such in the future, his image consumed by a statement which says that the most important thing about a person is who they sleep with. I like football. I sleep with men. I drink lager. I play chess. I sleep with women. I love The Simpsons, I am a Civil Servant, I eat cheese, I smoke, etc., etc. It is ridiculous to be labelled and judged by just two of the above statements. All some people see, once they know, is a bisexual man. Period. Who actually likes the terms `gay' or `lesbian' or `bisexual' or `transgender' or `straight' anyway. Do you prefer `queer' or `dyke' or `catflap' ?? In the last issue I mentioned a debate on labels that we had had a few years ago at a bisexual conference. Not liking the `B' word much we were seeking an alternative - and came up with the term `nice'. And there is no nice gene, or even selfish ones. You can not genetically modify the sexuality of an individual who hasn't even got a sex drive yet. You can't abort a gay foetus because there are no gay foetuses, or straight ones. Nor do foetuses like football, drink lager or play chess. It's common sense isn't it? Martin Walker ---------------------------------------------------------------------- STORY ===== AN AFTERNOON IN STIRLING It happened on a Saturday afternoon, mid May, at my parents' home in Stirling. My parents had left us alone to go out for their weekly shopping trip to the out-of-town supermarket. Robbie was reluctant at first, he was worried that my parents would come back early, but I reassured him that they were never early for anything. In the end Robbie agreed and together we went upstairs to my old bedroom. Robbie was the first boyfriend of mine that I ever took to meet my parents. In truth Robbie is my first serious boyfriend. We had been together a little over three years when I took him to Stirling. The idea had been mine but the seeds had been sown by Robbie. Robbie never said he wanted to meet my parents, or even hinted at it, he just showed me the way. We had been together a little under three months when he took me to stay with his parents for a weekend. They gave us the same bedroom and simply treated me as Robbie's boyfriend, no undertones. This gave me ideas. I came out to my parents when I was twenty, ten years ago now, a few months after I had left home. Their reaction was cold. They didn't tell me how they felt then and since then there has been total silence about it. It has been as if I never told them, as if they don't know. That is how they have behaved. I feel like they have cut themselves off from a large part of my life. I don't like it. Bringing Robbie to meet them I had hoped to show them what they were ignoring. To show them that my being gay is good for me. I failed. They called Robbie my "friend", with an edge to their voice, ignoring everything important about our relationship. We were put in separate bedrooms, me in my old bedroom (which my parents use as a spare room) and Robbie in the tiny box room (which is now a store room). By Saturday morning, we had arrived on Friday afternoon, I felt the whole thing was a total failure. I felt frustrated and annoyed. Hand-in-hand we went upstairs and into my old bedroom. We undressed and climbed into the narrow, single bed. The single bed were I had slept as a teenager. Because of the small space the sex we had was not the very passionate and noisy type we usually enjoy. All we did was kiss, caress each other and a little more. Afterwards we lay together, rapped around each other, arms and legs holding onto each other, our heads lying nose to nose on the pillow. Slowly I ran my fingers over Robbie's back in tiny circles while he stroked the hair at the back of my head. We lay like this, quietly enjoying it, for a long moment. When I was a teenager I spent many lonely hours shut away in that bedroom, reading my books and listening to my radio. I had felt different, alienated and rejected by the world around me. As a teenager I saw my bedroom as a safe place but in another way it was also a prison cell. Hidden away in my bedroom I had also hidden away from life. As a teenager I spent my life dreaming of loving another man but was also frightened to death of doing so. I had been so lonely and unhappy in that bedroom. Now, rapped up in Robbie's arms in my old bed in my old bedroom, I began to feel the ghosts of my teenage years being chased away by a warm act of love. As a teenager I had dreamt of lying in that bed, rapped up in the arms of a man I loved and here I was actually doing it, years later. Robbie's hand rested on the back of my head. "You alright?" He asked. "Yes," I told him. "How're you feeling?" "Good," I smiled at him. Drew Payne --------------------------------------------------------------------------- OUTLOOK ======= "As far as I'm concerned, he's gay and he's my dad..." As a new organisation is set up in Edinburgh to cater for children of lesbian and gay parents (see our listings for details of COLAGE), a West Coast dad tells us HIS story... Why is it that the society we live in seems to have some strange preconceived and prejudiced attitudes towards gay parents? Apart from the fact that they're uninformed and narrow-minded, I can't fathom it out at all. I was aware that we gay parents were pre-judged and prejudiced against, but until recently it never affected me. (Boy was I wrong). So why does it affect me now? Well that's easy. I have always been a gay dad, but for the past 9 years I had no contact with my daughter, for reasons I can't even remember, who is now 15, so not exactly a child, but an adolescent with her own mind and opinions. When she was born in 1983 I was a part of her life on a daily basis. That then went to nothing. I did try to obtain access, but to no avail. Back then it was even worse being a gay parent, as I'm sure all gay parents will connect with. Now, due to many problems at home between mother and daughter, she does not live with her mother, but with my family. As a direct result, and with the help of the Social Services (whom I have to praise), I see her on a daily basis. She has become a major part of my life again and it's a wonderful feeling. It has not been an easy few weeks as we have had to build our relationship from nothing. It has taken hard work on both sides and has been a learning experience for both of us. We have both been honest with each other - communication is a good thing - and it has had excellent results for us. We have a good father-daughter relationship as well as becoming good friends. I mentioned she had problems, but by talking these over she is now on top of them and is attending school on a daily basis again and is preparing for her final 6 exams. I don't take all the credit for that, but take a good bit of it. We have had some hurtful comments made about the fact that "Your dad's gay - don't let him meet your boyfriend". These remarks are so silly, but they do make you feel that perhaps you're not fit to be a parent. One remark that made me feel that way was made by a so-called friend - "I don't think you should have access to her or spend as much time with her" Why? She said "Well after all, you're gay and not a good rôle model". Guess who's no longer a friend. What do they know about it? Since I have been in contact with my daughter, she has a far better understanding about being in a minority group, that with a parent who is gay. Rather than just knowing that her dad is gay and left like that (as her mother did), she has a more settled homelife at my folks' place, has a brighter looking future and new interests which we enjoy together. But, because society is so prejudiced and has so many unfounded preconceived ideas, all the good is thrown to the gutter and all focus on the fact that we are gay and don't engage in "meaningful" relationships in same sex partnerships. BULLSHIT. It's my opinion that these people should look in before they look out. We all know that physical, verbal and sexual abuse takes place in what society calls "The normal family unit". It's time society stopped being so narrow-minded and treat us all the same as straight parents. We do have rights as gay parents, it's just a bit harder to go through the system. We provide our kids with a loving, caring and happy lifestyle. Our main interest is their upbringing and their future and not, as some say, a status symbol. I would be pleased to hear form gay fathers, especially if they're having problems as we don't have a lot of support or social get-togethers etc. I guess that's because it is only recently that gay fathers are starting to stand and fight for our parental rights. Perhaps we could start a gay fathers group (see below). Written by a gay and proud father. Davie The last word goes to the pen of my daughter: I don't see why people are prejudiced about gay parents. I am a 15 year old girl and I have just started seeing my dad again after his access stopped nine years ago. As I no longer live with my mum, I see my dad all the time. Some of the things that people have said about me and my dad's relationship really annoy me and make me angry. As far as I'm concerned, he's gay and he's my dad and he loves me just the same as a straight father would. I don't have a problem with my dad being gay so why should these people with their sad remarks, when they don't know what's going on or what it's like? Although my dad's gay, he is just like any other father and only wants the best for me and we do all the things that straight fathers do with their daughters. I wish people would stop remarks like "Your dad will take your boyfriend if you let him meet him". How silly and sad can these people be? I just wish that they would keep their remarks to themselves unless they know what's going on because they don't just hurt the gay parents, they hurt their children too. If you would like to write to Davie, send a letter to: Davie, c/o ScotsGay Magazine, or send an e-mail message to davie@drink.demon.co.uk ------------------------------------------------------------------------- REVIEWS ======= t o y s Billy Doll Prowler Press, ukp39.95 Heather would like to apologise for the inappropriate remarks she made about this toy in our last issue as she has now seen this photograph. -------------------------------------- b o o k s FUN ? GAME Photographs by Lalli Bruno Gmünder A nice big coffee table photobook. No stiffies, but a selection of rather agreeable men. Almost art, but verging on smut. Justin Milne -------------------------------------- Customs of the Country by Rupert Thomas Virgin Publishing, ukp6.99 Richard Branson has added another string to his bow with his new publishing house. And of all the books I've read since writing the last review it is this one that deserves the title Book of the Month. It comes complete with a prominent warning on the cover that it is for adults only and something I've never come across in any book before is the two page Safer Sex Guidelines by the Terrence Higgins Trust. A very good idea which I hope will be emulated by other publishing houses in their books of erotic fiction. The novel itself is a very competently written account of a young man's sexual odyssey that gives him a swift education in the simple pleasures of the country. It is the story of James Cardell, a young man preparing to go to Oxford, but spending a summer with relatives in Kent. There he begins to indulge his great passion - art - and relax before the hard times studying at Oxford begins. On his arrival, James is struck by the beauty of a local man, Samuel Grainger, and this thought returns to him on many occasions. Eventually his desires are reciprocated and the young artist discovers that he is in no ordinary village. The local men indulge their secret desires in a deserted barn, and even James' relatives turn out to have their own hidden pleasures. Painting in the countryside turns out to be more concerned with ardent exploration of countrymen's fine bodies than landscapes and sunsets. Under his cousin's guidance he quickly discovers all the pleasures of his forbidden impulses and before long they both find themselves entwined within a web of youthful folly and dark erotic initiation. If you only buy one book this summer make sure it is this one! Swearing by Geoffrey Hughes Penguin, ukp7.99 Do you remember when you were about 10 years old and started looking in dictionaries or medical books to see if you could find any of those forbidden words so frowned upon by adults? I can, and this book brought back memories of that time. It traces the history of swearing from ancient Anglo-Saxon traditions and those of the Middle Ages, through Shakespeare, the age of Enlightenment and the Victorians, to the Lady Chatterley trials and the various current trends. It had me laughing out loud at some of the examples of foul language as perceived by the peoples of the different ages and you simply wouldn't believe what did count as swearing in times gone by. It has given me a whole new outlook on our most precious of heritages, our language. This book is a bit dry in parts but nevertheless I enjoyed bits of it tremendously. The New Penguin Dictionary of Science by M.J.Clugston Penguin, ukp7.99 I will admit that this is not everybody's cup of tea, but for those of you who are studying science or are just interested in it as a hobby this is a great book for discovering what all those terms mean, this takes us from A to Zymase. In between of course are some more wonderful and wacky words which although we hear them from time to time we never seem to know exactly what they mean, well now is your chance to find out. At only ukp7.99 it is a cheap price to pay for educational purposes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. There will be more Penguin Dictionaries to come and I will let you know about these as soon as I can. Andy Martin -------------------------------------- Love Shook My Senses edited by Gillian Spraggs The Women's Press, ukp7.99 This is a book full of lesbian love poems by celebrated poets such as Emily Dickinson, Sylvia Townsend Warner and Sappho. They are beautiful and moving, and many are self-reflective. Chicken Feed by Alma Fritchley The Women's Press, ukp6.99 When Letty's lover Anne sets off for a US-wide lecture tour, Letty prepares for a few weeks alone on her farm. That's until Anne's sister shatters her peace, because along with her is her dead lover's daughter - a wild but appealing five year old - and wherever they go trouble is not far behind. This is the second Letty Campbell mystery, and is just as good, if not better than the first. Laurel by Isabel Miller The Women's Press, ukp6.99 When Laurel comes to visit Lucille after twenty years, Lucille is plunged into memories of their first momentous meeting and the bittersweet years that followed. Mesmerised by Laurel's youth, attraction and untameable nature, Lucille has longed to break free from the stifling attitude of her generation and the seemingly disastrous trail that her relationships have formed. But first she has to be prepared to give this beautiful woman her heart and soul and to live with the consequences. This is a true lesbian love story. Heather White -------------------------------------- v i d e o THREE DTK Videos The three American subjects of Howard Roffman's best selling photography book "THREE" romp around London and their bedroom in various states of dress and undress (mostly boxer shorts which they seem to like pulling on and off at any opportunity). More a documentary about life in a 3some than anything else but shot with artistic sensitivity and an eye for a willy too! Justin Milne -------------------------------------- f i l m That vast TV public who loved Jennifer Aniston in "Friends" on their TV screens will be eager for "The Object Of My Affection" (15) which has one of the most original plotlines of the year. She has doubts whether she wants to share a flat with her boyfriend with whom she argues too much. The ideal compromise is sharing with a gay guy, Paul Rudd, who has just parted with his lover. They get on so well that when she finds she is pregnant and decides to keep the baby she and Paul make a decision they will bring up the child together. However, she unwisely lets herself fall in love with him, possibly because he admitted having had sex with a girl he took to the high school dance. We know there are females out there who resolutely believe they can turn gay men straight. But I feel sure Miss Aniston in not one of them. Reality is lost in the script when she expects him to give up men for her many charms. Consequently the last ten minutes of the production are not flattering to her. That aside it is an astute comedy you will enjoy. "Love And Death On Long Island" (15) is a very curious film to make involving a mature British writer, John Hurt, and his infatuation with a young American actor, Jason Priestley, who lives on Long Island. After collecting hin movies on video and viewing them endlessly John goes to America to track his idol down to tell him he loves him. It all takes a long time to happen and only the consummate style of Mr Hurt's acting, makes it tolerable. It was made by a first time director and screenplay writer who must have been convinced of its box office potential, but I doubt his judgment. Maybe the novel it is based on, by Gilbert Adair, is more fascinating. It is a pleasant change to find an alternative to Woody Allen making family sagas in New York City. "The Daytrippers" (15) is the first feature film directed by Greg Mottola who also wrote the script and has packed high drama and comedy in 87 minutes that held my attention. Hope Davis finds a love poem in her husband's (Stanley Tucci) clothes and chooses to discuss it with her parents, sister and her husband. Could he be having an affair she asks them? They all squeeze into the family car and head for the big city to find he has had the day off from his publishing firm. Hope's mother cajoles her to track him down and find out who this woman could be. But when they finally find him at a party he is kissing a man on the lips. Nick Broomfield is a documentary film maker who specializes in controversial subjects like one on Heidi Fleiss who ran a call girl service in Hollywood. Not being a fan of a group called Nirvana the name Kurt Cobain meant nothing to me till Nick's latest documentary "Kurt And Courtney". Lead singer and song writer Kurt and his wife, Courtney Love, were heavy drug users it seems, and mystery surrounded his death in 1994, shot dead with a rifle, which was reported at the time to be suicide, but it was later revealed there were no fingerprints on the weapon. Courtney, who had her own pop group as well as a new career as an actress, was reputed to have been on the point of being divorced by Kurt for infidelity. If that had happened she would have received a few million dollars in settlement. But, on his death, she would have inherited all his assets. Nick Broomfield has produced the most revealing documentary on American show business ever made which shows Courtney Love an a tough and very violent woman which will be something to bear in mind if she continues her acting career. Harrison Ford mostly chooses hie films very shrewdly and he has done it again with "Six Days Seven Nights" (12). It has received its share of pre-publicity as his leading lady is the blonde and winsome Anne Heche who was happy to tell the world awhile ago she was a lesbian and living with that popular lady starring in the TV series "Ellen". In our story Anne is an efficient assistant editor of a fashion magazine who is taken by her fiance, David Schwimmer of the "Friends" series, for a magical holiday on a South Seas island. But her boss phones with an emergency requesting her to go to Tahiti for a day to supervise a picture session. She hires rough and rugged aviator Harrison to fly her there in his small plane, but there is a freak storm making them crash on the shore of one of the thousands of islands locally. You don't need to know all their extraordinary adventures, but they are well worth watching. David schwimmer looks good enough to eat and I can see why many people of both sexes would be happy to spend time with the lovely Miss Heche. It is a rare delight to see an Asian film made in Britain by an Asian director and a mostly Asian cast. But, tragically, not every Asian is going to be pleased with "Guru In 7" (18) in which the leading man, to prove his virility, chooses to bed seven different women in one week. Shani Grewal took on a mammoth tank in writing, producing, directing and editing a movie that took years and every kind of penny pinching to complete. If his hero is not the Asian ideal I hope he finds the success he needs with other audiences. Nitin Chandra Ganatra plays an artist whose art has yet to be recognized which is why he doesn't want to commit himself to marriage to longtime girlfriend Ernestina Quarcoo. When she goes to America for a week his friends tell him he will become a guru if, in her absence, he can seduce seven women and they bet him he can't. There are those amongst us who may remember Michael Caine cornering this market amusingly with this theme years ago in "Alfie". Anyone travelling to London till 25th July can find leading man Nitin in two plays in repertory at the Young Vic Theatre at Waterloo -"Twelfth Night" and "As I Lay Dying". In them he gives performances every Asian can be proud of. These young men must have incredible charm when persuading people to spend money making films. A couple of years ago 21 year old Tom Waller managed to organize the finance of a movie he was obsessed to direct which opens at the and of July called "Monk Dawson" (18). John Michie decides at an opulent public school he wishes to become a priest, but practising as one makes him realize his values can be much different from his church which he renounces for an active sex life. The guilt conscience so many of the British have about sex and nudity makes him decide he has been a bad boy and he becomes a monk in an order forbidden to speak. Young Mr Waller has put together an effective movie with a welcome appearance of Martin Kemp an a villainous Fleet Street editor, who brings great sex appeal to anything he does. But in the next Waller production I hope he bears in mind the success of "4 Weddings And a Funeral" and "The Full Monty". For, if your leading man is suffering needlessly throughout much of your film with sexual guilt, your audience might not be pleased as they leave the cinema. Director Robert Altman persuaded the prolific thriller writer John Grisham to give him an original screenplay which to "The Gingerbread Man" (15) shot in Savannah. Georgia which Mr Altman has filled with mystery and intrigue. Kenneth Branagh is a lawyer whose one night stand with a waitress, Embeth Davidtz, becomes complicated when he finds her mental case father, Robert Duvall, is stalking her. Before long be finds the father is stalking him too with rifle in hand. The delicious and delectable Robert Downey Jr reacts like a robot to the Branagh bidding. Could keep you on the edge of that seat! Conmen know how to do it in Russia. In "The Thief" leading man Vladimir Machkov dresses as an army officer to fool his victims. His commanding style gains him access to households where he robs anyone or anything that appeals to him. If I was going to be robbed by anyone I would have been happy for it to have been by Mr Machkov - after he had spent the night. Humble soldiers in Russia don't command quite as much respect as, when the authorities are short of money, the men are not paid who can be found begging on the streets. Never having been to Berlin I am attracted to any film about it. "Life is All You Get" tells the tribulations of a family that could happen anywhere when a young man finds himself between guys on the run and plain-clothes policemen chasing them. He ends up in a prison call with a large fine to pay. The moral might be take a book or your knitting with you never dropping a stitch and only a few remarks while witnessing street punch-ups. The German cast are attractive and you can decide if the Berlin flavour appeals before booking that flight. "Godzilla" (PG) is impressive for mind-blowing special affects and the most rousing sound effects you are likely to hear in a cinema. But as a child delinquent I was taken to the National Film Theatre in London to see "King Kong" made in 1933 and nothing since has been able to top it. Giant apes terrorizing New York will always appeal to American audiences and quite a few British audiences I imagine. "Taste Of Cherry" (PG) is as wierd a film as they come, possibly because Iranians have a different idea of entertainment than other people. A man who needs help committing suicide drives through deserted parts of Iran offering money to guys who will cover him with earth when they find him in a hole the morning after he has taken sleeping pills. I want to see films about wealthy Iranians with the magnificent architecture their country has in abundance. Americans know how to handle potential suicide onscreen. In "Dream With The Fishes" (18) David Arquette is not getting enough satisfaction out of studying the couple opposite through binoculars. The troubles of his life make him decide to kill himself by jumping off the local high bridge. Miraculously the male half of the couple he has been watching, Brad Hunt, turns up pointing out there is no guarantee he will die in that jump and offers him an overdose of sleeping pills in exchange for his watch. I won't list the comical repercussions. It's not too surprising that Hollywood scriptwriters know how to handle the subject a fraction more entertainingly than Iranians. Child sex abuse is not something I wish to hear about onscreen for any reason whatsoever. Documentaries about it on TV have helped alleviate the sufferings of British children end I am grateful to Esther Rantzen for initiating Childline over ten yearn ago so anyone with this problem has a number to ring for advice. "A Thousand Acres" (15) tells of a dominating father, Jason Robards, distributing his wealth amongst three daughters and one of them, Michelle Pfeiffer, recalls him sexually molesting them in their youth. Michelle and Jessica Lang give great performances, but the subject matter appalled me. Julie Walters has always been over-endowed with talent and the ability to play most ages in most accents. She excels herself in "Girls' Night" (15) when she and fellow factory worker, Brenda Blethyn win ukp100,000 in their northern bingo ball only to have their lives ruined when Brenda finds she is dying of cancer. Her dream ambition has always been to visit Las Vegas and, despite protests, Julie tells her the tickets are booked and they are leaving within the hour. Brenda's husband and teenage children are thinking of reporting her as a missing person when she phones to tell them she is sunbathing for a week. Cowboy Kris Kristofferson adds novelty to their trip and, if you enjoy a good cry in the dark, you must see "Girls' Night". "Dark City" (15) is for science fiction lovers who are prepared to accept the thought that a world of "Strangers" below are governing our minds when they want to, the idea of which makes me giggle more than tremble. A part of Rufus Sewell's memory is taken away so, when he is accused of murder, he can't be certain he didn't do it. William Hurt is a detective chasing him through some of the most bizarre sets ever constructed. If only I could lose myself in a dream world of science fiction! I felt the same watching "Wishmaster" (18) which is for lovers of horror. A genie is woken from a sleep of a thousand years wreaking evil and destruction. You won't believe the plot. But it has the cleverest special effects for many years. Malcolm Epstein ------------------------------------------------------------------------ MUSIC ===== Alan's Chart 1. Binary Finary - Paul Van Dyk Remix (Aquarius) 2. Amoeba Assassin - Rollercoaster (Oakey's Courtyard Mix / Listen & Feel Live Mix) (Perfecto Mainline) 3. Dolls Head - It's Over, It's Under (Brothers In Rhythm Instrumental) (MCA) 4. Serpico 2 EP - Dreamscape (Green) 5. Cevin Fisher's Big Freak - The Freaks Come Out (Subversive) 6. Hydra - The Hydra EP (B1) (Green) 7. Danny J Lewis - Spend The Night (Santiago Blue Remix) (Locked On) 8. Control Z - Dreaming Of You (Mantra Remix) (Automatic) 9. Eve 23 (Eve) 10. The Usual Suspects - Daydreemin' (Remixed by Mr C) (End) 11. Hardy Hard - Here Comes That Sound (Dr Rhythm'S Magic Trip Mix) (Low Sense) 12. S.P.Q.R. and Mental Pabvivm - Mantras (Telica) 13. B*witched - C'Est La Vie (Skynet Fahrenheit Dub) (Epic) 14. Herwig Maurer - Cyklik (Nuw Idol Remix) (Zoom) 15. Square Window - Don't Walk Just Wander (Torinention Remix) (Electric M.E.L.T.) 16. Sweet Peach - Take U Up (Steve Thomas Mix / T-Total Mix) (99 o) 17. D-Bop - Feel Like Dancing (D-Bop Original Mix) (Fluff) 18. Billy Hendrix - Body Shine (KS) 19. Angelique Kidjo - Voodoo Child (Slight Return) (Qattara Mix) (Island) 20. First Light - Atlas (Green) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- LISTINGS ======== We TRY to provide Scotland's most up-to-date and accurate listings. If your group isn't listed, - or if your entry needs updating - please write to ScotsGay with full details. We're not clairvoyant: If we don't know about it, it just won't go in! We'd also like to know about your forthcoming events and meetings. Although many of the listings are for specific towns, they often cover a much wider area. If in doubt, you can always phone one of the Switchboards for more information. Write to:- ScotsGay Listings, PO Box 666, Edinburgh EH7 5YW, Fax them to: 0131-539 2999 or E-mail them to listings@scotsgay.co.uk. NATIONAL ORGANISATIONS OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND is Scotland's oldest lesbian, gay and bisexual rights organisation. It was founded in 1969 as the Scottish Minorities Group, later became the Scottish Homosexual Rights Group and changed its name to OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND in December 1992. OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND owns the Edinburgh Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Centre. To contact, write to: The Secretary, OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND, 58a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3SA or send E-mail to alecd@dircon.co.uk Why not join OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND? Membership is ukp15 waged, ukp9 low-waged (under ukp10,000 pa) and ukp5 unwaged. Life membership is ukp150. Please make out your cheque/Postal Order to OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND and send to The Membership Secretary, OUTRIGHT SCOTLAND, 58a Broughton Street, EDINBURGH. EH1 3SA. EQUALITY NETWORK: Working for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in Scotland. Write: c/o 58a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 1SA. Tel: 07020 933 952. Fax: 07020 933 954. WWW: http://www.diversity.org.uk/equality E-mail: equality@diversity.org.uk Write, phone e-mail for more details of our campaigning work, and please join the campaign network! LESBIAN ARCHIVE AND INFORMATION CENTRE: The UK's largest and most significant collection of materials relating to lesbian lives. LAIC (at Glasgow Women's Library) 4th/5th Floors, 109 Trongate, Glasgow. G1 5HD. Tel: 0141-552 8345. Open Tue-Fri 1-6pm and Sat 2-5pm. WWW: http://www.womens-library.org.uk/laic.htm E-mail: gwl@globalnet.co.uk PRIDE SCOTLAND: Pride Scotland organises the annual lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered Pride event in Scotland. Tel: 0131-556 8822 or 0141-400 2640. Or write: c/o 58a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 1SA. E-mail: pridescotland@drink.demon.co.uk WWW: http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/pride/ All kinds of help are urgently required all year round! LOCAL ORGANISATIONS ABERDEEN: North East Scotland Gay Group caters for all ages and meets at 7.30pm on the 3rd Sunday of every month. Phone Ron on Aberdeen (01224) 312547 (7-11pm) for information. E-mail: nesgg@drink.demon.co.uk Icebreakers is a social group which meets on last Monday of each month. Contact Grampian Switchboard for details. BORDERS: Borders Gay Switchboard operates every Thursday evening 7.30-10pm for confidential information, advice and counselling. Phone Galashiels (01896) 756611 or write to Borders Gay Switchboard, PO Box 13305, Hawick, Borders. TD9 9YG. CAITHNESS GAY AND LESBIAN CONNECTION: A friendly informal group which meets regularly. Write to: Box 689, Journal Office, 42 Union Street, Wick, Caithness. KW1 5ED. CENTRAL REGION: Forth Friend has a disco (1st Saturday of most months) and a social group which meets every second Wednesday. The Forth Friend phoneline operates each Monday from 7.30pm to 9.30pm on Stirling (01786) 471285. Or write to: PO Box 28, Stirling. FK9 5YW. DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY: Regular social meetings - usually every second Wednesday. For details of all events: phone Dumfries (01387) 261818 Thursday 7.30-9.30pm or write to Dumfries and Galloway Lesbian and Gay Group, PO Box 1299, Dumfries. DG1 2PD. DUNDEE: Tay Friend, holds regular social meetings for gay men. Write to: Tay Friend, PO Box 182, Dundee. DD1 9UP. Or phone Dundee Switchboard. EDINBURGH: Icebreakers is an alternative to the scene and takes place between 8pm and 9.15pm on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each calendar month in CafE Kudos. First-timers are invited to arrive at 7.30pm. Phone Lothian Switchboard for details. ELGIN: Pride of Moray Firth LGB Social Group meets informally every second Wednesday from 8pm in the Cat's Whiskers lounge bar in New Elgin. All welcome. For full details of this and other social events in the area phone Malcolm on Forres (01309) 641258 or e-mail: jollity@jollity.demon.co.uk. Alternatively, contact Moray LGB Switchboard. The Moray Gayzette is an lgb newsletter for folk living in the Moray area. Published every four weeks, it is available from GG Productions, PO Box 5773, Elgin, Moray. IV30 1XP. FIFE FRIEND: Small voluntary phoneline offering support, advice and information to lesbians and gay men within Fife. Friday: 7.30-10.30pm. Telephone: Kirkcaldy (01592) 266688. Write to PO Box 19, Kirkcaldy, Fife. KY1 3JF. Runs a monthly disco and has weekly pub nights. GLASGOW: Glasgow Gay & Lesbian Centre Project, fundraising, campaigning and social group. Committee meetings held on 1st Saturday each month at 2pm in the Centre, open to all. Write to Glasgow Gay & Lesbian Centre, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow, G1 4AL or contact 0141-221 7203 (phone/fax). Childcare expenses and BSL interpreter available - please give advance notice. E-mail: gglc@gglc.org.uk WWW: http://www.gglc.org.uk/gglc/ Icebreakers CafE, for lesbians, gays and bisexuals new to the scene: 12.30-3pm on First Sunday in each month. GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. Details from Strathclyde Switchboard. INVERNESS: Highland Gay Men's Group meets on the 4th Wednesday of each month at 34 Waterloo Place. Social meeting every 3rd Saturday at 2.30pm. Tel: Inverness (01463) 711585 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.30pm) or write to: PO Box 67, Inverness. IV1 2XX. LANARKSHIRE: Lanarkshire Gay Men's Group is a group which meets every Wednesday. Social and educational events. Write: LGMC, c/o 22 Dunlin, East Kilbride, Glasgow. G74 4RU. Tel: 0845 6071936. E-mail: lgmg@bigfoot.com Web: http://www.bigfoot.com/~lgmg/ WOMEN'S GROUPS ABERDEEN LESBIAN GROUP: Meets every Wednesday 8-10pm in the Women's Centre, Shoe Lane. Tel: Babs Greenwood on Aberdeen (01224) 625010. E-mail: ab.womenscentre@dial.pipex.com DUNDEE: Sumbiddies Dachters (Lesbian Support Group) meets at 7pm every second Tuesday at Women's Health & Family Project, 1 Russell Project, Hilltown, Dundee. DD3 7RU. Telephone: Dundee (01382) 810230. EDINBURGH: AD Group: For lesbians 40+. Monthly meeting and frequent social events. For details, phone Edinburgh Lesbian Line or E-mail 40plus@drink.demon.co.uk Dykes Nytes Out: Social events for couples and singles. Meets 1st and 3rd Friday of each month in CafE Kudos. Phone Edinburgh Lesbian Line for details. Edinburgh Bisexual Group meets every Thursday 8pm-9.30pm in the Edinburgh Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Centre, 58a Broughton Street. All welcome. Edinburgh Lesbian Line 0131-557 0751, Mondays and Thursdays 7.30-10pm. For information, advice and counselling in confidence. Write to: PO Box 169, Edinburgh. EH1 3UU. Lesbian Mothers Group: Tel: Sue Robertson on 0131-556 3899/4563. Or write: One Parent Scotland, 13 Gayfield Square, Edinburgh. EH1 3NX. GLASGOW: Glasgow Lesbian Line: 0141-552 3355 Wednesdays 7-10pm. Write to: PO Box 686, Glasgow. G3 7TL enclosing an sae for monthly 'Lavender Listing'. Glasgow Women's Library: 4th/5th Floors, 109 Trongate, G1 5HD. Tel: 0141-552 8345. Open Tue-Fri 1-6pm. Sat 2-5pm. Closed Mon. Lending and reference library - books, magazines, journals, videos, leaflets and information. UK and overseas feminist and lesbian publications. Contains the Lesbian Archive and Information Centre - a unique national collection of publications, journals and ephemera by and for lesbians. WWW: http://www.womens-library.org.uk/ E-mail: gwl@globalnet.co.uk Jive Classes: Wednesday nights from 7.30-10.30pm. Beginners through to advanced, no need to bring a partner. Phone Glasgow Lesbian Line for venue details. Lesbian Mothers Discussion Group: Meets every second Monday from 6-8pm. Support group, social events, informal chat. Crêche and fares help available. Phone Vicky on 0141-333 1450. Listening Ear: Counselling for lesbians available at the GGLC every Monday 1.30-2.30pm. Tel: 0141-221 7203 for details. Massage and Aromatherapy: Qualified practitioners offer a sliding scale of fees for women on low incomes. Phone Glasgow Lesbian Line for details. OLGA - Older Women's Group: Phone Glasgow Lesbian Line for details. Self Defence and Personal Safety: Personal safety and self defence courses for lesbians are offered by the Women's Safety Centre, Wellpark Women's Business Centre, 120 Sydney Street, Glasgow. Tel: 0141-554 7676. Women's Badminton Group: Meets weekly. Phone Glasgow Lesbian Line for details. Women's Five-a-side Football: Indoor football on Sunday evenings 5-7pm. Mixed ability, new members/visitors welcome. Phone Glasgow Lesbian Line for venue details. INVERNESS: Out and About is a friendly lesbian social group that gets together once a month. Write to: PO Box 91, Inverness. IV1 2GJ. LESBIAN INFORMATION SERVICE: PO Box 8, Todmorden, Lancashire. OL14 5TZ. Please enclose an sae. Tel/Fax: Todmorden (01706) 817235. LILLIDOTS: Lesbian Feminist Walking Group. Contact via Dundee Switchboard, Edinburgh Lesbian Line, Glasgow Lesbian Line or Grampian Switchboard. BISEXUALS EDINBURGH BISEXUAL GROUP: Meets every Thursday at 8pm-9.30pm in the Edinburgh Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Centre, 58a Broughton Street. There's an excellent programme of talks and speakers usually followed by a visit to a local pub for socialising. Tel: Edinburgh Bi Helpline on 0131-557 3620. GLASGOW BI GROUP: Contact: David Craig, c/o GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. G1 4AL. Meets 2nd last Wednesday of month in GGLC at 7.30pm. ATHEISTS/HUMANISTS EDINBURGH FREETHINKERS: An informal network of militant atheists (with one militant humanist agnostic atheist). Write to: PO Box 666, Edinburgh. EH7 5YW or E-mail god@antipope.org GAY AND LESBIAN HUMANIST ASSOCIATION (GALHA): A group for non religious lesbians gays and bisexuals which promotes an enlightened, rational Humanist approach to homosexuality. Details from GALHA National Office, 34 Spring Lane, Kenilworth, Warwickshire. CV8 2HB. Tel/Fax: Kenilworth (01926) 858450. WWW: http://visitweb.com/galha?/ E-mail: GALHA@bigfoot.com BEARS BEARS' CLUB UK: For hairy, moustached and bearded men and their admirers. Aberdeen: Meets 1st Fri of month in Castro's from 10.30pm. Aberdeen contact: Bruce on Aberdeen (01224) 317552. E-mail: aberdeenbears@drink.demon.co.uk. Edinburgh: Meets in the New Town Bar on the 3rd Wednesday of each month from 8.30pm. Glasgow: Meets every 2nd Friday of each month in the Court Bar from 8.30pm. Glasgow contact: 0141-883 9055. E-mail: glasgowbears@drink.demon.co.uk. Write: BCUK, PO Box 89, Hoylake DO, Wirral. L48 4LD. BEREAVEMENT LESBIAN & GAY BEREAVEMENT PROJECT: Lesbians and gay men needing advice and support can ring 0181-455 8894 at any time. Or write to: Lesbian & Gay Bereavement Project, Vaughan M Williams Centre, Colindale Hospital, London. NW9 5HG. THRESHOLDS: Individual and group support for gay men, bisexual men and men who have sex with men, within Edinburgh and the Lothians. 10a Union Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3LU. Telephone: 0131-558 9444. BIKERS GAY BIKERS MOTORCYCLE CLUB: A UK-wide club for women and men. Active Scottish section. Details: GBMCC, PO Box 33, Nottingham. NG10 2BF. CHRISTIANS CHANGING CHURCH ATTITUDES: Write c/o 58a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3SA. E-mail: cca2000@btinternet.com EVANGELICAL: Lesbian, gay or bisexual? From an Evangelical tradition? So are we. Tel: Ewan on Polmont (01324) 715542. Or write: Evangelical Fellowship, 45 Hillary Close, Chelmsford, Essex. CM1 5RP. HOLY TRINITY METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY CHURCH: An inclusive church of the lesbigay and trangendered community open to all irrespective of sexuality. Services: Every Sunday at 6pm in the Quaker Meeting House, Victoria Terrace, Edinburgh and 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month at 2pm in the GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. Phone (Edinburgh) Stephen on 0131-332 7088 or (Glasgow) Susan on Duntocher (01389) 876862. Write: Holy Trinity MCC, PO Box 12433, Edinburgh. EH1 3FU. or MCC, GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. G1 4AL. WWW: http://www.geocities.com/westhollywood/8362 or E-mail: mcc.edinburgh@cheerful.com L&GCM: Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement. Write to PO Box 1436, Glasgow. G31 2NY. QUAKERS: Quaker Lesbian and Gay Fellowship (formerly Friends' Homosexual Fellowship) is a welcoming and supportive national group for people of all sexual orientations and their friends. Write to: Ruth, 3 Hallsfield, Cricklade, Swindon, Wilts. SN6 6LR. QUEST: Organisation for lesbian and gay Catholics. Monthly meetings are held in Glasgow. For information, call Linkline Glasgow on 0141-948 0397. Sunday 7-10pm. Or you can write to: Quest, PO Box 280, Glasgow. G12 0AW. WWW: http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~quest/ E-mail: quest@dircon.co.uk COMMUNICATIONS BORDERS BULLETIN BOARD: Computer based information, programs and gay message exchanges. On-line 24 hours a day. To gain access to these areas, register as a new user and leave a messsage for the Sysop who will upgrade your access accordingly. Connect speeds 2400-28,800 baud. Hawick (01450) 377877. LAMBDA BOARD - EDINBURGH: The UK's oldest lesbigay 24 hour computer based bulletin board system. Private mailboxing, areas for Women, Gay Men, Bisexuals, Leather Enthusiasts, TV/TSs, etc. 0131-556 6316. Scrolling (8N1) and Viewdata (Prestel) formats at speeds up to V22bis (2400/2400). CULTURAL CLANN AN UABHAIR (A FAMILY OF PRIDE): New York City's own Gay & Lesbian Scottish Association. Membership open to anyone. Dances, ceilidhs, cultural events throughout the year. A particular warm welcome to anyone visiting our town from Scotland! E-mail: ibetts@erols.com for any and all information, or snail mail to Clann An Uabhair, G.L.S.A., P.O. Box 630, Murray Hill Station, New York, NY 10016, USA. Tel: 00 1 (212) 726-1418. GAY ABBA FAN CLUB: For anyone wanting to meet with other guys with a Scandinavian fixation, watch/swap videos, memorabilia or just jam with other Svenskas. Tel: 0141-943 1428. E-mail: Gdon22@aol.com GLASGAY!: Lesbian and gay arts festival. Postponed until 30th Oct - 7th Nov 1998. Write: c/o GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. G1 4AL. INTERNATIONAL KILT APPRECIATION SOCIETY (IKAS): Contact and social group for guys interested in viewing/wearing kilts. Regular newsletter: SAE Mervyn Tacy, ‘Ziveli', 20 Ordsall Park Road, RETFORD, Notts, DN22 7PA. WESTERN STARS: Western style line and partner dancing for gays, lesbians and friends of goodwill. Mon evenings. Tel: 0131-453 3284 for details. DRINK PROBLEMS If you have a drink problem and want help and advice, you can ring Tom on 0141-770 6599, 7 days a week anytime. Tom refers to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), but does preparatory work. FORCES AT EASE: An advice service to armed forces personnel and their families. Free, independent, confidential, impartial. Write: 28 Commercial Street, London E1 6LS or phone (Sundays 5-7pm only) 0171-247 5164. RANK OUTSIDERS: Support group of Lesbian and Gay Ex Armed Forces Personnel. No rank distinctions. Write: Rank Outsiders, BCM Box 8431, London. WC1N 3XX. National Helpline: 0171-566 0044 Wed 7-9pm. Scottish Co-ordinator: Calum McLean. Tel: Inverness (01463) 236878. HEALTH MATTERS BODY POSITIVE (GRAMPIAN): Support and assistance for gay and bisexual men with HIV/AIDS. Tel: Aberdeen (01224) 404408. Or write to: PO Box 83, Aberdeen. AB9 1AA. BODY POSITIVE (LOTHIAN): Phone to speak to a gay positive person 1:1 on 0131-652 0754 Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri 10am-4pm, Thur 10am-7pm. Or write to: 37-39 Montrose Terrace, Edinburgh. EH7 5DJ. BODY POSITIVE (STRATHCLYDE): Providing support for HIV+ people and those directly affected by the virus in the West of Scotland. Tel: 0141-332 5010. Fax: 0141-332 4285. Centre open at 3 Park Quadrant, Glasgow. G3 6BS. Mon-Fri 10am-5pm. WWW: http://homepages.enterprise.net/bpstrathclyde/ E-mail: bpstrathclyde@enterprise.net BODY POSITIVE (TAYSIDE): Self help for HIV+ people on Dundee (01382) 461555 Tue, Wed Thu 10am-4pm. CENTRE FOR WOMEN'S HEALTH: 6 Sandyford Place, Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow. G3 7NB. Open Tue-Thur 10am-4.30pm (other times by arrangement). Fully accessible. Telephone: 0141-211 6700 (Minicom: 0141-211 6701). CRUSAID SCOTLAND: 25 Queensferry Street, Edinburgh. EH2 4QS. Telephone: 0131-225 8918. Fax: 0131-220 4033. AIDS/HIV Fundraisers who organise the annual Walk for Life. WWW: http://www.crusaid.org.uk/ E-mail: office@crusaid.org.uk DOT (DUNDEE OUTREACH TEAM): Harm Reduction Centre, 55 Constitution Road, Dundee. DD1 1LB. Telephone: Dundee (01382) 201919. Sexual health and relevant issues for gay and bisexual men. Free and confidential service. Drop in coffee shop: Sat 2-5pm. Friendly and informal. FRIENDS FOR LIFE: Provides support and information in Glasgow and surrounding areas to people affected by terminal or long term chronic illness. ie Cancer, AIDS, MS, etc. Please call 0141-204 2202 or write to Friends for Life, 5th Floor, 52 St Enoch Square, Glasgow. G1 4DH. GALUP: Gay and Lesbian United Programme. Promotes health issues among lesbians gays and bisexuals in the Dundee area. Write: c/o YMCA Special Projects Office, 76 Bell Street, Dundee. GAY MEN'S HEALTH: A voluntary sector project for gay men, bisexual men and men who have sex with men. Services include individual support and counselling, Thresholds (a bereavement project), scene work, educating and training. 10a Union Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3LU. Telephone: 0131-558 9444. TeleFAX: 0131-558 9060. GLASGOW BARS AIDS WELFARE FUND: Raises funds for various HIV/AIDS projects in the Glasgow area. PO Box 3954, Glasgow. G31 2YF. E-mail: gbawf@hotmail.com GLASGOW FOOD LINE: Confidential service which provides nutritionally balanced meals and information to HIV+ people and carers in Glasgow. Tel/FAX: 0141-946 0003. Write: Unit A, Maryhill Workspace Limited, 45 Garrioch Road, Glasgow. G20 8RG. GLASGOW HIV CARERS SUPPORT GROUP: Tel: 0141-221 8100. Or write to: Suite 226, Baltic Chambers, 50 Wellington Street, Glasgow. G2 6HJ. GRAMPIAN AIDS LINE: Aberdeen (01224) 574000 or write to GAL, PO Box 250, Aberdeen. HAVEN: Drop-in space for those affected by HIV and AIDS in the west of Scotland. 36 Shelley Court beside the Brownlee Centre, Gartnavel General Hospital. Tel: 0141-211 2363. HEALTHY GAY SCOTLAND: Free condoms and lube available by post from their website: http://www.hgscotland.org.uk/ I CARE CAMPAIGN: Run by Lanarkshire Health Board. Tel: Motherwell (01698) 258786. LANARKSHIRE HIV AND AIDS COUNSELLING: Phone Airdrie (01236) 747960 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm) MILESTONE HOUSE: Residential care (primarily respite and paliative care) for people with HIV/AIDS. 223 Oxgangs Road North, Edinburgh. EH14 1EB. Tel: 0131-441 6989. OASIS: Drop-in and information service for gay and bisexual men. Mon-Wed, Fri 10am-5pm, Thu 10am-10pm. 10a Union Street, Edinburgh. Tel: 0131-558 9444. PAISLEY SUPPORT GROUP: For people with HIV, partners, friends and family. Tel: Margaret McAllister on Brediland (01505) 814284. PHACE WEST: A locally based and managed agency for people affected by HIV/AIDS serving Glasgow and the West of Scotland. 49 Bath Street, Glasgow. G2 2DL. Tel: 0141-332 3838 (Fax: 0141-332 3755). E-mail: phacewest@enterprise.net POSITIVE ACCOMMODATION TEAM: Tel: 0141-552 4488. Fax: 0141-552 2760. Write: 2nd Floor, Granite House, 31 Stockwell Street, Glasgow. G1 4RZ. POSITIVE HELP: Practical help for people who are HIV+ or who have AIDS and their families, children, friends and carers. 13 Great King Street, Edinburgh. EH3 6QW. Tel: 0131-558 1122. THE RAINBOW FUND: Raising funds for the future care of HIV/AIDS patients in Glasgow. PO Box 9525, Johnstone. PA5 OYB. Tel/FAX: 01505 347301. E-Mail: 106756.701@compuserve.com REACH OUT HIGHLAND: Encourages and supports people throughout the Highlands - whether living there or visiting - to take responsibility for, manage, and make informed choices about their sexual health and well-being. 34 Waterloo Place, Inverness. IV1 1NB. Tel: Inverness (01463) 711585 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.30pm). FAX: Inverness (01463) 711793. E-mail: support@reachout.demon.co.uk SOLAS NATIONAL HIV/AIDS INFORMATION CENTRE: 2/4 Abbeymount, Edinburgh. EH8 8EJ. Information, advice and cafe. Information centre: Mon, Tue, Thurs, Fri 11-4pm, Wed 5-9pm. Tel: 0131-659 5116. E-mail: information@solas.demon.co.uk STEVE RETSON PROJECT: Weekly sexual health service for gay men. Tuesday 5.30-9pm. Department of GU Medicine, Main Outpatient Department, Royal Infirmary, 16 Alexandra Parade, Glasgow. Tel: 0141-211 4753/4. Also at GGLC, 11 Dixon Street Thu 5.30-8.30pm and Fri-Sat 9pm-Midnight. WAVERLEY CARE TRUST BUDDY SERVICE: Buddying Service for people with HIV/AIDS. Buddy Service Co-ordinator, 4a Royal Terrace, Edinburgh. EH7 5AB. Tel: 0131-556 3959. Fax: 0131-556 5045. NATIONAL AIDS HELPLINE: Freephone 0800 567123. 24 hour service for confidential advice and information. Minicom: 0800 521361 (10am-10pm). Other languages: Arabic 0800 282447 (Thurs 6-10pm), Bengali 0800 371132 (Tues 6-10pm), Cantonese 0800 282446 (Mon 6-10pm), Gujerati 0800 371134 (Wed 6-10pm), Hindi 0800 371136 (Wed 6-10pm), Punjabi 0800 371133 (Wed 6-10pm), Urdu 0800 371135 (Wed 6-10pm) and Welsh 0800 371131 (Daily 10am-2am). (All calls to 0800 numbers are free except from some mobile networks). E-mail: network@netscot.co.uk LEATHER MSC SCOTLAND: MSC Scotland, PO Box 28, Edinburgh. EH3 5JL. MSC Scotland is a member of the European Federation of Motorcycle Clubs. LEGAL GAY AND LESBIAN LEGAL ADVICE: GLAD is a London based advice line run by lesbian and gay lawyers. Tel: 0171-837 5212 (Mon-Thu 7-9.30pm). State clearly that you seek Scottish legal advice as our law is very different from that of England and Wales. NON-MONOGAMY ABUNDANCE: Supportive UK/European network for non-monogamous people. For more info on polyamory/polyfidelity, write enclosing sae to: Abundance, PO Box 5190, Birmingham. B13 9DJ. WWW: http://www.polyamory.org/SF/Groups/abundance.txt E-mail: polyenq@sugito.demon.co.uk ORDERS ORDER OF PERPETUAL INDULGENCE: The Sisters and Brothers of the OPI are part of a world wide order of queer men and women of all sexualities which is open to all who feel the habit. Its tenets are: The expurgation of stigmatic guilt and the promulgation of universal joy. Contact Sister Solicitation OPI, c/o 58a Broughton Street, Edinburgh. EH1 3SA. E-mail: alecd@dircon.co.uk OUTDOOR CLUBS DUNDEE HILLBILLIES: Hillwalking group mets 2nd and 3rd Sundays of the month. Contact: Kevin on Dundee (01382) 455099. GAY BIRDERS CLUB: A club for gay and lesbian bird-watchers. UK-based with a world-wide membership, and particularly active in Scotland. Contact: Deneside, Foulden, Berwickshire. TD15 1UL. E-mail: gay.birders@dial.pipex.com WWW: http://ds.dial.pipex.com/gay.birders/ GAY OUTDOOR CLUB: Holds regular events including skiing, walking, cycling, mountaineering, camping, youth-hostelling, badminton and swimming. Also holds regular socials in Edinburgh and Glasgow. Please send an A5 sae to GOC, PO Box 16124, Glasgow, G12 9YT, or ring one of the Scottish contacts: East: Grant on 0131-556 8705 (E-mail: grant@music.ed.ac.uk), West: Jonathan on 0141-334 0812; North: Michael on Invershin (01549) 421344. (E-mail: keates/IC@fc.uhi.ac.uk). WWW: http://bi.org/~goc/ GAY RAMBLING GROUP: Walks on the 2nd Saturday of each month. Phone Ross on 0141-427 1511. OVER FORTIES PHOENIX: The only national group for the over forties and friends of any age. Write (enclose sae) to: Phoenix, PO Box 103, Wallington, Surrey. SM6 9SJ. PARENTS PARENTS' FRIEND: Tel: 0113-267 4627. Or write to: Voluntary Action Leeds, Stringer House, 34 Lupton Street, Hunslett, Leeds. LS10 2QW. PARENTS' SUPPORT: Support for parents of lesbians, gays and bisexuals. Tel: Alice on Lanark (01555) 895306. SCOTTISH PARENTS ENQUIRY SERVICE: Support for parents of lesbians gays and bisexuals. Contact via Lothian Switchboard or write to SPE, PO Box 169, Edinburgh. EH1 3UU. POLITICAL DELGA: Liberal Democrats for Lesbian and Gay Action - write to 4 Cowley Street, London. SW1P 3NB or E-mail archdruid@cix.compulink.co.uk WWW: http://www.libdems.org.uk/people/aos/delga/ THE GAY POLITICAL PARTY: For homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals, transvestites, transexuals, heterosexuals, others. Have a voice and be heard. Contact David Shiloh, 91 Corsock Street, Haghill, Glasgow. G31 3PN. Or phone: 0141-554 7702. LESBIANS AND GAY MEN SUPPORTING IRISH POLITICAL PRISONERS/IRISH SOLIDARITY CAMPAIGNS IN SCOTLAND/LONDON: For details of monthly pickets, socials, functions, commemorations, etc, write to: Paul, BM Box 7970, London. WC1N 3XX. LIBERAL PARTY LESBIAN AND GAY CAMPAIGN: Tel: Southport (01704) 500115 (day), 0151-259 5935 (ansaphone), write to: Liberal Party Lesbian & Gay Campaign, 41 Sutton Street, Liverpool. L13 7EG. WWW: http://www.libparty.demon.co.uk/ E-mail: libgay@libparty.demon.co.uk THE PASSION BRIGADE: Mixed sex/sexuality - all ages and races. Anarchism. Details (2 postage stamps please) from BM Box 207, LONDON. WC1N 3XX. SCOTTISH LABOUR CAMPAIGN FOR LESBIAN AND GAY RIGHTS: Works within the Labour and Trades Union movement to secure equality for lesbians and gay men. Meets quarterly. Contact c/o GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. G1 4AL. TORCHE: Tory Campaign for Homosexual Equality - write: BM TORCHE, London WC1N 3XX. RAPE/SEXUAL ABUSE RAPE AND ABUSE LINE: For male and female survivors. Women: Dingwall (01349) 865316 7-10pm nightly. Men: Dingwall (01349) 862686 Mon and Wed 7-10pm. Write: PO Box 10, Dingwall. IV15 9LH. REAL ALE DIVERSE DRINKERS: Edinburgh group for lgbt real ale and cider fans. Regular gatherings to sample the brewers' art. Phone: Karen on 0131-557 8790 or e-mail feorag@antipope.org Web: http://www.antipope.org/feorag/drinkers/ GLASGOW GAY REAL ALE GROUP: Meets first Wednesday of each month plus regular visits to real ale pubs in the Glasgow area and to real ale festivals. Why not come along and have a beer and a laugh. Phone Ken on 0141-427 4764 or e-mail: kmurray@openlink.org Web: http://www.openlink.org/kmurray/beer.htm SCIENCE FICTION DELANEY'S EDINBURGH CHILDREN: Meets every 1st Sunday of the month in Nexus Cafe from 3-4.30pm. Contact Jane on 0131-553 5569. DELANEY'S GLASGOW CHILDREN: Meets every 3rd Sunday of the month. Contact Paul on 0141-339 9176. S/M SM GAYS: Write to SM Gays, BM SM Gays, London. WC1N 3XX. E-mail: smgays@aol.com SPORTS ABERDEEN GAY MEN'S SWIMMING GROUP: Swim every Wednesday from 8.30pm onwards. Tel: David on Aberdeen (01224) 317552. E-mail: agmsg@drink.demon.co.uk EDINBURGH GAY MEN'S RUNNING CLUB: Meets for 3-4 mile casual local run. Alistair on 0131-556 9995. EDINBURGH GAY MEN'S SWIMMING GROUP: Meets informally Mondays at 8pm in the Commonwealth Pool. Tel: Tom on 0131-229 5755. GAY BODYBUILDERS/WEIGHTRAINERS CLUB: Contact Winston Duncan on 0171-379 3480 for contact with Scottish members and nationally. GLASGOW BADMINTON GROUP: Meets Wednesdays 6.30-9.30pm, during term-time, in the games hall at Knightswood Secondary School, Knightswood Road. Contact: Andrew on 0141-576 6875. GLASGOW SWIMMING GROUP: Meets Thursdays at 8pm, during term-time, in the pool at Woodside Secondary School, Berkeley Street. Contact: Derek on Stirling (01786) 475897. LESBIAN & GAY FOOTBALL SUPPORTERS NETWORK: Tel: Ewan on 0141-779 2321. STUDENTS Many Universities and Colleges have Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Societies. Contact these via your Student Union or Student Association. Many are open to non-students living in the area. There are also groups covering wider areas run in conjunction with the National Union of Students - East of Scotland: Write to LGB Officer, East of Scotland Area NUS, 11 Broughton Market, Edinburgh. EH3 6NU or phone on 0131-556 6598. North of Scotland: Write to LGB Officer, North of Scotland Area NUS, University of Aberdeen, 50/52 College Bounds, Aberdeen, AB2 3DS. West of Scotland: Write to LGB Officer, West of Scotland Area NUS, Cathcart House, Langside College, 50 Prospecthill Road, Glasgow. G42 9LB. NUS Scottish LGB Officer on 0131-556 6598 or write to NUS Scotland, 11 Broughton Market, Edinburgh. EH3 6NU. E-mail: nus-scot@dircon.co.uk OPEN UNIVERSITY L&G SOC: Tel: David: on 0141-554 7159. TV/TS ABERDEEN: 3G (Grampian Gender Group). Meets third Saturday of month Noon-5pm. Tel: Gillian on Aberdeen (01224) 633108 6.30-9.30pm Mon-Tue. EDINBURGH: Scottish TV/TS Group meets in private rooms last Saturday of each month. Ring Agnes on 0131-229 7177 evenings. GLASGOW: Crosslynx meets second Wednesday of each month (except December) from 7pm-10pm. Tel: Crosslynx Helpline on 0141-332 3333 Mon 7.30-9.30pm. HIGHLAND T-GROUP: Monthly TV/TS support group. Contact Inverness (01463) 711585 (9am-4.30pm) or write: Julia, c/o Reach Out Highland, 34 Waterloo Place, Inverness. IV1 1NB. E-mail: support@reachout.demon.co.uk VISUAL IMPAIRMENT SCOTSGAY ON DISK: The text from ScotsGay and InsideOUT is available free of charge to visually impaired readers on 3.5" or 5.25" computer disk in IBMPC format. We will be glad to add you to our mailing list if you send your name and address (and disk size required) to us at: SOD, ScotsGay, PO Box 666, Edinburgh. EH7 5YW. We hope shortly to be able to provide disks in MAC format. VIGOUR: Self support group for visually impaired gay people. Tel: Jim or Colin on Dumfries (01387) 261679. WORKPLACE EIS GAY AND LESBIAN NETWORK: Write c/o 46 Moray Place, Edinburgh. EH3 6EH. Or contact Veronica Rankin, Equality Officer, on 0131-225 6244 or 0141-353 3595. GMB: Contact Mary Harrison, Regional Equal Rights Officer, Fountain House, 1/3 Woodside Crescent, Glasgow. G3 7UJ. Tel: 0141-332 8641. GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL G&L EMPLOYEES FORUM: Tel: John Dawson on 0141-959 7457 or Charles Thomson on 0141-287 3744. UNISON GLASGOW CITY LESBIAN & GAY GROUP: Meets monthly on Payday Tuesday in the GGLC 6pm. Tel: Neil MacInnes 0958 754315. UNISON SCOTLAND L&G COMMITTEE: Contact Neil MacInnes, Secretary, UNISON House, 14 West Campbell Street, Glasgow. G2 6RX. Tel: 0141-332 0006 or 0958 754315. UNISON WEST NETWORK: For UNISON members in the West of Scotland. Meets Quarterly. Tel: Neil MacInnes 0958 754315. YOUTH GROUPS ABERDEEN LGB YOUTH GROUP: For 21s and under. Meets 2-5pm on 2nd and 4th Saturdays, Tel: Aberdeen (01224) 272975, E-mail src038@abdn.ac.uk or check webpage at http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~src038/ CHILDREN OF LESBIANS AND GAYS EVERYWHERE (COLAGE): The first COLAGE group in the UK is being set up in Edinburgh. E-mail: edcolage@bigfoot.com or contact the Bisexual Phoneline on 0131-557 3620 (Thur 7.30-9.30pm). Web: http://www.bigfoot.com/~edcolage DUNDEE LGB YOUTH GROUP: Weekly group for young lesbians, gays and bisexuals or anyone who is unsure. Informal meetings held on Sunday evenings. Phone Dundee LGB Switchboard for details (Mon 7-10pm Dundee (01382) 202620) or write to PO Box 53, Dundee. DD1 3YG. GLASGOW LESBIAN AND BISEXUAL YOUTH GROUP: Youth group for women aged 21 and under. Meets fortnightly on Monday evenings. Contact Jai or Lyndsay at Glasgow Lesbian Line for details of venue. HIGHLAND YOUTH GAY & BISEXUAL GROUP: Meets 7.30pm 1st Wednesday at 34 Waterloo Place, Inverness. Social meeting 3rd Friday at 7.30pm. Contact Inverness (01463) 711585 (9am-4.30pm). E-mail: support@reachout.demon.co.uk LESBIAN YOUTH SUPPORT INFORMATION SERVICE: PO Box 8, Todmorden, Lancashire. OL14 5TZ. Enclose sae. Tel/Fax: Todmorden (01706) 817235. SONS AND DAUGHTERS CLUB: Group for the sons and daughters of lgb parents enables these children to mix with each other in a social environment. Phone Strathclyde Switchboard for details. STIRLING YOUTH GROUP: Details from Forth Friend on Stirling (01786) 471285 Mon 7.30-10pm. STONEWALL YOUTH GROUP: Group for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered people aged 14-18 in the Lothians. Meets every Friday 7-9.30pm. Tel: 0131-556 4040 (Tue 7.30-9pm) or E-mail: edyouth@cableinet.co.uk STONEWALL FRIENDS: Friendly, fun, informal social group for gays, lesbians and bisexuals (18-26) in the Lothians. Meets every Wednesday with regular social events at other times. Tel: 0131-556 4040 (Tue 7.30-9pm) or E-mail: edyouth@cableinet.co.uk STRATHCLYDE LESBIAN GAY AND BISEXUAL YOUTH GROUP: Friendship and support for under 26s. Meets Tuesday 7.30pm at the GGLC. Details from Strathclyde Switchboard or Glasgow Lesbian Line. Write: c/o GGLC, 11 Dixon Street, Glasgow. G1 4AL. WWW: http://bigles.ml.org/ E-mail: info@bigles.ml.org ------------------------------------------------------------------ SWITCHBOARDS AND HELPLINES ========================== BORDERS GAY SWITCHBOARD: Thurs 7.30-10pm Phone: Galashiels (01896) 756611 CROSSLYNX NATIONAL TV/TS HELPLINE: Mon 7.30-9.30pm Phone: 0141-332 3333 DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY L&G PHONELINE: Thurs 7.30-9.30pm Phone: Dumfries (01387) 261818 DUNDEE LGB SWITCHBOARD: Mon 7-10pm Phone: Dundee (01382) 202620 EDINBURGH BI HELPLINE: Thurs 7.30-9.30pm Phone: 0131-557 3620 EDINBURGH LESBIAN LINE: Mon, Thurs 7.30-10pm Phone: 0131-557 0751 FIFE FRIEND: Fri 7.30-10pm Phone: Kirkcaldy (01592) 266688 FORTH FRIEND: Mon 7.30-9.30pm Phone: Stirling (01786) 471285 GLASGOW LESBIAN LINE: Wed 7-10pm Phone: 0141-552 3355 GRAMPIAN LESBIAN, GAY & BISEXUAL SWITCHBOARD: Wed & Fri 7-10pm Phone: Aberdeen (01224) 633500 (Minicom available) Fax: Aberdeen (01224) 634055 LOTHIAN GAY & LESBIAN SWITCHBOARD: Nightly 7.30-10pm Phone: 0131-556 4049 MORAY LGB SWITCHBOARD: Men: Tue & Fri 7-10pm Women: Thu 7-10pm Phone: Elgin (01343) 541188 STRATHCLYDE GAY AND LESBIAN SWITCHBOARD: Nightly 7-10pm Phone: 0141-332 8372 LONDON LESBIAN AND GAY SWITCHBOARD: 24 hours Phone/Minicom: 0171-837 7324 WWW: http://www.llgs.org.uk/ -------------------------------------------------- SCOTSDYKE ========= THE STAG & TURRET Recently I took myself and a few friends up to the Stag & Turret in Montrose Terrace for a night out. After all the rumours I heard I didn't expect too much, but boy was I in for a shock! Everyone was made welcome by the friendly and delightful new manageress Karen and her four dedicated assistants. The music was a good mix of old and new - just like the customers - and the atmosphere in the place was alive with real people, not your plastic "I love me too" people you seem to get in a lot of the other bars. -------------------------------------- Anyway I had a great time and although the pub does need some work done to it (and Karen has plenty of tricks up her sleeve to sort that out) it is the people that bring the character and atmosphere to the place, not the decor. I predict that this is going to end up as one of Edinburgh's hot spots in the gay community. Just to finish off I asked Karen a few questions: on where the pub was going from here and what changes she wanted to make to make the Stag & Turret a great success... -------------------------------------- Heather: Why did you decide to take over the Stag & Turret after the mysterious disappearance of the last owner? Karen: It is a great business opportunity and I feel that we have something to offer the gay community of Edinburgh. Heather: Does that mean the S&T is staying a gay pub? Karen: Because of our location we are a gay friendly pub but we will always be predominantly gay. Heather: Do you feel that not being directly in town has an affect on custom? Karen: No, because we are close to all the other gay pubs and clubs and there is a large gay community in this area who are fast becoming locals. Heather: You have a DJ in on a Fri & Sat night do you have any other entertainment ideas? Karen: Not at the moment, but we are currently looking at bringing back the karaoke and we are also looking at alternative comedy nights. Heather: What are you going to do with the upstairs of the S&T? Karen: It will be staying as a pool room but it will also be open for private functions. Heather: Now that you have taken over what will be your major changes? Karen: The whole place will be redecorated and I am also looking at bringing in a 2am licence. I want to change the whole pub into a happy, friendly and welcoming place to be. Heather: Will you still have a woman's night? Karen: I am not prepared to have a weekly women's night but in the future I would like to run it fortnightly, saying that the upstairs pool room is predominantly women. Heather: Will you be doing meals and if so what type? Karen: I won't be doing meals as such but I will be introducing bar snacks (nachos, toasties etc.) and I will be installing a fresh coffee machine within the next two weeks. Heather: Now there have been comments made about the loos in the pub - do you have any response? Karen: Although the decor is not to everyone's taste they are clean and fresh, the women's toilets are to be decorated imminently and the men's to follow in the near future. Heather: What would you like to say to anyone who has never been to the S&T? Karen: If you want a friendly night out with a good atmosphere, loads of fun, plenty of cheap booze and good music come along. Heather: And finally I heard you wanted to change the name of the S&T. Do you have any ideas what to? Karen: I want to get the customers involved with name change and I am running a competition to get a new name for the bar. Heather White ------------------------------------------------------------------ CREDITS ======= ScotsGay: a bi-monthly magazine for lesbians, gays and bisexuals edited, printed and published in Scotland. ISSN: 1357-0595. (c) Pageprint Publishing Limited, June 1998. Non profit use by the lesbigay community of material in the magazine will normally be permitted free of charge — but contact us first for permission. We haven't had sex with most of the people who appear in the magazine so we don't actually know what their sexuality is. Editor: John Hein. Production: Seumas Macmhicean. Assistance: Gareth Dixon. Contributors in this issue: Feòrag NicBhrìde, Garry Otton & Derek Ogg (Features), Liquid Silk, Nigel Chipps, Minerva, Calmac, Dr. Kenniff & `Matron' Hattie (Scene), Rex Wockner (International), Martin Walker (The Nice Bit), `Davie' (Outlook), Justin Milne, Andy Martin, Heather White, Malcolm Epstien (Reviews), Alan Nicholls (Music), Heather White (ScotsDyke) Editorial Enquiries: Write to: ScotsGay, Pageprint Limited, PO Box 666, Edinburgh. EH7 5YW. Telephone: 0131-539 0666. Fax: 0131-539 2999. E-mail: scotsgay@drink.demon.co.uk We welcome news, articles, photos, cartoons, etc. - especially lesbian and bisexual material. Advertising Enquiries: Telephone: 0131-558 1279. Fax: 0131-539 2999. World-Wide-Web: http://www.scotsgay.co.uk/ Subscribing by Internet: Send a 'subscribe scotsgay-list' message to listserver@drink.demon.co.uk and the text files of future editions will be delivered to you by e-mail.