The soap’s new characters will be played by Shameless star Kelli Hollis and Alicya Eyo, famous for her role as Denny Blood in Bad Girls.

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The former Bond girl spoke about her fling with another famous actress on the Howard Stern radio show. (more…)

It’s that time of week again where we don our ironic fedoras, short sleeved blazers and skinny jeans and pretend we live in Soho. To get in the mood I’m currently eating a Ukranian-Italian fusion takeaway I ordered from a simply lovely Venetian style frozen oxygen bar on Dean Street whilst listening to an all-female hipster punk band called Labia Majora play post-ironic Japanese pop versions of K.D. Lang songs on a stylophone.
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The latest in a string of homophobic insults has forced the couple to move from the town of Mangawhai Heads where their business used to be based.

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The lower house of Italy’s parliament has rejected legislation designed to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people from discrimination and hate crime. (more…)

In a surprise move, the Ugandan government has appointed lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex lobby group Uhspa-Uganda to a high-profile Ministry of Health committee. However, LGBTI people still face legislative threats in the country. (more…)

Representatives from all other political groups attended at The Pride on the Hill event but the Democratic Unionist Party failed to offer a representative.

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The second GLISA (Gay and Lesbian International Sport Association) North American OutGames launched last night, in Vancouver, Canada. (more…)

The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (IGLA) has achieved United Nations accreditation. The group, which works to combat homophobia and transphobia throughout the world, spent many years campaigning for UN recognition. (more…)

Openly LGB soldiers will be able to service in the US military from 20 September 2011.

US President Barak Obama and two top military leaders signed a declaration on Friday to confirm that the repeal of the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy would not harm the USA’s military readiness or recruitment. (more…)

An awareness-raising campaign has greatly increased the number of lesbian and bisexual women accessing cervical screening services in the North West, with surveys suggesting a 49% rise in attendance. (more…)

A Ghanaian minister has told security services to arrest all people suspected of engaging in same-sex acts. Paul Evans Aidoo also asked ordinary people to inform upon those suspected of being lesbian or gay. (more…)

Facebook is an integral part of millions of lives, writes Ruth Pearce. It enables us to easily keep up with friends and acquaintances, organise events and even pretend that we’ve remembered important birthdays.

However, with privacy concerns on the rise and Google+ snapping at the giant’s heels, it’s a good time to reflect upon Facebook’s record as a gay-friendly space. (more…)

Hello and welcome to the Candy Bar Girls week three liveblog. If you missed the action last week, don’t worry! I watched it for you like some kind of benevolent Lesbian God.You can catch up here on last week’s Candy Bar Girls episode 2 liveblog.

Incidentally, if there were lesbian gods they’d have the head of Shane from the L Word and the body of Lara Croft from Tomb Raider. I’ve given this matter quite a lot of thought.

After last week’s homage to Most Haunted, a.k.a. the entirely pointless ghost hunt in the Candy Bar, I’m anticipating this episode will contain crossovers with other hit television programmes. Maybe Danni will appear on ‘Strictly Come Pole Dancing’ and Shabby will go on Big Brothe…oh wait, hang on. Never mind. (more…)

LGBT student leaders and university societies from across the country have criticised Stonewall’s second annual guide to gay-friendly universities in the UK. (more…)

Banks, public bodies and other service providers have begun to accept the titles “Mx” and “Misc”, each of which may be used as a non-gendered alternative to the honorifics “Miss”, “Mrs”, “Ms” and “Mr”. (more…)

Due to overwhelming demand, the mayor of New York City has announced that couples permitted to marry on the first day that lesbian and gay marriage is legal will be chosen by a lottery.

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Rejuvenated comic series will have a distinct focus on LGBT characters.

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Stonewall, the UK gay rights charity, has launched a new edition of their guide to gay-friendly British Universities. (more…)

It has been revealed that almost three-quarters of a million people watched the second episode of Channel 5′s Candy Bar Girls last week. (more…)

The Republic of South Sudan became the world’s newest country this week after 99% of voters backed independence in a referendum. However, the new country’s government looks set to actively oppose LGBT liberation. (more…)

“Hi Sappho. I have a huge problem! Me and my ex were together 4 years and we have an 8 month old daughter – my ex is the birth mother. (more…)

The chief executive of the Commonwealth of Nations condemned homophobia in a historic statement this week. (more…)

After recently having my heart broken I popped on ‘Bridget Jones’ in the vague hope it may rouse me from my darkest days, writes Clare Edmondson.

I unsuspectingly put myself through two hours of smug, irritating characters, ridiculous romantic ideals and a heart sinking soundtrack that felt like a form of sadistic torture.

To help you avoid this and other filmic mistakes here, in reverse order, are my top 5 films to watch with a broken heart. (more…)

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has announced a shift in its approach to discrimination claims on the grounds of religion and belief. The move looks set to come at the expense of LGBT people. (more…)

Hello and welcome to our first Candy Bar Girls liveblog. Well, I say ‘first’: I actually covered last week’s episode on my personal site before being invited to do the rest over here at Lesbilicious HQ. It’s much nicer at Lesbilicious though: they have cushions shaped like Ellen Degeneres and everyone’s dressed as Xena. And look, there’s the cast of Lip Service bouncing past on rainbow coloured space hoppers! How lovely… *waves*

If you’re not familiar with livebloggery, our theme for the evening is ‘gentle mockery with a side order of fun-poking’. Reality TV as a format lends itself particularly well to jokes: especially if one of the people appearing on the series is dressed like a Victorian street urchin version of Shane from the L Word.

So put on your fedora, gel your fringe into an interesting shape (my personal preference is cloud-shaped-like-a-platypus. Or possibly ‘melted Mr Whippy’) and hold on tight. I’ll be updating constantly from 10pm: refresh the page for updates and if you have any thoughts, jokes or incomprehensible sexual yearnings for Shabby or any of the other -for want of a better word- ‘characters’, do let me know in the comment box so I can shake my head sadly, weep a bit and feel slightly alienated.

See you at 10! (more…)

The new law means that people in same-sex relationships can enter into partnerships giving them similar rights to married couples.

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The Chilean government is preparing to pass legislation that would recognise the legal rights of same-sex couples who have been co-habiting for more than a year, a firm step towards legalising civil unions for gay couples in the country. (more…)

Lady Gaga branded Julia Gillard a “hypocrite” during a TV interview on Monday after assuming that the Australian Prime Minister was in a gay relationship. (more…)

Gay rights activists are planning a flashmob at the Women’s World Cup semi-final this Wednesday, to urge FIFA to publicly condemn homophobia in football. (more…)

Computing giant Microsoft has withdrawn its online store from the Christian Values Network after a petition highlighted the latter organisation’s link to “anti-gay hate groups”. (more…)

Bisexual pop singer Jessie J has spoken about coming out as bi, in a new interview for Glamour magazine. (more…)

Figures released by the Office of National Statistics show that women in gay relationships are more likely to enter into a civil partnership than men. (more…)

The BBC will show tonight’s Women’s World Cup quarter final match between England and France on BBC 2. The match was originally going to be available only online or on the red button service. (more…)

It’s the final week of the Women’s World Cup, writes Chloe Setter. But where are all the lesbian football players? Is homophobia in the women’s game as bad as in men’s football? (more…)

At least 700 people are expected to protest in London tomorrow (Saturday 9 July 2011) in response to the Government’s recent appointment of anti-abortion organisation Life to their sexual health forum, at the expense of the British pregnancy Advisory Service. (more…)

The Belfast Braves were formed last year and includes players who previously participated in the Northern Ireland Ladies’ Football Association league.

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Richard Burden, Labour MP for Northfield, has also written to the Home Secretary to ask why one anti-gay speaker is banned while another is allowed into the UK.

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Ongoing research conducted by South Africa’s Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) has suggested that lesbian and bisexual women in southern Africa are increasingly likely to be at risk of HIV infection. (more…)

The woman was initially refused residency in the UK but her case was reconsidered by the Upper Tribunal’s Immigration and Asylum Chamber.

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Episode one of the new reality show airs tonight, 7 July 2011, on Channel 5. The string of ‘steamy’ promos that accompany the series are already courting controversy, landing the broadcaster in hot water at Ofcom. “Real lives, real lesbians, no clichés”, the teasers promise. Siobhan McGuirk asks, does the show deliver?

Channel 5 doesn’t exactly have a reputation as a purveyor of finely crafted, sensitive and intellectually challenging programming. In the reality tv stakes especially, their track record leaves much to be desired. Remember Touch the Truck? How about The Farm, in which Rebecca Loos famously masturbated a hog? Seven years on and my eyes have barely recovered. Can C5 really be trusted not to manipulate, sensationalise and reduce to stereotype the lesbian and bisexual women of Candy Bar Girls?

Surprisingly, on the whole, they can. Of course, the show isn’t perfect. First and foremost, it’s difficult to shake the impression that the series isn’t just an extended advertisement for the eponymous bar. At the same time, it’s difficult to imagine another location that might act as the anchor to the series. Anyway, plenty of other locations feature.

In episode one, the set-up of the refurbishment and re-launch of the venue provides a backdrop to introduce the characters. We see staff and regulars – including Sam and Danni – gathered up for a photo shoot; new bosses Sandra and Gary discuss image and choose new faces for the bar; journalist Jo interview the team for a magazine, and the rest turning up for opening night.

It’s contrived, of course, but there’s still pleasures to be had. It’s quite satisfying to see all the pink lighting and décor being ripped out of the club at the behest of new proprietor, Gary. “It’s just so tacky!” he tells his put upon assistant. It’s an apt metaphor for a show that manages to demonstrate that lesbian and bisexual women are just as irregularly, individually shaped and packaged as everyone else: Don’t round us up to patronise with pink.

Which is not to say there’s no clichés flexing their muscles front and centre. Jo talks about “finally settling down” having been in a relationship for 11 days. Lucy lays out the “lesbian code” of loyalty to friends over lovers. Sandra tries to explain lesbian fashions to Gary, a gay man on a steep learning curve. All stereotypes, but surely more familiar to gay women than heterosexuals?

At the same time, the producers are clearly trying hard to titillate a broad audience, with drunkenness, pole dancing, nudity, kisses and lovers’ tiffs all getting air-time. Incidental music and voice-over choices seem made for T4. All cynical moves, but try as they might to liven things up with swooshing neon rainbows and fly-over shots of London, there’s plenty of room for subtly to shine through.

The camerawoman has obviously earned the trust of her subjects and there’s enough confessional moments and telling expressions to feel like something genuine is being expressed. Jo Webber’s family discussion is particularly, peculiarly touching, her mum outright failing to conceal her feeling that lesbians are – daughter aside – pretty unattractive and gay people in general are of over-average intelligence.

Danni (pictured above), unguarded, states her aim from the off: “I’m trying to get my face out there”. Candy Bar Girls isn’t a bad place to start, and though seemingly rapacious, she’s quite endearing when not attempting to hog the limelight.

The same can’t be said for everyone’s favourite Big Brother contestant Shabby (pictured above) who clearly relishes her fame. Other minor celebrities set to make an appearance in the series are Christina Novelli and DJ Lil’ Jo. Elsewhere, Sam the barmaid reveals her alcohol induced Jekyll / Hyde nature while future regulars Rox and Rach are introduced at the end, as returning customers impressed with the new look Candy Bar.

The cast are different enough to be interesting, despite having their willingness to appear in a reality tv series and – to a certain extent – their ages and partying habits in common. Some archetypes are unlikely to make an appearance. If they manage to introduce an anti-capitalist, vegan with functional shoes and an unfashionable bike, I’ll be impressed.

Thanks be, then, for Sandra Davenport, DJ and promotions manager at Candy Bar. By far the oldest of the group, with years of Soho experience under her belt and a baby on the way, her somewhat shy bemusement over supposed lesbian traits and trends makes for a welcome contrast with the rest.

All in all, it’s not perfect and, of course, it’s all a little bit fake. They could easily have called it The Only Way is Lezsex, as Lesbilicious writer Kaite Welsh remarked on Twitter; the format is not exactly ground breaking.

But it seems churlish to complain. Here, for the first time, we can glimpse women who look, act and speak like us – or people we know – without the filter of scriptwriters, an air of tokenism or overly contrived drama. Somehow, thanks to Channel 5 and a shrewd publicity team at Candy Bar, representation of lesbians and bisexual women on tv has just taken a step forward.

Candy Bar Girls is on Channel 5 at 10pm on Thursdays, starting tonight (Thursday 7 July 2011).

A representative of Birmingham Pride has declared that the festival is likely to remain “free” in coming years.  The revelation comes just weeks after organisers suggested that they may charge for future events. (more…)

The Polari First Book Prize longlist was released at the London Literary Fesitval last night.

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An award-winning Chinese actress has been criticised by state broadcaster CCTV and banned from a high-profile awards show after she shared a homophobic message on a micro-blogging site. (more…)

The US Embassy in Islamabad has attracted criticism from Pakistani religious leaders after holding an LGBT Pride celebration. (more…)

A number of Indian LGBT activists are calling for the legalisation of gay marriage on the anniversary of a Delhi High Court ruling that decriminalised gay sex. (more…)