Manchester

Friday 18th June will see the launch of Greater Manchester’s newest radio station, Gaydio. The station will broadcast on 88.4FM and online, making it the country’s first FM radio station for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people.

The station already has some impressive presenters lined up – afternoons will be fronted by Galaxy’s former breakfast host, Nicksy, and weekday evenings will see Terry Longden (Channel 4’s The Salon) and Rowetta (X Factor finalist and Happy Monday’s vocalist) reunited on Gaydio.

Nicksy says “Having been on the air in this great city for 10 years, I am looking forward to being part of a truly unique radio station. Manchester is without doubt the Gay Capital of the UK, and it will be a refreshing change being able to talk about things from the gay perspective.”

Read more: Gaydio Set for June Launch

Artist Jason E. Bowman has worked with Manchester's OUT in the CITY - a social group for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans people over the age of 50 - on an exhibition that recalls an infamous legal trial held in the North West in 1936.

Untitled (on a day unknown...) is an exhibition of new work by Jason E. Bowman, commissioned by the Whitworth Art Gallery, recalling an infamous and spectacularised courtroom trial from the interwar years. Jason E. Bowman’s performance artworks develop from dialogues with those who also become its cast. This exhibition presents thirteen portraits by an official court artist and nine pinhole photographs, the accumulated pictorial evidence of a recent private recreation of a 1936 trial of 29 men.

This trial was a moment of interwar infamy when the burgeoning ‘protection’ of the home by the ‘security’ of the state forced the secret sex lives of this large group of men to become public.

Read more: Jason E. Bowman with Out in the City

LGBTory, the Conservative LGBT campaign group, today condemned the Poptastic club for being anti-Conservative in their decision to host a special event at the Alter Ego club on Manchester’s Princess Street in the world-famous gay village. 

The night, called Tory Shame, is designed to highlight the shame of the Tories historical intolerance to the lesbian & gay community, including the infamous Section 28.

The club night is taking place during the Conservative Party’s conference in Manchester next week and is set to coincide with the official ‘Conference Pride’ event being organised by the Tories which will be held at Spirit bar on Canal Street next Tuesday evening.  

The official Conservative event will be hosted by high-profile LGBT Conservatives Iain Dale, political blogger and shortlisted Parliamentary candidate for the safe Conservative seat of Bracknell and openly-Lesbian Vice Chair of the Party Margot James.  It will include a live performance by singer Angie Brown and addresses by senior shadow cabinet members, Nick Herbert and Theresa May, as well as Stonewall’s Ben Summerskill. 

Read more: Battle of the Gay Tory Conference Events

Google is in a pickle over one of Manchester's most famous landmarks.

Instead of the famous canal-sided gay mecca lined with trendy bars and nightspots, a picture of an unremarkable back street appears. The all-knowing internet company has wrongly identified Canal Street on the Street View area of its map service.

A search for Canal Street actually shows Richmond Street, a nearby narrow road with no bars or clubs.

Local traders said they couldn't understand how Google could get mixed up about a street which is famous across the country as the heart of Manchester's Gay Village.

Pat Karney, City centre spokesman, is writing to Google to ask them to sort it out. Phil Burke, chair of the Village Business Association, added, "We have worked hard to turn Canal Street into a cosmopolitan area. As a result, thousands of people flock to the area throughout the year. For something like this to be posted by Google is a travesty. We want people to be able to see what Canal Street is really like."

A spokeswoman for Google said it could be there was no street view of Canal Street because it is pedestrianised, which meant the Google video cars could not get access. She added the problem could be solved by sending the Google tricycle out, and promised to look into the issue. 

So look out for the Google tricycle on Canal Street and be sure to give it a wave as it goes by.