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GAY BELFAST NEWS for May 2005
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Filmmaker Ismail Merchant dies (26 May 2005)
Ismail Merchant, the gay filmmaker who made costume dramas such as "Howard's End", "A Room with a View" and "The Remains of the Day" with his partner, James Ivory, died Wednesday at the age of 68. "It is with great sadness that Merchant Ivory Productions announces that Ismail Merchant, our company founder and beloved producer for more than 44 years, has passed away after a brief illness in a London hospital where he was working on his latest film, 'The White Countess'," the production company said in a statement on its Web site.Merchant recently underwent surgery for stomach ulcers, the Associated Press reported. Merchant, who was born in Bombay, India, in 1936, lived and worked with Ivory for more than 40 years, and their partnership yielded more than 40 films and numerous awards, including six Oscars. "Some people meet and part ways," Merchant said in a People Weekly interview about living with Ivory. "Others bond together on a lifelong stream. I guess you could call our relationship 'destiny'." In general, Merchant served as producer on their films, while Ivory directed.
The two men also teamed with their long-time screenwriter, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, to form a "creative trident," according to the book "Gay and Lesbian Biography". Their first film together, "The Householder," based on a novel by Prawer Jhabvala, premiered in 1963. The trio made several films adapted from classic literary novels, which gave them a reputation for being highbrow filmmakers with sumptuous, dialogue-heavy films. Several of the films were artistic and commercial successes, including "Howard's End", "A Room with a View", "The Bostonians", "The Golden Bowl" and "Mr and Mrs Bridge."
Their 1987 film adaptation of EM Forster's novel "Maurice" won them many gay fans for its sensitive depiction of men in love with each other. In recent years the artists turned away from classic literature, with such films as "Le Divorce" and "A Soldier's Daughter Never Cries". "The White Goddess," which is in production, is a musical starring Tina Turner, and it's about the Hindu goddess Shakti. Merchant also produced "Heights", which is set for release this summer and stars Glenn Close, James Marsden and Jesse Bradford. "We haven't done everything we wanted to," he told the Manchester Guardian in 1992, "but we wanted everything we've done."
Gay Crimes Soar in Northern Ireland (24 May 2005)
The number of reported homophobic crimes in Northern Ireland has soared in the past twelve months, according to official figures released by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). The figures, released yesterday, point to an increase of 124 cases in the 2004/2005 period, with 196 cases compared to 71 in the preceding period. There were just 35 in the period 2002/2003.Racially motivated crimes also increased, with 813 cases reported in the last twelve months, compared to 453 the year before. Police say the rise may not reflect growing homophobic sentiment in Northern Ireland, but a renewed focus on the issue of gay hate crime in recent years. Additionally, it says it is working to thaw the traditionally frosty relationship between police officers and the gay community, in a bid to gain the trust of local lesbian and gay people and see more crimes reported. The statistics are unlikely to surprise campaigning groups, who have been anecdotally reporting rise in attacks over the last two years.
Recent homophobic incidents have included physical and verbal assaults, as well as more violent attacks, including death threats.
Organisations are now launching initiatives that they hope will help the PSNI engage more directly with the gay community.
Additionally, they hope to bring all local community members together to ensure 'cross-stakeholder' support for anti-hate crime projects.
Discuss this article on the Gay Belfast Forum
Clinton Cards launches first gay card range (21 May 2005)
The country's largest greeting cards retailer Clinton Cards is to launch its first range of cards aimed directly at the lesbian and gay consumer. The company, a mainstay on high streets across Northern Ireland, will trial the range in the coming weeks at around 30 shops including the Belfast Branch. Speaking to Gay.com, Clinton Cards MD Mike Bugler said the cards would be transferred to all stores should the trial prove popular with card buyers. He said the "tasteful" cards were the company's first foray into the pink pound market. "If there's enough demand and people like what's being done, we will roll it out," he said. The cards are in black and white and are intended to be used in commitment ceremonies and civil partnerships, as well as more generic occasions including birthdays and celebrations. Mr Bugler said the cards were "quite subtle". On one he described, two champagne flutes are pictured with bow ties on each of them. "The whole point of this operation is we test the reaction to these cards," he said. "I wouldn't put the cards in in the first place, if I didn't think something was there," he added. "Initial signs are encouraging". The cards have been designed by card company Pink Pendulum Ltd, who approached Clinton with the idea. Other cards show images of men or women, while the champagne theme is also considered in candelabras and top hats.Discuss this article on the Gay Belfast Forum
Pro Gay Labour MP heads to Belfast (11 May 2005)
Northern Ireland's newest Minister Shaun Woodward yesterday said he is ready for the tough job of helping to bring peace to Northern Ireland. His portfolio as Minister of State in the Northern Ireland office will include security, prisons and the police force, as well as health and education. His first challenge is to restart inter-party talks and restore devolved government and dismantle the paramilitary organisations that are still prominent. The triumph the Anti-Gay DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) - which took nine out of the province's 18 seats - is widely thought to have made that task more difficult. But Mr Woodward said: "There are still huge opportunities for the peace process - we need to get back to where we were in implementing the Good Friday agreement by building up trust." During his days as a That's Life producer, he regularly joined presenter Esther Rantzen as she canvassed opinion on the streets of the province. Mr Woodward decided to cross the floor of the Commons after his sacking for supporting the scrapping of anti-gay legislation Clause 28. Discuss this article on the Gay Belfast ForumDUP vote drops in Newry and Armagh Election after Berry allegations (07 May 2005)
Paul Berry the DUP candidate under fire over allegations over his private life saw his vote drop in Newry and Armagh from the 2001 general election. He finished third in the constituency, behind new MP Conor Murphy of Sinn Fein and the SDLP's Dominic Bradley. Berry received 9,311 votes in this weeks election and 10,795 in 2001. Berry is threatening legal action against the Sunday World, the Irish News and the BBC over allegations over his private life originally made in the Sunday newspaper six days ago. There are no reports of writs being issued against the media outlets.Berry silent on gay allegations (04 May 2005)
Paul Berry, the DUP’s Newry and Armagh candidate in Thursday’s Westminster elections, appeared to be keeping a low profile on Monday following an allegation in a Sunday newspaper that he took part in a gay sex act in a Belfast hotel. Mr Berry, who is married and an MLA for the area, failed to answer his phone when The Democrat attempted to ring him on several occasions on Monday, although it is understood that he strongly refutes the allegations which appeared in The Sunday World. A DUP source said that the matter raised a number of serious legal issues which lawyers are now pursuing on Mr Berry’s behalf. However, the same source was unwilling to comment on whether Mr Berry will still stand in this week’s elections or on whether the party’s leadership has discussed the issue with him. Sunday’s story alleged that Mr Berry met a gay man called Gary in the Ramada Hotel on Thursday for what the politician said was a massage to help his recovery from a sports injury. While Mr Berry admitted meeting Gary, he has denied that any sex act took place, although he is quoted in the newspaper as saying that the other man attempted to remove his (Mr Berry’s) boxer shorts. According to Gary, he first made contact with Mr Berry through an internet chat room and then received more than 120 text messages during a six day period before the meeting was arranged. Gary then alleges that he massaged the top of Mr Berry’s leg after being told that he had been injured playing football and then his side after the politician said that he had hurt himself when he fell over a fence. It was during this massage that Gary alleges that a sex act took place. In the Sunday World article, Mr Berry is quoted as saying that he is the victim of what he described as a ‘rig-up’ by his political opponents, specifically the Ulster Unionist Party. For his part, Gary insisted that his actions were not politically inspired, but were instead motivated by his anger at the attitude of the DUP and the Free Presbyterian Church towards gay people. READ THE PORTADOWN NEWS ARTICLE IN GAY BELFAST.Discuss this article on the Gay Belfast Forum
Political Links: SDLP - Ulster Unionists - DUP - Alliance Party - Sinn Fein - Green Party
