Stonewall Awards: Best Bye (Geddit?)

Stonewall hosts its final annual awards ceremony next month, and is marking the occasion by celebrating 10 years of achievements of lesbian, gay and bi people and their allies...

Stonewall Chief Executive Ruth Hunt said: ‘We’ve been on an incredible journey since we launched our awards. Ten years ago, a peck on the lips between two men on TV would have caused uproar, and books featuring lesbian characters rarely made the best-seller list. And this was one of the only award ceremonies to celebrate the achievements of the lesbian, gay and bi community. That simply isn’t the case today, and ceremonies and awards that recognise the success and diversity of our wonderful community have blossomed.

‘We have therefore decided that now is the time for us to step back, making this year’s awards the final Stonewall Awards. But there is still a long way to go. Greater diversity of LGBT people is absolutely essential and the power of this should not be underestimated. Having a richer and more varied range of role models means that everyone, no matter what their religion, ethnicity, age, background or identity, can see themselves positively represented. And this ensures that every person, wherever they are, knows they are not alone, and that they don’t have to hide. Watch this space for something new next year, which will reflects all our communities and brings people from across those communities together.’ ...

Stonewall.

Good, bye.

There are far too many stupid sodding LGBT awards these days, it's all rather silly and pointless (and all too often tokenistic and fixed).

And they never give me one!

Especially this totes ridic rainbow-coloured shitstorm.

PS Might bring back the Fagburn Worst Awards this year, though.

Rainbow List: Where Will It End?

Independent On Sunday.

Welcome to the the LGBTIQABCXYZ non-existent 'community'!

The IoS clearly has no inkling how laughable all this is.

Why not include heterosexuals in your silly fixed tokenistic list and be done with it?

Or, I dunno... paedophiles?

Just a thought.

Rainbow List 2014: Under The Influence

Our judges debated long and hard, weighing several forms of "influence" in making their choices. We even invented a new rule, known as The Janet Jackson Rule: "What has s/he done for us lately?" The result honours those who have long and brave histories of standing up for equal rights, even when equality wasn't even legal, as well as youngsters whose openness in the past year shows children (and adults) that who they are and whom they love need not be a barrier to success in any walk of life...

Independent On Sunday.

It's hard to know where to start with this one.

Despite The IoS rebranding their annual Pink List of 101 LGBTs of note, the Rainbow List, it was reassuring to see this year's selection is as ridiculous as ever.

Michael Cashman is in with a bullet at number one - though strangely this highly influential gayer was not in the hot 100 last year.

It's hard to see what has changed, beyond the former EastEnders actor being elevated to the House of Lords for services to Blairite brown-nosing.

What has he done for us lately?

Erm, in February he cut up his Visa card in the European parliament cause, you know, Russia.

Take that, Putin!

Maybe Michael got the sympathy vote - his civil partner and 'researcher', Paul Cottingham, died last month.

Of course it would be churlish to speculate there was some 'Vote for Michael' campaign organised by Labour Party HQ.

There's another high entry at number three - Vicky Beeching, a lesbian Christian Country singer!

Erm...

If nothing else, I'm sure she's definitely the most influential lesbian Christian Country singer in the UK.

Does anyone seriously believe that anyone would have voted for Simon Topham (60), beyond maybe some of his adoring slaves at Millivres Prowler Group?

Luckily one of them, his loyal lieutenant Kim Watson, was on the judging panel.

Mind you, you can get on the Rainbow List with nominations in double figures.

As every year, the whole list is hampered by its tokenism; I'm sure Claire Harvey, the 'Team GB sitting-volleyball Paralympic captain' is a wonderful woman, but should she really be at number 38?

Thankfully there's no-one here nowhere near as record-breakingly pointless as last year's number 16, David Gwinnutt, the inventor of the Pink Jack flag!

But so many placings seem random and/or baffling.

The short blurbs describing people's achievements are so slapdash they must have been written by a particularly dim intern after a quick Google.

Separate lists for gay men, lesbians and trans people - put to a popular vote with no 'judges' tinkering - would be far more interesting and illuminating.

As it stands, this shit list is still Britain's biggest gay joke.

PS They say you can leave comments about the list, but you can't, oddly.

It's a shame because I wanted to thank all the people who voted repeatedly for themselves.

The Rainbow List 2014: We Need Help!

Welcome to The Rainbow List 2014 - the new name for the well-loved Independent on Sunday Pink List, now in its 15th year. *

Much has changed since the list was launched in 2000, but there is still progress to be made...

Independent On Sunday.

Well-loved!!?

No, I think you'll find everyone thinks it's a complete joke.

Last year they decided the 7th most important gay man in the UK was some pointless twot who 'invented' the pink Union Jack FFS!

Anyway, as every year, Fagburn pleads for all decent homosexualists to vote for Dennis Nilsen.

PS I think about four votes are enough to get someone in the top 100, so let's have some fun!

* 'At The Independent on Sunday we have listened carefully to what readers have told us about the Pink List, and many of you said that you were put off by the pink. A rainbow is more inclusive, less old-fashioned [sic] and far less like the “girls” aisle in a toyshop, we hope... You can nominate as many times as you like at www.independent.co.uk/rainbowlist

or by post at Pink List, The Independent on Sunday, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5HF

Letters Of The Day: Lord Browne

Last week's Guardian Weekend.

Guardian Weekend.

See also the slightly more interesting Guardianwitness - readers write about coming out at work.

PS BBC Radio 5 Live interview with Richard Bacon.

And finally...

“I wish I had been brave enough to come out earlier in my tenure as CEO of BP,” he says. “I regret it to this day. I know that if I had done so I would have made more of an impact for other gay men and women.” He’s not kidding. In 2006, when The Independent on Sunday was compiling its annual Pink List – a celebration of Britain’s most influential lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people – a courtesy call was made to BP to make sure its CEO was willing to be mentioned. On the other end of the line, there was a sharp intake of breath, and a pause. “I don’t know what you are suggesting, but it is not in the least appropriate that his name is associated with that article,” said an unnamed spokesman. If we knew who it was, we’d send them a copy of Browne’s book.

Between The Covers, Independent On Sunday.

Scotland On Sunday: The Pink Scotland List

To mark Holyrood passing the Equal Marriage Bill, Scotland On Sunday have drawn up one of those lists of 50 LGBT Scots who are making a difference to the life of the nation. 

And unlike say the Independent On Sunday's last Pink List it doesn't look like it's been completely made-up!

Only complaint is that Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottis conservatives, is at number one.

Not just cause she's a Tory, but because the Conservatives are about as politically relevant in Scotland as the English National Party.

Independent On Sunday: Letter Of The Week

I was disappointed by the name the "Pink" List. As a gay man myself, I see no positive connection between the colour pink and the LGBT community. The flag of the global LGBT community is, after all, a rainbow – representing diversity and equality in equal measure.

I applaud the list, and those responsible for its publication. But perhaps next year we could see it rechristened the Rainbow List?

Simon King

Fareham, Hampshire

The editor writes: We are grateful for all the feedback following publication of this year's Pink List. Next year we might ask readers to vote on what we should call it.

Independent On Sunday.

No idea. Anyone?

Pink List 2013: The Results Are In!

When the first Pink List was published in 2000, it was essentially a list of 50 influential people who were brave enough to be “out”. This year we received more than 1,300 nominations and had to reduce thousands of potential contenders to just 101. The judges decided that a Pink List contender can no longer simply be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and famous. They need to make a difference...

A truly wonderful list of 101 LGBT people who've really made a difference!

Fagburn's favourite? 

David, the world of gay has been transformed forever by your pink version of the Union Jack!

No wonder you're the seventh most influential gay man in the UK.

There was a real flag-shaped void in all our lives before you thought that up.

It was one of those inventions - like the wheel, fire or possibly even the internet - where you just can't imagine how people coped before.

You deserve everyone of those 62 votes, dude.

Wonder if the IoS meant to print that bit?

Means, technically you could get to number one with less than 80 votes.

Anyway, another brilliant reason to say YAY! for #teamgay

Independent On Sunday: From The Message Boards...

The Independent On Sunday is bigging up its 14th annual Pink List, and running extracts from a new book of "celebrity coming out stories", It's OK To Be Gay.

Is it?

Let's see what some of the readers of one Britain's leading liberal newspapers have to say...

Well, you've all given us lots to think about there, thank you.
And how kind of the publicity-shy Peter Tatchell to keep reminding his legions of adoring followers on Twitter to vote in the Pink List.
Fagburn wonders if Peter just possibly had anyone particular in mind?

IoS Pink List 2012: Fatuous Thought For The Day

We said when we published The IoS Pink List last week that we hoped it would surprise, amuse, inspire or challenge you. Well, it did that! Plunging into social media on Sunday was to overhear a huge debate about what was great and what was wrong with the list. You didn't hold back...*
If one school bully is influenced by discovering that someone they've grown to know and admire is gay or transgender, we say that the list has succeeded.

Katy Guest in The Independent On Sunday.

So how does this work exactly?
A homophobic bully, while perusing his Independent On Sunday Pink List, discovers that Alan Carr, of all people, is A Big Gay.
"This is a bombshell! I must change my ways forthwith..."
Oh, I despair.

* Code for everyone thought it was shit.

And here's a letter to the editor published today...

The much-maligned Pink List returns, like the gay community's least-favourite stepchild (4 November). It's not the content which irks – if Nicola Adams is pleased to be perched atop the list, I'm happy for her – it's the way the list is presented. We've no idea how the list of random people, sharing only a sexual predilection, was drawn up. Show us your motivations, calculations and deliberations. Don't just bark that it's important; tell me "how" and "why".

The Guyliner (blogger)

Pink List 2011: Independent's Gay Day

Just got this scan of the front page courtesy of #tomorrowsnewspaperstoday on Twitter.
Golly, this is so exciting!
Does this mean Derren Brown is very influential cause he's got a new series on the tellybox to plug?
Fagburn is dieing to find out what they've done with J***** H***.
Manana!

The Pink List 100: The Write Stuff

One of the trickiest - or should that be tricksiest? - professions to select for the Pink List is journalists.
Gay journalists being journalists often have huge egos and hate not seeing their name in print as much as they love seeing it in it.
You ignore them at your peril.
Probably the first attempt to compile a similar list was the Gay Times 200 of "Britain's top 200 gay men and lesbians" - assembled for the magazine's 200th edition in May 1995.
The magazine was so concerned about missing anyone out, there were far more than 200 people included, and - perhaps wisely - they were not ranked.
One journalist was so incensed at not being included in it he put together a book that began by arguing that the Gay Times 200 was indicative of not just how dreadful the magazine had become but of everything that had gone wrong with the world of gay.
Hell hath no fury...
Let's annoy the self-loving upper class twit again by not mentioning his name here.
He's not in the Pink List 100 either.
There are seven journalists included this year*.
At 16 is Johann Hari - "The Independent's 31-year-old star columnist".
At 60 is Philip Hensher - "Hensher writes forthright columns for The Independent".
And there's a new entry at 62 Patrick Strudwick - "Uncovered an industry of therapists offering gay-to-straight conversion, and published the results, "The Ex-Gay Files: The Bizarre World of Gay-to-Straight Conversion", in The Independent."
Good for him.
The only other gay journalists both work for The Times; Matthew Parris at 49, and another new entry at 94, Tim Teeman.
The Independent kindly reminds readers Teeman; "Started on The Independent..."
The only lesbian journalist in the 100 is Julie Bindel at 98.
It neglects to say she's best-known for her writing in The Guardian.
She's also known for her transphobia and homophobia
When Bindel was shortlisted for a "journalist of the year" Stonewall Award in 1998, it led to 150 people protesting outside the awards ceremony.
Surely this ludicrous bigot belonged in The Independent On Sunday Pink List's 'Rogues' Gallery'?
This Pink Shit List did include one journalist, Andrew Pierce.
"Following last year's Jan Moir uproar, the hope was that this recent Daily Mail signing might ruffle some feathers within that bastion of fine feeling. More fools us, of course, as witnessed by his February article offering support to the Pope in the face of the "madness" of Harriet Harman's Equality Bill."
Fagburn can't argue with that.

* I'm including only the people listed as "journalist", or whose main job is writing journalism - other broadcasters, editors or occasional guest columnists are available, so please don't write in.

The Pink List 100: Michael Salter - The Gay Ghost

In with a bullet at number 8 in the Sindy's Pink List 100 is Michael Salter.
Who?
He's "Broadcast adviser to PM", silly.
That's him on the left - it ain't easy finding photos of Mr Salter.
"The PM's adviser on gay issues also heads the Conservatives' broadcast operation. He once asked the media to stop calling Conservatives "Tories". He told Stonewall's recruitment guide: "I'm valued for who I am and what I do; my sexuality has never been an issue.""
Really?
I think Salter's sexuality might have been an issue when they were considering who to appoint as the "PM's adviser on gay issues", don't you?
Incidentally that quote lifted from Starting Out, Stonewall's Recruitment Guide may be Salter's only public comment on his sexuality.
Fagburn suspects that it was Salter who was in charge of the damage limitation exercise following the shitstorm over Chris Grayling's comments about gay couples being barred from B&Bs during the election campaign.
I'm also certain that wanting to get on the good side of a man with much influence on the Prime Minister might have been an issue when The Sindy were considering where to put you in this list.
It means you can get David Cameron to write things for The Independent On Sunday, like the accompanying article by him; 'A celebration – and a challenge for us all. The Prime Minister salutes our Pink List, and says that, 10 years since its inception, it still has a vital role to play.'
It's pleasant-smelling guff, mentioning then running away from an endorsement of gay marriage - the easiest thing the government could do to prove how gay-friendly they are.
But if you like vacuous platitudes, you'll love it; "This is a country where people can be proud of who they are – and quite right too."
It's certainly something to think about.
It's well known in media circles that Prime Minister's very, very rarely write newspaper articles that bear their name.
Fagburn will stick his neck out and guess that this one was actually written by the PM's adviser on gay issues, Michael Salter.