Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2023 i GAY TIMES

I vividly remember the first time I encountered the captivating art form that is drag. It was the mid-90s, I must have been 7 or 8 years old, and on primetime British television on a Saturday evening was this powerhouse of a performer. With a tongue sharper than a butcher’s blade and an acerbic wit as forthright as they come (“They’re as tight as a crab’s arse, here at the BBC.”), Lily Savage was the UK’s most famous drag performer during that decade, falling somewhere between the hair-stylings of Marie Antoinette and the camp carry-on of Bet Lynch. She ran rings around her contestants on Blankety Blank, and had the nation laughing along with her, drawing from her queer nightlife beginnings at the infamous Royal Vauxhall Tavern in London where…

Krystal Lake wants you to learn about the “stuff schools don’t teach”. A Forbes 30 Under 30 flagbearer and TikTok talent with over half a million followers, Krystal is a name to watch out for. Now, you might be thinking, so another creative in their influencer era? Well, yes, but this one is doing something different. The founder of Cut By Krystal, a production company that provides social media services, Lake has become a known face for pushing much-needed education on topics centred on women, LGBTQ+, minorities and mental health. And when she’s not doing that, Lake is taking over as an award-winning filmmaker, and a globe-trotting DJ touring with Ashnikko. From spinning tracks for the infamously electric blue-haired singer to hanging out with rockstar Willow Smith, Lake’s impact is,…

Mae Martin is moving. No, not in the emotional sense (although the ending of Netflix’s Feel Good might get you choked up), they’re quite literally switching up countries. Having lived in London for over a decade, the kind of English comedian, who “lived all over London”, is uprooting and moving to Los Angeles, after feeling “untethered” from hopping to from various Airbnbs across the city. It’s a bright afternoon in LA and the writer, squinting from the incoming sun, confesses they’re “feeling good”. A lot has been happening for Mae Martin — a new unnamed Netflix production is in the works, they’ve been reminiscing about the best meal they’ve ever had, and, soon enough, their latest stand-up set, Mae Martin: SAP, will hit Netflix on March 28. “Titles are really…

Zohra Rhaman Tidal Coin Earrings £615 The holy month of Ramadan has begun and it’s time to get your Eid looks in formation. Treat yourself and add a touch of sparkle to your pending summertime looks with gorgeous pieces from jewellery designer Zohra Rahman. Based in Lahore, Rahman studied design at London’s Central St. Martin’s before launching her label in 2014. It’s crystal clear that craftsmanship, community and creativity are at the heart of the brand and Rahman’s vision. Using sustainable and ethical design practices, each artisan is individually trained in the intricacies of jewellery making by the designer herself, spreading specialised skills to the local community. They are taught the traditional silversmithing techniques to create experimental and novel forms of adornment, from the melting of metal and its manipulation…

People used to ask me ‘What are you going to do when you get old, are you still going to wear that much make-up and dress like that?’ “Of course, you fool," I would respond, often flicking the inches of ash hanging off my freshly lit Super King into their child’s face as I walked off. “I’ll never change, I don’t need to change,” I would tell myself. I was always fascinated with the idea that other people felt the need to tell me that I ‘needed to change’. Or sometimes not even that I needed to, they just wanted to know if the possibility of change was true. Other people’s desire to know if I was going to change the way I looked, I realised in my adulthood, didn’t…

The trans journey is many things. It’s exhilarating. It’s validating. But it’s also terrifying. No one knows this more than TikTok star, actor, singer, and activist, Dylan Mulvaney. Just over a year ago, Dylan decided to capture her journey into girlhood daily and on screen. And so, what started as a “happy accident”, as Dylan describes, has blossomed into an honest and joyous portrayal of one person’s journey of gender discovery. And joining Dylan on this journey? Over 11 million followers across TikTok and Instagram, and a legion of inspired LGBTQ+ people. Dylan’s positive attitude and optimistic look on life has been seen by many as the antidote to the near constant anti-trans rhetoric happening around the world. Just scrolling through a few of Dylan’s videos, her excitement in every…