LGBT+
TOP PICKS Sheffield Bi Social Online (Discord) www.facebook.com/SheffieldBiSoc DINA Venue Online (Facebook) www.facebook.com/dinavenue
Staying in is the new going out...
So, for those of you who haven’t made it out of the house, spring has apparently sprung and it’s a strange column this month as at the time of writing it appears that 2020 is pretty much cancelled due to the impact of the coronavirus. Pubs and restaurants are closed, pretty much all public events are done too, so unless you are into competitive toilet roll and pasta hunting, you would think there isn’t much to do. Even Dempseys has closed their doors for the first time in 20 years, making my previous plan of holing up there and waiting for it all to pass like our own queer version of the Winchester are out of the window. However, we’re nothing if not creative and many events have moved online, with other new ones created so you can still get involved from the comfort of your own sofa. In the past week or so we have seen gigs streamed online, a virtual big queer house party, community chats hosted by various community groups and events promoters, online gaming sessions and Skype and Zoom storytimes. All this alongside one of the largest online mutual aid groups organising folk to support the more vulnerable members of our communities. Sheffield, I love you. Sheffield Bi Social and LASS (Lesbian Asylum Support Sheffield) have moved all of the group meetups online until further notice via Discord and Zoom respectively. DiversityFest are continuing to host their weekly radio show on Sheffield Live every Thursday, albeit minus guests due to social distancing, so be sure to tune in and show lone host Trevor some love for keeping it going. Nights in are now officially the new night out. If you want to party from the comfort of
your own front room, tune into the Lockdown Shakedown hosted by DJ Warren Peace of The Bowie Contingent Fame playing Kitsch n Synch, Loungecore, Funk and Nu-Disco every Friday. Also on Friday nights we have the biggest queerest online house party courtesy of DJs Harry Gay, Wacha and Passer with an array of special guests. For those of you missing your film fix while the cinemas are closed, check out the CineQ watch parties every night from 7pm featuring some of the best LGBTQ+ shorts available. Or with hundreds of LGBTQ+ options available, why not host your own film night with Netflix Party - the chrome extension that allows you to watch together with group chat. If that’s not enough for you then Leeds Queer film festival have collated a list of hundreds of free LGBTQ+ films available to watch online as well. See their Facebook page for details. If you want some dates for the diary to look forward to, some of the major LGBT+ events coming up later this year (subject to how long the restrictions continue) include the return of Sheffield’s Rainbow Laces Tournament [Sat 6 Jun] at Goals Sheffield. Pinknic returns to the Peace Gardens [Sat 18 Jul] hosted by LGBT Sheffield, Pride in Sheffield takes place at Endcliffe Park [Sat 25 Jul] and DiversityFest is back at Hagglers Corner [Sun 27 Sep]. Many events are being announced at short notice while people are still getting organised so keep an eye on facebook.com/sheffieldlgbtevents for updates and announcements!
Every Thursday: DiversityFest Radio Sheffield Live diversityfest.wordpress.com Every Friday: Queer House Party: LIVE in your Living Room! Online: Facebook and Instagram www.instagram.com/queerhouseparty Every Friday: The Lockdown Shakedown Online www.facebook.com/jasonrichfordDJ Thu 2 Apr: LASS Online (Zoom) www.facebook.com/LASSheffield CineQ www.facebook.com/CineQBrum Netflix Party www.netflixparty.com Leeds Queer Film Festival www.facebook.com/LQfilmfest COMING UP IN 2020 Sat 6 Jun: Sheffield Rainbow Laces Tournament 2020 Goals Sheffield www.facebook.com/SheffLaces Sat 18 Jul: Pinknic Peace Gardens www.lgbtsheffield.co.uk Sat 25 Jul: Pride in Sheffield Endcliffe Park www.prideinsheffield.net Sun 27 Sep: Diversity Fest Hagglers Corner diversityfest.wordpress.com
THAT’S YOUR LOT FOR THIS MONTH, LOOK AFTER EACH OTHER. FOR FULL UP TO DATE LISTINGS HEAD FACEBOOK.COM/SHEFFIELDLGBTEVENTS. WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 65