Go for it, Heather!

Hi everyone. Just a quick note to say I'm now on Tumblr.

Welcome to Go for it, Heather!

It's Britney, bitch

...and Camilla Parker Bowles' love child: Dolly

Can you handle it?

Stu + Has return to GC (www.greencarnationsoho.co.uk) for an exclusive DJ set on Friday, November 30th from 9:30 -11:30

Be there or be square.

Join the girls for a decadent night out at the fab Green Carnation (5 Greek Street, right off Soho Square)

There's gonna be a delicious mix of disco dancing, laughter, showtunes, vodka cranberries, and splash of modern pop classics

RSVP for guestlist (hassanmirza81@gmail.com)

S+H

"I would like a nice, powerful, mind-altering substance. Preferably one that will make my unborn children grow gills" -Party Girl(1995)

La Vie en Rose

Oliver Dahan’s Edith Piaf biopic is a epic triumph, with a flawless Marion Cotillard as France's doomed diva

Oliver Dahan’s epic biopic La Vie en Rose (La Môme) , although somewhat disjointed and twenty minutes too long, reigns resolutely triumphant, chronicling the tragic life of France’s beloved diva Edith Piaf, gorgeously played by a flawless Marion Cotillard. The big-budgeted, majestic blockbuster impressionistically brings to life the story of a rags-to-riches Edith Piaf, whose tragic life distinctively reflected her magically soulful, yet melancholy voice. Writer-director Oliver Dahan ambitiously focuses on Piaf herself as the centrepiece with alarming authenticity, framed by an appropriately surrealistic, fantastical backdrop.

This decision results in a blurred perspective of war and politics, as we remain locked into the heart and mind of the morphine-addicted, cancer -stricken Piaf on her death bed, reminiscing through a series of jumbled flashbacks. Although the strategy works relatively well, the non-linear narrative confusingly jumps back and forth in an effort to cover as many life events as possible, sometimes undermining the film’s fluidity. However, the enormous talent of Dahan’s leading lady and many memorable and inspired sequences- including a spine-tingling conclusion - far outweigh the film’s minor flaws.

Born into poverty in Paris 1915 as the unwanted child of a circus performer and a failed cabaret singer, Edith spent her childhood in her grandmother’s scabby brothel, raised by prostitutes who cared for her while she suffered from a temporary blindness, brought on by conjunctivitis. Bizarrely enough, the prostitutes introduced young Edith to religion by taking her on a pilgrimage to honour Saint Thérèse, allegedly sparking the “miracle” of her recovery. The early event instilled a profound and life-long spirituality in Edith, a theme that Dahan revisits throughout the film, showing how later in life Piaf refused to perform without her beloved crucifix.

By 16, Edith was a street-smart and talented street performer with a penchant for hard liquor, frequenting the decadent 1930s Parisian nightclubs. She was discovered by the Louis Leplée, played by the charming Gerard Depardieu, who helped launch her career as a cabaret singer, giving her a nickname La Môme Piaf (The Sparrow Kid), commenting on her tiny stature and her powerful voice.

Piaf went onto become a huge star in Paris, where she became very much associated with the French resistance movement - a fact which is never mentioned, and criticised for not being included in the film. In following years she achieved worldwide success, even conquering New York, where she met boxer Marcel Cerdan, with whom she fell in love with. His 1949 plane crash death devastated Piaf – a moving sequence which is wonderfully executed in the film, although bordering on the melodrama of Greek tragedy. Her grief, coupled with a car crash she was involved in two years later, resulted in a desperate morphine addiction that she wrestled with until her death in 1963.


Marcel Cerdan (Jean-Pierre Martins) ©Photography Bruno Calvo

La Vie en Rose travels from steam-filled Normandy brothels to Parisian underground cabarets to post-war New York's heaving boxing rings with production values that are absolutely breathtaking. From its atmospheric cinematography to its vibrant art direction, clever lighting and exceptional hair and makeup (Marion Cotillard’s transformation is utterly shocking), the film leaves no visual detail to chance.

And musically, the film’s soaring score equally compliments Piaf’s beautifully restored vocals of the title song (1946), "Hymne à l'amour" (1949), "Milord" (1959), and "Non, je ne regrette rien" (1960). This is, without a doubt, a film meant to be appreciated in the cinema.


Edith Piaf (Marion Cotillard) ©Photography Bruno Calvo

But of course the real star of La Vie en Rose is the exquisite Marion Cotillard as Edith Piaf. The 31-year-old actress expertly plays the troubled Piaf with the perfect combination of anxious vulnerability doubled with a gut confidence and acerbic wit. Cotillard acts from the eyes and effortlessly mimes to Piaf’s vocals with such fervour and urgency that you never once doubt the voice comes from her, or even doubt that you are watching Piaf herself. Cotillard is so eerily capable of impersonating Piaf’s cartoonish mannerisms and her odd, guttural speaking voice that you almost question if the portrayal isn’t parody. Before you can, Cotillard switches gears and exposes a raw humility in the character , constantly making Edith interesting and captivating – most effectively brought to life in an understated sequence where Marlene Dietrich [Caroline Silhol] approaches Piaf at a concert pronouncing Édith’s voice “the soul of Paris".

Cotillard, likewise, captures the soul of Piaf, in a performance that is nothing short of extraordinary.

A bit slick, Sophie?

Sophie Ellis Bextor talks to Gay.com about her new album, gay mates, the sexually ambiguous Mika, and why she turned down Agent Provocateur

Following a three year break during which she tied the knot and had a baby, pop starlet Sophie Ellis Bextor found time to churn out a refreshingly indulgent pop album – Trip the Light Fantastic. The album promises to be one of the hottest of the summer, with a healthy dose of disco, electro, and - of course - glamour. Upon meeting, the 28- year-old doesn't look like your average wife and mother: at a shocking 6ft tall, clad in sparkling red heels and a candy-apple vintage dress, she's more of a human doll, with a flair of 1950s panache with a splash of fairy-tale-esque looks. Hmm, Dorothy of the new millennium? How fitting that she clicks her heels together in new single Me & My Imagination. Having conquered Europe with DJ Spiller's Groovejet in 2000 and Murder on the Dance Floor in 2002, she's back with a vengeance and thirsty for another whirl at the disco. Although having settled into motherhood, the indie-lead-woman-turned-pop diva still enjoys a night out with the boys. Gay.com was lucky enough to catch up with her for a pleasurably candid chat about the album , her influences, the competition, why she stepped back from an Agent Provocateur ad (which went to Kylie) and the media storm surrounding pal Mika

So, tell me about your new album

Well, it’s basically a…pop record! (laughs) A celebration of all things pop, I love pop music. Half of it is an album you can dance to and the other half is a bit more eclectic. There’s a bit of disco, a bit of electro, a bit of indie…

What’s an average day for you?

Being a pop star, we don’t really have average days. Different things are happening all the time which suits me very much because I get bored quite easily. It keeps evolving. At the moment I got the single Me & My imagination coming out in three, four weeks.Tomorrow I got a performance on a TV show to do. Friday I got interviews, I don’t really have a typical day.

What about your day off?

Generally just spend a lot of time with my little boy. He’s 2 right now, he’s gonna be three on Monday. He’s quite grown up!

What kind of music are you listening to these days?

I’m listening to music all the time, I spent a lot of time last evening downloading stuff from the itunes store. I got some Dolly Parton and Julie London and ELO. I listen to a real mixture – the new Arcade Fire album?

Oh yeah, I heard it. It’s good.

Yeah, they’re brilliant. I love the first one as well, it’s exciting that the second album is so good. It’s actually quite Bruce Springsteen, which is quite unexpected. I’ve been listening to …what else? I like Keiser chiefs, I like Franz Ferdinand, I like Amy Winehouse, Gwen Stefani…

What about pop girls….have you heard Hillary Duff?

No.

She sounds a little similar to you…

The only thing about that some of that stuff is that they’re quite songwritten songs, you know? It sounds a bit…put together. I like pop music with a bit of soul tapped in. I think mine is a bit more soul. It’s a bit slick.

Who did you like musically when you were a kid?

I really loved Michael Jackson, and I was also really into Madonna, in quite a big way.

Are you still into Madonna?

Yeah…well... she’s one of those people…there’s aspects of her career that I adore and others that I don’t understand quite so much, but whenever I see her live, you can’t help but just…she has this ability to have you in the palm of her hand again. I went to see her last year in the Confessions on a Dance Floor and it was brilliant, it was really inspiring. I can never quite leave her behind really. Songs like Hung up, and Sorry – I don’t know if they get me in the same way the as the songs I knew when I was little like Like a Prayer and Cherish and Express Yourself.

Are you going on tour this year?

Yeah, definitely.

Will yours be, in a way, similar to Madonna’s?

Well for Madonna, budget is a non-issue so…it won’t be at quite the same level obviously (laughs), but I try to see lots and lots of gigs, and you take little bits from everywhere. I do believe in showmanship. I think the thing that Madonna does, which I hope I can do, is that she has this ability to come across as quite austere at the beginning …not cold exactly but a little detached. But at the end of it she looks like she’s having a great time - she’s dancing, and you’re dancing, and it’s all great. I think that’s really clever how she gets that dynamic to work. You always feel at the end of it that you’ve somehow won her over. I don’t know, that’s a real…you know what I mean? Not everyone has that.

Yeah, this is gonna sound dumb, but she kinda takes the audience on a journey. I can see how you’d wanna do something like that

Yeah, exactly, but I’ve seen a lot of great performers. My husband’s in a band called The Feeling and Dan, the front man, is really good with the crowd, Justin from The Darkness is really brilliant with the crowd, the Scissor Sisters are really great with the crowd, there’s lots of ways of doing it.

So I was reading that you were the lead singer for an indie band theaudience. How did you make the transition from that to pop…disco pop. How was that transition? And why did you make it?

Yeah, I think, the whole thing from going from an indie band to a dance track… that was quite a big change because the indie world is quite cliquey. I don’t know how to describe it, it’s sort of a ‘boutique world’. You were in that club and no one really strayed out of it. So making the move out to do a dance record , which would never be featured in NME, it was quite a big leap for me. And really important for me because it made me realise that you can really do whatever you set your heart to. You don’t have to play by anyone else’s rules, you can make your own. But there’s also the side of it at the time I was …what I was doing with theaudience was pop. The whole Brit Pop thing was massive and there wasn’t really a pop side of things like we have now, so music itself has gone on a journey as well. So at the time everybody was doing it, pop music was indie. Indie pop.

Yeah it seems difficult to sometimes differentiate – I feel even these days NME covers pop too..it kinda covers everything

Yeah well again, pop again is has moved on. Now you get The Arctic Monkeys being covered by Girls Aloud and vice versa…these things I know they’re on different sides of the tracks, but the way they move, is sort of in tandem, you know what I mean?

Yeah, makes sense. Are you pretty clued into the Internet and do you use your Myspace? Are you tech-savvy?

Yeah I do. I’m one of those people who almost likes to have too much information so yeah, I’m always checking out new people’s music you know, seeing how things are doing around the planet! Yea, it’s all out there. And I love Youtube and things I’ve heard people mention saying, ‘oh this is really funny’ and if you’ve missed it, you can catch it.. I watched Avril Lavigne on Pop world. Did you see that?

No, I didn’t. But I do occasionally see her on Perezhilton…do you look at that?

Yeah, yeah, sometimes.

Yeah he slates her pretty harshly

Well when she was on the show, she didn’t know what Pop World was, so she was being asked all these questions and she just looked very uncomfy. She kept looking at her PR person with a look of ‘what is going on?’ It’s awkward, I felt sorry for her really.

So you have you tried to break out into the states a bit?

Mmmm, not really, I dunno, when I had success with Murder on the Dance Floor, I kinda had to go where the song took me, and I was really swept off my feet. I learned it’s best to go where people are inviting you really.

Well I have to tell you, that when I used to Tigerheat in LA, I guess your equivalent to G-A-Y? I remember dancing to that song all the time.

(Laughs) Yeah I think there are little pockets where people have heard it. I know there are people on my website from New York, from LA, from San Francisco. I’d love to do a few performances in gay clubs in the states. That’d be brilliant. But like I said, I’d rather go where I’m invited.

It’s interesting right now how British pop music has boomed in the states – Lily Allen, Mika, Amy Winehouse has done really well. I think that’s a lot to do with the blogging and Myspace and how people are more connected through the internet…

Yeah! But these things have also gotta be a bit organic. Yeah, and you can go and tour America for as long as you like, but if you don’t get people playing your records on radio, if you don’t get interviewed or get TV performances it’s all a bit pointless. So I’d rather just wait until something… if one of my songs gets picked up – fab. But I’m just as happy if it happens in France, I’m just as happy if it happens in Mexico. I don’t give it any more importance …but I don’t give it any less importance either, is that makes sense

Right. Yeah, that makes sense. So your mother was on Blue Peter. How did that affect you growing up? Did you get teased?

Yeah, I did, not because of Blue Peter exactly, but just because kids get kinda jealous of special treatment. I used to be able to get into museums, and cut the queue. I used to get new toys she’d bring in from work, so the kids got quite fed up and ganged up a bit. So yeah, and I probably was a bit annoying about it as well.

Do you have a gay best friend?

A gay best friend? I’ve got loads of friends who are gay. Absolutely. The lead singer of my husband’s band is a gay man and he’s my son’s godfather (the sexy Dan Gillespie-Sells of The Feeling) He’s got a lovely group of guys that I love going out with…and there’s his boyfriend Ryan …so we got a little network! And they’ve introduced me to some of my favourite clubs in London.

Which ones?

Wig Out is one of my favourites at Ghetto. I also love Rebel Rebel.

When is Rebel Rebel?

It’s the first Saturday of every month at the Phoenix Bar. Wig Out is actually my favourite – it’s a real party night.

What was it like working with Fred Schneider of the B-52s?

It was great, Fred is brilliant, I saw him last week actually, and luckily he’s become of a friend. And they’re coming over, they’re gonna play the Love Box festival which will be their first gig in a long time. Yeah, he’s lovely, really funny. He’s really secure in his skin.

So I saw that you were at the opening part of Mika’s album release party…

Oh yes.

Well as you probably know the gay media have kinda been after him - or rather, the media in general have been after him to talk about his sexuality. Do you think that’s fair to ask that? Do you think it’s right for him to say he’s not gonna talk about it?

I actually think he’s completely entitled to it. I know that Dan, someone I know as a gay musician, he was actually fine to talk about it, but it’s kinda beside the point. With Mika I kinda respect the fact that he doesn’t have to tell people everything. Why do we feel we have to know? I mean he’s got lyrics like ‘I tried to be like Grace Kelly, and I tried a little Freddie’. And if you want the answer, I think he’s kinda giving it to you. I think he’s completely entitled to do his own thing.

The reason why I asked you is that it seems to be a big topic of discussion. In every interview he does, someone asks him.

I think he should just tell them all to just bugger off. I don’t know why people think they’re entitled to know all that. More than I’d want people asking me about my sex life. It’s not because you’re ashamed or embarrassed or anything, but just because it’s just like, ‘why do you need to know?’

You were in line to do an Agent Provocateur ad a few years back, that went to Kylie (click here to see the final product) why did you turn in down?

Well to put in context, it was about 5 or 6 years ago, and I had just come out with my first record, and I was doing the video for Murder on the Dance Floor, where in the video I was playing this horrible girl who’s killing people, and the advert for Agent Provocateur was basically me, on a bucking bronco in my underwear, arousing the men watching. I just thought, every girl watching this is gonna think I’m a complete bitch. I’d probably do it now, but at the time…I’m a big believer in serendipity, right thing at the right time. It just wasn’t the right time for me to be in my pants on a bucking bronco! Laughs. Maybe now is!

Sophie’s third album ‘Trip The Light Fantastic’ is out on May 21st.

Click here to watch Catch You

Click here for Me & My Imagination

Kismet’s kitsch carpet fails to fly

ENO's Kismet, set in a bewilderingly bawdy Baghdad, proves to be a dated, meaningless piece of shtick

English National Opera’s decision to include a Broadway musical in each season is enlightened in that it both broadens the public’s concept of what music theatre is and offers high production values for hugely entertaining works that are rarely staged.

Since over half of ENO’s funding comes from the public purse there is also a huge responsibility to spend wisely, and many could argue that since there are so many musicals in the West End, the role of an opera house is to carefully uphold the unique mission of opera. I am a huge fan of blurring the boundaries between high art and pop culture and ENO are masters at this. Unfortunately the Coliseum’s production of Wright & Forrester’s Kismet, which opened last week and runs for 15 performances until the 14th July, was grossly ill conceived.


Michael Ball as A Poet

The production team obviously struggled to feel inspired by the script and score and I felt the cast and crew also found it hard to feel involved in a story more suited to a Croydon Panto than the cutting edge of British Music Theatre. Michael Ball as the Poet did his best but was probably more challenged when he played Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang than in this romp. Faith Prince brought great fun to her role as Lalume and the audience were entertained enough, but the hugely kitsch, sparkly- pink sets by Ultz, ironically, seemed dull. The same was true with the costumes. If camp is done cheaply it betrays the very meaning of the word.

This grand musical, meaning fate in Arabic was a huge hit on the Great White Way and the West End in the early 1950’s. Out of date, even then, in a climate of shows such as Guys and Dolls and Wonderful Town it was given the ultimate treatment by Vincente Minnelli for MGM, whose genius was able to get the colour, text and humour at the right pitch.

Transporting a rather frivolous musical into an opera house is already problematic. Unlike great works of art which transcend time and place and which ENO usually revels in, Kismet comes across as daft and dated and it seems can only be done as a well orchestrated panto.


Faith Prince as Lalume

I was tempted not to return for the second act but performances by company soprano Sarah Tynan who played the poet’s daughter Marsinah and the wonderfully funny Faith Prince, who was a class act in her own right, helped me stay the course. The sheer energy of ENO’s orchestra galloped through the score, which is more Vegas than Broadway, giving us a unique experience to hear show tunes on such a grand scale.

In light of the current situation in Baghdad I was asking myself, is it ok to present the city with chocolate box confection filled with badly veiled women and dancing boys singing “Stranger in Paradise”? Probably not. Is the use our most magnificent London theatre, tightest orchestra and chorus and truly talented cast in this dated, meaningless piece of shtick relevant to a discerning London audience today? Definitely not.

The week in Pop

Gay.com previews hottest new tracks from the Gossip, Scissor Sisters, MIA, Lily Allen and more

The Scissor Sisters – “She’s My Man”

The sisters turn it out once again with the fab third single – She’s My Man. In the spirit of current videogame mania, the live-action Street fighter-esque video sprinkled with slapstick humour makes for an entertaining few minutes, even if it only half-heartedly reflects the song’s dedication to New Orleans. Whether it’s perplexing puppetry or computer animation – or both, She’s my Man’s will make you want to pick up a throbbing joystick.

Click here to see the video.


MIA - “Bird Flu”

Fierce and edgy Sri-lankan rapper MIA follows her well-received 2005 debut with “Bird Flu” –the first single off her upcoming album Power Power. “Bird Flu” is a thrashing, high-energy chant with video featuring MIA herself, dancing among wildly enthusiastic Indian local. MIA’s politically subversive lyrics and punishing beats compliment the gritty, yet jubilant spirit of the tsunami-hit fishing village where the video was filmed.



Click here to see the video and click here for MIA’s myspace.


The Gossip – “Standing in the way”

I was a bit late to discover the magic that is Beth Ditto – but better late than never. The self-proclaimed “Fat, proud lesbian”, now notoriously named NME’s Coolest Person of the Year (Take that, Prom queen!!), the sexy Ditto lives up to the name. Her husky, soulful voice echoes a bizarre yet highly satisfying combo of Joan Jett, Tina Turner, and Mamma Cass. Standing In The Way Of Control is apparently protest song about Bush's attitude to gay marriage, and was appropriately used to soundtrack that deliciously lascivious trailer for new teen sex romp The Skins. “Listen up” is also a must-download, and the remixes are amazing.
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Click here for The Gossip's Myspace

And click here for their remixes.



Cazwell and Avenue D - “The sex that I need”

Filthy gorgeous disco-rapper Cazwell joins forces with the nasty girls of Avenue D (of electroclash anthem ‘Do I look like a slut?) for a shockingly raunchy chit-chat about their recent tricks. Rapped over a 70s-porn-ish groove, it could almost be a PSS’s (Proud Single Slut) anti-Valentines anthem.

You can listen to the song here on Cazwell's Myspace.

Lily Allen – “Alfie”

Another gem from the adorable Lilly Allen. Lily’s little brother Alfie - like many boys - spends his day drinking, smoking pot, and furiously masturbating. Ms Allen’s sweetly ironic ode to little brother (played perfectly by scowling puppet) rings true to anyone who’s ever had a lazy sibling, who you only abuse affectionately, of course . The song, reminiscent of Sandy Shaw’s 1967 Eurovision-winning Puppet on a String is brilliantly brought to life by director Sarah Chatfield ‘s delightful Disney-mocking music video.

Click here to watch Alfie

Gwen Stefani’s – "Sweet Escape"

Gwen is somewhat able to redeem herself for the cringe-worthy Sound of Music-sampling mish-mash Wind it Up with the second single off her new album – Sweet Escape. The pleasantly catchy tune reminds me a bit like her earlier successes with No Doubt. But that said, Stefani’s latest efforts are so hyper-produced, so gold-splashed – that the final product results in a gaudy anti-climax. Minus all the glitter and gimmicky Harajuku girls, Gwen is “just a girl”. Thankfully she is reportedly returning to band No Doubt after The Sweet Escape significantly disappointed.

Click here for the video.

Nothing like a Dame's Wrath

Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett let the bitch slaps fly in the sinfully delicious Notes on a Scandal.

Move over Dreamgirls! The Catfight of the Year award, no longer in the hands of Supreme-wannabe divas, belongs to an unlikely duelling pair – Dame Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett.

Known primarily for their restrained dramatic roles, The A list actresses let the bitch slaps fly in their most memorable roles to date - in the sinfully delicious Notes on a Scandal.

This well-crafted riveting melodrama tells a familiar story of unrequited same-sex psychopathic love – such classics as Single White Female and The Talented Mr Ripley come to mind. Judi Dench plays narrator Barbara Cox, a lonely spinster working as a miserable London schoolteacher, whose smug wit and malicious observations come alive in her darkly comic diaries.

Beautiful and naïve Snow White-esque Sheba Hart, played by the picture perfect Cate Blanchett, arrives as the new art teacher in school, quickly catching the ravenous eye of the wicked witch. It isn’t long before Barbara surreptitiously gains the trust of her female prey, who readily confesses the daily frustrations living as wife to a significantly older man (Bill Nighy) and mother to a down syndrome son.

As Barbara becomes increasingly possessive of her new best friend, Blanchett’s ingénue takes a bite of the forbidden fruit – embarking on a highly erotic affair with 15- year old student (Andrew Simpson). Upon discovery Barbara avoids reporting her kiddie-fiddling chum, and instead uses the secret to her advantage, drawing Sheba closer to her through a nasty web of deceit and blackmail.



Director Richard’s Eyre’s plot moves along with irresistible alacrity, just as his realistically vulnerable characters unravel to the sadistic glee of Puppetmaster Dench. Philip Glass’s phenomenal score (Glass was also responsible for the score of The Hours) skilfully compliments the direction, further elevating the already dramatic momentum, eerily tinkering in the mind of Barbara as she sits in solitude.

The film’s casting couldn’t have been better with scene-stealing scenes from supporting actors: the flawlessly natural Bill Nighy as Sheba’s well-meaning cuckold husband and the enigmatically sexy Andrew Simpson (yes, he’s 18) as Sheba’s enticing jailbait.

Cate Blanchett’s complex take on Sheba Hart is nothing short of astounding, winning her a well-deserved Oscar nomination for supporting actress. Although it seems unlikely she’ll beat out Dreamgirls’ Jennifer Hudson, Blanchett deserves praise for conveying Sheba Hart’s desperate paranoia, indulging Barbara’s whims and gullible to her threats. While its easy to sympathise with her ill-informed decisions and her downward spiral (although she does have redeeming explosive moments), it’s just as easy to laugh at her ignorance through the eyes of Barbara.



The real star of Notes on a Scandal is not its fatally flawed heroine, but its comically manipulative villain, Dame Judi as Barbara Cox. Bow down, ladies, here’s the real Oscar forerunner. Even while she mercilessly blackmails Sheba, lonely Barbara is the one you sympathise with, in her all her efforts to win over the flagging companion. Her steadfast perseverance and sinister humour, narcissistically getting off on her own diary entries, make her an absolute pleasure to watch.

That said, Dench also brings a peculiar vulnerability to Barbara, whose cynical world can be torn apart just as easy as it comes together. Dench’s nuanced, detailed performance adds a rich layer to the already electrifying thriller, resulting in one of the most riveting climaxes in recent cinema.