Reviews
Past reviews;
http://www.gingerbeer.co.uk/article.php?CategoryID=7&ArticleID=71
First Out 20th Birthday
Let's go back in time, by jogging a few memories (or not if you weren't quite born yet). . .
It is 1986. My beloved cat Heathcliffe is born, London's Gay Pride after-march festivities transfer to Jubilee Gardens and attendance rises above 10,000, Spain (along with Portugal) joins the European Community (present day European Union), Wole Soyinka wins the nobel prize for literature, Rita Levi Montalcini jointly wins the nobel prize in the category of 'Physiology or Medicine', Charlotte Church is born (February 21st), Maya Angelou's fifth instalment of memoirs is published (All God's Children Need Travelling Shoes), the first ever recorded computer virus (brain) starts to spread, it is also the year that 'Freddie Starr ate my hamster', Madonna, Bananarama and The Communards ('Don't Leave Me This Way' being the UK's biggest selling single of this year) are topping the charts along with Spitting Image's Chicken song, Linda Bellos is elected leader of Lambeth council, the European flag is born, and 'Matador' - directed by Pedro Almodóvar - is first released into (Spanish) cinemas.
On the 6th July 1986, in a little nook just off Tottenham Court Road, a little star was born, in the shape of the first, out, gay London café.
On opening, the staff were overwhelmed at the response (as it was the same day as the South London Festival, they hadn't expected much of a turnout) and there was a queue of people wishing to gain entry running all the way around the block. It is still as popular as ever in present times; Europride on the 1st July (2006) saw the place so packed, that many customers spilled out onto the pavement and then some. The atmosphere was terrific. Over their recent birthday weekend, First Out was again packed to the rafters.
There are a fair few notable dates in First Out's past, the first main one of course being the grand opening in 1986 and the second one being in 1992, when not only was the first Europride held in London, but the alcohol licence was granted for the bar downstairs and Maria joined First Out. That year, a new era was born. The whole place was refurbished and the windows were changed to take on the open layout that they have today.
I was lucky enough to be at the 20th birthday party in July, alongside owners Malcolm and Maria. Amongst many, many happy patrons and friends of this popular drinking establishment, were the delectable Amy Lamé (bet you didn't know she used to work in First Out), most personable Jimmy Somerville, Sharon Browne, co-chair of London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard and Emma Hands -Vice chair for London Pride. Our ears were looked after by DJ Sandie Lee on the decks and our thirsts quenched by the lovely Theres and Rebecca behind the bar. Downstairs had been redecorated for the (long) weekend, with balloons streamers and colourful 'we are 20' disks.
I was quite shocked to do the maths on the fact that First Out has been open since 1986, as I remember popping in for coffee at the beginning and in subsequent years along the way.
When the bar was opened with the new downstairs art exhibition I managed to make in on the Sunday following. I remember this distinctly, as I had driven up Rupert Street and inadvertently parked on top of broken glass fragments. I sent my two buddies onwards whilst I took each tyre off in turn, to check for then remove the glass fragments. Many an unforgettable night, have I had in First Out and many delectable visions of beauty have fallen upon my eyes, and I'm not just talking about the alternating art displays there.
Upstairs is no smoking and still a great place to chatter, eat and people watch. The music is played at a reasonable level, so either upstairs or downstairs you can hold a pretty decent conversation with people and it's light enough to read the pink paper or your book, until they start to dim the lights as more people fill the place later in the evening.
First Out is a chilled place and no matter what mood you're in, you can still enjoy it. It's a great place to use as a meeting point in London of a daytime or evening.
The staff are always professional and friendly and I can say hand on heart that the tortilla is as good as my mum used to make it and I highly recommended it.
When this project was formed, they were looking at the future, but I doubt that they realised that what they were starting would turn into the favourite haunt of many on the gay scene. There are a lot of things we take for granted, but for me First Out is not one of them.
Reviewed by Fox
Listing - First Out
I'd definitely recommend this place (and regularly do). The no smoking policy upstairs means you can eat/drink/talk/socialise without coughing your guts up and the food menu has plenty of vegetarian options.
First Out is a chilled place and no matter what mood you're in, you can still enjoy it. Friday is pulling night in the downstairs bar. It's not really a place for romantics though - there's no real privacy but I did get my bum pinched there once. The staff are professional and friendly and male friends are more than welcome.
You can sit on your own or fit in just as well with a group of friends. Big supplies of pink papers and g3 and most of the flyers around town are on offer, as well as the new Pride 2005 magazine. It's a great place to use as a meeting point in London of a daytime or evening. For ages I kept complaining that they had a lack of spirits - especially brandy - and I am pleased to say they've finally succumbed and now stock a better range, including Martel. ………Fox 2005
Battersea Barge review
My experience of the Diva Night……..or should that be confessions of a diva night.
On walking down the short flight of steps into the subdued lighting of the Battersea Barge, I was overwhelmed at how busy but mellow it all was. On looking around, I could see quite a mixture of women I recognised from barge nights before, plus many more I did not, with a smattering of gayboys in between.
The stage opened up some time last year, and I’ve noticed that this has
made an extraordinary difference to the audience experience. Rich red
curtains frame the stage and the added depth gives freedom to perform
more energetically.
The crowd hushed as the imitable Dyke Marilyn of the large personality
huskily whispered into the mic. After bantering and entertaining us for
a short while, she introduced the lovely Rosie Wilby, then the talented
group Nelson Romeu.
It was really wonderfull to see so many chatterers quieten down and listen
so avidly.
In the second half, my favourite singer in the whole wide world blew out all the cobwebs in my tone-deaf ears. Annabelle Platon. Not only have I had the most personal pleasure of introducing this fantastic lady onto the stage there myself, last year, but I got to see her introduced by another favourite lady (Dyke Marilyn) and hear her again and see her put the rest of the audience into watching in awe. For someone so little, so humble and pretty, she certainly knows how to make people feel they should be on their knees begging for more.
Unfortunately, I had to run before the end of the show and missed out on the last act – The lovely Karen the hat – but would heartily recommend going to this mellow night of a myriad of talents again, especially as the new dates are now on Sundays. I do so much like to chill out at the end of a hectic weekend with a good bottle of red, a few candles and the enormous personality known as Dyke Marilyn plus her guests……. Fox
Susan & Janice 'Out of our Heads'
12th-30th November 2002
If you have a sense of humour, you'll nearly die laughing at 'Out of
our
Heads'. They are the funniest double act I've ever seen, their energy
and
stage presence will knock you out. Their attention to detail will have
you
rolling on the floor, if there was any room to!
My favourite scene, was all of the show.
I'd agree with the previous blurb re the mix of Tales of the Unexpected,
Acorn Antiques and Jean Paul Sartre, but add in a little bit of carry-on
and
Doctor Who and then a pinch of Hammer Horror, and you might just be there.
You will have to be quick on the mark for this one, as it's ending this
Saturday but it's well worth the effort. .....Fox
Debbie Filler's 'Filler Up' Show.
I went along, not knowing quite what to expect from a Jewish Lesbian
comedienne from New Zealand, and came away with a bread recipe! and an
education within another culture.
I found the venue itself (Drill Hall WC1E)warm, cosy and fully booked.
Which is not really surprising it was full to capacity, as Debbie Filler
gave an excellently rehearsed performance.
She's a fantastic storyteller who magically creates a funny but poignant
arena, filled with her mother, music, relations, food and gags, with strains
of a Jewish, Lesbian, New Zealand, American Fanny Craddock.
I'm quite tempted to go and see her show again....hmm, well it's on until
the 8th March.
Reviewed by Fox
DodgyTotty
Ladies of the Waves
Indoor/outdoor, dry, sychronised swimming, that's what I went to see,
saturday, just gone. Well, I won't mention much about the venue, apart
from it was packed to the rafters, with the usual Duckie/Vauxhall Tavern
crowd.
The trio that make up Dodgytotty (Sam, Helen and Lucy) shuffled onto the
stage to rapturous applause.... and then came the bubbles.
I highly recommend, going out of your way, to get to their next venue.
These 'ladies of the waves', are inventive, surreal and definitely the
next big thing. The choreography of their indoors, dry, synchronised swimming
was hysterically complimented by the accompanying music. I loved the look
of concentration on all of the ladies' faces, and the shopping trolley,
plus the macs. I'm not one to give the game
away, but that shark, nice touch. The only grumble that I have, is that
it seemed like such a short time that they were on the stage. At the end
of their show, it was plainly clear that I was not the only one, sad to
see them go. The trio, have an up-dated website (http://www.dodgytotty.co.uk
), mentioned a forth-coming appearance at Glastonbury and also something
about their next production, 50's housewives, outerspace, Elvis Presley,
meet, a bit. I really can't wait.
Reviewed by Fox 5th April
Off the cuff
This show is a must see, must go, most innovative experience.
‘….. Short and Girlie Productions present a crazy comedy
improvisation night. Don't miss the opportunity to have ten lesbians create
a scene at your fingertips.’
So said the blurb (the bits about "ten lesbians" and "at
your fingertips" got my immediate attention). So, on Sunday 29th
August at 5.50pm, I found myself just outside King's
Cross Station, perusing my printed-out directions from Gingerbeer’s
event information pages.
Well sorely disappointed I was not! I suggest investing in some ‘Tena’
protection as some of the lines the ten lovely comediennes blurted out
nearly made me wet my shorts. I made a note of some of a few of the best
lines from the night.
Ali Adolph compered and acting on the stage were the very talented Kate,
Kerry, Indi and Claire.
Not only did the gags and running jokes come out in abundance, with off
the cuff sketches (such as Indi’s verbalised novel-writing "I
lost my hymen to a starship trooper"), but the physical comedy was
absolutely hysterical. My favourite bit was the props section: Kate and
Claire, making a saucepan into a potty, a banjo, a tennis racquet, an
eyepatch, a lollipop, a parrot, a groin guard, a breast mould, a bomb,
a sand bucket, a drum, a dj set, a hat, a mirror, a sick bucket, a hammer,
a bath, a flower pot, a wooden leg! And a gear stick. To name but a few.
Another favourite bit was their telephone game, where they planned a
swingers' party and a lesbian wedding. Unsure if I’ll buy a hat
for THAT wedding, as they (the imaginary Marsha, Sylvia, Paula and another)
involved rowing boats, sports centres, swans and bread-throwing in their
arrangements for a Happy Shopper trashy wedding day. They went from a
weird game of partner-swapping Twister, to clever alphabet games, to props,
to phones, to a Dykes On Bikes radio show, to a porn fairytale about Snow
White, a big juicy apple, the Seven Dwarfs and Sneezy wearing a dildo.
At the end, there was a witty musical number. I wouldn’t go as far
as to call it a song - the finale was much, much better than that.
The venue has a lot of plus-points: a great little stage, bright lights,
decent bar prices and is in an easily-accessible place. The 6pm start
and
early - 8ish - finish went down extremely well for me and my fellow gingerbeeries,
a few of us trotted back to Southopia for the rest of the evening whilst
the rest took advantage of the discounted French Kiss entry that Club
Wotever with Short and Girlies had negotiated for the night.
I’m going again next month; see you ladies there! And don’t
forget, think of your wittiest and most unanswerable questions for the
‘who’s line’ section on the 26th Sept. (Wet) short and
girlies.
Reviewed by Fox
Theatre Review: 'We don't talk anymore'
Opening night of the 3rd and final run of 'We don't talk anymore', found
me walking past Southopia (well, yes, I did pop in there first), up Kennington
Park Road; eight minutes later and I was in The White Bear Pub, venue
for said performance. A quick word with the friendly barman, pointed me
in the direction of the little theatre room at the back of the pub.
The music was playing as we all settled ourselves down, and without immediately
realising it, the play had already begun and Debbie's world was born.(I
did notice that I was the only one holding a drink as we all sat down,
eek, Nessie, just don't say it, lol). Slowly Ali Adolph, as Debbie, revealed
her past, in a series of poignant scenes, decorated with music, headphones,
various bags, a calendar and lots of humour. Slightly twisted humour,
the best.
There was a lot of (Sir) Cliff Richard in this play, after all, she is
an obsessed fan, but I didn't find it at all claustrophobic or repelling,
quite the opposite in fact. In the words of Debbie's own Sir Cliff, Ali,
Pat, and the whole of the Short and Girlies team, 'Congratulations...'
During the loud applause at the end of the play, it was very, very hard,
not to shout out 'encore'. I highly recommend going to see this play,
before it ends on the 24th May, Ali gives a very polished performance.
Fox
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