Royal Northern College of Music

A group of us from Out in the City visited the RNCM on 2 October to hear a marvellous lunch-time concert. As on previous occasions there were six grand pianos for the programme, for me the most interesting was Wagner’s Tannhäuser Overture (arranged for 4 pianos by John Wilson, who was present).

The two others were also very exciting to hear, ‘Shangri-La beneath the summer moon’ (world premiere), composed by a student at the college, Lucian Amette Crosby and ‘Aerobatics Over Lake Wanaka’ by Adrian Sutton.

(Review by Bruce)

Thank You For The Music

We took a chance on a super trouper afternoon at Central Library to celebrate International Older People’s Day.

We listened to two hours of ABBA classics with the fantastic solo tribute artist “One of Us”. Here are some photos of the event:

International Lesbian Day

There are two main days to recognise and celebrate lesbian communities: International Lesbian Day on 8 October and Lesbian Visibility Day on 26 April. 

International Lesbian Day is a day for celebration of lesbian culture and history and serves as an opportunity to raise awareness of the lesbian community and advocate for their rights and inclusion. 

We haven’t always had recognition. In the Scottish court case Woods and Pirie vs Dame Cumming Gordon (1811) two teachers were accused of having a lesbian relationship by a pupil, claiming they had indecent sexual relationships. However, one judge found that sex between women was “equally imaginary with witchcraft, sorcery or carnal copulation with the devil”, illustrating notions at the time that tied sexuality with masculinity.

Denholm Elliott (31 May 1922 – 6 October 1992)

Today we are remembering Denholm Elliott, CBE on what would have been his 103rd birthday.

He was an English actor, with more than 125 film and television credits.  His well-known roles include the abortionist in Alfie (1966), Marcus Brody in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), Coleman in Trading Places (1983), and Mr Emerson in A Room with a View (1985).

On TV he memorably portrayed the terrified title character in a Christmas 1976 adaptation of the Dickens ghost story The Signalman.

Secretly bisexual, Elliott was married twice: first to actress Virginia McKenna for a few months in 1954, and later, in an open marriage, to American actress Susan Robinson, with whom he had two children.

Pride in Ageing 2025

Since 2019, LGBT Foundation’s Pride in Ageing programme has been offering support and opportunities for members of the LGBTQ+ community aged 50+ in the North West of England. The success of this programme led to its expansion from Greater Manchester into Liverpool and Merseyside this year, with dedicated events to help older LGBTQ+ people connect, get involved in the community and shape the future of LGBTQ+ health and wellbeing provisions in the region.

2025 marks LGBT Foundation’s 50th Anniversary and the sixth consecutive year of Pride in Ageing, inviting reflection on the last 50 years of LGBT Foundation’s services, campaigns and advocacy to support LGBTQ+ people and highlight the issues they face throughout their lives. In this year’s video we hear from several of their volunteers about the impact of LGBT Foundation’s work and why Pride in Ageing continues to be one of their most valued programmes.

Throughout the year they are continuing to look back on this legacy – from conversations facilitated by 50th Anniversary Ambassador Dita Garbo (RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Season 6) with their Pride in Ageing volunteers, to an exhibition at Manchester Central Library featuring materials from their archives, showing the scale of work they’ve contributed to since 1975.

Find out more about Pride in Ageing and their 50th Anniversary by visiting http://www.lgbt.foundation/prideinageing and http://www.lgbt.foundation/50years, and please consider donating today or leaving a gift in your will with their free will writing service to help them continue this groundbreaking work.

Join their newsletter community: http://www.lgbt.foundation/newsletter

Donate today to fund their life-saving services: http://www.lgbt.foundation/donate

Write a will with them for FREE in October: http://www.lgbt.foundation/freewills