What’s The Fuss about?     Well, it could be time to stop and smell the roses – and there are a few varieties named after gay icons. Or we could recall the wonderful voice of Luther Vandross – another gay luminary from the great days of 90s dance and pop music, sadly lost from this world.

Politicians have a tough job, pleasing no-one and having to fight for respect. Australia’s first female Prime Minister Julia Gillard gave as good as she got. We reflect upon another lady who stands tall but says not a word – the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbour. If only she could speak…?

At this time, we note that Alfred C Kinsey confirmed that we all are interested in matters of sex, and he conducted experiments and extensive surveys of willing participants to document the range and intensity of our sexual activities. Much earlier, Marquis De Sade did much the same and kink was documented. However, from history we know that nothing is ‘new’ – others have already tried it, even if they haven’t told the world!

From international press sources, we quote that the World Health Organisation says that Transgender identity is not a mental illness; the Vatican uses “GLBT’ for the first time and invites pro-gay priest to Conference; and a British insurance company says people who are ‘HIV+ with undetectable viral count’ don’t need to list them as pre-existing illnesses if on PreP and taking the medication as required, to receive insurance.

Listen to these stories, opinions and more – presented with some merriment by Chris, Gordon & Phil.

Show #810 – First broadcast on 26 June 2018

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Please excuse us while we rug up and keep warm during these seasonably-cold days and nights.

In this podcast we chat about World Blood Donor Week and the critical role it plays in our everyday lives.

From our Anniversary Book we feature three gay guys of varying notoriety, from different eras and areas of expertise:

* George Michael – UK pop star whose light burnt brightly but cast strange shadows, who died in his sleep at an early age, having ‘burnt out’;

* Alan Turing – a much respected scientist who understood the complex workings of the war-time coding machine, and developed the earliest computing devices now commonly used in our digital era, before his cruel elimination by poisonous ‘cures’ for his gayness; and

Listen to these stories, opinions and more – presented with some merriment by Chris, Gordon & Phil – three ordinary gay guys.

Show #808 – First broadcast on 19 June 2018

The post The Good Guys … in a gay way. appeared first on Been There Done That.

Over the long weekend, I attended my first public gay wedding as an invited guest. And as is befitting a gay event, it was OTT – but in a nice elegant way.     Wonderful location, solemn ceremony, fabulous reception and over 100 family, friends and allies (including lots of pre-teen kids who got to witness such a happy event). More exciting was the fact that the next morning the sun rose, the sky hadn’t fallen and, apart from an occasional headache, the world went about its business as normal. Equal rights for all!

In our little Tech-Talk, we examine the early opportunities for women at the leading edge of space adventures, and we hope that Australia will soon regain an effective but exclusive part of future space activities.

With the annual events in the Northern Hemisphere celebrating Gay Pride, we honor gay icon Judy Garland (born 10/6/1922; d 22/6/1969) as we examine her life story, hear her famous song from the film “The Wizard of Oz” and trace her path into our gay history at the Stonewall Riots in New York.

We also have a quick chat about Peter Allen “The Boy from Oz” (d 18/06/1992) and listen to one of his famed music tracks.

In noting that the RSPCA organisation began in England on 16/6/1824, we chat about our local flora, fauna and small creatures, and how science is helping us to perpetuate our wonderful natural diversity and rescuing some animals like the Tasmanian Devil, as well as focusing upon the domestic livestock which has bred uncontrolled in the Outback and mountains.

Listen to these stories, opinions and more – presented with some merriment by Chris, Gordon & Phil.

Show #807 – First broadcast on 12 June 2018

The post Excercising our rights … caring about others appeared first on Been There Done That.

This week we celebrate out 2018 Radiothon and have Mr John Oliver – Member Number 1 – as our studio guest (see picture).

We hear about the early days of JOY – John’s earlier experience in the 1980s in local Community Radio stations as a presenter, salesperson and various managerial positions, including negotiating with the powers-that-be in radio central – The Australian Broadcasting Authority.

Our regular team of Chris, Gordon & Phil chat with John and are fascinated by the tales he tells about raising JOY from nothing to what it is today.

There are bits of audio from early days of JOY, and some special music tracks, too.

Listen to these tales, opinions and more, presented with some merriment by Chris, Gordon & Phil.

Show #806 – First broadcast on 5 June 2018

The post Radiothon 2018 – Out Loud and Proud for 25 Years appeared first on Been There Done That.

This week we celebrate National Volunteer Week and acknowledge the effort and results which volunteers make in so many areas of our lives. The slogan this years is “Give a little – change a lot”. We also express our pride in volunteering at JOY and the satisfaction we get – much better than wages?

We also praise our fellow volunteer – the humble honey bee, as we celebrate World Bee Day. He is a tireless worker from sun-up to sun-down and we enjoy the benefits of his labours.

The National Sorry Day commemoration occurs on 26 May each year, and we don’t look proudly on our feeble efforts over the centuries to acknowledge and give due respect to the original inhabitants of this great land. We keep building new parliament houses, but they never have enough space for all those various ‘elephants in the room’ which have to be addressed.

Tristan Meecham (All the Queens Men) comes in for a quick chat about Rainbow Reviews where the Arts Centre Melbourne will generously offer free seats to LGBTI elders at performances and theatre shows. After each event will be an opportunity to discuss and reflect upon the performance and the social experience, and podcasts will be created as a record of the event and for those who weren’t able to attend.

We learn that Malta (see picture) is the most gay-friendly country in Europe, and that in SE Asia, oppressed GLBTI folk are deciding to show solidarity in the simple expression of a hug. And we discuss the role of hugging and touch – essential feelings in our lives – in the sporting arena and the changing attitude of masculine expression of feelings.

Listen to these stories, opinions and more, presented with some merriment by Chris, Gordon & Phil.

Show #804 – First broadcast on 22 May 2018

The post Give a little … Change a lot appeared first on Been There Done That.