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I wrote about The Last of Us Part 2 the other day, and one of the things I mentioned was its portrayal of LGBT+ characters. One thing I didn’t mention was that their very existence was enough to rouse an army of entitled man-babies to scream about political correctness destroying video games, as they have… [more]
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This, by Munroe Bergdorf, is really something. While this poisonous conversation may constitute an amusement to those who are in a position to pit their privilege against a minority, for people like me, it is an extremely painful onslaught on the very core of who we are. It would be insulting your intelligence as well… [more]
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The Telegraph: York Minster, on Twitter: We have not received any formal complaints and at present the statue is not under threat from removal. When challenged on Twitter by the story’s author, Gabriella Swerling (“If you haven’t received any complaints about the statue, perhaps refrain from telling journalists that you have”), York Minster replied: We… [more]
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Jayne Ozanne and Rabbi Elli Tikvah Sarah talk about trans people’s fears about GRA reform in The Guardian. It’s a perspective that the UK edition of the paper rarely allows into its pages. …people must have an equal opportunity to be heard, particularly by those in power. Few trans people have access to national news… [more]
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Mic Wright has published a typically opinionated post on Q Magazine, which he used to write for and which may have published its final issue. Q has been around since the mid-1980s, and that means it’s been a key part of my musical life since the time when music felt like it was the only thing… [more]
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The other day, I linked to the TIE Campaign’s messages about the onslaught of sickening abuse they’ve received from homophobes and transphobes. One of the people I quoted was their chair Rhiannon Spear, who is also the National Women’s Convener of the SNP, and she’s gone into more detail in a new blog post. Opponents… [more]
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Seven years ago, I wrote about my love for New Model Army, a post-punk band from England. I got into New Model Army in Kilbirnie Library, in the late 1980s. I was going through a bit of a punk/new wave thing at the time, and the library’s collection of vinyl LPs included one whose cover… [more]
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This, by Patrick Benjamin, is superb: Dear White People, If You Have Ever Said Any Of These Things Then You Are Part Of The Problem. These riots are happening because no matter how black people have said it: taking a knee, marching the streets, bumper stickers, banners, signs, or chants, you still don’t get it.… [more]
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I finished playing The Last of Us Part 2 yesterday. It made me cry, a lot. I think it’s a masterpiece. I agree with Eurogamer’s Oli Welsh, who wrote: It gets messy and problematic, and neither side comes out unscathed. But, by taking some big gambles, the developers land decisive blows that will send you… [more]
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An interesting and balanced article in that hotbed of radical leftism, the Financial Times: The front line of the new gender wars. It looks at the Catholic Church’s war on so-called “gender ideology” and how it’s been picked up by right-wing populists and religious conservatives worldwide. The article attempts to give context to the culture war… [more]
Read me in books
My debut memoir, Carrie Kills A Man, was a Scotsman book of the year and Damian Barr’s Literary Salon book of the week, and it was shortlisted for the 2023 British Book Awards book of the year in the Discover category.
My latest book, Small Town Joy, is a celebration of queer influences on and queer artists in Scots music and is out now.
I’m also a contributor to the excellent anthology Fierce Salvage, which is also out now.
