Tyranna

I've always found Dempseys a VERY safe place due to the good number of doorstaff as Roger says; like any other busy late venue, sometimes punters (especially well-built lesbians) seem to take their arguements outside in front of the public lol....

The Rutland Arms must be high on the list; only today I saw two women with 2 massive dogs like Great Danes just coming out from there; it has a good sized beer garden and is also convenient for the train station and bus station.

Was just passing the former Niche premises on Sidney Street last week, when I spotted building workers working just inside the former entrance-door. Is there any news of what is happening to the building? Is it being resurrected as a bar/club? There is lots of other development going on along that side of Sidney Street and also along the bottom of Matilda Street, including the old Matilda pub which now has scaffolding around it. Let's hope that some decent pubs/bars will at long last be appearing around this largely forgotten corner of the city centre, close to important existing venues such as Leadmill and Bloc Space, and also adjacent to the Cultural Industries Quarter...

Thanks, Annie; some of the points you have there are true, although I remember when the stopping service to Holyhead was hourly on Mon-Sat and sometimes the slow stopping services have been replaced by a BUS while the fast Boat Trains for the Ferries are operated by trains. The Ferry Service is actually BOOMING, most of all for Freight, but also for coach passengers due to rock-bottom internet fares. Yes, air travel is cheap, but you must remember you get what you pay for, i.e. no comeback if you miss your flight, almost NO luggage allowance, lengthening journey time in comparison to actual 'Flying time' (of half hour London-Dublin) due to ever-increasing security, and the incredibly cramped accommodation and single toilet on board for 100 people (Guilty party: Ryanair) I would only fly short haul if the flight is rather more us comfortable plus guarantees re. cancellation/delay, but you will find that the nice airlines charge at least twice the coach fare for the privelige lol. Yes, the north Wales train service could be better, and whenever I have used the Ferry, there is ALWAYS a fast train to/from London (Change at Chester for Leeds/Sheffield/Manchester). You're right though that direct services to/from Birmingham New Street and Manchester could be better, as a LOT of people go between Birmingham/Manchester and Ireland, they have very old Irish communities, and as airfares and security checks at airports will only increase in the long run, more people will be using Road and Rail and ferries for those shorter trips (BTW road/ferry travel is positively booming on both Continental and Irish routes and extra capacity is being added all the time; also re. Holyhead, the road has now been completed to Dual Carriageway standard all the way from Chester to Holyhead, so maybe it is more of a competition between road and rail. Whatever the case, I have found that Arriva is the very worst of rail TOC's (Yes, you're right that GCR is GRAND Central, and horror of horrors it is now owned by arriva (But not for very long lol??). Many years ago, when I lived in London, both the current Southeastern Trains and 'Eastern Region' were renown for terrible jokes about old rolling stock and delays/cancellations; however, over the years they have improved a lot (some downs as well as ups at times), depending on which TOC has been running them at any particular time; one TOC I remember well, which turned out to be much more reliable was the French company Connex, but I don't think they operate any UK rail services any more; perhaps they have been pushed out by cheaper, nastier competition, or by better competition?

Looks like the whole of Haymarket, Waingate, and castle street will be closed all night, so please avoid and don't expect taxis will be able to pick up/set down there...

Have you tried the very good value quality Pop-Up cafe on the corner of Union Street opposite Howdden House and the Post Office near Peace Gardens? Currently it is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and different small coffee businesses do quality roasted coffee and cakes, also pies on Thursdays (Pie stall Relocated to the Christmas Market until after Chriistmas).

Hi, Roger and all; long time no see, apologies for my long absence but just to say that I'm alive and well and will be at the Lady Gaga Tribute tonight at OMG. Regarding the practice of closing the upstairs at OMG, it is quite normal if numbers of people there are not large enough to warrant additional space in addition to the very large dancefloor/Main bar area; however, there is a Pool Table upstairs which is often available even when the upstairs bar is shut, as it is in a seperate section to the upstairs bar which is seperately roped off; altogether I am really impressed at the quality of the venue and refurbishment, even if there is no scope for a seperate 'second room' upstairs for minority tastes in music, such as at Climax. BTW, what HAS happened to the original rock/punk/80's 'second room' at Climax??????? Over the months since June, it has mysteriously been 'hijacked' by a straight/mainstream 'Jazz' night, Nightflight or Jamjar, which seems to have NO connection with Climax. I have no worries about what appears to be a great night out in itself, with vintage music, but I feel that it is the creeping end of a wedge to reduce Climax in scale or push it out and into an alternative venue? Maybe Jamjar could relocate at a popular 'pub' venue such as Harley or The Forum? There are many of us who would REALLY like that second room at Climax back, with the opportunity to request all those great lesser-known vintage or Rock-based numbers that many of us like, PLEASE!!!:rant::rant:

If you ask at some of the building sites in the city centre, they always have lots of pallets thrown thrown away into skips as all building materiaals come on pallets; it might be worth asking at the site office if you can collect some in your own vehicle, but you may have to make arrangements well in advance or collect at an awkward time as often there is limited access/parking on site for unscheduled vehicles.

...Bringing the stopping service back exactly to the number of trains it used to have about 10 years ago? Lets hope the FAST service used by 90% of passengers between Sheffield and Manchester/Man Airport will not be cut back or slowed down, though.... We need more late night services such as one back from Manchester at 3am. Not for a while surely? At least a 10-year wait since it depends on the 'wires' being extended from Bedford to Sheffield, not to mention Wakefield Westgate... Same as Chapeltown, Wombwell, etc; My pal in Barnsley recently moved to Wombwell, so at least a slow train only service will be a net advantage to me, but there is still a market for fast Sheffield-Barnsley-Wakefield-Leeds trains? Re. 'new' trains; am I correct in saying that these will be the product of a truly bizarre conversion job on former London Underground 1978 alloy-bodied stock into high-density DMU's? These are actually about 10 years older than the Pacers, but it will be a virtual rebuild, and the new trains will be fixed 4-car formations like on LOndon Suburban services. Re. Arriva taking over 'Northern'; realistically I'd only give them about 2-3 years and then someone like First or Great Central will take over lol. Arriva have a bad record in some of their other routes of cutting back services; on the North Wales line to Holyhead for example, stopping services have been cut right back to only about 4 a day weekdays and Sunday services run in Summer only to some smaller stations; while the Intercity service run by Virgin International has at least been enhanced with trains connecting with all the Irish Ferries. Incidentally, if you look closely at some of the current Class 158 stock such as that on the current Nottingham-Leeds service, you will see the outline of the old Arriva Trains Wales livery and occasional old bilingual Welsh labels, as much of the stock has been passed through different hands over the years, including Arriva north Wales services, from when they had much more frequent stopping services such as the hourly Chester-Lllandudno Town service...

Yes; a bus has run over a person at the junction of Haymarket by Castle Co op and Haymarket is CLOSED until further notice. Bus passenggers waiting for buses 7, 8, 61, 150, etc. from Haymarket towards Bus station/High Street need to make alternative transport arrangements; best option is to head to the Bus Station or the Crucible bus stand. Trams appear to be unaffected.

FOLKS! Make sure you come along to the Sheffield Pride Meeting TOMORROW, Tuesday 10/11/15, at Union Street Cafe! To ensure that there IS a Pride next year, everyone who is interested in making this a reality is invited to the inaugral Pride general Meeting at Union Street Works Cafe, Union Street (Opposite Howden House) Sheffield S1, TOMORROW, TUESDAY 10TH NOV from 5.30. All those present will be invited to elect a new Committee to ensure that planning for Pride 2016 moves forward A.S.A.P., following the standing down of the previous committee. Do PLEASE pass the message on and if YOU want a Pride in 2016, make sure you are there!

Thanks, Roger. Re. ICONS reopening, things seem to have gone mysteriously quiet, with no further refitting/redecoration activity evident inside and no news at all about possible openin dates, etc. In the case of OMG, plans are still going along nicely, and the opening date is now likely to be sometime in 'Early September', so that at least is something to look forward to. VIVA CLIMAX is also back this year, on Sat. 22nd August, at the University as usual. And finally, the Autistic LGBT Group A.S.P.E.C.S. inaugral Sheffield Meeting went very well; the next meeting will be on Wednesday 23rd September at the same venue.

Good point; I've only been in Reflex once or twice a couple of years ago and cannot remember the internal layout: does anyone know if it has simply been knocked through into the former bar area of the Old Red Lion, as that would explain why it has silver film on all the ground floor windows, except for one which I looked through and couldnt see anything apart from an apparently empty room? If so, it is obviously part of the same property as Reflex and no longer a seperate licensed premises or autonomous unit. A pity as I recall it being a seperate pub a few years back (Old Red Lion or whatever) and it would still be viable as one. Re. what 1960 boy says about it having once been part of flares; surely Flares was the place that is now Popworld, next to Walkabout? Unless Reflex was previously operated by Flares, but as far as I recall its been Reflex for many years.

When I first saw this thread title, I thought it may have been about something that Andy Murray threw all the way from Wimbledon after losing in the semis the other week lol

I'd like to come along sometime soon, as I'm currently halfway through an urban fantasy novel which combines sci-fi with comedy, crime and a lot of other things. Is the Sci-fi group still meeting every 1st and 3rd Monday then?

...In a similar vein, I'm currently more than half way through the first novel of mine in a planned trilogy, but in the second, which I am already outlining, I have been planning a scene where a lot of well-known Hollywood celebrities and music stars are trapped in a vast cave by the villains. Nothing otherwise really bad happens to them, (they all get out in the end) but I take it that it is OK to mention names and maybe even refer by description to familiar features? As it is set during the 1990's some of the said celebrities will be deceased, but many of them may be still living. I am aware, however, that some movie/music celebrities do not like misrepresentation, so how does that figure? Will publishers have to check with them all before ok-ing all the names?

Many Thanks for the info; I've already been on some courses for autism awareness as I have Aspergers. Currently I am setting up a new informal social group for LGBT people such as myself with autism/Aspergers, and we are having a meeting at ETEN Cafe THIS Wednesday at 7pm. See seperate thread for more detaisl or see our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/53253797142/?fref=ts

I do hope the OP will be getting plenty of options of organisations to contact. FYI, I myself am setting up an informal network for LGBT adults with autism, we are having our inaugral meeting this Wednesday at ETEN cafe at 7pm. See seperate thread. Our Facebook page is at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/53253797142/?fref=ts

Just to let everyone know, I am holding the INAUGRAL SHEFFIELD MEETING OF A.S.P.E.C.S. THE LGBT AUTISTIC NETWORK at the ETEN Cafe, York St., Sheffield, THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT, (22 JULY) at 7PM. As an entertainer on the LGBT Scene for a number of years, who has Aspergers Syndrome myself, I discovered that there is a large number of other LGBT people, old and young, who have autism, Aspergers Syndrome, ADHD and similar conditions, (sometimes undiagnosed), and who find it extremely difficult to get the full support within and outside the LGBT community itself, also they can be vulnerable to loneliness, self harm, addiction and even sexual abuse. A.S.P.E.C.S. is a social network group which I am setting up across the country with regular meetings planned in many large cities, to bring together people and their experiences, ideas and expertise, to create a safer and friendlier environment for autistic LGBT people, so that they may increase their self-esteem and opportunities for safe socialising and involvement in the Scene. It is not yet a charity or a professional support service, but it will aim to network and liaise with support professionals, and we will be keen to invite people such as professionals along to give talks and workshops at our meetings. See A.S.P.E.C.S. Facebook Page for more details of the network and to add yourselves. This inaugral meeting will be mostly an introduction and an informal chat about strategies for LGBT autistic awareness and support, and about how I went about setting the group up and the directions in which I want to see it developing. ALL LGBT people over 16 on the autistic spectrum, or who may be undiagnosed as autistic but showing characteristics, are welcome to attend, also all LGBT people involved in the care/support profession for autistic people, and also parents/friends/relatives of children who are autistic and identifying as LGBT are welcome to come along. FYI, York Street is the small cobbled street on the eastern side of the churchyard around Sheffield C of E Cathedral. Following the inaugral Sheffield meeting, ASPECS Sheffield meetings will be held on the 4th Wednesday of every second month from July; i.e. September, November, January 2016.

Just to let everyone know, I am holding the INAUGRAL SHEFFIELD MEETING OF A.S.P.E.C.S. THE LGBT AUTISTIC NETWORK at the ETEN Cafe, York St., Sheffield, THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT, (22 JULY) at 7PM. Basically it will be just an informal chat about strategies for LGBT autistic awareness and support, but it would be REALLY GREAT if you can come along, and also if you can forward this message to any others you know who might be interested.ALL LGBT people over 16 on the autistic spectrum, or who may be undiagnosed as autistic but showing characteristics, are welcome to attend, also all LGBT people involved in the care/support profession for autistic people, and also parents/friends/relatives of children who are autistic and identifying as LGBT are welcome to come along. FYI, York Street is the small cobbled street on the eastern side of the churchyard around Sheffield C of E Cathedral. Following the inaugral Sheffield meeting, ASPECS Sheffield meetings will be held on the 4th Wednesday of every second month from July; i.e. September, November, January 2016. FYI, a quick roundup of forthcoming Prides: Chesterfield Pride, Sunday 26th July, Queens Park, Chesterfield. Leeds Pride, Sunday 2nd August, from midday, Leeds City Centre. Wakefield Pride, Sunday 9th August, Open air stage and stalls on street around The Rainbow pub, Wakefield. Doncaster Pride, Saturday, August 22nd, Nigel Gresley Square. Begins with Walk of Unity starting at 1.30 outside CRYSTALS BAR, Market Place, following a route to Nigel Gresley Sq. There are many other prides around the country, and don't forget Manchester to round off August, tickets on sale now.

Hi, Eten, I have just come across your thread, and I would be REALLY interested in getting some regular LGBT meetings/events happening at your venue, especially as it is in the city centre, making it more accessible than some of the popular hangouts in places like Heeley or London Road. What I was thinking about was something along the line of a regular (monthly?) LGBT Writing/Reading/Poetry/ arts group, as I am wanting to get a proper annual LGBT Arts Festival going and a LOT of LGBT social and support groups work on a Zero budget or have had funding cut back and one problem stifling the development of such groups around the country is the lack of FREE venues for events; even the great Delicatessen Theatre on the Moor has to charge for use of its space as it is quite a large premises and does have running costs. In addition, I am setting up a social network for LGBT people with autism and Aspergers Syndrome, such as myself, as I have discovered a lot of autistic people among the lesbians, gays and transgenders I have met all over the local area and other parts of the country. I will be needing a free venue for a Sheffield meeting which will take place every 2 months; ideally the first meeting will be on the 4th Wednesday of July (22nd July), so it would be nice to see if you have space available that night. FYI, the initial meeting would be a very informal meetup of maybe no more than 4-5 people, as things have to start somewhere, but eventually we might get more and develop it from an informal introduction and chat about being LGBT and autistic, into something more involved such as planning events, trips, engaging in board-games, computer games, creative activities, music, inviting speakers from Autistic support groups, etc. I do hope people will be interested in my ideas; you are best replying to me through this thread as my inbox doesen't ever have much space and I have had PM's bouncing and not received them until weeks afterwards.

Thanks, Roger, much appreciated. Also at Pride, I met the flyering crew promoting the new LGBT club OMG which is coming to Sheffield in the next few weeks. On asking them, they said that the club will be opening in around 5 weeks or so, so there is no immediate rush, but many of us are waiting with baited breath as to how exciting or enjoyable this new addition to the scene will be, and also WHERE it will be. There have been many rumors as to its location, but even I myself have drawn only a blank, so we will just have to wait and see. Watch THIS space for more info about the new club as and when things happen, and, oh, what has become of all our formerly regular posters these days? I know that everyone including me, use facebook for a lot of our correspondence, but come on, there's life still in your Number 1 local Forum -just look at the wide variety of topics being discussed each and every day. So do us a favour, all you LGBT's both scene queens and non-scenesters, and also LGBT businesses and support services, WE want YOU posting more news, updates and activities on THIS thread as well as creating other threads as and when necessary, for the benefit of LGBT's and others on the Forum who want to keep up to date with all that's going on in our slice of the world. Have a great Summer, and enjoy the many Prides to come! ---------- Post added 08-07-2015 at 13:28 ---------- Folks, The location of the new OMG club has just been revealed on their FB page: It will be at 53-59 WEST STREET. At long last, then, there will be a gay superclub on West Street; I wish them all the best! See: https://www.facebook.com/omgsheffield?fref=ts for regular updates!

Yeah, everyone (inclUding Roger's dog) knows about OMG; no clue as to where it will be, as I've had a good look around and drawn a blank on several rumored locations such as the former Fuel//Twixt and the Church House lol. They will announce the location of the new club very soon, so do watch this space. In the meantime I must wish you a VERY HAPPY PRIDE. Pride starts at midday at the UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD STUDENTS UNION (Taken from the Pride Facebook page:) Tickets are £3 for the day and evening activities, and £6 for the closing party – exact details of what's going on and the lineups will be shown here, and on the Sheffield Pride website (http://www.sheffieldpride.co.uk) The free areas, including the candlelit vigil, are open to all ages with no restrictions. The rest of the day event is free for under 10s, and under 14s need to be accompanied by an adult. The evening event is 14+. The closing party is 18+. The outside free areas during the day are dog friendly, elsewhere is no dogs except guide dogs. (End of quote) Before I go, Just a VERY IMPORTANT notice regarding train/tram/bus access to Pride from the station, due to EDL demo and disruption of some tram services: When leaving the rail station, leave by the FRONT entrance and turn RIGHT to cross the main road at the lights in the direction of the bus station, from where you can get buses to the University. If you continue further up to Fitzalan/Castle Square, you can get trams to the university as normal. Please DO NOT use the back entrance/exit from the rail station, as this exits onto South Street Park where the EDL rally will be. Also, the path parallel to the tram tracks from this entrance which normally leads to the town centre/Castle Square is BLOCKED by tram works; there is a diversion only via a steep path NOT SUITABLE FOR WHEELCHAIRS OR PRAMS. When leaving Pride, especially if travelling home earlier than 6, return to the rail station by the same route, via the Bus Station and the crossing lights to the station next to Sheffield Tap pub. Safe Journey and hope to see lots of you watching me perform in my opening slot at Pride on the Interval Stage at 1pm!

If Lord Jenner is suffering from progressive dementia and increasing deteriorating facilities all charges against him should be DROPPED. Proceeding with the 'prosecution'' will be in no-one's interest and will simply represent a gross waste o Public Money which would be far better spent in combating the REAL threat of TERRORISM:rant: which as the shooting in Tunisia shows, is not exactly going away; and the Government is also having to make savings in many areas including policing. All further investigations into 'hIstorical abuse' by people who are now suffering dementia or have died should be likewise closed and the best that can really be done is to compi le reports of what happened, so that we can learn the lessons and also provide counselling/support for the poor souls who were genuinely affected by the 'abuse' once we are sure that they have not just lied and made it all up... In certain other cases of GENUINELY SERIOUS crimes, such as former Nazi concentration camp guards now suffering dementia, they STILL DO NEED TO BE PROSECUTED WITH THE FULL WEIGHT OF THE LAW if proven as guilty, as in those cases they participated in a monstrous genocide, unlike 'child abusers' who in many cases cause no deaths or lasting physical damage to their 'victims' , not to mention that they may have caused mental anguish (But see above, re. counselling).

There is probably a genuine case to reintroduce the use of napalm bombing against IS/Daish targets such as their base in Palmyra, which, unlike in Vietnam, are not hidden in jungles close to large civilian populations, but are in open areas close to cultural monuments that could be destroyed by blast-bombs from the air. Death by fire-bombing apparently is also regarded as extremely 'haram' by the extremists, as it will cause the soul to burn in Hell. God forbid that we will have to resort to the extreme act of using battlefield nukes (Tactical Nuclear Weapons) against IS/Daish, but considering that the Russians are thus armed and also have a common cause to defeat Daish, I wouldn't put it beyond them to experiment... IS/Daish are nothing more and nothing less than the new Nazi Party and for that alone all decent nations must pull together their forces and unite against them, hopefully with the right tactic of aerial/UAV bombardment and ground troops/Special Forces from every nation which has them, those extremist psychopaths can become history not in 'generations' like weak-kneed David Cameron is suggesting, but in a matter of weeks!