P.H. Davies's Blog

It’s not uncommon these days for a film to be totally maligned by a weak trailer, which is why most film studios release about ten different trailers on the run up to a film’s release. But Stonewall seemed to be a special case – within hours of the trailer appearing online Twitter went into meltdown with manycriticising the film for essentially ‘whitewashing’ historical events by the insertion of a fictional white male character into the narrative. The trans women, drag queens, butch lesbians...

Sometimes a book comes into your life at the exact moment you need it. It’s a rare thing but it can suddenly change the way you look at your own life and if you’re lucky, it can also start to recalibrate the way you think. When I was browsing in Waterstones last week, having gone in with the strict intention of ‘not’ buying anything,my eyes were quickly drawn tothe canary yellow cover of Matthew Todd’s new book, Straight Jacket: How to be gay and happy. I read the blurb on the back cover and...

When I found out HBO was cancelling its short-lived TV series, Looking, due to ‘low ratings’ (as they stated at the time) I was completely devastated. It felt like ABC cancellingMy So-Called Life all over again. The comparison between the shows isn’t too far-fetched – brilliantly drawn characters, smart, funny dialogue, and a verisimilitude few television series attain– whether it’s examining adolescence in the mid-nineties or being gayin the noughties. MSCL was brutally cut short after just...

Isn’t it funny how age creeps up on us? We spend so much of our time with our heads down just trying to get through our day-to-day work life, our social obligations, and the stress of being busy modern human beings, that we often don’t notice how quickly we’re ageing. But once in a while we have pause for thought and take stock of how we got here and what it means to be older.

I’m happy at 37 – well much happier than I was in my tumultuous twenties when I was constantly worrying about everyth...

If the Sunday tabloids are to be believed, Madonna is in the midst of a full-blown meltdown that has been characterised bykeeping audiences waiting for hours before she arrives on stage, swigging tequila during her concerts, calling her ex-husband a ‘son a bitch’, slurring her way through her sets, and latterly dressing up and performing as a clown. The general subtext of these headlinesis the same one the tabloids have been spinningsince the early nineties; that Madonna’scareer is over and s...

There are few writer-directors like Andrew Haigh who are willing to consistently explore the devastating side of relationships; whether it’s the casual liaison of two gay men who meet up and have only one weekend together in the acclaimed film Weekend (2011); the dilemma of having to pick between two men you genuinely love in the controversial television series Looking (2014); or the predicament served up in his latest film, 45 Years, in which a couple who are about to celebrate their eponymo...

I recently read an interesting think piece by the author Edmund White about ‘life writing’ and the differences between autobiographical novels and memoirs (and even a third category of writingI’ve never heard of before, novelistic memoirs). White writesabout how he uses hisexperiences in his novel writing –how he has transforms them into something that appeals to a broader audience – buthow in his memoir writing he is morally bound to tell the truth. As he writes, “If I lose someone’s friends...

2016continues to be a yearof exciting change and new challengesfor meas I leave my job of three years to start a new one in February. It was very emotional to walk away as I loved working with myteam and also really enjoyed my job but when you outgrow a role, I’ve always believed you should move on and not stick around growing bored and resentful. It doesn’t help the organisation and more importantly, it isn’t good for you.

I think a lot of the time people become very risk averse in their car...

Speaking to MPs at a parliamentary eventyesterday, Idris Elba addressed the lack of diversity in broadcasting – specifically the lack of ethnic diversity on TV – but he also asked the question, “Are gay people always stereotyped [on TV]?” Pink News,a once reputable online resource which now spends most of its time being offended and outraged, immediately posted a story with the headline “Idris Elba wants more gay characters on TV who aren’t ‘stereotypes’“. Not quite what he said but let’s run...

Waking up this morning to the news that David Bowie had died wasa complete and utter shock. Having downloaded his new album just yesterday, Blackstar,which he released only three days ago, the news came as if from another planet and I just could not believe it was true. Despite the bleak subject matter of his new material (nothing new there, to be honest) it seemed as if the reclusive singer was in the throes of promoting his new album and seemed energised by this sudden creative surge late i...