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What’s the impact on LGBTQ+ venues in the UK?

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Hackney Showroom – Kings Crescent Estate, East London
A staple in London’s creative scene, Hackney Showroom delivers spell binding theatre alongside enriching community building, culminating in a unique excellence that is hard to match.
Co-Directors Sam Curtis Lindsay and Nina Lyndon explain to GAY TIMES what the space means to them.
“We’re unique – we’re a hybrid between an arts organisation that develops and produces live shows and a grassroots community space … the one thing we love the most is the moments when the two strings of our bow sing together. When our experimental, queer and left field artists share their work with our over 60s lunch club or our family audiences, that’s when it feels really exciting.”
With the venue offering community care as well as a space for LGBTQ+ creatives to explore and perfect their craft, we wanted to know if this came with unique challenges when it comes to the impact of the cost of living crisis.
“Our heating bill has gone through the roof and costs for everything have increased,” they explain. “At the same time, competition for funding is more intense than ever, making it hard for us to make ends meet. Part of our remit on Kings Crescent Estate is to provide solutions for local residents and we’ve just launched a Cost of Living Fundraiser allowing those in need on our estate to apply for a £20 shopping voucher this winter.”
Hearing the work that the team do at Hackney Showroom is a breath of fresh air, and a reminder of how integral queer spaces are – not just for LGBTQ+ people – but everybody in the wider community who can benefit from their care. 
Looking ahead, Sam and Nina share why LGBTQ+ artists are shaping their programme for 2023.
“We are back in 2023 with three shows by LGBTQ+ artists. Tomorrow Is Already Dead, a subversive, Bond-inspired musical from Ms Sharon Le Grand; The Legends of Them – a new high octane theatre show with music by actor and former reggae legend Sutara Gayle; and our award-winning, groundbreaking show, BURGERZ by Travis Alabanza is returning to the Southbank Centre in March. Our goal is to hit the ground running, producing inclusive, radical, innovative performance while supporting our local community. 
Alim Kheraj, author of Queer London, a guide to the city’s LGBTQ+ present and past, shared his thoughts on what the biggest threat currently is to LGBTQ+ spaces across the UK.
“I think currently, the biggest issue is the cost of living crisis. I have spoken to venue owners who have expressed concerns about rising costs, as well as debts left over from the pandemic. I think with that comes a rise in rent, as landlords feel the squeeze when it comes to mortgages,” he says.
On the importance of maintaining our historic LGBTQ+ spaces, Alim shares his personal take on why it’s so integral for the future generations of queer folk.
“The more of these venues that survive, the less that LGBTQ+ lives and history is erased. These historic spaces give us a bridge to our queer past and our continued use of them connects us to our futures, while reminding us that against everything LGBTQ+ people persevere and survive. Spaces like the Royal Vauxhall Tavern contain so much of our history and act as a reminder of where we’ve come from and how far we still need to go.”
He adds: “I would say to the current Government that they need to do more. Without support – both financial and from policy – we risk losing some of the most important and vibrant spaces that many queer people rely on.”

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Sales and Marketing Director (EMEA) – London

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We are working closely with a leading international publisher of licensed children’s books to recruit an experienced Sales and Marketing Director for EMEA. This is an integral leadership role responsible for some of the world’s most recognisable and prestigious book brands.
What it takes:

A demonstrable track record of building both sales and margin growth, with a commercially minded approach
Experience in successfully managing and motivating teams located across international borders
Extensive knowledge and understanding of the co-edition and rights markets in licensed and/or children’s publishing
A complete understanding, beyond sales headlines, of margins, cost management and budgeting
Being capable of creating and executing sales and marketing strategies
Thriving in fast-paced work environments and being able to manage multiple high priority projects simultaneously
A strong leading voice across sales strategy, market development and marketing activities
An agile and strong communicator both internally and with licensors
Extensive EMEA or directly relevant experience

The right person is comfortable as a leader, with commercial experience managing a team to deliver successful business units, going beyond just a ‘sales department’.
With flexible working options, a very competitive salary and bonus structure, this role offers incredible opportunities for an ambitious and proven sales leader.
At Wonderful Recruitment we provide opportunities for candidates to discover some of the most interesting and dynamic roles in the entertainment industry. For more information about this role please send your CV and salary expectations to Dean@wonderfulideasproject.com and Dan@wonderfulideasproject.com.
 

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Paris, Madrid, Barcelona among candidate cities to host ICE from 2025 – IAG

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Clarion Gaming, organizer of ICE London, says it has narrowed the shortlist of potential future hosts of the hugely popular industry trade show to four European cities, with its current London home joined by Barcelona and Madrid in Spain as well as Paris, France.
The decision to explore a potential move comes amid pressure from some industry representatives, with Clarion working alongside specialist consultants Equimore to establish the finalist shortlist. The successful candidate will be announced in 3Q23 following a competitive bidding process and will host ICE for a period of five years between 2025 and 2029.
“This robust process is customer-centric and the decision will be taken in the best interests of our stakeholders and of the global gaming industry,” said Alex Pratt, Group Managing Director of Clarion Gaming.
“iGB Affiliate London is very much part of the process and we are engaging with iGB Affiliate stakeholders in order to identify their preferred strategic path.
“The four short-listed cities will progress through a selection process with the help of the experienced and knowledgeable team at Equimore which is overseeing every aspect of what is a robust program.
“In addition to the suitability of locations in terms of capacity, facilities and the ability to accommodate projected future growth the process also encompasses dateline availability, transport connectivity with the rest of the world as well as the broader hospitality infrastructure including accommodation costs.
“By pursuing all due diligence we will identify the city that’s best equipped to not only host an event which continues to play such a central role in helping to create opportunity and prosperity for gaming businesses of all sizes, across every vertical and in every global jurisdiction, but also demonstrate its leadership in the sector.
“In the interests of transparency Clarion will not be making any further comment during the official process.”

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ICE London 2023 to feature exhibitors from record 68 nations – IAG

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Industry trade show ICE London will feature exhibitors from a record 68 nations, topping the previous best of 65 set three years ago, according to organizer Clarion Gaming.
ICE London returns as a full-sized show for the first time since 2020 from 7 to 9 February, with the total 623 exhibitors representing everything from Argentina to Australia and Macau to Mexico.
“No other exhibition in the gaming space can come anywhere near the internationalism of ICE,” said Clarion Gaming Managing Director, Stuart Hunter.
“To have 68 nations represented by our community of exhibitors means that visitors are immediately part of what is a global experience with unique access to the smartest gaming innovators drawn from every corner of the world. There are very few exhibitions of scale in any industry sector which are able to compare with such international representation and legitimately lay claim to being a ‘global’ or a ‘world’ event.
“Once an event is recognized as being genuinely international, stakeholder groups including brands, regulators, trade associations, media groups and strategic industry-wide bodies focus their activities accordingly.
“Research that we’ve undertaken has shown that for many people ICE and iGB Affiliate London actually start on the Sunday preceding and finish on the following Saturday. In that week we estimate that over 100 gambling industry events will take place outside of the show hours providing a new and compelling perspective on why ICE and iGB Affiliate London are so influential and important to the world industry.”
IAG will have a team of four at ICE London next week. Visit us at Stand ND7-C.

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