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Generation Women Sydney: Reckless, Raunchy and Rowdy This month, we invite our storytellers to tell us a tall tale about a time they were reckless or rowdy or raunchy … or all three! It could a story from a long ago or from last week. Expect to see their wild self, their fun self, their sexy self. Whatever they care to share, you won’t want to miss this superfine show, with all the bells and whistles. Generation Women is an award-winning cross-generational storytelling night founded in New York in 2017, Sydney in 2018, and Melbourne in 2020. Each month, six women of note read an original piece on a theme. Of those women, one is in her 20s, her 30s, her 40s, her 50s, her 60s, and her 70s+. Produced by Brooke Farmer & Donna Logue, Hopepunk Productions. Created by Georgia Clark. THE BERESFORD 354 BOURKE ST, SURRY HILLS NSW 2010 DOORS AT 5.45 PM, SHOW AT 6.30 PM

exclusive: Cher hits town

The annual Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is in full swing for it's 40th anniversary. Here is our exclusive 'selfie' sent poste haste to Whispers from the PM himself, Malcolm Turnbull. Pictured is Malcolm, Cher, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Lucy Turnbull. What fun !

Elle of a Town

 Leggy Elle McPherson jetted into town yesterday morning at the ungodly hour of 6am and while Whispers was invited to greet her at the airport it was just a tad too early.

McPherson is traveling with the famous fashion snapper Gilles Bensimon to shoot  a cover for..Elle Magazine. But more about this after Tuesday when Whispers gets up close and personal with The Body.

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Sydney town is up for grabs today !

The election to decide who runs Sydney Council will be under way from 6am today and despite a field of candidates the word is that it's down to just two : current Lord Mayor Clover Moore who has held the position for 17 years and current councilor and sister of former PM Tony Abbott, Christine Forster. Although Moore has enjoyed great support from young hipster and the gay community, her grasp on the Mayoral robes could be well & truly shaken by Forster who is openly gay. Forster could lure the huge gay and lesbian (and transgender) community away from Clover with her pledge to revitalize the once Golden Mile of Oxford Street that once had over 15 gay nightclubs, bars and hotels but has since been reduced to just 3.

      Christine Forster                                                                                                                  Clover Moore                                         

                                         

The State government's recent new law that gives businesses within the city 2 votes has seen an extra 20,000 or so businesses register to vote and they may overwhelmingly support Forster. A vox pop poll by Whispers today found surprisingly, a lot of support has shifted from Moore to Forster. We should know by tonight if  a new regime sweeps into office at the Town Hall.

Sam Neill slams Lock Out Laws

Actor Sam Neill was at Parramatta to announce the move there of John Poulson's short film festival Tropfest, covered by Whispers so many times including the very first one years ago which had only 20 guests that included Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise (and moi).

The controversial lock out laws that now make nightclubs serve their last drinks at midnight have devastated Kings Cross and the Golden Gay Mile of Oxford Street. Sam had some pretty strong criticism of the laws. Will we be going to Parramatta to attend Tropfest? Hmmm, may have to think long and hard about that. It took 90 minutes to get to the presser but I suppose there is always the ferry.

Aussie Drag takes over the World

While Sydney's Oxford Street drag queen star Maxine Sheild is still basking in the glory of having

co-hosted the controversial shows  of Madonna, a veteran of the Sydney drag scene Stan Munro is wowing them in the Wales village of Abercam.
Stan who is 75 & makes Maxine look like a spring chicken can still command an audience belting out Shirley Bassey songs. Munro was born in Abercan but left at age 22 and toured the world before settling in Australia. Along the way He became great pals with British comedians like Larry Grayson & John Inman of Are You Being Served fame currently being screened on Australian TV.

They came in their thousands

Even the organizers seemed surprised. The occasion was a protest about Sydney's infamous Lock Out Laws that have been so destructive to Sydney's nightlife in Kings Cross and the so-called Golden Mile of Oxford Street.
       And it's not just venue owners and late night revelers who are suffering. Thousands of jobs are dependent on the nightclub trade as well as hundreds of small supporting businesses like cafes, coffee shops, fast food outlets and even taxi drivers. The Cross and Oxford Street have become like a desert as businesses close every day. In Oxford Street there are dozens of To-Let signs.
      This Sunday, as the anger is quietly building, people flocked to Belmore Park opposite Central Station to express their concern. At least 15000 of them. I think that is a conservative estimate. How the mainstream media report this event will be interesting. Meanwhile around the Star Casino precinct and the various pubs in Pyrmont, just outside of the lock-out area, you can drink 24 hours and alcohol fueled assaults have increased.

Have they got the message yet?

 Late last year Whispers posted a video (below) of a US comedian who is a superb Barack Obama look-alike as he toured Kings Cross in support of attempts to revitalize the former nightclub area of Sydney.


Tonight Whispers had reason to visit the Cross after a small party in Dank Street. Dank Street in Waterloo is a sort of uber design area with million dollar apartments and oh-so-smart designer shops and is home to Luke Mangans latest restaurant Mojo. Pleasing to see that Mojo was filling up as we passed by but Kings Cross?. Dead as the proverbial Dodo. Even the strip joints are closing down. Coffee shops, small fast food outlets are screaming foul. As for cleaning up crime, Whispers was offered drugs twice on our stroll.

Boy Wonder enjoys a glass of wine-before midnight

On Facebook a post by respected art dealer Michael K. Carr drew ire. It was snap of a recent typical sunny Sydney day at the wondrous Boy Charlton Pool that nestles beside the harbour. The snap was of 2 policeman and Sydney's drug sniffer dogs that now invade everywhere and anywhere courtesy of former Labor premier Bob Carr who loved to govern via whatever edict came that week from Rupert Murdoch's downmarket tabloid The Daily Telegraph.
#Some posters say the snap was of dogs during a bomb search.
                  

It's Front Page news

Visiting our doctor in Oxford Street near Whitlam Square this morning brought the sight of even more empty shops, former bars & nightclubs.               

Never mind- you can still drink  24 hours at the glitzy Star Casino and also when the James Packer consortium finally opens the Barangaroo casino there will be no lockout laws and despite what Boy Wonder premier Mike Baird says (he reckons if you need a bottle of wine after midnight there is something strange about you) drinks will flow at all hours at Bangaroo,

further reading : # the screed by Matt Barrie that has ignited a seething undercurrent of furious Sydneysiders distraught at seeing their nightlife vanish overnight.
# The 'raid' by police on a small restaurant serving wine by the glass
# You can also read Boy Wonder's Facebook page defence of the Lock Out Laws- 8000 plus comments and they aren't complimentary. The campaign is just beginning!.

GoggleBox Stars quit Oxford Street

Mick and Di Kershaw are 2 of the stars of the hit TV show GoogleBox noted for their often dry witty comments about the various programs watched, usually delivered while sipping on cocktails.

But now the Indigenous art dealers are the latest high profile Oxford Street business people to quit the once Golden Mile.
On Saturday Whispers counted 30 empty store fronts just in the Darlinghurst area. Further up the street in the Paddington part of

Oxford Street 'To Let' signs seem to pop up overnight. The Kershaws are Australia's top experts in selling & promoting Indigenous art and often acompnay successful artists for exhibitions in cities like Paris and Houston but now they have shut down their large gallery and are continuing to trade on-line.
And more seem to be fleeing the area as the popular medico Ben Hanson a favourite of the gay community and arts crowd is moving on from his Oxford Street surgery after 21 years. Last month thousands of protesters took to the streets decrying the lock-out laws that are crucifying inner city nightlife on the gay strip and Kings Cross.

exclusive : President Obama visits Kings Cross to talk on Lock Out laws

With the Kings Cross "lock out" laws having a devastating affect on Sydney's Kings Cross and the night life, help is at hand as the US president jets into town to save the day. And we were there..our special report:

Maxine's Magnificent Gig

She's a welcoming sight to Darlinghurst visitors : drag star Maxi Shield patrols Sydney's Oxford Street like she's owns it. And why not. On freezing winter nights like those we are currently experiencing Maxi warms the cockles of any heart as she happily chats to passersby at the Colombian Hotel on the Golden Mile adding a touch of glamour to the strip, now losing much of it's glitter under new licensing laws that are crucifying inner-city nightlife.
Now Maxi will be the grand hostess at Madonna's 2016 Rebel Heart Tour of Australia where she will host after-parties in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne and hopefully it could lead to a whole new career along the lines of Perez Hilton who does similar around the USA. # Maxi swears that bosom is real.

Newtown wants Cate Blanchett

Newtown

Cate at the Sydney Theatre Company

The decline of Sydney's King Cross and the legendary 'Golden Gay Mile' of nearby Oxford Street is having unexpected consequences. Double Bay as we reported previously is becoming the location for smart nightclubs like Karim Gharbi's Casablanca and the Pelicano Bar.
But Newtown, the densely populated suburb much favoured by students at the nearby Sydney University is positively booming.
The main street is packed with restaurants of all stripes, coffee shops, gay hotels, smart and alternative boutiques along with second hand and designer furnishing stores.

Now an ambitious plan is underway to attract Oscar winner Cate Blanchett to a newly renovated theatre, The Hub which is ideally located slap bang in the centre of Newtown and directly opposite the subway station.

The Hub at various stages during it's lifetime

The property developing Vlattas family have invested $500,000 in refitting the 100 year old Vaudeville theatre that has done time as a porno cinema amongst it's varied and often sad life.
The Vlattas' are also part owners of the nearby Enmore Theatre, now the only live venue in the inner city.
Whispers attended the opening of Mel Spencer's Green Room bar next to the Enmore Theatre along with Russell Crowe and Danielle Spencer (and our favourite crooner Kamahl)
left : Kamahl with Adam Spencer at the Green Room
Chris Vlattas is hoping that Blanchett who has had such a stellar success with her Sydney Theatre Company productions will take up an offer to lease the 1500 seat Hub.
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The Seal Of Approval that Newtown is now a serious contender as the up and coming suburb for the smart young set surely must be the fact that Australia's most ambitious and successful nightclub entrepreneur Justin Hemmes has purchased the nearby Queen Victoria Hotel in Enmore for $11M. below Justin Hemmes & his new purchase

Kings Cross loss = Double Bay's gain

 Kings Cross' controversial 'lock-out laws' are crucifying nightlife in the famous Sydney night spot suburb (although strip clubs are still thriving) but aiding nearby suburbs not covered by the laws. The gay 'golden mile' of Oxford Street is also finding the going difficult with empty premises popping up overnight. The once vibrant street that contained more gay and lesbian nightclubs during the 80s & 90s per square mile that any other city on the planet is slowly dying. Meanwhile the Cross had, as of yesterday, 45 empty premises available for rent.Benefiting is the harbour side suburb of Double Bay just 2 miles from the Cross which is now booming with packed pubs on the weekend and 2 notable nightclubs that are filled to the rafters from Thursday to Sunday. Local restaurants are often booked out and coffee shops-there are nearly 100 in the Bay alone- are well patronised. Pictured above :  Karim Gharbi & Michael Clarke

Casablanca

The Pelicano restaurant and bar is the venue of choice for the so-called smart set but Casablanca run by Karim Gharbi is giving it a run for it's money. As our exclusive pic shows, recently retired Aussie cricket captain Michael Clarke celebrated his 34th birthday at the venue on Thursday evening.

Pelicano Restaurant & Bar

Oxford Street (left) full of empty shops while Kings Cross' strip joints are surviving

Croc-A-Dyke Dundee

 A new film has been released on DVD charting the life of the legendary woman about town Dawn O'Donnell who died in 2007.
O'Donnell became an international skating star in her 20s before returning to Sydney to open one of the cities first gay bars in 1968, the Trolley Bar off Broadway. It was one of many that were to follow mainly in the Darlinghurst area and Oxford Street- Jools, Capricios, Ruby Reds and Patches along with steam baths, sex shops and pubs. Blessed with a canny business ability and extraordinary good luck: many of her night spots were inexplicably burnt down as the public tired of them while O'Donnell had sensibly taken out generous insurance policies.                                                                     
She partnered in some venues with the late 'Mr Sin' Abe Saffron (above right) and the French nightclub owner Roger Claude Teyssedre who passed away from AIDS. Teyssedre's lover who was suspected of smothering Roger Claude and who inherited his fortune was mysteriously murdered 2 years after Teyssedre's death. O'Donnell's Imperial Hotel was the setting for scenes in the film Priscilla Queen of The Desert. The DVD is available at the Tool Shed at 81 Oxford St. Darlinghurst.

Woollahra Village Weekend

The inaugural Woollahra Village Weekend- or WVW13  as it's billed, opens today with all manner of village type events or "3 days of Fashion, Food, Art, Literature, Music and Community Fun" as the official blurb says.

Go to the website to see a list and times of events.

What A Drag !

The Shuttle rarely visits the Golden Mile of Oxford Street Darlinghurst but on rare occasions we call into the infamous/famous Midnight Shift.
We thought it was time to bring some updated snaps of the Hostess With The Mostess, Maxi Shield host of the Shift's cocktail bar and MC extraordinaire.

In fact the last time we visited the Shift is was with actor Rupert Everett who took a shine to the place and a few of the locals. So much so that when he turned up the following day for a lunch in his honour in a restaurant just off Taylor's Square he posed for a snap with  local chef Peter Everett who was to dine with him and then booted him off the table so his new Shift friends could join him.

Below is a video of Maxi Shield at work:

Sydney's Newest Cross-Dresser

There's something about Virgin boss Richard Branson- he loves to slip into a frock at the drop of a hat, or in this case, allegedly after losing a bet.
He seems to have taken quite a fancy to this dark-hued man who is promoted from by-stander to passenger being spoon fed by Richard. Just what is going on here? I think we should be told.

Sydney's drag queen set have been moaning recently about the dearth of young trannies coming through the ranks to entertain on the Golden Mile of Oxford Street. Perhaps Branson can lend a hand !


Right : a previous drag episode saw Branson impersonating the Bride of Frankenstein.

Ironic Moments # 1

Name of the politician who ordering the ripping up of the Rainbow Crossing at Taylor's Square : Duncan Gay

Lil Orphan Annie : The Oxford Street Version

Tickets go on sale from Friday for trAnnie the adults only pantomine which opens on Thursday 6th December at the Sydney Opera House.

 Ten year old little orphan Fannie (Trevor Ashley) parents have left him in a basket on the doorstep of the Sutherland Shire Children's Orphanage with nothing but a bracelet and a bottle of Stoli.  
 He is desperate to get his long-overdue gender reassignment surgery, but there’s so much standing in his way: including that boozy matron Miss Trannigan (Rhonda Burchmore) who has just been listed on the sex-offender registry, and is bitter from years of Logie losses.  Thank God Fannie has a bunch of foul mouthed orphans and his/her trusty ex-sniffer dog to help him/her survive.
Featuring songs, audience participation, and out-of-work television personalities, this brand new adults-only panto will have you in fits of laughter... and wishing that you too could be adopted by a sexy bald millionaire.

Book tickets here.

Call Me A Cab

It's been an institution since it opened in 1958.

The Taxi Club in Flinders Street, Darlinghurst is a 24 hour club that originally catered for taxi drivers coming off their shifts, at 3pm and 3 am.

It soon became one of the most popular venues in Sydney and the place to end up after a night out to continue the celebrations. By 4am the joint was jumping and it stayed that way until around 10.30 am when it shut it's doors for one hour so the cleaners could give it the once over.

The great fun about the Taxi Club was the sheer variety of clientele : taxi drivers, off duty coppers, high court judges, bank robbers, drag queens, con men and a huge swathe of the gay and lesbian community long before Oxford Street became the gay haven it is now. In fact eventually the club changed it's constitution to state that it's prime objective was to serve the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and intersex community.

And you could be sure that any visiting celebrity would end up partying at the Taxi- Tom & Nicole watched a drag show as did Morgan Freeman. 
Bruce Springsteen played the pokies for 2 hours, Liberace called in for a drink as did Sammy Davis Jr and Shirley Bassey while Winifred Atwell often gave a impromptu performance at 2am.
The Shuttle once spotted Hollywood Legend Van Johnson nursing a drink at the bar.

lethal stairs

Around 5am a burly truck driver may discover that a transgender status was no barrier to a night of romance and there were many tales about the noted magistrate who was fond of stilettos and skimpy frocks who often lured heterosexual men to the car park next door in the early hours and never once had anything other than a 'happy ending'.

And if anyone got out of control which was frequent before the club clamped down on drug use, the tales of who was ejected via the narrow staircase to the street below were legendary. Most woke up in hospital with no memory of where they had been the night before.

Sadly with the proliferation of nightclubs around Sydney that are mainly a variation on the last one, the Taxi Club has suffered for the past few years and is no longer financially viable. On April 6th it's doors close forever.