Tim Macavoy's "Brit Bits:" The Gayest "Shameless" Ever, a Gay Thriller, and UK Election Results

Welcome back friends! I’m a little hyper from sleep deprivation having stayed up all night watching the UK election coverage – more on that later. For now I’m keeping myself upbeat by bopping along to the new track from Scissor Sisters. Have you heard it? It’s ridiculous – in a good way. It features booming poetic vocals from Sir Ian McKellen. Yes, Gandalf goes disco-trance!

Lead singer Jake Shears and Sir Ian often party together, so Jake asked the veteran gay actor to contribute to new track “Invisible Light.” They actually took a bunch of recording equipment to McKellen’s dressing room when he was performing in the brilliant West End production of Waiting for Godot.

It looks as though the flamboyant pop group have their edge back, after a rather tame second album. They make quite a statement with their album cover – the taught buttocks of ballet dancer Peter Reed as photographed by Robert Mapplethorpe!

They’ve also been working with British artist Calvin Harris on honorary Brit Kylie Minogue’s new album. Jake has also been writing with Cathy Dennis for Mark Ronson’s new album, which will feature the vocals of Boy George. The UK music industry is bringing a whole lot of gay our way!

Scissor Sisters

Meanwhile I’ll be looking forward to the Sister's gigs at favourite venue Brixton Academy (whenever they’re around the streets are full of outlandish costumed fans) and then the Glastonbury Festival later this year.

Next Up – Guess "Who"’s Playing Gay?

Yes, it’s new Doctor Who, Matt Smith (like the pun?). Smith will star in Christopher and His Friends for the BBC, based on the 1976 memoirs of Christopher Isherwood. Smith will play Isherwood himself, author of A Single Man and Goodbye to Berlin which was the basis for Cabaret. To add to the gay factor, it will be adapted by Kevin Elyot, who wrote gay play My night with Reg and Clapham Junction.

In more Doctor Who related news, the BBC received complaints about the presence of Graham Norton in a recent episode. No, it wasn’t meant to be a cameo. At the end of the episode, during a climactic and tense speech, a cartoon version of Norton danced across the screen to advertise the TV show Over the Rainbow, which follows Doctor Who on BBC1.

One of these things does not belong

A BBC spokesman said the trail "should not have been played out on Saturday." He added:

We apologise to all Doctor Who fans whose enjoyment of the show was disrupted. We recognise the strength of feeling that has been expressed and are taking steps to ensure that this mistake will not happen again.

Apparently, hell hath no fury like a Doctor Who fan who isn’t also an Over the Rainbow fan as well. I’m guessing that overlap isn’t exactly huge.

Twitter was alive with comments such as “Don’t blink or Graham will get you” after the gaffe on the episode “Time of Angels” featuring the creepy weeping angels first seen in “Blink.”

This isn’t actually the first time that Graham Norton has interrupted a broadcast of Doctor Who. When the series returned in 2005 after a 16-year break, a technical error caused Norton's voice to be briefly heard over the episode's opening scenes.

Perhaps the producers should just cave and give Graham a role – what do you think he should be? My vote goes for an evil space leprechaun who has wine for blood ... or blood for wine, whatever.