Fox Fisher (they/he) has been an outspoken trans activist for the last few years, with an extensive list of achievements to their name ranging from creating a Trans Acting course; exploring the meaning of the term non-binary and the encompassing issues on TV with Piers Morgan; found My Genderation, a film project which helped create over one hundred short films; and screen-printing live at the Tate Modern as well as the V&A Museum. At present, Fox is focusing on a feature documentary and a historical fictional series titled Inverness Or Bust, which focuses on a group of trans people who visit a sympathetic doctor in the 1970’s. 

Upon sitting down with Fox, the topic of art and activism was explored. When asked about the challenges of being an artist, Fox said, ‘I think the biggest challenge, as someone from the LGBTQIA+ community, is whether to make my art visibly ‘trans’ or LGBTQIA+ related’. Fox has explored various other artistic subjects from animals to sacred geometry and gold, but at times a sense of guilt can enshroud the exploration of themes that do not focus entirely on showing trans and queer positivity. They said that the pressure to focus on creating LGBTQIA+ themed art can feel like it ‘pigeon holes and stifles creativity.’

Fox went on to say, ‘I feel like my trans and queer themed art is often fairly basic, like hand-drawing ‘trans rights are human rights’ and screen printing that onto book pages from J.K. Rowling books’. Fox went on to point out their collection of hardback Harry Potter books which had been donated by trans Harry Potter fans who had drifted away from the series after J.K. Rowling’s controversies surrounding transphobia. Fox had reworked the book pages into illustrative work and phrases promoting trans pride and acceptance. 

The world of book publishing has not always been a source for queer representation. Fox has co-created the children’s book ‘Are You A Boy or Are You A Girl?’, the ‘Trans Survival Workbook’ as well as created the ‘Trans Pride Colouring Book’. On the topic of representation in what is being published on the shelves, Fox remarked on how there were not many trans or diverse books when he first started said five or so years ago. He said, ‘All the books I have created are ones I wish had existed when I was growing up, which may have helped me come out sooner’.  When asked on whether they thought there was more room for change, Fox commented on the ‘explosion in trans and diverse books in recent years’ with particular accreditation to JKP Publishing. They went on to say, ‘There’s still scope for so many more trans positive books, for all ages.’

Fox commented on their journey in the arts scene as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. They said, ‘Like many other trans and queer people, life hasn’t been a linear journey. This means that there might be gaps in formal education, which can be frowned upon and seen as ‘outsider art’’. With numerous awards and accreditations under their belt, Fox has been a pivotal figure in making strides in queer and trans acceptance. 

Words by Rebecca Cremona

‘Heard of the pay gap? Well, this show is about the pleasure gap!’

From the Nexflix series ‘Principles of Pleasure’, to Family Sex-Education Show being cancelled the conversation of what we should or shouldn’t be thought in Sex-Education has never been more talked about. Why isn’t pleasure in the curriculum..?  Well, this conversation is coming to Brighton in the form of her new interactive comedy Sex-Ed Revisited this May! 

‘Sex-Ed Revisited’ is an empowering one-woman show written and performed by Holly Delefortrie. This show blends improvisational storytelling and comedy gig theatre to explore the missing gaps in female-focused sex education and our relationships with pleasure.

This uplifting female-driven show focuses on the experiences of all those 80s–00s kids who still have unanswered questions about sex and their bodies! Gone are the days of attempting to put condoms on cucumbers whilst wearing kaleidoscopic beer goggles. ‘Sex-Ed Revisited’ combines the use of clowning, confessional storytelling, and live interactive games to tell stories about relatable taboos about sex and what we wish we had learnt during Sex-Ed. 

The Electric Arcade, Beneath Brighton Zip, Lower Promenade, Madeira Drive, Brighton, BN2 1TB

Dates and Times: Friday 20^th May, Saturday 21^st May, Sunday 22^nd May, 9.30 pm

Ticket prices: £10 (standard), £9 (NHS Discount), £8.50 (Under 26’s), £8 (Student Discount)

FRINGE CITY ON NEW ROAD

SATURDAY 7 , 14, 21, 28 MAY, FRIDAY 3 & SATURDAY 4 JUNE 1PM-8PM

Get curious about England’s largest arts festival, and explore our free, outdoor event on New Road. Expect an extravaganza of theatre, comedy, cabaret, circus, music, and dance on our outdoor stage from Brighton Fringe 2022 participants and some very special guests.

Settle into the experience and enjoy a cold pint from our pop-up bar or street food from our rotating local traders.

Find out more about what’s on at our pop-up box office and get curious about Brighton Fringe 2022.

Fringe City is totally free to attend and everyone is welcome.

FRINGE FAMILY PICNIC IN ROYAL PAVILION GARDENS

SATURDAY 7 MAY & SATURDAY 4 JUNE 12PM-4PM

Make sure your little ones  have a #CuriouslyFringe experience with our totally free outdoor festival for children (and their grown-ups!)

Pack your hampers and get the clan together, it’s time to set up camp! Join us for free children’s entertainment including interactive accessible storytime from Living Paintings, family-friendly performances, puppetry and games. 

Fringe Family Picnic is totally free to attend and everyone is welcome.

In PurSUEt is an award-winning one-woman show that tells the true story of a woman with a drinking problem who favours the stalking of Sue Perkins over dealing with her demons.

Following its sell-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe, the “queer cult sensation” In PurSUEt tells the story of a nameless ‘Woman’ sat in a therapist’s office. She’s been sent there to deal with her drink problem. But she doesn’t need help. She just needs Sue Perkins. They are meant for each other. If only Sue could see that too. But how can she? She’s too busy being a celebrity. So “Woman” sets out in pursuit of her love. From following Sue’s every move online – to breaking in backstage at the BBC, there isn’t anything she won’t do. But can she keep it all together and win her heart’s desire, whilst battling her out of control drinking? 

Writer and actor Eleanor Higgins trained at the Royal Academy and at Circle In The Square Theatre School; New York. She battled substance misuse in her twenties whilst noticing the parallels between addiction and fantasy. Now in sobriety, and with a diploma in advanced psychology under her belt, she shares this intriguing story with the world. “I believe addiction and obsession are intrinsically linked – and that isn’t being spoken about enough”

Dates: 21st–22nd May 17:00pm, 24th May 18:00pm, 28-29th May 17:00pm.

Rialto Theatre, Dyke Road, Brighton, BN1 3PE

A new play by Brian Mitchell & Joseph Nixon

When they’re in a hole, some people start digging. 1998. In an overlooked pub in a left-behind town, an unlikely hero and his would-be agent plot to put themselves on the map via an insane World Record attempt – the longest time buried alive. That’s five months in an oversized coffin, under a tiny beer garden in the middle of Mansfield.

A true and possibly hilarious tale of courage, endurance, hope, despair, love, lies and media manipulation by Argus Angel winners Brian Mitchell (The Ministry of Biscuits) and Joseph Nixon (co-writer of West-End sell-out smash The Shark is Broken). Previous collaborations include Edinburgh hits Those Magnificent Men and the multi-award-winning Big Daddy Vs. Giant Haystacks.

Starring Duncan Henderson (The Shark is Broken and The Polished Scar – winner of 2018 FringeReview Outstanding Theatre Award), Emma Wingrove (Sweethearts & The Hooligan) and Murray Simon (The Ministry of Biscuits, Lord God).

Rialto Theatre 11 Dyke Road, Brighton, BN1 3FE 01273 725230  www.rialtotheatre.co.uk

24th-28th May, 8pm   £10/£8

What do you get when you cross a dead iguana, an employee with a very rare medical condition and the HR department in a high-end toilet factory? It’s probably a question you’ve asked many times before.

Arthur is an over-promoted HR Manager, trying to find the path of least resistance in a world that has changed dramatically around him. Paula is the long-suffering HR advisor who keeps the ship afloat and herself sane by poking fun at her boss. And Jackie is the ambitious, and highly-strung new girl who is struggling to find her place in her family and the world.

Inspired by a true event, Sarah Archer’s comedy drama is about what can go wrong when we stop ourselves from telling people how we really feel, when we make assumptions rather than having honest conversations….

The Latest Music Bar, 14 – 17 Manchester Street, Brighton, BN2 1TF – 6, 10, 19 & 20 May

Here’s the sell: A story about love, but also Tinder addiction and lost erections.

Sophie is a lawyer with never-ending insomnia and Francesco is a Tinder addict who lost his erection. They both end up in India to find a cure but what they find instead is a miracle. Now they want to share their inspiring journey with the audience. But some things shouldn’t be shared…

BioPower is an intimate “storytelling” play which unveils the beautiful moments and darker struggles of a relationship. It’s a labyrinth within a labyrinth style performance. While two storytellers act out the ideal couple, their relationship on stage is strongly tested.

Described as “charming” and ““a refreshing response to the pomp of modern theatre”, storytelling is the art of sharing stories aloud, speaking directly to an audience, inviting them into the experience. No fourth walls here.

BioPower is at The Old Market May 27 – 29

For most of us they are no longer free, though at £2 a test they aren’t expensive. But the question is, are they worthwhile? To understand the answer to that you have to understand that lateral flow tests aren’t very sensitive. You have to have quite a lot of virus in your throat and nose to get a positive. This is quite different from the PCR test, which, in principle, can detect any amount of virus, however small.

In practice that means that your test will probably be negative in the first day or two after you catch the virus, but it gets more likely to be positive in the day or two before symptoms begin, and then during the first 5 days of the illness.

Let’s look at how this affects our decision in different situations:

1. You have symptoms of a cold, or worse. Yes, definitely worth the £2 for a test. It will pick up 80% of cases. In other words, if negative, Covid is fairly unlikely (but it doesn’t rule it out). If you repeat the test on day 2 and 3 and it’s still negative, then it’s even more unlikely that you have Covid. And if the test is positive you don’t need a PCR – you have Covid.
2. You feel fine but you are going to visit someone who is vulnerable. The most vulnerable person would be someone aged over 75, unvaccinated or vaccinated but without a booster in the last six months, and with some other condition that impairs their ability to fight infection. This is much more tricky. If you have the infection but have no symptoms, the lateral flow test has only a 20% chance of being positive. So in 4 out of 5 cases when you are infectious you will be falsely reassured by the test. I’d say it’s still worth doing but, if it’s negative, you should still do everything possible to keep the other person safe: meet out of doors, stay apart and especially don’t kiss, wear a mask and sanitise your hands before you go in.
3. You are a contact. That means you have been close to someone who has subsequently tested positive, or developed symptoms, in the subsequent 2 days. Yes, do a test but not immediately. It’s pretty sure to be negative in the first two days. If you only want to test once, do it on day 5. But you will only be in the clear after ten days from the contact. In addition to testing you have a choice of three policies: isolate for 10 days from contact; or mask, distance and sanitise for 10 days from contact; or continue with life as normal, if you have no alternative. But in this case my view is that, if you chose the second or third options, it would be wrong not to warn everyone, before you come into close contact with them, that you are a contact.
4. You’ve tested positive. Obviously you have the same three options as if you are a contact but the importance of isolating is far greater. And some people, e.g. GPs and their staff, are required to have two negative tests, 1 day apart, at least 5 days after their positive test. That’s not a bad rule for all of us to follow.

Those who are still paying attention will have a question. “If I have the virus, but there’s too little of it in my throat and nose to give a positive test, is it also too little to infect someone else?” Sadly, no. The study I’ve relied on for my stats shows that you can still pass it on, even when you are testing negative. That study can be found by searching on ‘BMJ Jonathan Deeks 2022’.

Final thought: because the lateral flow test depends on your getting enough virus on to your swab, don’t skimp the swabbing, however uncomfortable you find it. 15 seconds rubbing on one tonsil then 15 seconds rotating it deep in a nostril will give you the best result.

Have you ever noticed how people walk in winter? They’re huddled, it’s like they’re wrapped around themselves. Coats wrapped round, hats held on tight. Bent over forward, making themselves smaller. Less to get cold and wet, maybe. And no one’s out. The streets look deserted. Maybe everyone’s inside somewhere having fun, but I don’t think so. I think they’ve wrapped up, gone to bed early, hiding under a duvet. 

In the summer, it’s different. When we go out, we stand up, look out. We smile and wave at each other as we pass by. People are sitting outside pubs. It’s alive. 

My Fine Wife always berates me when I tell her I’d be happy if I never saw another winter. “You’ve got to have the dark to appreciate the light, you’ve got to have the winter because it’s part of the cycle of the year. You can’t have the warm if you don’t have the cold”. Pah. Cold, schmold. OK, I’ve got some nice heavy wool suits and a rather fine long, fur coat, but that aside… Winter? As Edwin Starr once said, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing. 

What’s so terrible about the idea of retiring to a small Greek island? A little taverna on the beach in a horseshoe bay? “Calamari? Of course. And would you like some Retsina with that?” 

No really, I’d be happy if I never saw another winter. Don’t like it. Don’t like the dark. Don’t like the cold. I don’t understand why the clocks go back or forward or whatever it is in the autumn so it gets darker (and therefore colder too) earlier. I used to be told “Ah, it’s the farmers”. I don’t know any farmers. I’m sure they’re lovely people but they’ve had their turn. Maybe now it’s my turn. Children will ask their parents why it is the clocks haven’t gone back or forward or whatever, they’ll ask why it’s still light and warm. “Ah, it’s the magazine editors…”

Anyway. That’s passed. The clocks have done the other thing they do and now it’s brighter later. I don’t have to wake the puppies up at 3pm to take them for a walk. Now I wake them at 5pm to take them out, It makes all the difference, The sky’s out. In a few weeks we’ll have that lovely, mad month when it’s the Festival, the Fringe, The Great Escape… probably a few other things I’ll remember later. It’s like a reward for all that farmer-inspired damp. 

Meanwhile back on dry land, the online petition to save Seven Cellars and Latina from the evil clutches of The Co-op Group stands at a fantastic 5,846. And by the time Dan Tansley has done his printing magic and this becomes a magazine, who knows what it’ll be. Funny how in the old days when the likes of Tesco were thought of as the Devil, the Co-op was seen as kind and benign. A co-operative. It sounded kinda cuddly. Well, there’s that idea gone. Anyway, let’s keep up the pressure. You never know.

Things are constantly changing round here. The Mighty Whistler, it’s like a shark. Always moving forward. Never staying still. We’ve got – at possibly  huge expense – a new sports editor who this month is writing about the revolution in Whitehawk. And there’s another new development bubbling away in Whistler Towers. We’re going to start a listings section. What’s on and where to go. It would be lovely to have an old school listings section. It’ll mainly be in the website so we can regularly update it. It’ll take a bit of organising but I think it could be a thing to do.

I like to go on an adventure so the other Sunday I went with my friends Ben and Janine to see the Marina. In however many years of living here I have never been to the Marina. Going to Ben and Janine’s is already an adventure, because they live in Kemp Town. It’s a half-hour walk from my place to theirs so I make sure I’m well stocked up on Kendall Mint Cake. It’s an incentive to keep moving because I don’t like Kendall Mint Cake very much. I also take oxygen because they live on the 16th floor.

Anyway the Marina is another half hour walk from theirs so I bought an extra packet of Kendall Mint Cake because you can’t be too careful. The plan was to go to Wetherspoons for a restoring pint and then Malika Indian restaurant for lunch. But first we had to get to the Marina.

“So what’s it like?” I asked in the lift on the way down. Ben thought for a few seconds.

“Let me put it this way,” he said. “Do you know what the murder rate in London is? It’s something like two people per 100,000 per year. That’s how they measure it. Now, do you know what the murder rate in Baltimore is? It’s 47 per 100,000. In other words, you’re more than 23 times likely to be murdered in Baltimore than in London.”

I wondered where this was going. Was he about to say that the murder rate of Brighton Marina is roughly that of Baltimore’s?

“Anyway, a few years ago I was in Baltimore for work. And **** me, what a place. If you went into the certain areas of town people would just stand there with their mouths hanging open. People from outside normally know better than to go there.”

Again, I wondered where this was going. How long would I be able to fend off the gangs of Brighton Marina with just a pair of Kendall Mint Cake bars?

“The thing is, we went to Baltimore Marina. And you know what? It was lovely. Lots of expensive boats, people having fun, fancy shops, the works. But Brighton Marina? That’s what you’d expect Baltimore Marina to look like. They really should swap them over.

I began to see what he meant as we approached it. To get to the Marina you have to go through a desolate building site and a series of forbidding 1970s underpasses that all smell of glue. (Not hard to work out why.)

“This looks like the kind of place they filmed the ultraviolence scenes in A Clockwork Orange,” I said.

“I think it’s more the kind of place where Regan and Carter from The Sweeney chase the villains and give them a good kicking.”

Once you breach the Forbidden Zone, though, the Marina improves. A pint of IPA at Spoons is £1.68 and the buffet at the Malika is delicious. Just try not to inhale the glue fumes on the walk over there.