Gay rugby legend Gareth Thomas and referee Nigel Owens are supporting Cardiff Mardi Gras. The 11th festival will be held on Saturday September 4th and 40,000 people are expected to attend.

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams has been accused of hypocrisy for taking part in a pre-St Patrick's Day march which bans gays.

Boy George and George Michael are on speaking terms after 20 years. The pair, who are both gay, fell out in the 1980s over Michael's refusal to come out of the closet.

Gay singer Elton John has revealed that a former lover committed suicide after struggling to accept his sexual orientation.

A poll of PinkNews.co.uk readers has found that although Labour is still the top choice for gay voters, there has been a substantial shift towards the Conservative Party since the last election. Among first time gay voters, the Conservatives are overwhelmingly the most popular party.

The singer of indie band Bloc Party, Kele Okereke, has spoken about how his religious parents coped with him coming out. He has rarely referred to his sexual orientation in interviews.

One of the premier gay clubs in Belfast has lost its licence. The city council's licensing committee decided not to renew Mynt's licence, citing police allegations of customer drug use, alcohol being served out of hours and assaults.

Gay actor John Barrowman has revealed that his natural hair colour is "completely white". The Torchwood star, 42, said he had been dying his hair for years and that his civil partner Scott Gill, an architect, persuaded him not to go back to his roots.

Two men have been found guilty of the homophobic murder of a gay Northern Ireland shop worker. Lithuanians Andrius Dunauskas, 23, and Raminas Balseris, 26, were found guilty today of the murder of openly gay Shaun Fitzpatrick, 32.

As part of his series for the Guardian entitled 'Hideously diverse Britain', Hugh Muir looks at how diversity and race impact on Britain today. This week he explores how minority groups "hold strong cards".