Guests at ACON’s Afternoon Delight movie matinee and tea party for NSW 2010 Senior’s Week in March.

Afternoon Delight

Want to see what happens when over three hundred gay and lesbian senior citizens get friendly in the dark? Afternoon Delight was a gay and lesbian movie matinee and tea party presented by ACON, Queerscreen and the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care as part of the official program of events for NSW’s 2010 Seniors Week.

Sydney has quite a large older gay and lesbian population and ACON was delighted to be partnering with Queerscreen and DADHC to provide this wonderful opportunity for the more mature members of our community to get together and have a good time.

Screening at Paddington’s Chauvel cinema, the FREE event included a double feature presentation of classic queer cinema plus a delectable high tea served by a bevy of matinee guy-dolls.
ACON CEO Nicolas Parkhill said the event acknowledged and celebrated the diversity of NSW’s senior citizenry.

“NSW has a significant older GLBT population,” he said. “In fact, about 35,000 people in NSW over the age of 55 identify as gay or lesbian. They play a vital and valued role in our community and we’re delighted to be partnering with Queer Screen and DADHC to provide this wonderful opportunity for the more mature members of our community to get together and have a good time.

“It’s great that the organisers are recognising the GLBT community in this year’s Senior’s Week celebrations and we look forward to working more closely with a range of government and community organisations to help provide more opportunities for older gay men and lesbians in NSW.  However, Afternoon Delight is not just for our golden queers. Anyone is welcome to come along and join in the fun – old, young, gay or straight, we don’t discriminate.”

The movies screened were Edie & Thea: A Very Long Engagement and An Englishman In New York which have both screened to great acclaim at many gay and lesbian film festivals throughout the world. Edie & Thea is an American film from 2009 which follows the lives of feisty and delightful community activist couple Edie and Thea who are finally getting married after surviving 42 years of personal and political battles. An Englishman in New York is a 2009 biopic that chronicles the English gay writer Quentin Crisp's later years spent in New York City. It’s a follow-up to the 1975 TV movie The Naked Civil Servant with John Hurt reprising his role as Crisp.

Ageing Disgracefully

High Court judge Justice Michael Kirby joined a panel of community leaders for a public forum on ageing and ageism in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community. Called ‘Ageing Disgracefully’, the FREE forum was organised by ACON.

The light-hearted forum was hosted by journalist and broadcaster Julie McCrossin. In addition to Justice Kirby, the panel also featured former Aurora Foundation chair Jane Marsden, former Gay & Lesbian Rights Lobby convenor Ghassan Kassisieh, lesbian health specialist Siri May, transsexual icon Carmen and HIV activist Lloyd Grosse.

The aim of the forum was to provide an entertaining way for community members to learn about the health and wellbeing issues confronting older GLBT people and to contribute to the development of ACON’s strategies for addressing the issues.

More info

Contact: ACON’s Lesbian & Same-Sex Attracted Women’s Health Project or The Ageing Project

Tel: (02) 9206 2000
Free Call: 1800 063 060
Hearing Impaired: (02) 9283 2088

Email: women@acon.org.au