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Gaijin Geisha premiere [Oct. 5th, 2008|10:03 am]
I performed to a packed venue last night at Bush Hall, a beautiful old dance hall in Shepherd's Bush, as part of the London Fetish weekend extravaganza. It seems I was not alone in testing out new material - there was an atmosphere of quiet panic behind the stage, with people desperately stitching ribbons, borrowing forgotten items and making last-second (literally, in my case) alterations.

Sexy Circus Sideshow )
oh, still no phone by the way - if anyone desperately needs to get hold of me try my work number which is...well i can't remember but I'll post it here later.

I'm in a much better mood than yesterday, I totally proved to myself that I can put together a cool routine with interesting touches (I'm particularly proud of the host of butterflies that flutter around my head and follow me around during the show!) and perform it at height in front of a packed house without fucking it up. I totally thought I wouldn't have the confidence nor capability to do so - this is a real accomplishment for me so I'm allowing myself a bit of a slap on the back :)

I'm doing it again tonight so if anyone fancies it let me know - it's a really enjoyable evening with some excellent acts and a fantastic atmosphere.

Pics soon
xx
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[Sep. 23rd, 2008|01:07 am]
[Current Mood |doo de doo]
[Current Music |Ellery Queen - 'the adventure of the blunt instrument']

I must admit to having become strangely addicted to late night pulp TV show Ellery Queen. It's just so awful it's fantastic, I love it. I blame insomnia.
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[Aug. 21st, 2008|11:46 am]
So I've been thinking...

I didn't really do anything for my birthday this year, and now I'm sort of regretting it a bit. I'm sure everyone except new recruits knows the Lydia birthday drill - dress up in your vintage or black tie finest, pack a hamper and join me in Regent's Park for music, champagne and conviviality. And although it's a bit of hassle to organise I do love seeing my pals all dressed up and getting to dust off my lovely clothes and do something a bit different. But do YOU? This is the first year I've not held a formal picnic since the first one in 2005, and summer is swiftly slipping between my fingers. SO! I feel it's time enough for a poll.

Poll #1245715 Chap-esque picnics
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

How do you feel about dress-up picnics?

View Answers

I love them. Gives me a chance to dress up and show off.
33 (71.7%)

I like the idea but come the time it's a bit of effort.
1 (2.2%)

I'm not fussed what we wear. I'll dress up if that's the theme of the event.
9 (19.6%)

I like to see my friends dressed up but would rather not myself.
2 (4.3%)

They make me feel uncomfortable, I don't like dressing up and would rather just go in my normal clothes.
1 (2.2%)

other (comment)
0 (0.0%)

Entertainment at picnics.

View Answers

Bands! With pianos! And accordians! Woo!
30 (65.2%)

Old stylee entertainment, gramophones and croquet.
27 (58.7%)

Nothing - just let people chat and make their own entertainment
10 (21.7%)

Acts, such as fire-shows, dancing, circus etc
22 (47.8%)

Don't mind
23 (50.0%)

Other (comment)
2 (4.3%)

Would you be up for a big formal picnic before what we laughingly call 'Summer' is over?

View Answers

I thought you'd never ask!
21 (45.7%)

Depends on weather/commitments/yada yada
23 (50.0%)

Picnic yes, but leave out all the bloody tail coats and cream teas
2 (4.3%)

Picnics please me not. Please leave.
0 (0.0%)

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[Aug. 19th, 2008|06:50 pm]
So I've had a bit of a rough weekend and was feeling a tad sorry for myself...

And then I scrolled LJ and saw Jake's post about Cyka's pledge drive, and remembered that there are more important things than sitting around feeling sorry for oneself.

Have a read - prepare to be hugely inspired by an amazing woman, and please consider pledging some dough to help her cause.

http://cykauchuujin.pledgepage.org/

Donations go towards the race fees, vaccines, basic medicines and transportation to villages throughout Kenya.

Good luck Cyka!
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OPIUM DEN NEWSFLASH [Jul. 3rd, 2008|02:47 pm]
[Current Music |stillhouse orchestra - white wedding]

We are looking for someone to work the door from 9 til around 2 at Opium den tomorrow. You'll get frequent breaks and some drinks tokens, and we can offer £40 with a potential bonus if the night goes well.

We're also looking ofr a tea urn to serve up the opium tea in, mainly to save us running about with teapots all evening - can anyone lend us one for the evening?

We've had problems running over before so make sure you arrive promptly if there's a particular act you want to see! The running order for tomorrow is as follows:

Doors at 9pm

10 pm - Sam Astley (our very own [info]slinkymule)
10.30 - 'femme fatale' burlesque performance by Rose Thorne
11 pm - 'Three chord' Craig Temple
11.30 - burlesque performance from [info]amandamaesteele
12 midnight - The Stillhouse Orchestra

Then dancing and carousing til late! Do come down, this may be the very last one...

click for flyer )
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Freedom Day 2008 [Jun. 27th, 2008|10:00 am]
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THE OPIUM DEN this Friday at Bardens, N16 [Jun. 4th, 2008|04:26 pm]
The third Opium Den hosted at the infamous Bardens Boudoir!



Due to the sad passing of Mr Bo Diddley we have a surprise turn from Mr Paul Ronney Angel and Special Guests playing some of his greatest songs.

Also this night as you are all aware we have Mike The London Magician astounding us all with his Mind Reading powers of amazement.

Charlie Khan will be bringing his skiffle sound to the Den's illustrious stage.

Dr Butler's Hatstand Medicine Band will be taking us back to when Penny Farthings graced the streets of London.

Luc Owll will be surprising us with his dark and brooding one man show.

Congregation will be gracing the stage too with their amazing and unique sound. Mojo raved about them and it's easy to see why we had to have them play for us too!

And finally the infinitely beautiful Lalla Morte will be charming us with her fabulous burlesque.

DJ's are Duncan DeMorgan (Born Bad, Shore Leave) Darling (B Movie Strength through Joy) and your hostess Amanda Mae Steele.

And this time the tea is on the house!

http://www.myspace.com/dalstonopiumden
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[May. 7th, 2008|01:20 pm]
Three things:

1. Thank you for all your Happy Birthday messages! I had a lovely weekend marred only by excessive consumption of White Russians on Monday night. My phone has had a mild stroke and now all the buttons down the right hand side don't work. So if you've texted me and I've not replied it's probably because my response contained the letters D, E, F, M, N, M, O ,W, X, Y or Z.

2. There is a family of Jays living in the tree outside my bedroom window and it makes me really, really happy.

3. The Zephyrus Dreams showcase will be playing at The Round Chapel in Clapton on the 13th, 15th and 17th of May. I play several different roles within the production including a tangoing tempest, a ghoul trapped between worlds, a viperous crone at a funeral, and my main part as the tragic lady of the sea who saves a sailor from drowning but knows she must eventually give him up. Toby is in the production too (I can't keep up with his roles) as well as a very talented cast of over 20 actors, dancers and puppeteers. We would love to see you there and would really appreciate your support for this fledging theatre company who are trying to do something beautiful on a minimal budget. So if you are going to come PLEASE order your tickets here - http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=xxx&query=schedule&promoter=zephyrus

We need to shift some more pre-sales or I fear the director's head might explode!
EDIT: this too
Add Zephyrus Dreams on Myspace!
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Jus' passing it on... [Mar. 26th, 2008|12:15 pm]
[Current Music |The McCarricks - Genetically Modified]



Just a reminder that Cor Blimey! is on this Thursday from 7pm at the Bethnal Green Working Men's Club. Get there early and grab a free gin punch cocktail. Then get ready for a right ole' knees up with our Pearly King, our bawdy music hall stripper and Lorraine & Kim. We've also got some goodies to raffle off, and brilliant bingo prizes to be won - a tasty food hamper, a crate of ale, vouchers for slap up pie and mash meals, plus bottles of gin for the best dressed.

Hope to see you there: http://www.corblimeylondon.co.uk

£8 entry, or £3 for the oldies!

Love Lorraine and Kim
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[Mar. 17th, 2008|12:27 am]
Bloody hell.
Well done everybody, and thank you, you're all stars.
Welcome home Diz.
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PLEASE REPOST - hope to see y'all there! [Mar. 10th, 2008|12:53 pm]



Fresh from a nail-biting tour of the Al-Wathba prison complex...


WHEN: SUNDAY MARCH 16th - 7-11pm
WHERE: Bethnal Green Working Men's Club
44-46 Pollard Row,
Bethnal Green,
London E2 6NB
six pounds entry


Background info:

On January 26th 2008, German citizen and UK resident Cat Le-Huy (known to his friends as Diz) arrived in
Dubai and was arbitrarily stopped at immigration.

He was stripped, searched and made to sign papers in Arabic that he didn't
understand. He was then held without charge in Dubai between January 26th and
March 5th, 2008.

Cat was carrying Melatonin, which is legally sold over-the-counter in Dubai,
and this was tested for contraband along with a sample of his urine and 0.003g
of what the Dubai authorities believed was (and which allegedly tested
positive for) hashish which was found in his bag. Cat maintains that the
alleged hashish was simply dirt.

If charged and found guilty Cat would have faced a minimum sentence of 4
years. After weeks of heavy campaigning by friends and pressure on the Dubai
authorities, Cat was released and returned to the U.K.

Although Cat has obtained a release, there are still massive financial costs
to be covered and the last few months have left Cat and his partner in tens of
thousands of pounds of debt. The fundraiser that was originally to raise the
deposit for an attorney is now thankfully a welcome home event, and any monies
raised will go to cat, with a portion being donated to the Mel 1000 fund.

Also, though Cat is back and safe, there are still literally hundreds of
people in the same position who are not as lucky, and information on ways to
keep the pressure up for their release will be available on the night.

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more details tomorrow... [Mar. 9th, 2008|09:22 pm]


With many thanks to [info]aliasrob for the flyer!
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All singing, all dancing, homecoming party preview... [Mar. 7th, 2008|05:29 pm]
Fresh from a nail-biting tour of the Al Wathba prison complex...

'Dubai-ous Pleasures' promotions bring you...

The 'Unjust Deserts' variety show!

in honour of the recently returned Diz '0.03g' Le Huy...

Starring...

Han-sam Sam Astley playing his glorious and unique brand of Glok n' Roll!
The Bohemianauts bringing squeezebox revivalism to the masses!
Miss Lydia Darling in a daring tassle-twirling adventure!
Circa Burlesque dazzle with their spectacular feather fling!
Miss Chrys Columbine performs her acclaimed Venus show!
The Stillhouse Orchestra - Purveyors of Finest Country Swing and Twisted Bluegrass!
And the unforgettable, the implausible, the deeply disturbing FANCY CHANCE AND LUCIFIRE
in their FURRY BITCHES FROM HELL show...

Plus! a special appearance from Scar Crash and May Betwisted of the London Roller Girls as our hot skatin' tequila gals!

Live DJs playing gypsy punk, swing revival, neo-circus, chantsons and showtunes and more, oh my...
All this, and a very special act tba! Golly. And all in aid of a good cause...profits from the evening go towards the legal fees accrued in obtaining the release of Cat-le Huy, unjustly imprisoned in a Dubai jail, with a portion going towards the Mel 1000 fund for DJ Melanie Lucy Fur.

WHEN:Sunday MARCH 16th
WHERE: Bethnal Green Working men's Club
WHO: Anyone who's anyone.

Watch this space for further announcements!
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[Mar. 5th, 2008|11:13 pm]
[Tags|]
[Current Location |my sofa]
[Current Mood | relaxed]
[Current Music |seasick steve - hobo low]

Set list, Opium Den 29-02-08.

Lydia Darling 9-10ish.

Katie Lee - Repressed Hostility Blues
Seasick Steve - Cut my Wings
Hellblini Sextet - It comes to this
Hijak Oscar - Dollar Bill
Humanwine - Rivolta silenzioza
Jill Tracey - Evil Night Together
Ute Lemper - Mack the Knife
Stillhouse Orchestra - Cautionary tales
Peculiar Pretzelmen - Queen Nefertiti
Dead Brothers - Closer to you
Tom Waits - Big in Japan
Soggy Bottom Boys - man of constant sorrow
Flaming Doo Dits - Hellfire
Cab Calloway - Ghost of Smokey Joe
FM Einheit - Princess crocodile

Then a bit later...

Sophie Tucker - Some of these days
Tiger Lillies - Little Boy Blues
Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Cherry Poppin' Daddy Strut
Benny Goodman - Yes my darling Daughter
Eartha Kitt - I wanna be Evil
Squirrel Nut Zippers - Prince Nez
Billie Holiday - Now or never
Vikki Car - The Silencers
Hijak Oscar - Disciple of Time
Fantasmagoria - Odessa Eyes

And then there was more stuff but I didn't write it down.
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all as mad as hatters here... [Feb. 29th, 2008|11:08 am]
[Current Music |tom waits - singapore]



I'm sure you know the drill...music and performances in deepest, darkest N16, courtesy of [info]amandamaesteele with a bit of fairy dust from my good self. This is happening tonight, and you'd be a fool to miss it, what with an escape artist, a burlesque show, four bands and three DJs...oh, and of course our marvelous opium tea. See you there!
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[Feb. 20th, 2008|07:32 pm]
I've made custom list for people who might want to be involved with Diz's fundraiser. If you want to be actively involved (I'm mainly looking for people who can perform in any capacity or contribute on the night, which will be in early March) then leave a comment here.
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[Feb. 20th, 2008|12:01 pm]
[Tags|, ]
[Current Music |diamanda galas - the sporting life]

Working hard - in the last 5 days I've devised, sourced and mixed a show, travelled to Swansea and back, performed three shows (two with Skinphony (one on trapeze) and one solo), done a photoshoot, written a short film for Uni, attended lectures, and am now in the process of mixing audio and visuals for the next show this Friday - Flame and Flesh, which I hope to see some of you at.

Anyway, attention industrial types. I need suggestions for industrially type tracks (thinking in the vein of SPK, Nurse with Wound etc) that are abstracty soundscapes with a hint of beauty? Something that is not entirely dark and menacing, with maybe a little light shining through. Any help appreciated!

In other news Diamanda Galas kicks Amy Winehouse's skinny ass.
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[Feb. 8th, 2008|02:15 pm]
DIZ IN DUBAI

Media updates from Mildred's journal

I'm pretty sure everyone has heard about this now, but keep spreading the word - the story has started to surface in national and international press, and hopefully the pressure is starting to build.

EDIT: front page of BBC News!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7234786.stm
I shall take away Daily Mail link as I have never agreed with its views as a newspaper and some of the comments on this story are appalling.

Maybe this is a good time to start writing to the tourist board? The only contact I could find was here though, anyone got anything more appropriate? (Maybe 'concerns' rather than complaints)

Mil, I don't know if you know but if you google for 'Dubai', THIS now comes up on the first page of results - can only be a good thing.

SIGN PETITION
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For those of you that attended the New Year's Eve masque [Jan. 3rd, 2008|04:06 pm]
Ok, so on New Year's Eve a collection was taken towards Lyssa's flowers. As it was all being done quite covertly quite a few of you missed it and said that they would have liked to donate a quid or two. I'm pretty sure the cost of Lyssa's flowers has been covered (caleb was in charge and I haven't checked with him yet) but I thought it might be a nice idea to put any excess towards a gift voucher for Nat, the bar manager who worked really hard and from the sounds of it had quite a night on her hands.

Anyway for those of you who asked, here's a way to contribute if you fancy it.








I've left this post open so you can direct people here if you want to.
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[Nov. 8th, 2007|06:35 pm]
Hey, does anyone have any pics from the Hallowe'en do other than Jill, Kieran, Emmie and Gaius? I'm thinking especially of the shows, I'd like to forward some to the performers. Ta!
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