Superbia is Manchester Pride‘s year-round programme of arts and culture, designed to support, curate, fund and promote LGBTQ+ events throughout Greater Manchester.
Superbia supports LGBTQ+ artists by promoting events through its events page and social media, funds LGBTQ+ events with Superbia Grants and by curating original events through collaboration with partners, venues, groups, curators, community members, artists and creatives.
Manchester’s Finest is delighted to collaborate with Superbia on this new series, Superbia Spotlights. For the next ten weeks, we will shine a light on some of the incredible Superbia-supported arts and culture talent across Greater Manchester.
Superbia is inviting artists to submit proposals for three new commissions. Each commission includes a fee of £200, technical support and advice to help produce your work, and a wide audience across our Superbia and Manchester Pride platforms, and will be featured as a Superbia Spotlight right here on Manchester’s Finest. The commission fees are made possible with generous public funding from Arts Council England. To find out more visit Superbia.
This week, we’re looking at an award-winning documentary that profiles the lives of Black LGBT+ Britons.
Claire Lawrie is a London-based film-maker whose extraordinary circle of friends provided the natural subject matter for one of the best LGBT+ documentaries of recent times. ‘Beyond, ‘There’s Always a Black Issue Dear’ profiles a group of LGBT+ Black Britons as they recall their lives and adventures in music, nightlife, art, fashion, creativity and activism.
From recording contracts with Stock, Aitken & Waterman, to pioneering trans visibility, to launching high-profile careers in Paris, Lawrie’s film shows the defiance of inspirational individuals overcoming racism and homophobia to thrive.
In 2019, Superbia was proud to host the Manchester premier of the film in partnership with our friends at The Refuge. We welcomed the director Claire and one of the true stars of the film, Winn Austin, as they recalled the highs and lows of life in 80s and 90s Britain, a revolution in clubbing and fashion, increased visibility of Black LGBT+ people, all set against a backdrop of homophobia, HIV and racism.
Beyond ‘There’s always a black issue Dear’, explores and celebrates black LGBT identities, to demarcate the particular influence that Black LGBT culture has had upon Fashion, Fine art, Dance, Music and Language, much of which has been appropriated by the cultural mainstream.
For a limited time only you can now watch ‘Beyond, ‘There’s Always a Black Issue Dear’ on Vimeo. Thanks to Claire Lawrie for making this available. This film will inspire and move you.
