Author Archives: slide

Vesta

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Thanks again to Kitty Stryker for pulling me into the world of Vesta Tilley, Victorian drag king. Born Matilda Powles in 1863, Tilley was famous for her music hall performances where she accurately mimicked and mocked masculine roles in her comedic song and dance performances. Here’s an excerpt from a description of one of her shows by contemporary reviewer W.R. Titterton:

“…How sure the singer is! How despotically she rules over her audience – dallies with the rhythm, draws it out, pauses in mid-gesture, the hand in the air, the monocle nearing the eye – pauses perilously long, you get uneasy, the bicycle goes so slow you are afraid it will topple – it almost does, but in good time the chorus comes to its conclusion with a ‘My word!’ and one dainty feminine hand slaps the other, and the body wriggles into itself with a foot up. ‘My word! he-is-a naugh-ty boy!’ O Tilley!”

For a wonderful article about Vesta Tilley at the Victorianist blog and the full Titterton review click here, and for more photos at Buzzfeed click here.

London Fetish Weekend 2012

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It all kicks off tomorrow. You can find all the details, peruse pictures and download the full programme here. Cliterati also has a feature on the Fashion and Deviant Dance Event – an alternative clubbing and catwalk clothing night that showcases kink, latex and steampunk wear by those competing for the New Designer Of The Year Award. Click here for the LFW website and here to see the Cliterati rundown of fetish fashion designers in this year’s show.

Real Man

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AskMen.com recently shat out another misogynistic trollfest disguised as dating advice. It’s written by “relationship correspondent” Matthew Fitzgerald (thanks to Vagenda’s Twitter feed for the link). He wrote a book that is loved by douchebloggers like Angry Harry, a Manosphere staple who nobly fights for the rights of heterosexual, white middle-class men against oppression by those dastardly feminists, ethnic minorities, rape victims and any gay people who want to get married.

Anyway, back to AskMen. In an article about how women are all evil, think with emotions instead of rationality, accuse men who “aren’t afraid to be themselves or to exert their natural sexuality” of date rape and want – you know, respect and stuff (the bitches!) – Fitzgerald inadvertently alludes to rather a lot of submissive-male/dominant-female BDSM fantasies. If I were a troll, I’d even suggest that misogynists have a deep-seated kink that they don’t want to admit to. I’m not though, so I won’t. Here’s the article, with all the shit bits removed and all my favourite out-of-context femdom bits left in:

“…the rise of a class of ball-busting bitches…surrender their natural masculinity and pander to women…a world full of wusses and doormats, men who cater to women and willingly hand over all their male power in exchange for a few crumbs of approval…forced to bend over backwards to please women…feminize men into submissive she-males…a guy wants a chick to be masculine…letting women snip pruning shears at their crotches…buy their time and attention with meals, gifts, etc…nervous, insecure or overly nice around women…available at the drop of a hat…go out of their way to please women in the hope of getting laid…grovel, beg, or are desperate for sex…feel shameful or guilty about their natural sexuality…Let women manipulate them or treat them like “walking wallets”…feet-kissing doormats…be tied down…desperate and groveling for it…love the company of women and treat them very well…”

See. Much nicer. Click here for the original woman-hating cockery if you must.