2009 Shropshire Rainbow Gay Film Festival : 27th November – 3rd December

Shrewsbury might not be the first place you’d come up with as a location for a gay film festival, but it has, for the last four years been the home for the Rainbow Film Festival.

Held in the town’s Old Market Hall cinema, this week long event sees a wide variety of gay films screened with this year seeing Itty Bitty Titty Commitee, The Times of Harvey Milk,  I Can’t Think Straight, My Beautiful Laundrette, Pedro, A Love to Hide and Hard Pill all on offer.

Run completely by volunteers this event first took place back in December 2006 and has steadily gained in popularity, with the organisers staging a special screening of the Times Of Harvey Milk in February 2009 to mark LGBT History month.

Speaking about the event, Geoff Hardy, one of the organisers of the Rainbow Film Festival spoke of it’s importance not just as an opportunity to see LGBT films on the big screen, but also as one to keep the gay community in the public eye, something reiterated by local Councillor Miles Kenny who’s response to the festival was : “I really appreciate what is being done and what better way to get the message over than through the media of cinema entertainment. The Rainbow Film Festival makes Shrewsbury a better place to be”

Starting on 27th November this event runs until the 3rd December 2009 with additional information available at the Rainbow Festival website.