Features & Opinions
PinkUk featured articles are a mixture of personal opinion, in depth looks at LGBTQ+ issues and some sponsored articles from advertisers who help to keep PinkUk free to use.
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Like it hardcore? Esmale can be of help
April 2022
If you like playing hard, our friends at online gay adult store esmale have some great options:
vanilla play is not for everybody. I guess we all start out like that but as you progress in your adult pleasure journey.
To our Ukrainian friends
March 2022
To Ukraine and all the people that live there, and all Ukrainians. We at PinkUk are deeply shocked and surprised at the devastation that is
happening with your country.
Mothers day
March 2022
Yes, it’s almost here for those in the UK. It’s that special time of the year for people who have mums to pay love and respect to their beautiful mammas.
Mothers’ Day (Mothering Sunday) in the UK is looming on 27th March with the USA celebrating its Mothers Day not far behind on 8th May.
LGBT History Month
January 2022
In the UK in February is LGBT History Month which plays a big part in providing information and educating LGBTQ+ identifying people about their heritage.
In the UK it is commemorated in February as a salute the abolition of the notorious ‘Section 28’ legislation, passed by British Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher’s government in the 1980s.
Spicing up your adult fun in 2022
January 2022
A new year is here, and we can’t wait to get stuck in. There are so many things to enjoy in life and after the last couple of years we deserve a
bit more quality in our life. At esmale we are very much hoping for a year that has plenty of social interactions -
going out without a care in the world or just jumping on a plane for a holiday in the sun. Also, on the top of the list this year is doing some
serious hooking up and having some serious adult-pleasure.
My HIV/AIDS story
November 2021
As part of Worlds AIDS day, I though I would share my personal experience.
A year after I came out, I was asked to go to a sexual health check-up. It’s bit like the annual motoring ‘MOT’ test – a regular safety check for vehicles in the UK.
They asked me if I wanted to include an HIV test. I agreed to this, even though I thought, no way did I have HIV.
This is my personal experience.
A decade of supplying adult pleasure
November 2021
On 12 October, 2011 in southwest London, the virtual doors of online gay adult store esmale.com opened for the first time.
Now, a decade later, they are still going strong with more plans on the way to ensure people can all have some adult fun with their wide range of products.
It is no mean feat to survive in this current economic and health environment, so we wanted to find out how this 100% gay-owned company became one of the most prominent
online-only pleasure suppliers in the UK. We got in contact with them to have a chat and run through the decade.
LGBTQ Paranormal Investigators
August 2021
My story from a small Paranormal Investigator group. By Robert Murphy-Smith, Founder of Findings Hauntings.
We think our group is very unique within the paranormal world, as until very recently all of our team identified as LGBTQ, several of our team are also registered
disabled. I put myself on both of these brackets, as I suffer from Fibromyalgia.
Latest from Scene Magazine
August 2021
We’re delighted to support the relaunched Scene magazine (formerly G Scene) to keep you informed about what’s hot on the UK LGBTQ+ scene from arts to
politics to lifestyle.
What is an ‘ESTA’ - why do you need one?
July 2021
If you are a UK citizen and want to visit the best Pride destinations in North America you’ll need to apply for an ESTA or eTA for the US and Canada respectively.
ESTA stands for Electronic System for Travel Authorization and is required for the 90 day visa waiver when UK citizens wish to travel to the US.
Here’s some background on how to apply - without the hassle - from our friends at e-Visa.
This Summer's Hottest Underwear
July 2021
Even though we have not seen the sun that much yet, the summer is here, and with all the freedom we are getting back we are loving it.
Drinks out, family visits and just enjoy the day-to-day more.
I am not sure about you but during lockdown I have neglected many things such as a good diet, exercising, cleaning and things like that. No one was going to notice anyway.
Summer is coming
May 2021
We are loving Spring at the moment and cannot wait for Summer to burst into action! Very much enjoying the beer gardens, outdoor catch ups and showing off our new haircuts!
For many going back to the gym is also a long-awaited source of happiness.
For me it is not so much a source of happiness but more necessity considering the number of take-outs I have managed to put into my body recently.
Seven Masturbation Tips For Men
April 2021
Contrary to popular belief, the male orgasm is not that simple. It is a complex process involving hormones, organs, and nerve pathways, resulting from sexual
activity (physical sensation) or arousal (cognitive awareness). If there's a hold-up somewhere along its process, it may be difficult or altogether
impossible to achieve orgasm.
Lockdown Valentine Adult Special!
February 2021
Early 2021 and we are still in lockdown, who would have thought that 12 months ago! It is driving us a little mad here at the esmale headquarters. Almost a year on an we are
still unable to move around the way we like and meet who we want when we want. We have lost out on so much fun and human contact.
The popper journey, you need to know
December 2021
These little bottles have been on quite a journey - both from a legal standpoint and from a formulation point of view.
After long and intense debates in the UK Parliament poppers were excluded from the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016.
This meant that a specific formulation could remain legally on sale for adults within the UK as the content is not psychoactive.
Major milestone in LGBTQ+ equality, EU
November 2020
Major milestone in LGBTQ+ equality for EU
EU countries that do not respect LGBTQI rights should face financial penalties, said Helena Dalli, the European commissioner for equality.
Gay sex summer of 2020
August 2020
My goodness what a summer! You can't do this, but you can do that... on no you can't... or can! Lots of that and more confusion was, and still is the theme of this summer.
Like many I have particularly been struggling with not having contact with those closed to me and zooming is only “fun” the first few times.
After that it became more of a reminder of how much I miss people rather than a good way to stay connected.
Esmale
May 2020
Now that we are all in lockdown I wanted to share some adult fun stuff to do indoor, I am lucky enough to work for esmale.com, one of the biggest online gay
lifestyle stores in the UK and have access to thousands of amazing gay sex toys and the hottest fashion and fetish gear.
Ultimate Guide to Butterflies
October 2019
Butterflies and moths have been around for millions of years. They used to be a common sight in gardens, but numbers have declined since the 1940s along with our other
native wildlife species such as bees and hedgehogs.
My coming out story
June 2018
I used to be very homophobic and had a very butch life. Coming out to me was not telling other people but admitting to myself that I was gay.
I had a very serious climbing incident on the Bonatti Pillar in the French Alps, that made me re-look at life.
No way was I going to live. I had two ways to die and gave myself 24 hours to choose how to die after being stuck alone 4,000M up a mountain
for 6 days, 4 days without food and water.
LGBTQ+ slang dictionary
May 2018 If you have always wanted to know what those slang words that every uses but where too shy to ask, or if you wanted to know where they came from then the gay dictionary is your answer
We have a total of 500 words listed.
LGBTQ+ slang dictionary
History of the Red Ribbon
April 2018
In the late 1980s, AIDS had been in the United States for almost a decade. AIDS became the number one killer of young men in New York City, then spread to
young men in the rest of the country.
New York artist Patrick O'Connel would spend days visiting friends in the hospital, going to funerals, and coming home to a panicked answering machine
message from friends who just learned they were sick.
O'Connel along with other 12 other Manhattan artists who formed the
Visual AIDS Artists Caucus
wished to create a visual symbol to demonstrate compassion for people living with AIDS and their caregivers.
Inspired by the yellow ribbons honouring American soldiers serving in the Gulf war, the colour red was chosen for its, "connection to blood and the
idea of passion, not only anger, but love, like a valentine." First worn publicly by Jeremy Irons at the 1991 Tony Awards the ribbon soon became
renowned as an international symbol of AIDS awareness.
History of the Gay Rainbow Flag
March 2018
Ever wondered about the history of the gay rainbow flag?
The first Rainbow Flag was designed in 1978 by Gilbert Baker, a San Francisco artist, who created the flag in response to a local activist's call for the need of a community
symbol. Baker designed a flag with eight stripes.
The number of stripes was later reduced to six. Blue replaced turquoise and pink and indigo were removed.
"It was quite hard to get hold of the hot pink material at the time," says Graham Bartram, chief vexillologist at the Flag Institute. "So it was discarded.
In those days you had to sew flags together out of existing materials rather than print them out, as happens now.
- Pink: Sexuality
- Red: Life
- Orange: Healing
- Yellow: Sunlight
- Green: Nature
- Turquoise: Art
- Indigo: Harmony
- Violet: Human spirit
Gay & LGBTQ+ flags
February 2018
Gilbert Baker designed the rainbow Pride flag for the 1978 San Francisco Gay Freedom Day celebration. The flag does not depict an actual rainbow. Rather, the colours of the rainbow are displayed as horizontal stripes.
If you have always wanted to know what all the gay & LGBTQ+ flags represent then this is your place to look.
Gay hanky codes
January 2018
The handkerchief code, the bandana code is a colour-coded system, employed usually among the gay male casual-sex seekers or BDSM practitioners,
to indicate preferred sexual fetishes, what kind of sex they are seeking, and whether they are a top/dominant or bottom/submissive.
If you have always wanted to know what those hanky's mean that are sticking out of guys and dolls
pockets but where to shy to ask, then the hanky codes is your answer.
