British Heterosexual Again Denied Civil Partnership, New York State Senator Duane Leads Act Of Civil Disobedience Protesting Veto Of HIV/AIDS Bill, Hannah Williams Told She Cannot Escort Girlfriend To Formal Switches High Schools, Kristian Digby, Darren Criss Says His Glee Character Blaine A “Tom Ford-ish” Guy, Chris Pine

Once again, a heterosexual couple in the United Kingdom have been denied a civil partnership, the Associated Press reporting that Tom Freeman and Katherine Doyle, both 26 years old, were turned away from the Islington registry office (north of London) Tuesday morning, but said that they were now going to initiate legal action. The couple, who applied for and were denied a civil partnership earlier this year, are part of a campaign challenging the ban on both same sex marriage and opposite sex civil partnerships –t he campaign titled Equal Love, organized by gay rights activist Peter Tatchell, who said “We think it’s time there was one law for everyone. Denying heterosexual couples the right to have a civil partnership is heterophobic.”

New York State Senator Tom Duane and the heads of a number of area AIDS organisations were arrested Tuesday after committing an act of civil disobedience to call attention to a housing bill vetoed earlier this year by Governor David Paterson; a bill that would have insured those living with HIV/AIDS to be considered low-wage earners would spend no more than 30-percent of their monthly salary on rent, reports WNYC. Advocates argue that the bill would affect an estimated 10,000 individuals living in New York City. The group staged a die-in in front of City Hall, holding up traffic for at least ten minutes before being arrested. Paterson vetoed the bill, originally sponsored by Duane, at the behest of Mayor Bloomberg, who said it was not financially feasible. Duane is among a number of politicians and AIDS groups urging the governor to reverse the veto before the end of the year.

The parents of 16 year old Hannah Williams filed a formal complaint with Australia’s Equal Opportunities Commission in September, the Sydney Morning Herald reporting that young woman was told by an all-girls’ school – the Ivanhoe Girl’s Grammar – that she could not escort her 15 year old girlfriend to a dinner dance, the school requesting that she instead bring a male. Peter Williams alleges that the school discriminated against his daughter because of her sexual orientation, saying “The school kept saying because it is an all-girls’ school we want to make an event where they can meet boys in a social scenario. The process is anachronistic and creates feelings of discrimination among girls who are same sex attracted.” After the complaint was filed ,Mr. Williams met with the school, but the two parties failed to reach a resolution. Instead of continue to campaign for their daughter’s rights, Hannah transferred to another school, Swinburne Senior Secondary College, which allows same sex couples to attend school dances.

The BBC reports that an inquest Monday in London ruled that 32 year old openly gay television presenter Kristian Digby died by misadventure. According to the court documents, Digby accidentally suffocated during a solo sex act. He was discovered by a friend of his partner March 1st, 2010.

Darren Criss, who made an impressive debut earlier Tuesday on Glee as the openly gay Blaine, tells Vanity Fair that his character is best described as “very Tom Ford-ish. He’s very charismatic, put-together, composed guy. Gay. But I wouldn’t say he’s overly queeny, and not too butch either. He’s just very ... composed. The fact that he’s gay isn’t at the forefront of who he is. It is in terms of who he is personally, yes, but in terms of how people perceive him, it seems very matter of fact. And it’s introduced almost as a superfluous part of who he is. Obviously it’s not. It’s a huge part of who he is. But in terms of how he wishes to be perceived, it’s not a huge part.”

A sizzling Chris Pine graces the cover of the second weekly edition of The Hollywood Reporter, Pine purportedly redefining what an A-List actor is.