Your daily LGBTQIA+ news podcast for Australia. Rainbow Briefing brings you the queer news that matters, Monday to Friday.
Headlines for Monday 2nd Feb, 2026:
- More than 13,500 people march through St Kilda for Midsumma Pride March — Premier Allan says equality is not negotiable
- Council of Europe passes trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices — pressure mounts on Australia
- Tributes pour in for Catherine O’Hara — the Schitt’s Creek star who gave us Moira Rose and one of TV’s most beautiful queer moments
- Sydney crowns its Heated Rivalry lookalikes at the Imperial Hotel
- TasPride Festival launches with month-long celebrations across Tasmania
Rainbow Briefing is produced and recorded on Yugambeh and Yuggera land. Sovereignty was never ceded. We pay respect to Elders past, present, and emerging, and extend that respect to all First Nations LGBTQIA+ people, including Sistergirls and Brotherboys.
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Hi, I’m Louise Poole, and this is the Rainbow Briefing for Monday the 2nd of February.
Your daily LGBTQIA+ news catchup.
Recorded and produced on Yugambeh and Yuggera land.
Where stories have been told for thousands of years.
Sovereignty was never ceded.
I pay my respects to Elders past and present,
and honour the strength and storytelling that continues today.
More than thirteen thousand people marched through the streets of St Kilda yesterday for the Midsumma Pride March — one of the biggest events on the Australian pride calendar.
An estimated twenty thousand spectators lined the route as Dykes on Bikes led the march through Melbourne.
The march is a highlight of the Midsumma Festival, Victoria’s major LGBTQIA+ arts and culture celebration, which runs until Saturday the 8th of February.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan joined the march, telling reporters the state will continue to strengthen laws protecting queer communities.
She said ultra-right politicians in Australia and around the world are using this moment to strike out against queer people — and that in Victoria, equality is not negotiable.
Midsumma chief executive Karen Bryant said the festival’s theme — “time and place” — reflects the critical juncture facing LGBTQIA+ communities internationally.
She said the march was about visibility and solidarity — standing up for communities facing increased hate and discrimination, both overseas and here at home.
The Council of Europe has voted to ban conversion practices — and importantly, the ban is trans-inclusive.
The Council of Europe is a human rights body made up of forty-six countries across the continent — separate from the European Union.
Its resolutions aren’t legally binding, but they carry significant weight and put pressure on member countries to act.
The resolution passed last Thursday with seventy-one votes in favour, twenty-six against, and two abstentions.
It calls on member states to prohibit practices that attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
The vote went ahead despite lobbying from anti-trans groups who tried to have trans people excluded from the protections.
Advocates are now calling on the UK government to follow through on its own promised ban — first pledged in 2018 but still not delivered.
In Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and the ACT have all banned conversion practices — but there’s still no national legislation.
Tributes have been pouring in for Catherine O’Hara, who died over the weekend at the age of seventy-one.
O’Hara was beloved by LGBTQIA+ audiences for her unforgettable role as Moira Rose in Schitt’s Creek — the fabulous, wig-obsessed former soap star in a show that gave us something radical: a family that just… accepted their queer kid. No drama. No arc. Just love. O’Hara delivered one of the most beautiful queer moments in television history, when her character Moira officiated her pansexual son David, and Patrick’s wedding in the series finale.
In a media landscape full of coming-out trauma, Schitt’s Creek showed us what unconditional family love looks like.
Dan Levy, who played David and co-created the series with his father Eugene, said it’s hard to imagine a world without Catherine in it.
He called working with her “a gift” — and said he would cherish every funny memory he was fortunate enough to make with her.
O’Hara won an Emmy for the role in 2020. She’s also remembered for Home Alone, Beetlejuice, and most recently The Studio.
If you’ve been anywhere near queer social media lately, you’ll know Heated Rivalry is everywhere.
The HBO series is based on Rachel Reid’s romance novel of the same name — part of her Game Changers series, which has been a fan favourite for years.
The show follows Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov — two closeted ice hockey players on rival teams who fall in love while hiding their relationship from the sport.
It’s become a phenomenon since premiering in December — and Australia is fully on board.
On Saturday night, Sydney crowned its official lookalikes for the show’s two leads.
The competition drew huge crowds to the Imperial Hotel in Erskineville, after the original outdoor event was shut down by council for not having a permit.
Winners Eduardo and Sean took home trophies, cash, and gift vouchers.
The Hollander winner dedicated his victory to — and I quote — “all the Asian bottoms out there.”
TasPride’s Summer Festival is officially underway, with the Pride flag raised at Hobart Town Hall on Friday.
The month-long celebration runs statewide throughout February, with the Pride Parade and Party in the Park on Saturday the 14th.
Other highlights include Pride Film Fest screenings touring from Burnie to the Huon Valley, a Queer History Walk with Rodney Croome and Martine Delaney, and Judy’s Pride Ball.
Full program at taspride.com.
That’s the Rainbow Briefing for Monday the 2nd of February.
This is independent queer community media, and your support is crucial to its success.
Share the bulletin, tell your community, and if you’ve got news to share, head to rainbowbriefing.com.au.
Key stories in this briefing:
13,000 march at Midsumma Pride March — More than 13,000 people marched through St Kilda for the Midsumma Pride March, with an estimated 20,000 spectators lining the route. Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said equality is not negotiable and the state will continue strengthening protections for queer communities.
Council of Europe votes to ban conversion practices — The Council of Europe has passed a trans-inclusive resolution banning conversion practices, with 71 votes in favour. The vote passed despite lobbying from anti-trans groups. In Australia, NSW, Victoria, SA, and the ACT have banned conversion practices but there is no national legislation.
Catherine O’Hara dies at 71 — Catherine O’Hara, beloved for her role as Moira Rose in Schitt’s Creek, has died. She won an Emmy for the role in 2020 and is remembered for portraying a mother whose unconditional acceptance of her pansexual son became a landmark moment in queer television.
Sydney crowns Heated Rivalry lookalike winners — Sydney’s Imperial Hotel in Erskineville hosted an official lookalike competition for the leads of HBO’s Heated Rivalry, drawing large crowds after the original outdoor event was shut down by council for not having a permit.
TasPride Summer Festival underway — TasPride’s Summer Festival has officially launched with the Pride flag raised at Hobart Town Hall. The month-long celebration runs statewide throughout February, with the Pride Parade and Party in the Park on February 14th.