CHARLIE CONDOU CONFIDENTIAL: CHARLIE CONDOU

DA GODFATHER

KlassMyleene: My baby's christening. Thank you to my friends and family for the most magical day x

laurenlaverne: @KlassMyleene Properly magical day. Thank you so much for making me the luckiest Godmum in the world! Xxx

KlassMyleene: @laurenlaverne thank YOU for being the bestest fairy Godmother. We're lucky to have you. Xx

Charliecondou: @KlassMyleene @laurenlaverne I wish you were MY godmother

laurenlaverne: @Charliecondou @KlassMyleene I think we can arrange this. MK is Godmum to my two and she's The Best.

FRIDAY

Shmouise: Was in the green room today. Missed loads of you though @Charliecondou @ryanjamesthomas @BrookeLVincent @msm4rsh

Charliecondou: @Shmouise @ryanjamesthomas @BrookeLVincent @msm4rsh what time?? We were all there!

Shmouise: @Charliecondou @ryanjamesthomas @BrookeLVincent @msm4rsh came in at about 2. Sliding doors...

"FOLLOW FRIDAY"

reallorraine: #ff @MattBarbet @Lauratobin1 @JohnBoweActor @JohnStapletonTV @WinceyWillis1 @VADundee @BusyDillo @Gary__11 @Charliecondou @SarahMillican75

HELLO FRIDAY

lane_paula: Wine! Hello Friday I'm very pleased to see you!

lane_paula: Cleaning on a Friday #rockandroll

Charliecondou: @lane_paula cleaning AND drinking. I saw your snapchat

A DOC WITH DISTINCTION

Nicki_GoodGirl: @Charliecondou Hows tricks? My fab students who you so kindly helped by being apart of the doc gained Distinctions for the qual. Thank you!

Charliecondou: @Nicki_GoodGirl ah that's brilliant, send my congratulations! How are you?? X

Nicki_GoodGirl: @Charliecondou will do x all well here thanks! Having fun trying to juggle family life and work. Sound familiar?? :) xxx

KIMBERLY HUGHES GOES PURPLE

Charlie Condou is one of the patrons of The Albert Kennedy Trust Purple Door Project

Edited from the blog by Kimberly Hughes:

http://www.swoonworthy.co.uk/p/about-me.html

I've been involved in a little 'design' work on the side for a charity called The Albert Kennedy Trust. I first read about the project back in late February on Andrew Dunning's blog where he talked about his firm's involvement in the London arm of this amazing initiative. All he had to say was that there was a similar project that was soon to take place in Manchester and I knew I wanted to get involved somehow.

The living room in the Manchester house.

But before I get into my own involvement, you might be wondering what the Albert Kennedy Trust is, what the Purple Door Project is and why exactly I wanted to get involved. The Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT) is now in its 23rd year and it's a service that supports young Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) people who have been forced from their homes because of their sexuality, offering shelter, mentoring and care. The Purple Door Project is a ground-breaking housing initiative - the first of its type - especially for LGBT young people between the ages of 16 and 25 who have been forced from their homes and are living rough or are living in hostile environments.

One of the bedrooms

The project consists of two housing initiatives, one in London and one in Greater Manchester. AKT Chief Executive Tim Sigsworth said: “Despite ten years of progressive legislation which has enabled young LGBT people to feel more confident to come out at an early age – we are still seeing several hundred young people each year coming to us facing issues such as homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, domestic violence, forced marriage and bullying. Mainstream housing services do not provide the focused, comprehensive and tailored support that these young people need, and demand for our services has risen by 30 per cent in recent years. With the launch of Purple Door, we can now help more of these young people and we are immensely grateful to our partners, donors and supporters for making this day happen.”

In Greater Manchester, AKT has worked in partnership with Threshold and the New Charter Housing Group to open a four-bedroom 6-12 month supported housing project, which is the first in the northwest exclusively for LGBT young people. While Andrew's firm APD assisted with the interior design scheme of the London House, when I spoke to the charity, it turned out that they didn't have any help of the same kind for the Manchester house. While I'm obviously not an interior designer like Andrew, I was happy to volunteer and hoped my experience and DIY skill set might lend itself in some way to make this refuge a welcoming home for these young people.

You might wonder why, as a heterosexual, I wanted to get involved. Well, some of my very best, very closest mates in the whole world - people I consider practically family - are gay and lesbian. Their stories of coming out to their friends and family and the stories of those I've met through them are harrowing at times. That such prejudice and ill information still exists today is testament to the fact that there's still work to be done in educating people about the LGBT community: that they are human, that they want to be loved and share that love, that they have every right to carry on a relationship with whomever they wish without the judgement or prejudice of others just the same as you or I do. It's something I feel incredibly strongly about. So, over the last couple of months, I've supported the project by creating mood boards, providing advice on sourcing items, recommended paint colours and furniture and got in touch with a host of companies to see if I could get donations of much-needed items. I even hung the wallpaper in the kitchen (by myself! That was a proud day.). The budget was tiny and the time frame was just as small. They had a waiting list and this house needed to be done quickly. Sadly, not every company I contacted wanted to help. But I couldn't have been more thrilled that my own company, Appliances Online donated a desperately needed cooker. They also allowed me a couple of paid days off work to assist with the project. Not only that, but the lovely people of Graham and Brown donated wallpaper and wall art to the project which gave the whole place a young, cool vibe. I couldn't be more proud to have been involved in this project. The volunteers and the charity worked so hard to make this space an incredibly warm environment to help these young people in such a short period of time with the constraints of a tight budget. But they don't just provide a warm bed and a lovely home. The Purple Door project also helps young people find their way into education, employment and training, and equips them with the skills they need to live independently through a tenancy training program.

Charlie Condou, who joined the AKT as a patron last year said: “The AKT already does such incredible work with LGBT youth but the opening of the Purple Door House marks the start of a new and exciting era for us. “We are now able to offer young homeless LGBT people immediate refuge, and this is largely down to fundraising and donations." The Purple Door Project has been funded exclusively through individual donations and corporate sponsorship – with no public money involved. As a final thought... when I went to take the pictures of the Manchester house once it was completed, I met one of the young people as she was moving in. When she asked why I was there, I explained I'd helped with some of the interior design in the house. She gave me a huge smile and squealed, 'Ohhh it's SO LOVELY!' - I have never felt more joy and satisfaction than in that moment!

If you would like to be part of helping AKT build and extend the reach of AKT's services to more LGBT young people facing homelessness please visit www.give15.org to donate.

If you want to see pictures of the rather fabulous London house, you can see it on AKT's Facebook page.

I FAILED DRAMA

JackPShepherd88: Well done to anyone who passed their exams, and don't worry to anyone who failed. Not the end of the world...I should know, I failed Drama.

Charliecondou: Nobody is surprised RT @JackPShepherd88: Well done to anyone who passed their exams, and don't worry to anyone who failed. I failed Drama.

Gatz77: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 #awkward
Jettco

Jettco: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 Ah!....thought so !! :) x

RhianwenDaley77: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 #awks

DeeeeeeLite: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 Yet, probably the best actor on the Street. The way he engages with the camera is astonishing. Huge respect.

leedee88: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 well your both amazing actors hope neither of you ever leave corrie

chantellemc11: @Charliecondou I failed many things, pick yourself up :) when the time is right you will do it...I'm a teaching assistant now :) its fab! :)

lyndjwright: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 that's funny

clarkhexham: @Charliecondou @JackPShepherd88 I failed RE. (daughter of a Methodist ) ha ha ha

NO PROBS

Eley01: @Charliecondou: I'm really sorry charlie, I sent the 2 photos I sent you for signing again, which I received today, I'm really sorry x

Charliecondou: @Eley01 no problem at all x

HERE ARE SOME MORE THOUGHTS ON EXAMS

CoryGilmore1: Exams aren't everything

jamster83: Don't stress your A Level results, I failed my exams and look where I am this morning, in a skip behind Tesco fighting a tramp for a bagel.

johnprescott: To all #ALevel students. The reason why the media says exams are easier is they can't accept YOU are brighter than THEM! #PrezzAlevels

AssedBaig: Comprehensive schools now focus on passing exams not educating. There is a difference between education and schooling #Alevels

jameswharton: Congrats on #ALevel results day. If you've not got any or done less than expected, don't worry too much... I have none and I'm doing OK.

OfficialVernonK: If you messed up your Alevels, so did I, watch the vids by @sulibreaks The future is bright.

jonnot: To all those waiting on #ALevels exam results today, remember - Pitbull rhymed 'Kodak' with 'Kodak' and he's still a millionaire #resultsday

SirThomasWynne: I WAS A TEACHER FOR 36 YEARS AND I COULD CARE LESS ABOUT EXAMS. I STILL DON'T GET THE CONCEPT OF "PASS" AND "FAIL" IN MY EYES WE ALL PASS - TOM IN OZ

I FOLLOWED EVERYONE FROM CORRIE

laurenloughman: Being a psycho just followed everyone I could find from #corrie

laurenloughman: @Charliecondou if you don't tweet back I'm going to stand outside your home and cut my wrist!

Charliecondou: @laurenloughman please don't!

FROM SOMEWHERE

OVER THE RAINBOW

- IN OZ -

THE PROJECT

SirThomasWynne: @theprojecttv wonderful television great presenters ... most nights I cry with laughter or sometimes cry depending on the story #bless

theprojecttv: @SirThomasWynne aww thanks

SirThomasWynne: @theprojecttv you're welcome x

GET INVOLVED

Confidential_CC: Get personally involved - #SUPPORT THE RUSSIAN LGBT COMMUNITY - http://charlie-corrie-condou.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/charlie-condou-no812.html

ThisisElectric_: @Confidential_CC actually we are loving the rebirth of activism in the gay community. It's refreshing and heart-warming

Confidential_CC: @ThisisElectric_ I'm a grandpa and I hope no grandchild or descendant of mine will ever have to face discrimination or torture. #getinvolved

JUDGEMENT DAY