Tina Leggs Tantrum

Gerard "Gerry" Walls better known as his stage name Tina Leggs Tantrum (born November 20, 1967)[1] is a Northern Irish Drag Queen, nightclub DJ, promoter and founder of the annual Opportunity Frocks event that takes place in Belfast, Northern Ireland. in 2001 Tina Leggs Tantrum, became the first and only Drag Queen from the North of Ireland, to take part in the Alternative Miss Ireland and win. Since winning Alternative Miss Ireland, Tina's success has continued to this day and is now a regular face at Belfast Pride Festival. In addition to regularly performing, Tina Leggs Tantrum is also a contributor and supporter[2] for Belfast Pride Festival and has helped raise over £20,000 with her annual event Opportunity Frocks.

Career

Tina Leggs Tantrum was "born" in Belfast and has been entertaining crowds for over 20 years.[3] As a self-taught professional dancer Tina Leggs Tantrum took to the stage for the first time and succumbed to cheers and claps. Tina has become a "tiny force" with a huge taste for cabaret, and putting it back into the Belfast gay scene and onwards.

Gerry spent many years stage managing Irelands most successful themed Friday night out at the M Club called the Groovy Train,[4] were he choreographed and performed, with eight dancers, two dj's with platforms and glamour at its height. Gerry left his role at the Groovy Train in 2009 when he took up the role at Viva Vaudeville with Tina as the star of the show. Tina performed every Friday night on the mezzanine with her dancers and provided a great show of entertainment and dance.

Tina's home remains, Ireland’s biggest & arguably the most famous gay venue,[5] The Kremlin and Union Street Pub. Tina performs shows in both venues weekly[6] and draws some of the best and biggest audiences in Belfast. His award winning show "The Sunday Bingo Show" is the biggest cabaret show in Ireland and continues to delight and draw crowds from all over the UK.[7]

The year 2008 brought a new wave of drag competition, the Next top Drag Queen competition, held in the Arta, Glasgow.[8] Tina was taking part in a one of a kind drag contest and won, after beating contestants from all over the UK. After winning the show, Tina was given the rights to the show and from this Opportunity Frocks was born. In 2009 Gerry auditioned for the UK series of Big Brother and attended auditions in Dublin[9]

In November 2015 Gerry appeared in issue 19 of the GNI Magazine,[10] as himself, raising awareness for Northern Ireland Chest Heart and Stroke by telling readers about the challenging time his mother had undergone open heart surgery.

In August 2016 Gerry was invited to appear live on BBC Radio Ulsters "New Voices" show. During the show he talked to the host Mairead about living his life as Tina Leggs Tantrum and gave listeners a peek into Tina's World.[11]

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "Gerard Martin Walls | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  2. ↑ "Supporters | Belfast Pride | Diverse – Equal – Proud". www.belfastpride.com. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  3. ↑ "The Host | Tina Leggs Tantrum | Opportunity Frocks". www.opfrocks.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  4. ↑ "Night Life: Groovy Train at the M Club (Friday nights) - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk". Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  5. ↑ "Kremlin Online". www.kremlin-belfast.com. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  6. ↑ "Union Street - Entertainment". www.unionstreetbar.com. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  7. ↑ "Sunday IS SUCH A DRAG ; UNIQUE SHOW BELFAST CABARET WITH A DIFFERENCE Meet the Four Fellas Who Dress Up to Be Weekend Bingo Queens". 2012-12-09.
  8. ↑ "What the frock | Opportunity Frocks". www.opfrocks.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  9. ↑ "Granny battles with wannabes for Big Brother". Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  10. ↑ "GNI MAG Issue 19". Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  11. ↑ "Life In Drag - Gerry Walls, 26/07/2016, New Voices - BBC Radio Ulster". BBC. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  12. ↑ "I just wanna take the time to say thank... - Gerard Martin Walls | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
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