It was a harsh and quite homophobic environment there. Is it important to have gay bars? “Definitely, especially for young people,” said Nieminen. “I’m from the north of Finland,” explained Nieminen. You have to go to Plymouth,” laughed Evans. How does the scene in London compare to their hometowns? “Well Cornwall ain’t got nothing! They’ve got one gay bar.
“There was the Joiner’s Arms in Tower Hamlets,” said Nieminen, “that place was nice, but it’s gone now.” Over east there’s not a lot left,” said Evans. I think it’s mainly because of Soho, people just like to go out there. “There’s a visible decline in local gay bars. “Whitechapel is in the middle of a gentrification process. We experienced violence and being beaten up,” said Nieminen. It’s not a good area to live in as a gay couple. They both moved to London two years ago, met at a shoe shop on Carnaby Street and have been together even since. Sitting in the back corner, enjoying a Saturday night drink are Olli Nieminen, aged 25 from Finland and David Evans, aged 31 from Cornwall. We went in for a drink and were like ‘Oh, it’s a gay bar.’ Everyone’s having a great time, there’s disco music going on!” Pic: Alice Harroldĭavoll (pictured) was outside Superstore for a cigarette with his friends: “We didn’t realise this was a gay pub until we got here. Tom Davoll and Toby Razvi at Dalston Superstore. The LA, at 333 Old Street, rose to fame in the 1970s and 80s for its secret basement parties and celebrity patrons such as Jean-Paul Gautier, Marc Almond, Lily Savage, Sir Ian McKellen, and Freddie Mercury. The London Apprentice, which was once the hub of the Shoreditch gay scene, was rebranded into a ping pong bar in 2012. Most recent to shut was Oak Bar, a lesbian and gay bar in Stoke Newington, which closed down in May 2013. In 1996, at the peak of the Hackney scene, there were five gay bars in the borough – the London Apprentice on Old Street, the Kings Arms on Kingsland High Street, the Bull and Pump on Shoreditch High Street, and the the Mildmay and the Duke of Wellington on Ballspond Road. Hackney residents who want to go to an LGBTQ venue for nights out are increasingly having to go to central London to find gay bars. Follow the story to find out why this is happening and what it means for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community. ELL has mapped the decline of LGBTQ venues in our boroughs over the past 30 years from 1985 to 2015. Many beloved establishments have been lost and those that remain have had to adapt.
The number of local gay bars and pubs in east London is significantly decreasing. SAMBUCA TEQUILA SHOTS £ 1.Love Toilet Dalston Superstore. SAMBUCA TEQUILA SHOTS £ 1.00 1.50 after 12 pmĭrink offers Friday, HALF PRICE COCKTAILS UNTIL 11 PM WEDNESDAY- FRIDAY - SATURDAY, KEEP THE PARTY GOING, With top DJ’s the wonderful DJ Missy B and DJ Robby D they provide music suiting every ones taste from Dance, Pop,Top 40 Commercial hits, R’n’B, The Best Mixes and not for getting a few cheesy tunes put in for good measure generating a truly exciting atmosphere in Escape. Sweet aims to be the perfect environment for you all to dance the night away meet new friends and have a great time. With the new night attracting gay, bi trans, str8 you name it anything goes on this night this is a night where you can be who you want to be this is a night that is aimed at everyone who likes to Party as Clubbing used to be where the music and the socialising came first. We now plan to take our new night to an all-time high with the hottest party people in town. Sweet Saturdays is the number one new night that celebrates the beautiful and flawless. Join us every Saturday Night at the all new hot night Sweet here at Escape. Escape Bar Soho is proud to present Sweet our brand new Saturday night session for 2014.įor Boys who like Boys and Girls who like Girls!