"It's impossible to say how many firsts were had within the walls of G-A-Y Bar on Old Compton Street. An innumerable number of LGBTQ+ people, young and old, will have flocked there from far and wide over the years to have perhaps their first experience of a gay bar, maybe even their first alcoholic drink, as well as their first taste of a different, brighter, queerer life."
"The closure of G-A-Y Bar, after G-A-Y Late's closure in 2023, lays bare an issue that's been bubbling away for quite some time: London's LGBTQ+ venues are disappearing. In 2017, the University College London's Urban Labs reported that the number of LGBTQ+ venues in London had fallen by 58% between 2006 and 2017 from 125 to 53. A few years later, in early 2024, the number of LGBTQ+ venues had fallen by 61% from 2006, according to the Mayor of London."
"The economic realities of running a hospitality business don't discriminate with rises in National Insurance contributions and an increase in minimum wages among many of the increasing costs facing pubs, clubs and bars. "People don't have the disposable income to go out and spend so much," laments John Sizzle, the Managing Director of The Divine and formerly of The Glory and stalwart of the capital's LGBTQ+ nightlife scene."
G-A-Y Bar on Old Compton Street closed for the last time in early October, ending many years of late nights, gigs, and one-night affairs. G-A-Y Late closed in 2023. The number of LGBTQ+ venues in London fell from 125 in 2006 to 53 by 2017 (a 58% drop), and had fallen by 61% from 2006 by early 2024, according to the Mayor of London. Non-LGBTQ+ nightlife also faces decline, with predictions of a 50% reduction by 2030. Rising National Insurance, higher minimum wages, and other business costs strain pubs, clubs and bars. Younger people face high rents and limited disposable income to spend on nights out.
Read at PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news
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