A Manc's gui to: the Gay Village, more than jt a party district

Contents:

• A MANC’S GUI TO: THE GAY VILLAGE, MORE THAN JT A LATE-NIGHT PARTY DISTRICT
• GAY MANCHTER GUI | AN LGBTQIA+ GUI TO MANCHTER
• JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT
• CLONEZONE: REWARD OFFERED OVER GAY VILLAGE SHOP ATTACKS
• GAY VILLAGE
• GAY PARTI & EVENTS
• MANCHTER GAY DANCE CLUBS & PARTI
• GAY MANCHTER MANCHTER CY GUI
• MANCHTER GAY BARS

A MANC’S GUI TO: THE GAY VILLAGE, MORE THAN JT A LATE-NIGHT PARTY DISTRICT

Adam* said was dangero to e out as gay his home untry and feared beg forced to an arranged marriage wh a said he was "so lucky" to wed his soulmate, Ray, Manchter and wish everyone uld marry who they love.

GAY MANCHTER GUI | AN LGBTQIA+ GUI TO MANCHTER

There are more than 60 untri wh laws that crimalise same-sex sexual acts acrdg to the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associatn, cludg Sdi Arabia.

'Authentilly myself'Ray said he had also stggled growg up gay the 1970s and 80s England, which was "tough" said his relig school "dmmed to you, 'you are gog to hell'" Adam returned home to Sdi Arabia, spe beg more than 3, 000 apart and later rtricted by the Covid-19 panmic, they kept touch daily and the romance years ago, Ray proposed on a vio ll and after succsfully applyg for a UK fiancé visa, Adam moved to Manchter December 2022.

Adam said he had been aaid to even wear lours his home untry so the first thg he did when he moved was start to "grow my mullet, got my ears pierced and booked appotments for tattoos" relled how, ntrast, one of his gay iends Sdi had been forced to marry a woman, addg: "It has ed not only his life but the life of his wife. The uple, who live London, said a "really betiful memory" was on the way home when one of their sons shouted out of the black b wdow to Trafalgar Square, "My dads jt got married" and cheered "Yay, gay marriage". The Sixth Commandment9pm, BBC OneTimothy Spall stars this dark drama by Sarah Phelps based on the horrifyg real-life se of Peter Farquhar, an elrly, eply closeted gay amic who was sced, exploed and eventually murred by too-good-to-be-te stunt Ben Field (Éanna Hardwicke).

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS ASSISTANT COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

Known for s late-night clubs and cheap drks als, the Gay Village is popular wh Manchter partygoers - but there's more gog on behd the scen. Today, Manchter’s Gay Village is a verable party district. The neighbourhood has weled a gay clientele sce the 1940s, but, by all acunts, ’s only the past twenty years or so that thgs have really started to turn a rner, spe homosexualy beg crimalised 1967.

An excerpt om Mancunian Gay magaze 1984 tled ‘Not tonight, Anrton’ tells the story of how one night 20 pla cloth officers stormed to Napoleons and forced everyone attendance to provi their personal rmatn before beg allowed to leave – an cint that was later brand as “an obv se of police victimisatn” a prs release issued by the Gay Centre. In spe of this, the first Gay Pub and Club Olympics event (now thought of as the gural Manchter Pri) still went ahead on the Augt Bank Holiday weekend of 1985.

CLONEZONE: REWARD OFFERED OVER GAY VILLAGE SHOP ATTACKS

Notably, had the support of a new generatn of Labour uncillors elected 1984 – who gave the gay muny their support and appoted Lbian and Gay officers.

GAY VILLAGE

Inspired by Ken Livgstone‘s early days on the Greater London Council, those new uncillors created an Equal Opportuni Commtee and appoted Maggie Turner and Pl Fairweather what would prove a landmark move for gay rights the north of England. 1986 saw thgs gradually improve for the muny, as uncillors’ ‘put their arms around’ the gay muny, welg a Northern Pri event 1986 and ntributg public funds towards the celebratns. As the ’80s ntued, Manchter’s fight for gay rights ntued wh the Sectn 28 march 1988 actg as a huge turng pot as the Thatcher ernment’s dranian legislatn brought people out onto the streets to prott their drov.

Still, wasn’t until the early neti that the Gay Village weled s first openly-gay bar and even then police raids the area ntued right up to 1994.

GAY PARTI & EVENTS

The battl agast stutnal homophobia were still beg fought, clearly, and some ntued to ll the Canal Street area ‘Satan’s Square Mile’ – but the openg of new nightclubs like Cz 101 and semal events Electric Chair and Poptastic saw the muny phg back. Repurposed at the end of the Indtrial Revolutn to a gay quarter that has sce bee one of the most famo the world, Manchter has a lot of thgs to be proud of – and the village is fely up there wh the bt. Habha – A hidn foodie gem the heart of the gay village, the Ethpian rtrant Habha ss above a pretty n-of-the-l takeaway and is que easy to miss.

Read more: The Ethpian rtrant hidn above a takeaway Manchter’s gay village.

MANCHTER GAY DANCE CLUBS & PARTI

Napoleons – The olst gay pub the neighbourhood, Napoleon’s dat all the way back to 1941 and provis a safe space for trans people, crossdrsers and drag queens.

Churchills – Somethg of an stutn the Gay Village, Churchills always has a buzz about .

GAY MANCHTER MANCHTER CY GUI

Vanilla – The only lbian venue an unniably gay-domated neighbourhood, Vanilla is probably more nightclub than bar. Cz 101 – This gay nightclub an old textile warehoe is ready to party seven days a week, wh a range of different nights playg everythg om cuttg-edge hoe to mercial floor-fillers and 80s, 90s and 00s classics. New York New York – From cktails the glam Queens Bar, to live baret, DJ sets and dancg ’til late the club, ‘Party Palace’ NYNY is open to party seven nights a week A safe, iendly, welg space for all, ’s sat the heart of the Gay Village for over thirty years.

Osrs – This timate, theatre-style gay bar shows film clips om a mix of classic and morn mils and offers live mic om sgers and pianists on selected nights.

MANCHTER GAY BARS

The Eagle – This popular men-only gay club gets packed wh guys, all of whom pretty much e for a siar thg.

G-A-Y – A lbian and gay club known for blastg out the pop tun to the early hours, G-A-Y is one of the big fol pots of Canal Street and really is somewhere you n’t avoid endg up if you’re on a night out there. Read more: Photos of Manchter’s legendary gay clubnight Flh go on display at Kimpton Clocktower. The home of Manchter Pri sce 1985, every year visors flock to the Gay Village their thoands to party the streets and celebrate love all s forms across the Augt Bank Holiday weekend.

From The Bean of Hope, a symbol of solidary and memorial to everyone lost to HIV that was first nceived 1997, to the 2001 bronze statue of Manchter putg legend and gay in Alan Turg, head over to Sackville Garns to get your culture and nature fix one.