Gay's The Word | The UK's Olst LGBT+ Bookshop | London, England

Contents:

•  GAY'S THE WORD 
• GAY’S THE WORD – LONDON’S INIC QUEER BOOKSTORE NTU TO THRIVE
• LONDON’S BOOKSHOPS: GAY’S THE WORD
• A BOOK LOVERS PRI: FOR ALMOST 40 YEARS, GAY’S THE WORD HAS BROUGHT LGBT+ LERATURE TO THE STREETS OF BLOOMSBURY
• GAY’S THE WORD – LONDON’S INIC QUEER BOOKSTORE CONTU TO THRIVE
• GAY'S THE WORD
• CELEBRATG 40 YEARS OF GAY’S THE WORD, LONDON’S GLOR LGBTQ BOOKSHOP

 GAY'S THE WORD 

Fictn, Nonfictn, Young Adult Fictn, Classics, Poetry, Plays, Rare Books, Comg Out, pl Gay's The Word and LGSM merchandise. Gay's The WordWant an alternative to Amazon? Gay’s The Word is an LGBTQ bookstore London – you’ll fd Bloomsbury.

When was Gay’s The Word tablished?

Inspired by the emergence and growth of lbian and gay bookstor the Uned Stat, a small group of people om Gay Icebreakers – a gay socialist group – found Gay’s The Word 1979. When the shop was found 1979, gay books were not generally available mastream bookstor – you had to source them om specialist publishers via mail-orr, generally om the US. Origally om Harrow, jt outsi of London, Peter Dorey and Ernt Hole were the origal founrs and owners of Gay’s The Word.

GAY’S THE WORD – LONDON’S INIC QUEER BOOKSTORE NTU TO THRIVE

Why was Gay’s The Word raid by the police?

LONDON’S BOOKSHOPS: GAY’S THE WORD

In 1984, Ctoms and Excise thori – assumg the shop to be a porn store – mounted a large-sle raid of Gay’s The Word. What’s the future for Gay’s The Word? While the store’s origal owners have moved on, Gay’s The Word ntu to play a val role wh the LGBTQ muny London and beyond.

Why is Gay’s The Word more than a bookstore?

As well as books, Gay’s The Word had a fe at the back wh muny notice boards and space for var groups to meet. The groups that met at the store clud a lbian discsn group, a gay black group, and Irish gays London. As showsed the film Pri, Lbians and Gays Support the Mers ed to meet at the bookshop and llect money for the strikg mers – this was durg the mg strik of 1984-85.

A BOOK LOVERS PRI: FOR ALMOST 40 YEARS, GAY’S THE WORD HAS BROUGHT LGBT+ LERATURE TO THE STREETS OF BLOOMSBURY

Fd out more about Gay’s The Word. We kick off wh Gay’s The Word, who gave so many fantastic remendatns for our onle #LGBTHero feature, created to celebrate LGBT History Month Febary 2017.

GAY’S THE WORD – LONDON’S INIC QUEER BOOKSTORE CONTU TO THRIVE

Loted Bloomsbury, Gay’s The Word was found on 17 January 1979 by members of Gay Icebreakers, who were spired by the growth of lbian and gay bookstor the USA. More than jt a bookshop, Gay’s The Word has been ed as a safe space for members of the LGBT+ muny, which they n meet, share ias, hold meetgs and wily publicise LGBT+ events happeng across the untry. The 2014 film Pri, directed by Matthew Warch, specifilly highlighted how the shop served as a meetg place for Lbian and Gays Support the Mers  London the 1980s.

Aliya Gulamani: To date, Gay’s The Word is the only specifilly lbian and gay bookshop the UK – how do this make you feel?

GAY'S THE WORD

Gay’s the Word was the first and today is the last standg lbian and gay book specialist. I n the bookshop wh my lleague Jim MacSweeney, who has been at Gay’s the Word for 27-ish years. Runng events is sort of like pilotg a homosexual Tardis, you uld end up anywhere – 70s New York, Geian London, a queer ter-speci romance the distant future – anywhere.

Recent events this year’s have clud: Fightg Proud: The Story of Gay Men Who Served WWI & WWII, Bold Strok Lbian Fictn Prose Slam: One Night, Five Authors!, Not Guilty – A New Oral History, Trans Like Me wh CN Lter, Pri & Joy – A Gui for LGBT Parents, A Queer Ltle History of Art by Alex Pilcher, Spacegirl P Relnch Party, Jefey Weeks & VG Lee – History Month Event, Queer Domtici wh Matt Cook, and readgs om Rosie Wilby, Sylvia Brownrigg, Neil Bartlett, Rosie Garland, Jake Arnott and Tim Murphy. Jim MacSweeney and Uli Lenart outsi Gay’s The Word loted at 66 Marchmont Street London. I’m really lookg forward to the publitn of The Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollghurst and Logil Fay, the first memoir by gay thor and in Armistead Mp.

Aliya: Que a few famo fac have vised Gay’s The Word over the years – are there any that are pecially memorable and why? Aliya: Of urse, Gay’s The Word is more than a bookstore – has a very strong sense of muny.

CELEBRATG 40 YEARS OF GAY’S THE WORD, LONDON’S GLOR LGBTQ BOOKSHOP

Uli: The GTW Lbian Discsn Group meets every Wednday om London LGBT Bookgroup meets monthly at Gay’s the Word. As the staff n cheerfully attt, tears are a mon occurrence on the shop floor at the Bloomsbury LGBT+ bookstore Gay’s the Word. I was well-versed the ia of gay pri, if not yet s practice.

Though I’d schooled myself hard the night-time pursus of the thrillg gay diss back home, a daylight claratn felt like a step too far. "That buried memory of an abily to walk to a gay book shop, curated at least part specifilly wh me md, was one of many that me tumblg back while recently workg on Good As You, the book I wrote about 30 years of gay Bra, om Bronski Beat’s gay anthem ‘Smalltown Boy’ to same-sex marriage. If I was to try and unrstand how gay men had turned om enemi to iends of the state between 1984 and 2014 — om beg shunned to beg celebrated — I need to unrstand what that tumultuo time had done to me, 20 years of livg London, Gay’s the Word has now turned to somethg like an old iend.

Gay clubs and pubs have e and gone sce I moved to the metropolis but Gay’s the Word has remaed, like a favoure pair of pyjamas or the schoolteacher you once harboured a secret csh on. "That’s why Gay’s the Word’s viabily is so ccial. "While the rporate world will splatter rabow signia over shop wdows this weekend durg the Pri event, Gay’s the Word ntu the good fight for clivy, equaly and visibily all year round, wavg s pk triangl toward the Wt End.