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

Contents:

•  GAY'S THE WORD 
• GAY’S THE WORD: SI ENGLAND’S ONLY LGBTQ BOOKSHOP
• CELEBRATG 40 YEARS OF GAY’S THE WORD, LONDON’S GLOR LGBTQ BOOKSHOP
• GAY'S THE WORD: LONDON'S LGBTQ+ BOOKSHOP THAT'S 'LIKE FAY'
• GAY'S THE WORD: TRIBUT PAID TO PETER DOREY WHO OPENED FIRST LGBTQ+ BOOKSHOP
• MY FAVOURE PENNT BOOKSHOP: GAY'S THE WORD, LONDON
• GAY'S THE WORD (BOOKSHOP)
• GAY'S THE WORD (BOOKSHOP)
• GAY'S THE WORD (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?

Four s on — This week marks the 40th anniversary of Gay’s The Word, a UK stutn that fought police raids, prejudice and censorship to bee a hub of social activism.

GAY’S THE WORD: SI ENGLAND’S ONLY LGBTQ BOOKSHOP

Thursday 17 January, 2019Text by Patrick O’ConnellPhotography by Patrick O’Connell / Gay’s The WordUnassumgly sandwiched between a phone repair shop and a fé, Gay’s The Word has stood steadfastly on Bloomsbury’s Marchmont Street for 40 UK’s first LGBTQ bookshop has managed to outlive all s fellows – cludg Edburgh’s Wt and Wil, Brighton’s Out, and Charg Cross Road’s Silver Moon – which have all fallen victim to the enomic prsur pennt bs so often face. As a rult, Gay’s The Word is one of only two extant queer bookshops the untry.

The uncil were reluctant to let the space to a gay tablishment – part due to an assumptn was a prank, given Ernt’s surname. “They said would be a porn bookshop bee that’s what gay bookshops were those days, ” says manager Jim MacSweeney, who has worked there sce 1989. “Our very first ads said: ‘London’s ser gay book shop is now open.

’”Over the years, Gay’s The Word has bee a val muny rource. “It threw up lots of notns around inty, of what meant to be gay, ” remembers MacSweeney.

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

Early Pri mte were anised om s fé, while gay socialist group Icebreakers and the Gay Black Group – the first of s kd the UK – were formed after meetg the shop. ) In 1984, Gay’s The Word also beme home to Lbians and Gays Support the Mers (LGSM), a socialist fundraisg group assistg the mers’ strike efforts. In 1984, HM Ctoms and Excise raid Gay’s The Word, seizg s imported stock unr the pretext that obscene works were beg sold, and brgg crimal charg agast the staff and directors.

GAY'S THE WORD: LONDON'S LGBTQ+ BOOKSHOP THAT'S 'LIKE FAY'

But unlike obsceny laws, which grant publishers fence exceptns for artistic mer, ctoms seizur were an arbrary and unpredictable t-and-moe game entrenched homophobia.

GAY'S THE WORD: TRIBUT PAID TO PETER DOREY WHO OPENED FIRST LGBTQ+ BOOKSHOP

”Books seized clud works by Christopher Isherwood and Gore Vidal, who donated to the fence fund, as well as The Joy of Gay Sex and The Joy of Lbian Sex – their heterosexual equivalent remaed eely available the UK. What uld have been a landmark tt se cmbled before ever ma to the Old Bailey: and after two years, charg agast Gay’s The Word were dropped.

This story is largely unknown to a new generatn of fans, who may be aware of Gay’s The Word through s starrg role Pri. ”Four s the makg, Gay’s The Word has bee a cherished stutn. RadPeter Dorey, Co-Founr of Gay's The Word Bookshop, Di Aged 73'It is clear that generatns of LGBT+ people owe Peter Dorey a bt of thanks' reports Will Strou for Attu Magaze, 16 Febary 2021.

MY FAVOURE PENNT BOOKSHOP: GAY'S THE WORD, LONDON

Bigoted Brish tiger that b off more than uld chewGraham McKerrow wr for talkg humani about Operatn Tiger, the Brish state’s attempt the 1980s to prohib the importatn of all queer books, newspapers and magaz, cludg a raid on Gay's The Word 1984. 'The importance of Gay's The Word... Jonathan Cutbill Leav 'Phenomenal Collectn' of LGBTQ LeratureJonathan Cutbill, one of the founrs of Gay's The Word who passed away 2019, leav his LGBTQ Lerature llectn to Universy of London, wr Steve Brown for Attu Magaze, 24 January Bt LGBTQIA+ LeratureBrish Vogue asks 'ins of the LGBTQIA+ muny' to share what we queer wrg we should be readg, cludg Ernt Hole, founr of Gay's The Word bookshop, wrten by Liam Freeman, 21 June 's The Word Wants You To Notice ItThe Londonist profil the bookshop, askg about visibily and pri, wrten by Harry Rosehill, 11 June 2019.

GAY'S THE WORD (BOOKSHOP)

Celebratg 40 years of Gay's The Word, London's glor LGBTQ bookshopDazed Digal profil the bookshop for s 40th anniversary, wrten by Louis Stapl, 27 Febary England's [First] LGBT Bookshopi-D Magaze terviews Gay's The Word's  light of s 40th anniversary, wrten by Jake Hall, 18 January 2019. ]Gay's The Word turns 40'How a small LGBT bookshop beme an unlikely battleground the fight for gay acceptance', wr Thomas Stichbury for Attu Magaze, 17 January 2019.

Bookshop of the Month - Damian Barr's Lerary SalonGay's The Word is profiled for Damian Barr's Lerary Salon November 2018 wh a Q&A wh Uli Birth of Gay's The WordErnt Hole wr the history of the bookshop for the first time Polari Magaze, 17 January.

GAY'S THE WORD (BOOKSHOP)

Celebratg 40 years of Gay’s The Word, London’s glor LGBTQ bookshop | Dazed⬅️ Left Arrow*️⃣ Asterisk␠StarOptn Slirs✉️ MailExCourty of Gay’s The Word‘If LGBT+ people don’t exist the world of fictn, we don’t exist the world’.

“Lookg back, I thk I me to London to be gay, ” says 58-year-old Jim MacSweeney, who moved to London om ral Ireland 1982. ” Later this year, Jim will celebrate 30 years as manager of Gay’s the Word bookshop, England’s only LGBTQ+ bookshop. Ernt Hole found Gay’s the Word four s ago after visg The Osr Wil Memorial Bookshop the late 1960s, which was the first gay bookshop the US.

Sat nocuoly between a phone repair shop and a fé London’s Kg’s Cross area, Gay’s The Word has outlived s US and Brish peers such as Edburgh’s Wt and Wil and Brighton’s Out.

GAY'S THE WORD (BOOKSHOP)

Gay’s the Word has always been more than a shop.