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In Kate's third blog post in the Shameless Hussies series, we are introduced to Brighton royalty and dive into the hedonism of the 90s. Back in 1992, Queenie and Michele Allardyce aka Xi-Xi used to play live percussion at the Coco Club at the Zap on a Saturday night and decided doing the same at Shameless Hussies might be a good idea. Michele said to Queenie, "Go on - phone up that Kate woman and ask if we can shake our maracas at the next one." Suffice to say she's been banging my bongos for her ever since. Now I would call it a meeting of “minds” but when Queenie walked up those Roundhill Crescent stairs ahead of me to her first-ever Shameless Hussies meeting it wasn’t her mind I was falling for. And it was more than just bongos getting the attention –Jo and Michele threw themselves into the Shameless universe – providing free tunes, décor, banner design and flyers, the endless copies supplied by DJ Mag office. After lots of hard work, tall tales and constant convincing, Tiz and (now working as promoters with Michele and Queenie but still in support of Lesbian Strength) hit the holy grail of clubland – a Saturday night. A Saturday night at The Concorde on Madeira Drive opposite the pier– the original Concorde – home of Fatboy Slim and Midfield General’s Big Beat Boutique. And now home to a Harvester – oh how we love to treasure our culturally significant buildings nowadays. By now we were making an Impact. Playing underground and upfront house music. Bringing décor and dancers and design together to create club nights that welcomed those who had been excluded from much of the gay scene. Design by Michele Allardyce. We celebrated our first birthday with two parties in one week – God, the hedonism of the 90s – how did we do it? Now it must have been the excitement of having two parties in one week but, just like every good slice of queer history, a little drama, a little something for the gossip queens, a date that changed everything. Me and Queenie, drinks at the Prince George, snog up in the doorway of the lightbulb shop – yep, a lightbulb shop - and walking into a lamppost immediately after. A grin that never left our souls. Despite all the dramas (and my, were there some dramas), we have found a way to connect and stay connected for the past 29 years. And yeah you are all invited to the party next year. And so Shameless continued. Venue hopping – we enjoyed nights at Fisherman’s Friend aka The Beachcomber on Kings Road Arches –(Honeyclub/Shoosh), The Madeira Hotel, Concorde and eventually in September 1994 The Loft ) and The Loft Club (Formerly The Asylum & Downbeat and now The Rialto) on Dyke Road, (oh the synergy). We played with others – working with promoter and Zanzibar manager Pauline Brehun for our first mixed version of Shameless Hussies / first collaboration with another club night – Mix. Michele Allardyce excelled herself and pushed the DJ Magazine office photocopier to the edge with some truly iconic flyer designs. Guest DJs joined us, including DJ Parminda bringing the bhangra beats, Kate the DJ (not this Kate the DJ), Venus Rising’s Funki G, DJ Sema (Zanzibar/Mix) and Gordon Lovetrain (Shaft The Zap / Sanctuary) And there was lots of coverage in The Face, DJ Magazine, Spare Rib, Pink Paper, Gay Times, and Capital Gay. Lesbian London, Shebang!, Quim, Punter, Evening Argus, Buzz, Impact and Streetlife. Artwork by Josephine Bourney. Of course, things didn’t always run that smoothly. Relationships were being made and broken. Clubbers were being entertained and infuriated. For instance, we took photos of each party each month (like the 90s dial up version of Real Brighton) and then developed them on slide film to display via a projector up in the lighting rig. A projector often demanded to be removed by some soul who had been photographed snogging someone other than their actual girlfriend. Some women were mortally offended by the S&M imagery Tess Boffin and others used in their décor designs, many balked at paying a whole £3.50 for a night out and yes, the DJs were asked for everything. Apparently, if you’re at a women-only night it’s a given the DJ will always play country and western. Theme nights were embraced, including the International Women’s Day Celebration, Leather & Lace – days and days making paper chains to look like, er, chains, SEX – Lips, love & latex, Beach Babe Special – Complete with sandpit and Michele in her bathing suit asleep on a deckchair in the middle of the dancefloor, Edge of Twilight – Butch, femme & Shameless, Wild West Women – and there I was saying Shameless didn’t play country and western, Love All – I Say What A Peach! – marking out the dancefloor as a tennis court – which worked brilliantly until people actually arrived, Beach Party – Ride The Wild Surf – a huge success – until Kate and I left Michele’s giant pineapples in the taxi on the way home. Shameless eventually came to an end three parties after moving to The Loft. Tiz and I had parted company after a disagreement so serious at the time it stopped play but now is never mentioned whenever we meet each other walking our dogs on the beach. Like many club nights it just kind of fizzled out. Clubbers wanted something different and the age-old problem of getting people to come dancing at venue outside of the gay village. Oh, the horror! -
“We can choose to do beautiful things – it doesn’t have to be miserable.” I spoke with Harry Hillery, founder of the Brighton AIDS Memorial project, about his life in Brighton, remembering people with joy, and finding hope during difficult times. This interview took place at the end of October. I’m reading over my questions when Harry joins our video call. He’s sitting in his office at home with full bookshelves against the wall behind him, and a collection of posters and photos on the other. After we exchange pleasantries, he tells me about the walk he’d just returned from with his dogs, Boris, and Polo; rescued pugs who, Harry explains, are enjoying the outside as much as he is - when it isn’t raining. DH: Thank you so much for chatting with me today! To start with, introduce yourself in whatever words you’d like. How would you define yourself? HH: Well, I think a good way to start is by saying that I’m a friendly old queer bear living on the south coast with my husband and two dogs. I’m a wannabe writer and an archivist. I don’t want to define myself with a job title because the jobs we do for a living don’t usually represent us fully. I work for Lewes District Council helping their tenants have some influence and hopefully to challenge the status quo. I’m driven by a need to care for people, helping them at different times of their lives and in different situations, but I’d also like to be regarded as a writer someday. I studied creative writing at the University of Brighton and have a few projects on the go. I really enjoy writing to unearth queer perspectives on things. But yes, I’m a friendly old queer bear. DH: I really agree with the idea of not defining yourself just by a job title. And I love the description - a friendly old queer bear on the coast. You clearly feel an attachment to Brighton and its surrounding area. HH: It’s something that’s developed over time, especially now that I'm a dog person. I always imagined myself being a crazy old cat man, but dogs have won me over nowadays. Going out for long walks with them, no matter the weather, has enabled me to connect better with nature. I love listening to birdsong and identifying them. I saw a Jay today for the first time in a long time! Normally I see lots of other Corvids like Crows, Jackdaws and Magpies, so seeing the Jay was a pleasant surprise. I’ve also started getting into a bit of foraging, berries, and the like. It’s nice finding more ways to connect with the world around us. DH: I personally love the wild garlic season - still a few months off. Could you share a bit of an overview of your time in Brighton? HH: I’ll give it a go! I arrived in Brighton in the late 1980s, with a plan to prise myself out of the closet. I was in my late 20s, and I needed a safer space to discover myself. I promised that I would be honest and not hide anymore. It was a period of my life where I focused on reinvention, a complex mix of being open about my sexuality, whilst also being immersed in the horrors of the 1980s - Section 28, Thatcher, the awful media, queer bashing. It was a time of dark and light shades, ups and downs. I’d come to Brighton from London, where the impact of AIDS was everywhere but perhaps easier to handle because it felt more diluted. London was so vast, that I didn’t feel like I was reminded about it every day. Moving to Brighton felt different, it felt more visible here. The community was more compact, so HIV / AIDS felt more present. I’m thinking about St. James’s Street, how you’d walk down it and see people, or not see people. Sometimes people would disappear, and there’d be an unspoken understanding about what was going on. A gathering in Queen’s Park after a Pride march, c. early 90s. The community really came together in Brighton in a way I hadn’t seen before or since really, although there’s been heartwarming solidarity around the attacks on the Trans nation. It’s really feeling like the community I remember from the 80s. Factions overcoming the past to become something big and cohesive - the knowledge that we’re all under threat, and the need to help each other out. People are generally good, and can always make good choices, acts of kindness - what’s that Harvey Milk quote about hope? “Hope will never be silent. Burst down those closet doors once and for all and stand up and start to fight. I know you can't live on hope alone; but without hope, life is not worth living. So you, and you and you: you got to give them hope; you got to give them hope.” We can choose to do beautiful things - it doesn’t have to be miserable. It’s the community I remember best. I became involved in the Sussex AIDS Centre and Helpline as a volunteer and got to know people and got known in return. People heard about the cafe I ran and soon it became a queer hang-out with the whole scene visiting. A play by John Roman called Crying Celibate Tears was presented at the Sussex AIDS Centre, and they used furniture from the café as props – it was such an honour! Brighton has been my home for decades now, apart from a year in San Francisco. I have fallen in love here a few times and made a home. These days I love spending my time growing vegetables, making jam, reading, and walking the dogs. I’m a few miles east of Brighton but I feel just as connected now as I did then. I’ve realised there are very few things that matter in the grand scheme of things: people that love you, a full larder, somewhere comfortable to sleep, books, music, art… There’s a cemetery in Paris called Père-Lachaise that’s frequently visited by the queer community because people like Oscar Wilde are buried there. There are many grand mausoleums built for rich industrialists or the like who are long forgotten, but amongst them are smaller well-tended graves with flowers, tokens and trinkets placed carefully about. The resting place of an impressionist painter maybe or a writer, but the point is they’re still remembered. It makes you realise that it’s music, art, writing and love that stays behind and leaves something beautiful in the world. No one really cares about the rich industrialist. We should all try to leave love and beauty behind us - something we can be proud of. As Derek Jarman once said, “love is life that lasts forever.” Harry and his husband Toni on a trip to Barcelona for their honeymoon, c. 2015 DH: That was a lovely note to close on. You spoke a lot of the community that you’ve been part of in Brighton; it feels like those acts of care and solidarity are a beautiful thing to be remembered for. To you, what makes queer heritage (and remembering our collective history) important? HH: It’s easy to forget things and become complacent. Take Pride: there’s a complicated relationship there because lots of people celebrating would have been unthinkable at one time. At the same time, those early Pride memories are at odds with what it’s become. The political messages, the camaraderie at the heart of the community, the solidarity between everyone - it isn’t there so much in the official Pride. We always need to remember how tenuous our rights are. We’re living through dark times again and I fear for my American friends, and also the Trans community. I think there’s definitely a need for more community solidarity - like a reboot of the 1980s and 1990s. I’ve seen Brighton’s attitude to the community shift over the years. In the mid-1990s I helped set up a Lesbian and Gay Council tenant group with some colleagues. This attracted some interest, so we decided to promote it more widely. We made a logo - a small cartoon house with a pink triangle for a roof - and had leaflets printed to send out with a Council rent card mail-out to 11,000 homes. At the very last minute the Leader of the Council found out and we had to remove every leaflet from thousands of envelopes. Brighton now takes every opportunity to promote itself as a gay capital, but then they wanted to distance themselves from this, HIV and AIDS as they saw it as ‘off-putting.’ It’s important to remember how quickly things can change and remember our history because it’s relevant to any future. We need to remember how, as a community, we reacted to HIV and AIDS in case we need to do so again. The government will continue to give and take our rights away, so we need to be aware of how we fought before so we can be ready to fight for our rights again and again. DH: There’s something really powerful about memory being related to solidarity and community. But, as you’ve touched on, there’s also a lot of grief and pain in our community heritage. How can we find joy alongside this? Should we? HH: I think we should celebrate people; that’s the focus of the Brighton AIDS Memorial project I created on Instagram and the Queer Heritage South website. When I went to AIDS memorial events, there were names I didn’t recognise, but others that punched through with emotions and memories. I was left wondering, who knows their stories? I believe sharing the stories of people who’ve died helps them to live on, existing beyond sometimes tragically short lives. There are also many heroes of the AIDS epidemic that should be remembered for their courage, work, and care. I personally didn’t want my friend Andrea to be remembered just as someone who had AIDS, I wanted the flamboyant, funny, vial of Brazilian sunshine to be remembered too. Illness and death shouldn’t define people who were lost to AIDS. Sharing their stories bucks that definition and instead we remember the bright flames they were, and the reasons why we loved them. Harry’s friend Andrea who died of AIDS in 1991. He inspired the Brighton AIDS Memorial DH: The Memorial Project has been crucial to holding up that idea of celebrating people and their stories. Out of everything that’s come of the project, what is the thing you’re proudest of? HH: I honestly think I’m proudest of the cafe I ran in the late 80s & early 90s. It’s the period of my life when I felt really fulfilled and happy despite the backdrop of Thatcher, Section 28 & HIV/AIDS. I was out for the first time, and I created something that organically became the queer hangout of the city. A safe place for others to express themselves. It became a delicious dish of diversity and felt natural and lovely - like it could be the future. The atmosphere of the café was about openness and acceptance – an alternative for free thinking people, gay or straight. There’s another memory that makes me proud. I knew a lovely man called Kevin Dodd who chaired the Body Positive Group at the Sussex AIDS Centre. We had a good friendship, so when I started the Brighton AIDS Memorial he was one of the first people I thought about remembering. In 2021 I held an exhibition with the help of Lunch Positive with panels made for people like Kevin. I’d met a woman called Ruth at another event who I’d asked to consider contributing a story, and she came down to have a look. I saw her standing in front of Kevin’s photograph for ages, so I went over. ‘That’s Kevin,’ she said. ‘He was my brother.’ She hadn’t realised that I’d known Kevin or that he would be in the exhibition. She was clearly moved by him being there and glad to see him remembered. She returned later with the original order of service I’d talked about in my story – it was a beautiful moment & made me realise how important remembrance like this is. People have found contributing cathartic and think it’s beautiful that so many people are remembered and loved all these years later. DH: That’s a lovely memory. I think the Brighton AIDS Memorial has done a great job building trust with the community to handle these memories with care. How should organisations and projects like ours build trust too? HH: Gaining trust can be a slow burner. With the Brighton AIDS Memorial, I knew it would be raw and sensitive to some. Many people tuck painful memories away and don’t want to revisit them. It's important to respect this and not push people to share things, but instead give them the opportunity to do so when they feel comfortable. When I started the project I tried to introduce it gently with the help of trusted organisations like Lunch Positive. With projects like Queer Heritage South, trust can be built on the basis of its permanence. It’s a safe place for memories and artefacts to be recorded and preserved. Projects in Brighton have come and gone and there are questions about who might have something, or where items have ended up. There was a man called Arthur Law. He was a strong-willed activist and also a skilled embroiderer. He made many banners and panels for groups in the 1980s and 1990s. The most beautiful thing he made was a huge sewn quilt with 134 stars representing all those lost to AIDS at that point in time – 1993. Where is it now? No one seems to know. Having responsibility and transparency is necessary for heritage and memorial projects to gain trust from the community so artefacts like these are found, cared for, and displayed once more. It’s important to collect stories, ephemera, and objects before they disappear. Sometimes the material stuff is thrown away, so projects like the Brighton AIDS Memorial and Queer Heritage South can be places for the stories to live on. Harry in San Francisco in October this year. He is handing over a new quilt he had made for Andrea, which is now part of NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. Brighton AIDS Memorial collection Instagram Facebook -
This top was released by Topshop and Topman in collaboration with Calm (Campaign Against Living Miserably) for World Mental Health Day 2019. The front of the T-shirt crosses out the word 'Collected' and writes above it 'Connected'. On the back of the t-shirt, it has instructions on 'how to handle with care', in the format of typical washing instructions. The instructions include information about how to access the CALM helpline. This t-shirt has been a great conversation starter over the years and led to some really important conversations within the community about mental health and access. -
This t-shirt was bought by my mum at a retail store. I came out to her a few years previously and randomly one day she gifted me this t-shirt. We never had a specific conversation about the random present. She's the type of person to see something that she thinks someone else would like and then buys it 'just because'. The first few years after coming out was quite tumultuous so it meant a lot at the time. I don't wear it because it doesn't fit me but I can't throw it away, so it stays hanging on the clothing rail -
Wednesday Holmes is a Non-binary, Lesbian Illustrator and Author living in Brighton. They designed this top in 2024 to raise funds for the Palestine Solidarity Campaign. Due to the first fundraiser gaining so much interest, Wednesday has done multiple fundraisers with the same design since. I bought this t-shirt during the 2nd fundraiser. -
Article from Gscene Magazine February 2007 JOLLY HOCKEY STICKS! The Brighton Honeybees Hockey Club have been going strong for well over ten years. They're a self run community team attracting players with a wide range of ages, backgrounds and skills, with the emphasis on having fun and keeping fit. Long standing player and vice captain Vic Finnimore explains: “The Bees were founded by ladies Whopps and Serbiton, along with other disillusioned women who were unhappy playing for their existing or previous clubs as they were felt to be too stuffy and competitive, and not particularly gay-friendly. We didn’t set out to be a lesbian team – it just kind of happened!” This year the Honeybees home ground is up at the Stanley Deason Leisure Centre, Wilson Avenue, Brighton where they play home games on Saturday mornings and train on Wednesday evenings from 6-7pm. They play in Division 2 of the Sussex Ladies League and are currently 9th in the table. They've also reached the semi finals of the Sussex Shield and will play against South Saxons 2s on 31 March. The Honeybees are a friendly sociable team and always looking for supporters and new players so if you fancy going along to watch or joining them on the pitch contact them. -
Blair Imani Ali is writer, mental health advocate and historian living at the intersections of Black, Queer and Muslim. She sold this t-shirt in 2021 based on a the post she made on Instagram in August 2020. I have been a long-time follower of Blair Imani Ali, as someone who is a LGBTQ+ British Indian who was brought up Catholic -
Sunshine Sisters were a lesbian acapella duo from Brighton comprising of Kia Hunter and Jo Bourne. We performed in London, Brighton and Belgium between 1991 and 1992, and this cassette features three of our own compositions. recorded on Alan Way's four track in Kemptown Brighton. -
Housewife’s Choice Saturday 21st January 1995 Queen Josephine presents Jacksons Wig World (Jackson the Barber) The Loft, 11 Dyke Road, Brighton (members only – membership available on 0273 325491) 10pm-2am £3.50 b4 11, £4.50 after. £1 discount for wig wearers Music policy – wig wobbling house and girlie garage DJs X Kitten (Zap Club) Meesh Mash, KTB. Mixed gay Bring your own carmen rollers and hairspray -
Housewife’s Choice Saturday 26th November 1994 The Loft, 11 Dyke Road, Brighton (members only – membership available on 0273 325491) 10pm-2am £3.50 b4 11, £4.50 after Music policy – groovy house, tough handbag and girlie garage DJs Gordon Lovetrain a.k.a. Sex Kitten (Zap Club) Meesh Mash, KTB. Mixed gay For up to date information and recipe line ring 0273 731170 -
Housewife’s Choice Opening night Saturday 24th September 1994 The Loft (previously The Asylum and downbeat) 11 Dyke Road, Brighton (members only – membership available on 0273 325491) 10pm-2am £3.50 b4 11, £4.50 after Music policy – groovy house, tough handbag and girlie garage DJs Gordon Lovetrain a.k.a. Sex Kitten (Zap Club) Meesh Mash, KTB. Mixed gay For queers, drag queens, extroverts, clubbers, girlies, dollies, fag hags, bisexuals, trollops, groovers, tarts, funky mothers, housewives, glamour pussies Inspiration Queer Nation in Covent Garden London and Vague in Leeds. For up-to-date information and recipe line ring 0273 731170 -
The shoestring budget and DIY ethos meant the LGBTQI+ club night Housewife's Choice was a cheap date - decor created from the begged, borrowed and nicked. Painted in our flat at Wilbury Road by Queenie and Michele the bedsheets were transformed to keep the 50s Housewife ideal alive. -
Housewife's Choice 1994-95 -
In the first week of November, QHS welcomed guests from queer heritage projects happening all over the country for a peer-support and skill sharing event. We discussed our shared passion for queer heritage and pondered: how can we best support our respective projects and communities? Sometimes, working on grassroots queer heritage projects can feel a little lonely. We spend our time working closely with the community in our local area, and the histories and stories shared with us are reminders of the vast communal heritage that exists across the country. And there’s so much that needs to be done - listening to each other, recording our memories, saving them from being lost forever. So spending two days talking and supporting other projects like ours from up and down the country was a wonderful reminder of all the work happening beyond Brighton and the South East, and the inclusive and dedicated community of people who share our passion for queer heritage. The two-day meeting was focused on building a network of support for those working in the heritage sector, as well as being an opportunity for projects and people to share their work and excitement. We met on Thursday evening at Brighton Museum and Art Gallery for a guided tour of the Queer the Pier exhibition. Led by Darren Kay and with a talk from Janet Jones, our guests got to see what a fully community curated exhibition can look like and learn more about Brighton's queer history. The following day, our group of queer heritage creatives (anyone got a good collective noun?) gathered in The Old Courthouse for a day of sessions and community-building. Beginning with a space for project presentations (which of course ran slightly over time!), we got to hear about the work already being undertaken and the work planned for the years ahead. The wealth of creativity and ingenuity did not disappoint! Our friends and partners are doing work that is important but also incredibly exciting. More information about the projects can be found at the end of this article. A page from Margate Pride's 'New Rumours' zine, which was shared with attendees at the session. We were then treated to a series of talks from Cesare Cuzzola (Queer Heritage and Collections Network), Sarah Wicks (National Lottery Heritage Fund) and Ceryl Evans (Royal Pavillion and Museums Trust). Following a lovely lunch courtesy of That Little Tea Shop in The Lanes, we regathered to brainstorm on a variety of topics: working with local collecting institutions; building equitable relationships with different sections of the LGBTQIA+ community; selecting and managing collections, including digital ones; fundraising and gaining support for our work; and celebrating LGBTQIA+ heritage in our communities through events. Discussions included our experiences of these different areas and getting advice from others on things we haven’t done yet. It was a valuable exercise in skill-sharing and peer-mentoring, with all of our projects sure to benefit from the communal help. Our final session was a space for feedback and future-planning; how can we best keep this space useful in the future? What did we find most important about meeting and chatting? It was a space for reflection on the different elements of the trip that had worked, and to start creating long-lasting connections between people and projects. We all had individual skills that others wanted to learn (Margate Pride, for example, have some phenomenal zines that I want to learn more about), as well as experiences to lean on when listening to others and giving advice. The main feelings shared in the room were hope, gratitude and joy: hope, that the sector and our projects will continue to grow and inspire; gratitude, for having the space to share worries and advice or skills; and joy, in our sharing and creating, our love of queer heritage and our projects. And, as one guest summarised, the future of queer heritage is looking very bright indeed. A word from Roni, our project manager: Our aim was to bring together queer heritage organizers to create a space for learning, exchanging ideas, finding inspiration, and sharing the challenges and experiences of our work. When we planned this event, we anticipated encountering some interesting heritage projects and practices and hoped to exchange insights and learning. What we didn’t foresee was the incredible wealth of ideas and creativity, as well as the resourceful and often ingenious ways our peers are exploring and presenting this heritage — through innovative projects, unconventional approaches, and by challenging traditional norms and institutions. We hope to continue finding opportunities to share knowledge and create meaningful connections with fellow queer heritage practitioners in the years ahead. Get to know the projects below! Margate Pride Margate Pride seeks to advance equity and justice for LGBTQIA+ people in all communities across Kent and beyond. Through their events programme and creative projects, and their on-going support of community groups and leaders, Margate Pride has continued to expand and deepen the engagement with LGBTQIA+ work across their area. Their recent research project, New Rumours, sought to archive the experiences of those who attended Margate’s iconic early gay venues, Rumours and The New Inn, run by local legend Shirley Sullivan. The project culminated in a series of zines detailing the research and interviews, as well as a screening of a mini documentary. You can find out more about Margate Pride here. Downtown Pompey Downtown Pompey is a performance based organisation bringing together a variety of local communities in Portsmouth, through queer art practices; offering a space to explore identities and understanding that everyone has a voice and a place to be heard. Their new heritage project, Storming the Teacup, is looking to uncover and celebrate the hidden gems of Portsmouth’s history. Working with Portsmouth City Museum & Art Gallery, Storming the Teacup and the team at Downtown Pompey will create a brand-new archive spotlighting the experiences and contributions of LGBTQ+ folks and other marginalised groups. You can find out more about Downtown Pompey here. Hastings Queer History Collective and Trans Pride Hastings The Hastings Queer History Collective are a group of dedicated volunteers committed to collecting, preserving, and sharing the queer history of Hastings and the surrounding area. Formed as part of Hastings Museum & Art Gallery to enhance queer visibility in existing collections, the collective have created several successful projects. Their current three-year project, ‘Queer Stories of Hastings and St Leonards’, is working to collect stories and artefacts about Hasting’s queer spaces and personal histories to bring LGBTQIA+ history beyond the museum. Trans Pride Hastings launched in 2023 and runs a series of events during the summer to celebrate Trans Pride. Working alongside the Hastings Queer History Collective, they bring queer heritage into the open and give members of their community an opportunity to get involved. You can find out more about the Hastings Queer History Collective here, and about Trans Pride Hastings here. We're Still Here (Blackpool) and Abingdon Studios Abingdon Studios is a contemporary visual art studio and project space based in the heart of Blackpool Town Centre. They are currently working to create the first permanent collection of LGBTQIA+ heritage in Blackpool. The ‘We’re Still Here’ project, led by Abingdon Studios director Garth Gratrix and producer and artist Harry Clayton-Wright, captured stories from members of the community. You can listen to some of their stories on their website now. You can find out more about Abingdon Studios and their artists here, and about the We’re Still Here project here. Queer Kernow Queer Kernow is a non-profit community project based in the heart of Cornwall. Their goal is to act as a conduit for LGBT history in their local area: partnering with local museums and archives to research this facet of Cornwall’s past and share the stories we uncover. They have recently launched a new project, KOMPAS, that connects Cornwall’s rich and diverse LGBTQ+ history with newly commissioned site-specific artworks by LGBTQ+ artists and a new interactive online map. You can find out more about the project here. Folkstone/Canterbury Projects Represented by researcher Arly Bean, the Folkestone and Canterbury community have a rich offer of queer heritage work. Arly works at the University of Creative Arts in a curation role, and has supported a variety of queer heritage and creative events - including one at Fort Burgoyne. Queer Heritage and Collections Network The Queer Heritage and Collections Network is a UK-wide Subject Specialist Network that provides training, networking and peer support to people working with LGBTQ+ collections and histories. They support galleries, libraries, archives and museums that are developing public programming bringing LGBTQ+ histories and themes to the fore. You can find out more about the Queer Heritage and Collections Network here.
