LGBTQIA+ spaces in your iQ city
It’s Pride Month, so we're sharing where you can find your local LGBTQIA+ scene. Whether you’re after a new restaurant, café or some buzzy nightlife, the UK offers some brilliant options. We’ve compiled a few queer-friendly city spots below:
Bangor
While Bangor doesn’t have a designated LGBTQIA+ neighbourhood, it does have the queer-friendly Trilogy Nightclub and The Harp Inn – Bangor University’s LGBTQ+ Society sponsor.
Bath
Bath has several LGBTQIA+-friendly hangouts, like Mandalyns bar and The Common Room bar.
Birmingham
In the Southside district on Hurst Street is Birmingham’s Gay Village, with a range of lively pubs, cabaret, drag shows and clubs. It’s grown over the years and become a thriving hotspot.
Brighton
The whole of Brighton is known for embracing the LGBTQIA+ community, but Kemptown is where you’ll find the highest concentration of queer-friendly venues. There you can visit clubs, pubs, restaurants and more.
Bristol
Home to lots of LGBTQIA+ safe spaces, Bristol has plenty of clubs and bars to check out.
Coventry
While Coventry doesn’t have a specific gay area, it boasts several LGBTQIA+ venues like The Yard and Glamorous Coventry.
Dundee
Dundee has inclusive spaces throughout the city, like Kandy bar, The Salty Dog and Room To Be, an LGBTQIA+ community garden project.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh’s LGBTQIA+ scene is concentrated in the Pink Triangle, around the top of Leith Walk, Picardy Place and Broughton Street. Head there to check out its bars, cafes and even buy a book from iQ BookClub’s Pride rec, Book Lovers.
Egham
Pride Hub in Egham is a venue for the LGBTQIA+ community to come together for food and drink, events, music and the new Egham Fringe festival.
Glasgow
The LGBTQIA+ scene is focused in the Merchant City area of Glasgow, with a range of bars and galleries. The West End also has a range of queer-friendly cafes and shops.
Huddersfield
Nearby Leeds and Manchester have thriving LGBTQIA+ neighbourhoods, but Huddersfield also has safe spaces like the Out Together hub and The Brunswick Centre, offering support and meetups for the local community.
Kingston
The Kingston LGBTQ+ Forum runs events for the local queer community to connect. Plus, being close to London means you can head there for a bigger range of LGBTQIA+ spaces and events.
Leeds
The Leeds LGBTQIA+ scene is buzzing, with venues ranging from bars to bookshops in The Freedom Quarter – around Lower Briggate and The Calls.
Leicester
Check out the Leicestershire LGBTQ+ Centre for support and events, or try nightlife spots like The Dover Castle.
Lincoln
The city centre and Brayford Waterfront have LGBTQIA+-friendly venues, like The Scene club and Be At One, which often hosts Pride events.
Liverpool
The city centre’s Pride Quarter is home to many inclusive spots, including cabaret venues, bars and clubs.
London
The capital is known for being one of the most welcoming and inclusive cities in the world. It offers a wide selection of queer-friendly bars, pubs and clubs. Some of the best are found in Soho, an easily walkable area that’s rich in LGBTQIA+ history. Vauxhall, Clapham and East London also have their own queer scenes. London’s Queer Britain museum is the UK’s first national LGBTQIA+ museum, and London LGBTQ+ Community Centre is an excellent support hub.
Manchester
Manchester’s Gay Village centres around Canal Street, next to the Rochdale Canal. With lots of queer-friendly venues, from bars and clubs to restaurants, it’s a vibrant and welcoming place.
Newcastle
The Gay Village or Pink Triangle in Newcastle is found outside Central Station. It’s a bustling area full of inclusive bars and clubs.
Nottingham
This year, Nottingham is hoping to have the Hockley area of Broad Street, Carlton Street and Heathcote Street officially named the Rainbow Quarter, its own LGBTQIA+ district. It’s already host to some queer-friendly spaces and its new title is due to be officially established by this year’s Pride – exciting!
Oxford
While there’s not a specific LGBTQIA+ area in Oxford, key hubs for the community are The Jolly Farmers pub and Plush Oxford nightclub.
Plymouth
Around Bretonside and Vauxhall Street is Plymouth’s smaller but still bustling LGBTQIA+ area. Try OMG Plymouth for clubbing and drag events, or The Swallow Showbar for cosy shows.
Preston
While Preston doesn’t have explicitly LGBTQIA+ venues, events like drag nights take place at various spots in the city. Lancashire LGBT charity also offers opportunities to meet up and find social support.
Salford
Salford is super close to Manchester’s Gay Village, host to a plethora of LGBTQIA+-friendly spaces. Salford’s Rainbow Mind is a local support group for Salford itself.
Sheffield
Sheffield has a range of queer spaces throughout it, such as Dempsey’s bar and club, Gut Level space and queer-owned Juno Books.
Wolverhampton
Local charity Wolverhampton LGBT+ offers a welcoming community space that runs a range of events.
York
There are LGBTQIA+ spots across the city of York, like nightclub Flares or Over The Rainbow Café.
The UK has lots of queer-friendly spots, and we’ve only scratched the surface with this blog. It’s worth checking out whether your uni has an LGBTQIA+ society, as this is another way to meet more of the community. Look out for more Pride-related content from us throughout June, and Happy Pride Month!
