Memories by Twiggy
Working at Kahn & Bell
After leaving school Twiggy started working in Kahn & Bell, a clothes shop on Hurst Street, (now demolished to make way for the entrance to the Arcadian), the Oasis market was nearby selling alternative gear. His boss at Kahn and Bell, Patty Bell...
Alternative 80s Fashion
"It was the eighties, everything was changing, the Goths were just developing, all upside down crosses and fishnets, and the Power House was a place for everyone, gay, straight, or confused". "I think it was easy (to be gay) because I ...
Cruising at the Powerhouse
"The Powerhouse was more accepting, opposite was the Copacobana and there was another one on the other corner, that whole cross roads, it was Milllionaires, then Steptoes, then Pagoda Park, and both of those places did gay nights, but they were unsuc...
Difficulty accessing the Nightingale
At the Nightingale Twiggy said "I was regularly refused entry because of the way I looked in the early eighties; I dressed in an alternative manner to the regular guys in denim. The only way I got in hassle free was when I made friends with George Ba...
Fighting Back
Twiggy was approached by a TV company to film a piece on getting dressed in his flat which was then near Tescos, Five Ways, and then going out to the Powerhouse; "A week after the show was aired, me and some mates got the bus down Broad Street and a ...
AIDS pushed everything back
Twiggy recalled "AIDS pushed everything back 10 or 15 years, the way we were related to in the street, the abuse was always AIDS related, people were frightened and confused but it didn't stop people going out and copping off, personally it didn't ma...
SLAG at the Steering Wheel
"The Steering Wheel venue was a bit dingy, but an amazing atmosphere. It got refurbished and improved every six months, thanks to Patrick Edwards aka 'Black Pat' and his business partner 'Tatts'. They believed in reinvesting in the business unlike so...
Hype and Drugs
Twiggy started working on door hosting Hype and eventually after the refurbishment he started dancing instead. "The atmosphere was electric, there was nothing like it. I danced with a girl called Andrea, we used to wear bikinis and big platform shoes...
City Living
In 83/4 it was easier to get a council flat but Twiggy challenged the Birmingham City Council when they tried to put him into unsuitable areas given his appearance, like Weoley Castle or Bartley Green, and he got a flat in town. He has never lived mo...
Cleveland Tower
Twiggy lived in Cleveland Tower, one of a pair with Clydesdale Tower opposite, on Holloway Head. "In the 1980s they must have been about 20% gay, because lots of people had been diagnosed with HIV it was obvious there was a connection and so at this ...
Mixed scene now
Twiggy talked about the scene "But look at it now, it's all too mixed, I think that's a bad thing, after working in gay clubs. I think the thing that really wrecked it was 'Queer as Folk' because you go down Canal Street in Manchester any night of th...
Twiggy at DV8
Twiggy started at DV8, nearly four and a half years ago. "I've seen that change and they are quite staunch on the door, there's a big sign saying 'This is a gay club', and they have to deal with me on the cash desk, I'm normally about 8 foot tall whe...
Trip to Manchester
Twiggy recalls "Pat organised a coach from SLAG to the Hacienda in Manchester, we all went up there. It was when 'It's not over' by Grace was out, about 1995. We were dancing on a podium right opposite Grace who was performing, she was waving at us."...