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Development of the Gay Village

1996

Mike was asked about the rate of development in Birmingham and he explained that a big change was prompted by the change of the 's premises from to after the return of the lease to the .

Because this was at the bottom end of a few older pubs and vacant premises became gay so that there was a cluster of bars around the giving a focus for a . He saw this as a "good thing because there were more facilities, more choice."

He mentioned in particular (about 1996) in relation to its large plate-glass windows at street level which meant that "for some of the older gay people in Birmingham, at first that was a bit awkward going into a place where you could actually be seen having a drink. But those reservations soon disappeared and I think there was a period from 1996 to around 1999, maybe a bit longer, where was a very, very popular bar indeed and it really did signal the change in the confidence of the city's gay community. There was no doubt about that."

Contributed by: Mike

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