Vauxhall gay village

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The village people of Vauxhall - the gay village - and the new developments: After-hours clubbing, cabaret nights and much more

By Paul BurstonPosted: Fri Apr 7 2006

Clubbers at Orange (image: Sam Kesteven)
Just south of the river, straddling a busy network of roads and railway crossings known locally as Vauxhall Cross, you’ll find what is commonly referred to as the Vauxhall Gay Village. It’s a strange sort of village by anyone’s standards. There is no village post office, for instance, and no village shop. There is a village green of sorts in the shape of Spring Gardens. And there are a few village idiots. They’re the ones you see being carted off in an ambulance after overdosing on GHB. The Vauxhall Gay Village isn’t really a village at all, more a collection of clubs where gay men can party all weekend if they want to, provided the drugs don’t bring them down first.It wasn’t always thus. A few years ago the only gay venue to speak of was the Royal Vauxhall Tavern - which, although home to Duckie, hardly qualified as a club venue.

Things changed with the opening of Crash. Despite warnings that West End boys wouldn’t be persuaded to travel south of the river, Crash built up an enormous following. Soon the club’s claim to being ‘the underground sound of London’ didn’t seem so far fetched, and other promoters were sniffing around, hoping for a piece of the action. Competition arrived, appropriately enough, with the opening of Action. Suddenly there were two clubs within staggering distance of one another, both competing for the same target audience of muscle Marys with a taste for house music.

Gradually, more clubs moved into the area, enabling the new village people to spend the best part of their weekend indoors. A:M and Orange opened as afterhours clubs on Friday and Sunday respectively. Then along came Beyond, aiming for the all-important afterhours Saturday night/Sunday morning market. It’s a measure of how successful Beyond became that some people held it responsible for the closure of the legendary Trade. With the addition of after-afterhours clubs like Later, life in the Vauxhall Gay Village was all sown up. It was now possible to go clubbing for the entire weekend without ever stepping foot outside the Vauxhall area.

There have been a few changes since. The success of Sunday’s Horse Meat Disco means that South Central now caters to fashionistas as well as its traditional audience of bears. Chariots sauna has also moved into the area, providing the perfect place to unwind after all that dancefloor acton. Action itself is no more, its joint promoters having gone their separate ways with new clubs LoveRevolution at Renaissance Rooms and Juicy at Fire. The weekend has now been extended to Tuesday morning with Open also at Fire. And the biggest surprise of all is that there still seem to be more than enough punters to go round. Even counting those who regularly end up in hospital.
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I have been out in Vauxhall a few times and love it... the music is great and the people are diverse and hot... as some people have said on here, if Vauxhall isn't for you then there are plenty of other places in London to go to. I used to go out in Soho a lot before I had ever stepped foot in Vauxhall and loved it but now I can't stand it. People in Soho are generally very bitchy and queeny and I feel less comfortable stood on Compton Street then I do dancing the night away in Fire. Don't get me wrong, I'll happily have drinks at G-A-Y with friends but if I want a really good night out then Vauxhall is the only place for me... I still need to go to the other clubs there and see what they're all about!

Adam James Tue Aug 26 2008
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Vauxhall continues to evolve with the opening of The Depot which hosts Fit Lads plus other nights where back room action can be found. Also The Hoist, which is Londons largest leather bar under the arches in Vauxhall has plenty of action. Also of note is The Eagle (with new beer garden) also hosting leather/blokes nights esp Saturday. Vauxhall has many unique nights, esp Mega Woof & Leather Mega Woof at the Collesium .

Paul Thu Jul 17 2008
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Im going to be staying near vauxhall this weekend. 1st time in London. Do any of the vauxhall gay bars/clubs have darkrooms?

kev Thu Jun 12 2008
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Having lived in london for about 18 years and Vauxhall for about two years....let me say If you act or appear to be gay on the streets of Vauxhall it is not safe. On the street 'chav' culture Be safe

Gabriel Sun Jun 1 2008
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@ tom I think its one thing to criticise men who choose to waste there lives on drugs...but another to slate all gays in vauxhall and applaud homophobia...Men are getting beaten and sometimes killed by homophobes. great that your local bar is ok with you being out..many arent. From football terraces to many workplaces you would face problems being gay. ....get a life , what sort of vile waster applauds homophobia.

tomm Wed May 14 2008
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I'm looking for somewhere to stay in December / New Year, around the Scene. Any suggestions for a reasonably priced room with 1/2 decent standards? Karl

Karl Anderson Wed Dec 12 2007
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Not sure if its just me but has anyone else noticed Soho is becoming quite homophobic. Ive been to compton st twice in the last month. The first time there was a straight stag do with the groom walking down the street in his underpants while his mates called out that he might be "bummed". The second time a group of 12 straight guys ran in and out of comptons giggling cos it was a gay bar. Ha s anyone else noticed a change??

Tomm Mon Apr 2 2007
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Hedonism doesn't neccessarily involve drugs or sex - it's just about letting go. And Vauxhall is so inclusive (esp. the Royal Vauxhall Tavern) you can. It's had a face lift so certainly isn't grimy anymore and has some top acts during the week as well as weekends. The sunny sunday afternoon is the best time to visit (see above) where the anyone who's passing chills out on the 'grassy knoll' in london. It's truly unique - all gay life is there sprawling out on the green grass for free, less than a mile from the Houses of Parliament. Where else does that happen in the uk apart from the 'seal colony' in distant Hampstead Ponds. Then you can pop into the RVT to see irrepressible leg-end that is The Dame Edna Experience for half the price of a normal club night. Gay hedonism? More like Gay Nirvana.

Adrian Pagan Tue Feb 27 2007
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Why Vauxhall? I was there going to a club once but they wont let me in beacuse I was not good looking to get in. What wrong with Soho area, thought that was suposse to be best place to hang out. Anyway London is getting worst....

Gary Wed Jan 17 2007
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There are certainly different sort of events on offer on the London gay scene. a great example is Village Drinks - it's a socialevent for gay professionals, and I think they are starting one soon in Manchester. have a look at www.villagedrinks.co.uk

Nelly Fri Dec 8 2006
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