Clubbers at Orange (image: Sam Kesteven)
Vauxhall gay village
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By Paul Burston
Posted: Fri Apr 7 2006 -
The village people of Vauxhall - the gay village - and the new developments: After-hours clubbing, cabaret nights and much more
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. Feature continues
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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.- Add your comment to this feature
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40 comments
The Vauxhall Tavern as always is the best pub/club in the area. Try going there on a Sunny Sunday afternoon and you will see the gay community that you are all looking for on the grassy knoll behind the venue. Never mind the BEST show for only £6 when Edna comes on stage. Get out of the after hours clubs and into the day light and you will see a different side of Vauxhall...
The truth about vauxhall, is that you know what you get.
Those who wrote that clubs are not friendly and that you have to be good looking or hedonistic are just talking rubbish.
There is not much attitude and everyone is welcome.
A bit trashy for sure, but if you do not like it, go somewhere else! London has got so much to offer. From your local gay pub (there is one in every lively nighbourhood) to the trendy bar in soho or your cheesy cabaret show in Clapham, you'll find what suits you.
The very sad truth is that vauxhall is great if you are good looking or hedonistic... if you are ugly, you won't enjoy it. Intellectuals would love to get in on the action, and the good looking ones do!
The Vauxhall village, in my opinion, is simply great!.... DJ's ahead of their time... No attitude and a scene that seems to party like no other! The Royal Vauxhall Tavern my personal highlight.... But the entire scene and what is happening there, I find very exciting - amazing DJ's featuring week in, week out - a great alternative to dated, over-camp scenes...
I also found the gay london scenne quite obvious, full of sleazy and histerical attitudes, leaving nothing to the imagination... beliving that our party is wonderful but in the end... it's just another simple Getto of London.
the world is out there...
I agree with matthew although in a less wordy fashion! There isn't anything in London for young gay men, who perhaps are on a spiritual or political path, people who really want to connect with their peers instead of objectify them sexually. Where are the book clubs or little eco festivals, i'm sure many of us are interested in these things but the idea of going to a 'group' freaks us out...who might be there?? I'd be well interested in utilising people's desire for change to create a network of young gay londoners to actually do something about this!!
I have found London gay clubs a big disappointment as well. There are def some trendy spots. But, the streets look grimey/trashy and the dudes are not so friendly to visitors. Why do people go out?
The Vauxhall scene is grimy and divine but built on a notion of transgression via drugs as route to identity or pseudo-politics ('Beyond' etc); which also feeds into attitudes to HIV/AIDS and barebacking; we have to invent forms of culture, including club cultures, which allow us to enjoy the pleasures experienced in the Vauxhall scene without feeling the need to trangress limits, ditch 'responsibility' and destroy our lives.
Jose, you obviously have not been to see the latest the clubs have to offer. They offer a fantastic sence of style and liberation. Provide a space where you will get such a rich range of cultures mixing in a positive and enjoyable enviroment. Even if i was straight i would go to gay clubs. the best of both worlds
gay clubs are still downmarket, grimey and with little sense of style. I am embarrassed to be gay