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When iconic Haggerston venue The Glory announced just before Christmas that it would be closing, plenty in London’s queer scene were understandably bereft at the news. For nearly a decade, the Kingsland Road pub was one of the capital’s finest and most beloved queer venues.
In that announcement, however, the team behind The Glory revealed that they would be opening a new venture – and now we know exactly what that will be and when it’ll open. Called The Divine, it’ll be a dazzling new 200-capacity LGBTQ+ bar in Dalston and open at the beginning of February.
The Divine will be run by Jonny Woo and John Sizzle alongside business partner Colin Rothbart, and it will launch just days after The Glory shuts its doors.
Dubbed by John and Jonny as The Glory’s ‘naughty little sister’, The Divine will boast a café, show-bar and nightclub on the ground floor and basement of its new building at 33 Stoke Newington Road.
The launch party is scheduled for Friday February 2, just two days after The Glory closes its doors on January 31.
The new space is apparently super modern, but has been softened with fabric artworks created by Max Allen, who is also behind Selfridges’ legendary Christmas window displays. There’s also a new sound system and lighting rig, installed by Sensory Studio, and a stage that’s bigger than the old one at The Glory.
So what’s the inspo behind the new name? Well, the Divine’s co-creator John Sizzle can help us there. He said in a statement: ‘We wanted this new venue to make a strong statement about the community. The Divine is a joyous, celebratory name as we’re creating space for our beloved queer community who are worthy of adulation.’
Jonny Woo added: ‘It’s with sadness that we leave our current home, but it’s with great excitement that we make The Divine the new home of great parties and exciting and emerging queer talent.’
So, as we wave goodbye to one iconic LGBTQ+ venue, thankfully it looks like we’re waving hello to another. The Divine opens officially on Friday February 2, 2024 and you can have a look at the launch programme on the website here.
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