G-A-Y and Heaven owner Jeremy Joseph has sounded the death knell for Soho’s “LGBT identity” in a statement announcing the closure. But where are London’s LGBT communities heading instead?
Every Saturday morning, hundreds of gay people defy the crowds of tourists and dogwalkers to run across Tower Bridge. They’re part of the Gayns run club, which founder Connor Minney refers to as his “gaggle”.
The idea to start a run club sprang from Minney’s experience of giving up partying at traditional gay clubs: “I felt like I lost touch with the community,” he said.
“I didn’t know where to go to meet big groups of gay people that wasn’t a dancefloor at 3am.”
Every Saturday morning, hundreds of members of the Gayns run club run across Tower Bridge. Image courtesy of Connor Minney
When Gayns started out in February 2024, it was a gathering of 22 people. Since then, it has spawned numerous local London offshoots and a padel group. This summer, a record 400 people attended one of their Saturday seven-kilometre runs.
The Saturday run winds up at a social in Borough, which Minney describes as recreating a “gay bar” feeling: “Every now and again we’ll have a DJ there but it’s really more of a social. People get drinks but they also get coffees and croissants.”
“We’re not this puritanical group who don’t go out.”
Much of the success of Gayns stemmed from social media – the club has over 30,000 followers on Instagram. Book club Reading is Gay, had a similar surge in success when it went viral on TikTok at the end of last year.
Founder Ben Taylor held the first meeting of the club just under a year ago: “We had read ‘They Both Die at the End’ by Adam Silvera and arranged to meet at a venue in Clapham.
“To little surprise, no one showed up, bar a handful of good friends wanting to show their support.”
He added: “A few days before New Year’s, my flatmate Jonny suggested making a TikTok about the book club. I stitched together a short reel, using the only two clips we got at the meet-up, and posted it.
“My phone became a non-stop stream of messages, likes and comments from all over the world, asking for more details and how to join.”
In the words of NBC; ‘A book club might be the hottest new social scene’… So come along to Reading is Gay to meet 100s of new friends 🎉 Join one of our socials to meet like-minded gays, chat about our book of the month, or just connect with a friendly and inclusive community 🏳️🌈 Check out our Instagram @readingisgay_ to sign up. . . #gay#gaylondon#gayuk#lgbtnetwork#bookclub#lgbtbooks
Neeraj Shetye makes the journey down to London from Oxford every month to attend Reading is Gay.
“I went for the first time in May,” he says, “back then, it was only 80 or so people. Now, it’s closer to 180.”
“I go to have the space for interaction, which is a lot more important to me than a loud club event, though I do go to those too.
“Here, there is drinking, but there’s no pressure to drink – you can just have a glass of wine in your hand and have a conversation.”
Members of book club Reading is Gay travel from all over South England and from as far as Jersey and Germany, according to founder Ben Taylor. Image courtesy of Ben Taylor
Far from shunning from nights out, Shetye notes that most book clubbers have opted for a more balanced approach: “People will do Friday night partying but then go for a Saturday social like this one.
“These spaces are still quite new, but I see a shift to quieter social engagements, or at least to alternative social engagements.”
It’s a sentiment echoed by Minney: “You’ve got people who just aren’t into going out, and you’ve got some people who come straight from ‘Feel It’ on an hour’s sleep. We’re not this puritanical group who don’t go out.”
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Standfirst
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HeadlineLGBT Londoners switch clubbing for reading and running
Short HeadlineLGBT Londoners switch clubbing for reading and running
StandfirstAs iconic venues like Soho's G-A-Y bar shut, new forms of clubbing have emerged.
G-A-Y and Heaven owner Jeremy Joseph has sounded the death knell for Soho’s “LGBT identity” in a statement announcing the closure. But where are London’s LGBT communities heading instead?
Every Saturday morning, hundreds of gay people defy the crowds of tourists and dogwalkers to run across Tower Bridge. They’re part of the Gayns run club, which founder Connor Minney refers to as his “gaggle”.
The idea to start a run club sprang from Minney’s experience of giving up partying at traditional gay clubs: “I felt like I lost touch with the community,” he said.
“I didn’t know where to go to meet big groups of gay people that wasn’t a dancefloor at 3am.”
Every Saturday morning, hundreds of members of the Gayns run club run across Tower Bridge. Image courtesy of Connor Minney
When Gayns started out in February 2024, it was a gathering of 22 people. Since then, it has spawned numerous local London offshoots and a padel group. This summer, a record 400 people attended one of their Saturday seven-kilometre runs.
The Saturday run winds up at a social in Borough, which Minney describes as recreating a “gay bar” feeling: “Every now and again we’ll have a DJ there but it’s really more of a social. People get drinks but they also get coffees and croissants.”
“We’re not this puritanical group who don’t go out.”
Much of the success of Gayns stemmed from social media – the club has over 30,000 followers on Instagram. Book club Reading is Gay, had a similar surge in success when it went viral on TikTok at the end of last year.
Founder Ben Taylor held the first meeting of the club just under a year ago: “We had read ‘They Both Die at the End’ by Adam Silvera and arranged to meet at a venue in Clapham.
“To little surprise, no one showed up, bar a handful of good friends wanting to show their support.”
He added: “A few days before New Year’s, my flatmate Jonny suggested making a TikTok about the book club. I stitched together a short reel, using the only two clips we got at the meet-up, and posted it.
“My phone became a non-stop stream of messages, likes and comments from all over the world, asking for more details and how to join.”
In the words of NBC; ‘A book club might be the hottest new social scene’… So come along to Reading is Gay to meet 100s of new friends 🎉 Join one of our socials to meet like-minded gays, chat about our book of the month, or just connect with a friendly and inclusive community 🏳️🌈 Check out our Instagram @readingisgay_ to sign up. . . #gay#gaylondon#gayuk#lgbtnetwork#bookclub#lgbtbooks
Neeraj Shetye makes the journey down to London from Oxford every month to attend Reading is Gay.
“I went for the first time in May,” he says, “back then, it was only 80 or so people. Now, it’s closer to 180.”
“I go to have the space for interaction, which is a lot more important to me than a loud club event, though I do go to those too.
“Here, there is drinking, but there’s no pressure to drink – you can just have a glass of wine in your hand and have a conversation.”
Members of book club Reading is Gay travel from all over South England and from as far as Jersey and Germany, according to founder Ben Taylor. Image courtesy of Ben Taylor
Far from shunning from nights out, Shetye notes that most book clubbers have opted for a more balanced approach: “People will do Friday night partying but then go for a Saturday social like this one.
“These spaces are still quite new, but I see a shift to quieter social engagements, or at least to alternative social engagements.”
It’s a sentiment echoed by Minney: “You’ve got people who just aren’t into going out, and you’ve got some people who come straight from ‘Feel It’ on an hour’s sleep. We’re not this puritanical group who don’t go out.”
