Pride Quarter, Liverpool

In keeping with Liverpool's history as a major seafaring port, the local gay community can be traced as far back as the Victorian era. Research into this area has been on the whole scarce in the past, however, interest has grown considerably in recent times.

In his 2011 lecture, Policing Sex Between Men: 1850–1971, historian Jeff Evans examined 70,000 criminal records dating back to 1850. He was able to shed light on hundreds of records of men prosecuted under the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 (the law used to prosecute Oscar Wilde) found in the court papers of Liverpool and North West England.[5][6][7]

Due to the legacy of Victorian laws and homosexual criminalisation, the city's lesbian and gay community would be largely underground for the next century and little is known about it during this period. However, recent research has highlighted the existence of an unofficial gay quarter around Queen Square from as early as the 1940s, which earned itself the nickname "Covent Garden of the North".[8] Although sex between consenting men was not decriminalised until the Sexual Offences Act 1967, the gay community enjoyed relative acceptance in this area. Establishments such as the Stork Hotel, the Roebuck, Spanish House, Magic Clock, Royal Court, and The Dart all boasted a substantial gay clientele, albeit liaisons were still held in secret to a degree.[9][8] By the early 1970s, a society named 'The Homophile Society', which campaigned for homosexual equality, was formed at the University of Liverpool.[10]

The building of the new St. John's Shopping Centre and subsequent demolition of the original Queen Square meant the gay community was forced to find a new home. By 1972, with the opening of Paco's, the community had now began to settle around Stanley Street in what was to develop into Liverpool's modern day Pride Quarter.[11]

Research into Liverpool's gay past took a significant turning point in 2004 as part of the inaugural Homotopia celebrations, the city's home grown gay arts festival. A major project titled 'Tales From Yester-Queer', organised in conjunction with The Armistead Project, Unity Theatre and Liverpool Record Office, became the first ever attempt to pay tribute to the experiences of older lesbian and gay Liverpudlians. The project involved collecting and collating various spoken, written and video sources, as well as a short film commission 'Gayzin Liverpool', produced by local filmmaker Sandi Hughes.[27][28][29]

The event became the catalyst for a major public perspective of gay and lesbian Liverpool and shortly followed was 'Our Story Liverpool', an oral history resource which recorded the experiences of community members from the 1930s to the present day.[30][31]

A similar and more recent project titled "Pink: Past & Present" has also explored the rich lesbian and gay history of the city[32] which had its world premier in November 2010.[33][34]

Public realm improvements on Victoria Street (July 2020)

As part of the Liverpool City Centre Connectivity (LCCC) scheme, a major redesign of Victoria Street began in February 2019 which fully completed in July 2020.

The entire length of Victoria Street, running from North John Street to the Queensway tunnel, underwent changes to the public realm. Pavements were widened, trees were planted, bus stops were removed and relocated. The scheme was designed to accommodate street cafes.[35][36][37][38]

During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and restrictions, prominent LGBT venues including The Lisbon, OMG, Dorothy's Show Bar, On Point and Heaven began to utilise the new widened pavements by introducing outdoor seating areas.[39][40]

On the Liverpool Pride weekend of July 2016, a revamp of Eberle Street was unveiled. The original tarmac footway and concrete kerbing was removed and replaced with decorated paving. The overhaul featured illustrations from the Wizard of Oz including Dorothy’s ruby slippers and her dog Toto.

Eberle Street public realm improvements (March 2020)

The references were chosen to celebrate the heritage and history of Eberle Street as part of the city's LGBT community, particularly as the home of long-standing gay venues G-Bar and Garlands (named after Judy Garland).[41][42][43]

The process of partially pedestrianising the gay quarter began in June 2008. Liverpool City Council launched a Public consultation on the partial closing of streets in the neighbourhood, with a view to enhancing the night time leisure experience.[44] The council had originally proposed to restrict traffic in Stanley Street, Cumberland Street and Eberle Street after 6pm with the use of automatic hydraulic bollards at strategic locations.

After various businesses raised concerns over restricted access to the streets, the city council proposed to reduce hours of street closure and held a second consultation in November 2008.[45] It was decided that reduced hours of street closure would be a compromise to accommodate deliveries to some day-time businesses in the area.

Regular community events now take place on Stanley Street thanks to partial pedestrianisation

As a result of campaigns from the LGBT community, the council held a third consultation between Friday 23 January 2009 and Friday 20 February 2009, and proposed longer hours of pedestrianisation. After analysing public opinion, the city council decided that hours proposed the third time round were insufficient in ensuring pedestrian safety.

A fourth and final consultation was held in September 2009 and no objections from the public were lodged.[46]

Liverpool's gay quarter was finally pedestrianised on 10 December 2009. Stanley Street is now closed to traffic between 10pm-6am seven days of the week, Cumberland Street is closed between 6pm-6am seven days of the week, and Eberle Street is closed for 24 hours of the day seven days of the week.[47]

Thanks to partial pedestrianisation and a cooperative effort to promote the Stanley Street quarter to shoppers and tourists, a number of sporadic day time community events have been held over the years. In 2012, Mother's Day celebrations, an Arts & Literature Day, street entertainment, pavement cafes and a series of markets were held.[48][49]

Original plans to completely revamp Liverpool's gay quarter were unveiled in February 2011, but the plans did not come to fruition. City leaders argued that a vibrant gay village around Stanley Street was key to the economic success of Liverpool city centre as an international tourist destination. Urban planner Feria Urbanism carried out a £12,000 study in conjunction with the City Council[50] which aimed to showcase the gay quarter amongst the best in the UK.[51] The company consulted with businesses and residents in the area to see how public areas and safety could be improved. Shortly after the formation of the Stanley Street Quarter Community Interest Company the plans were revisited in 2014.

Councillor Nick Small, cabinet member for employment and skills, said: "We have made strides in recent years and are being seen as a more gay-friendly city than was the case a few years ago. We now need to look at how we can develop and promote the quarter."[52]

As a result of the 2011 plans, numerous regeneration options for the gay quarter were under discussion. New rainbow coloured paving, artworks, gateway features, tree planting, new outdoor seating, street furniture and ideas for a new public square were explored.[53] A consultation on Feria Urbanism's draft report titled "Stanley Street: Strategic direction for a vital urban quarter (May 2011)" took place. Suggestions for which organisations and stakeholders should take responsibility for proposed actions and recommendations were made. The original timeline of these proposals envisaged the first phase of regeneration to take place within 2–5 years which would then make way for a longer-term vision.[54] As part of the first phase of redevelopment, Liverpool became the first city in the UK to install street signage bearing the rainbow coloured Gay Pride flag on 11 November 2011. The signage now identifies the city's Gay Quarter located on Stanley Street, Cumberland Street, Temple Lane, Eberle Street and Temple Street.[55]

Outside seating on Eberle Street at GBar (May 2021)