G-A-Y put up for sale after owner claims "Soho has lost its vibrancy"

Central London LGBTQIA+ bar G-A-Y has been put for sale, with its owner claiming "Soho has lost its vibrancy."

Announced via a statement on Instagram posted on Friday (January 24), owner Jeremy Joseph wrote "I have made the tough decision to put G-A-Y Bar on the market for sale."

"This isn't an easy decision, to me this is more than just a bar" he writes. "It's also my home, I've lived above it for over 15-years, but now it's time to make some changes."

Joseph said that he made the decision following the temporary closure of his other venue, the nearby Heaven nightclub — which was shuttered by Westminster Council after a security guard was charged with allegedly raping an 18-year-old woman outside the venue in November last year.

Read this next: Heaven's future in jeopardy amid reports of £320k rent increase

"I was clear to Westminster Council's licensing committee that if they closed Heaven for even a short time, it would put G-A-Y Bar at risk financially," he wrote. "Even now, after Heaven's re-opening, the damage financially and mentally has been irreparable."

While the license dispute over Heaven is listed as a reason behind Jospeh's move, he goes on to blame increasing difficulties in operating on Old Compton Street and pressures from the cost of living crisis as a catalyst to sell.

"I firmly believe Soho has lost his vibrancy," he said, adding that he had considered extending G-A-Y's license to 3:AM following the closure of G-A-Y Late in 2023, but decided against it due to the potential for objections from Soho residents, the Metropolitan Police and Environmental Health Officers.

"It doesn't feel like anyone with power cares about hospitality and it definitely doesn't feel like they care about LGBTQIA+ venues. Old Compton Street has lost its queer identity."

The venue is one of London's longest-running LGBTQIA+ bars, having opened under the name BANG in 1976 until Joseph acquired the venue and changed its name to G-A-Y in the early '90s.

Joseph had hinted at potentially selling both G-A-Y and Heaven in 2022, telling Virgin Radio Pride UK "I’m not saying that’s what I’m going to do. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’m not even going to think about what I’m going to do. But I know what the options are."

Read this next: London club Heaven closed after security guard charged with rape

While in February last year, Joseph had appealed for support to ensure the survival of Heaven, claiming the Charing Cross venue's landlords had issued substantial rent hike — increasing it by £240,000 per-year.

While G-A-Y is up for sale, Joseph added in the instagram caption that accompanied his statement that he intends to open Heaven "7-days a week".

Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Editor, follow her on Twitter