G-A-Y
G-A-Y is a long-running gay nightclub, based at Heaven in Charing Cross, London. It originally started in 1976, and for many years was based at the London Astoria. History. G-A-Y originally began in 1976 in the Sundown club in the basement of the London Astoria (later LA2) as a Monday night event called "Bang!". It was started by club promoters Norman Scott, Damien Tony and Jerry Collins, who worked as a DJ under the name Gary London. During the 1980s, "Bang!" (which had by then also expanded to Saturday night) and "Propaganda  (Thursday night) were run by gay club promoter and DJ Colin Peters (Peter Daubeney), whose brother Jamie continued as promoter for a period following his death. In the early 1990s, Bang!" was acquired by DJ and promoter Jeremy Joseph, formerly employed by Peters, who oversaw its change of name to "G-A-Y". At this point, G-A-Y expanded further from two nights a week to four, hosting at the LA2 on Mondays and Thursdays and the London Astoria on Fridays and Saturdays. It operated from the London Astoria music venue for 15 years until July 2008. The Boston  Globe described it as "London's largest gay-themed club night", "NME" reported that it "attracts 6,000 clubbers each week", and "The Independent" described it as "the one London gig that really matters" for "today's pop stars". G-A-Y is associated with "G-A-Y Bar" and "G-A-Y Late". A major stake in the brand was bought on 13 August 2007 by the MAMA Group. On Friday 3 October 2008, G-A-Y moved to the famous gay venue Heaven, which MAMA Group had acquired a few weeks earlier on 22 September 2008. The G-A -Y Album. In 2000, a 40 track compilation album was released, featuring songs from some of the artists who had appeared at G-A-Y. A promotional campaign took place in the weeks leading up to release, including television and radio advertisements, a nationwide poster campaign and magazine advertisements in both the gay and teen press. On Saturday 1 July 2000, a show was held at G-A-Y to promote the release of the album. Seven acts who appeared on the album performed. These acts were Shola Ama, All Saints, Bananarama, Dina Carroll, Billie Piper, Honeyz and Louise. Each  act performed only one song, apart from Louise, who also performed her new single "2 Faced". The G-A-Y album was released on Monday 3 July 2000 and peaked at number 18 in the UK compilations chart. G-A-Y brand. The G-A-Y brand has expanded to two other bars in the same area: G-A-Y Late (located near the former Astoria site) and G-A-Y bar (located nearby in Soho's Old Compton Street). In April 2011, the G-A-Y brand arrived in Manchester's Canal Street gay village, with a G-A -Y bar opening in the former venue of Spirit Bar. The brand is now 100% owned by Jeremy Joseph. Controversies. In March 2019, staff refused comedian Rosie Jones, who has cerebral palsy, entry into one of his nightclubs after they believed she was drunk. Owner Jeremy Joseph later apologised on Twitter. In 2011, Joseph tweeted that straight people were not welcome to a One Direction gig, stating: "My birthday wish is for little girls to realise that G-A-Y is a lesbian and gay club so there's only one direction and that’s no direction for them". Joseph  was also accused of racism after blaming a rise in crime in Soho on "Somalians"; this led to criticism from Black and South Asian LGBT groups. In early 2022, G-A-Y Bar was reported to have been issued the lowest hygiene rating of '1' by Westminster City Council following an inspection in November 2021 after it found fruit flies, mould-covered and bacteria-laden ice machines, and water filtration systems which had not been cleaned nor serviced for 5 years. Performances. Saturday nights at G-A-Y/Heaven have seen many performances from a wide selection of artists and  genres. Acts who have appeared at G-A-Y include: