Gay bar dark room london

The allure of a dark room lies in its lighting – it should be dark, but not too dusky. Ideally, you won&#;t recognise the cashier from your local Tesco Metro, but you will be able to form out a sweaty throng of bodies in positions you&#;d normally only view on OnlyFans. Dim rooms have been a draw in queer spaces for decades and stay de rigueur in other, friskier parts of Europe. Place it this way: It&#;s a rookie error to wear your best shoes to Berlin’s famously bohemian superclub Berghain, because you&#;ll just have to chuck them away after you leave seven hours later.

But now, dark rooms are enjoying a drawn-out overdue boom in the UK, especially among MSM (men who have sex with men). &#;Essentially, the reason they&#;re becoming popular again is a supply and demand issue,&#; says Ian Howley, CEO of health and wellbeing help LGBT HERO. &#;Gay men want a place where they can have entertaining, and a gloomy room in a club can be the perfect place to let leave of your inhibitions and be sexually free.&#;

This new wave of gay sex-positivity is being fuelled partly by post-pandemic carpe diem

For hundreds of years, Soho has been a haven for gay Londoners, complete of packed pubs and late night drinking dens even before the decriminalisation of homosexuality. In these enlightened times, LGBTQ+ city dwellers have got a plethora of options all across the city. But same-sex attracted old Soho still holds a special place in London's LGBTQ scene and remains most visitors' first port of call, whether for drag nights or mingling. It's centred around Old Compton Street, where you can spend a raucous night at the enduringly popular G-A-Y bar or down unpretentious drinks at pubs like The Admiral Duncan. Here's our pick of the best gay bars and clubs in Soho.

RECOMMENDED: Undertaking further afield with London's best gay bars and gay clubs.

Been there, done that? Think again, my friend.

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Vault

Area: North London
Address: Whitfield Street, London, W1T 5EN
Telephone: +44 20
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London&#;s longest running gay cruise bar, Vault is nothing less than an institution in Central London.

For adv over a decade Vault has been a destination for same-sex attracted, bi and curious men looking for mischievously good time.

Tucked away near Warren Street in the refined area of Fitzrovia, you&#;d never know that behind those doors is a sexy, obscure vibe where anything can transpire &#; and often does!

A weekly roster of events includes Stripped (Mon-Thu) where guys are encouraged to strip down; to Underwear night on Wednesdays and Sunday; All or Nothing on Saturdays with DJs; and Cruise throughout the week.

7 days a week. 1pm &#; 1am

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Vault

Area: North London
Whitfield Street, London, W1T 5EN
Undergound & Trains: Warren Street, Euston Square, Euston, Goodge Street
Buses: 24, 29

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&#; Main photo: Vault

No sex please, we're Londoners

Pivotal in Vauxhall’s gay scene is Eagle London, one of the city’s most vibrant and much-loved LGBTQI venues. Both boozey and cruisey – with a distinctly male (often muscly) clientele – it’s a giant, clubby pub that’s been a mainstay of homosexual London for more than a decade now. Yet what always distinguished it from other venues was its sex entertainment licence. For the past decade, the venue has held a licence permitting sexual activity on the premises. Eagle London’s owner, Stamp Oakley, spent years productive with Lambeth Council to create ‘a very strict code of conduct’ which made the venue’s dim room a safe hook-up space for gay men, and one regularly monitored by local police. But in a sign of how London’s nightlife scene is changing in , Eagle London has decided it no longer wants to make use of its council-awarded sex business licence – as Oakley seeks to secure the venue’s future by attracting a new and more diverse crowd. It may be too strong to call it ge