Bloc Bar
There’s no shortage of bad news stories about London’s LGBTQ venues these days – after all, more than a dozen have closed in the past couple of years, including the iconic Black Cap, Madame Jojo’s and the Joiners Arms, and the future of the RVT remains uncertain.
All the more reason for celebration when a new space actually opens! Last week saw Bloc Bar open its doors in Camden, at 18 Kentish Town Rd, just across from the tube and down the road from the Black Cap site.
The project took shape very quickly and will find a ready clientele among those missing the Cap since its closure in April – not least because many of the same people are involved, from bar manager George Antony to cabaret acts including the Family Fierce.
Bloc Bar is the sister venue of East Bloc and is also the brainchild of Wayne Shires – a hugely important figure in London’s queer nightlife scene for more than two decades with successful venues such as Substation, Substation South, Crash, Area and East Bloc under his belt, not to mention the Summer Rites festival. (Check out this interview with Wayne for more details.)
Bloc Bar is a split-level space with a total capacity of about 250 and a largely industrial vibe. Cement, stainless-steel and black-tile fittings are offset by disco ball, giant rainbow flag and a dash of pink above the wedge-shaped raised area that serves as a stage.
There’s loads of cabaret lined up, including regular nights from Meth and the Family Fierce, Holestar, Fagulous and “Bloc Cap Sessions” on Sundays, as well as regular DJ sessions from Tasty Tim and others.
The crowds at last weekend’s opening nights were notably mixed, hopefully boding well for a thriving new space.
Here’s what the boss had to say about the new gaff…
Tell us about Bloc Bar – what’s your vision for it?
Wayne Shires: Fun, unpretentious gay bar with a US/industrial twist! Somewhere for those of all colours and persuasions to come and let their hair down and have a good time.
There have been quite a few venues on that site in recent years – what do you think Bloc Bar will offer that they didn’t?
WS: Well, it’s not a comparison game but one obvious difference is this is a bar for the LGBT community and we’re bringing an experienced team to it who know how to create a welcoming and well run environment. I can’t comment on what others have done but between our team we’ve got years of running a variety of different venues and I think that collective experience will show.
We’ll also be having the best burgers from September from our friends at Burger Bear so this will be a venue to visit from lunchtime until the early morning.
Family Fierce performing at Bloc Bar on August 2 2015
You’ve got loads of great cabaret talent lined up – what does cabaret bring to a venue like Bloc Bar (or East Bloc come to that)?
WS: Cabaret obviously has a long tradition on the scene but I think in the past few years it’s really come into its own and crossed over to a wider audience. This has resulted in some really strong acts and talent coming through.
I think if done well, cabaret taps into that very old form of entertainment that goes back to the music hall, vaudeville, even early theatre. It creates a sense of occasion and spectacle that brings the crowd together.
There are some challenges to the stage set-up at Bloc Bar, including a low rise, wedge shape and limited lighting. How do you think that will affect the cabaret programming?
WS: It’s very early days! The lighting will be getting improved in the coming weeks. Remember, this literally came out of nowhere – we had a few weeks to turn a venue around that hadn’t been used for months into a working bar.
As for the stage, we’ll see how it works. It was fine for our opening weekend but if we start to get really busy we may have to look at getting a higher stage that we can put away when not being used. It’s all trial and error at this stage!
It’s hard to open a queer venue these days, isn’t it? How did you do it this time?
WS: We want this bar to be open to everyone, and it was really heartening to see lesbians, trans, drag queens, gay men and others all rubbing shoulders having a good time last Friday. Because of the programming and being in Camden, I hope we attract people who identify under all labels – or none at all!
In terms of opening a venue, it depends on what you’re after. This just happened to come up and I thought it was a great space so I went for it.
It’s also hard to keep a queer venue open these days – what kind of relationship do you have with the freeholder?
WS: The guy we got this through I’ve known for years. Of course, in London there’s never any 100% guarantee the developers won’t move in, but we’re as secure as we can be.
You’re working with many veterans of the Black Cap, and you evoke its name with the Bloc Cap Sessions. Do you support the ongoing campaign to get the Cap reopened? If so, how do you think you can help? If not, why not?
WS: Yes, we asked George to join us as it seemed a logical fit and also good for him to have somewhere gay in Camden to work. So some of what we’ve programmed is George bringing what he did so well at the Cap. The Bloc Cap Sessions is a tribute to that, which was an institution for so long.
Like most people, I personally didn’t want to see it closed – I have many memories of it going back to the 80s and we’ve lost too many venues in London in recent years. In terms of helping them get reopened, I’m not sure, to be honest. I don’t know where it is legally with the freeholder.
As you say, we’ve lost numerous queer venues in London over the past couple of years, but gained a couple too. As someone with huge experience and success in the field, what’s your feeling about the situation in London?
WS: London has changed a lot with the closure of these venues, but then new things have sprung up. Dalston Superstore, The Glory, East Bloc, Vogue Fabrics and now Bloc Bar – none of these were here until relatively recently.
If you totted it up, we’ve definitely lost more than we’ve gained, but it’s always been ebbs and flows. I predict the West End making a comeback at some point – there needs to be a revival of Soho, which doesn’t have much on the late night front at the moment. The property prices of London now makes it that much more difficult to open venues, especially some of the more edgier, low-market ones the West End used to have and that I loved that are now gone.
But I’m optimistic. People still move here from all over the world because of the freedom we have here. There will be another flourishing of gay clubbing and nightlife.
Anything else we should know?
WS: We’re open seven days a week!
Bloc Bar is at 18 Kentish Town Road, NW1 9NX. Find out more on Facebook and Twitter.
