1. The Masquerade Bar. 2. Poste House. 3. Icon & Navy Bar. 4. The Lisbon. 5. Superstar Boudoir. 6. OMG and Dorothy’s. 7. GBar. 8. Heaven.
The Stanley Street Quarter, otherwise known as the Pride Quarter, remains Liverpool’s epicentre of LGBTQ+ nightlife. Whilst the area hosts a mixture of residential blocks, hotels, and various other businesses, it is characterised by its queer bars, clubs and social spaces. From around the 1940s onwards, Liverpool’s unofficial gay quarter was based around Queen Square. By 1975, most of the bars here were demolished to make way for the St John’s Shopping Centre and Queen Square bus stations.
The Lisbon, located at the heart of the current Pride Quarter was slowly emerging as a gay venue from the 1960s onwards, until it eventually became the anchor for the community following the demolition of Queen Square - with many of the bar staff relocating to the area, bringing their clientele with them. Several new venues began to open near and around Stanley Street in the 1970s and 80s - such as Jody’s, The Curzon, and Paco’s. Today, it is recognised as Liverpool’s official Pride Quarter, hosting a variety of vibrant bars and clubs.