Lost Spaces: Memories from Gay Bars, Lesbian Clubs, and LGBTQ+ Parties

Ok, be totally honest with me - have you ever hooked up with a work colleague? Or, actually, the question I'm more interested in is - have you ever known about a work-place hook up that hasn't ended catastrophically? Well, if you haven't guessed already by the way I framed those questions - this week we are finding out all about a doomed hook up that our guest, Twitch streamer extraordinare, BBKyle had when he was working at Spin, a bar in Chicago's queer neighbourhood Boystown. But, that's definitely not all that we talk about... Though he is now based in Tennessee, BBKyle says that he loved his time at Spin so much that he would still be working there today if it hadn't closed... now, that's some bar! We talk about how he ended up in Chicago, what queer spaces offer that other spaces don't, and how being forced to wear a uniform of nothing but booty shorts helped Kyle learn how to love himself... Do you have any memories of Spin, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about BBKyle by following him on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/bbkyle.twitch), Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/BBKyle), Twitter (https://twitter.com/BadGayPodcast). Or just visit his website BBKyle.com

This podcast started at the end of 2019, and had been running for a few months when... well, you remember what happened in 2020, right? And, for the longest time... I kind of wanted this show to make no mention of the pandemic or Covid-19 or any of the shit going on in the world. I wanted it to be an escape, and an opportunity to think about something else for the people that were listening. But, maybe (and just maybe) I'm finally ready to talk about the pandemic.... One of the wonderful things that happened in that time was this explosion of online drag shows, where performers found new ways to continue entertaining people when they weren't able to do so in bars and clubs. And, it's one of these ongoing drag shows, Dragoslavia, that we are going to learn all about on today's show. Dragoslavia is the brainchild of Slovenia-based drag queen Mentalika, who set it up as a way of bringing together queens from Balkan countries. We met to talk about her reasons for setting up the show, logistical nightmares, and what it's like to set up a drag house before you've decided who your drag character is. Do you have any memories of Dragoslavia, or any other online drag shows or parties that happened during the pandemic? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Mentalika by following her on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/mentalika_/). And, if you want to find out more about Dragoslavia, including details of who performed at each show, check out the Instagram page - https://www.instagram.com/dragoslavia/

This week it's our first ever trip to Japan! And we're not going to just any old bar, we're going to a hostess club...  Hostess (and host) clubs are fairly unique to Japan, so if you've not heard of them before the long and short of it is that they are a type of cabaret bar that provides entertainment, but also employs people to provide attentive conversation and a little bit of flirting to their customers (kind of like giving the boyfriend or girlfriend experience).  And, showing us around is Tiffany Rossdale, self proclaimed mega-socialite of Tokyo's nightlife scene and host of the Breakfast with Tiffany podcast.  Tiffany first moved to Japan from the Philippines in the late 90s, to live with her mum, who had moved there a few years prior.  Before long, she had started her journey towards nightlife queendom working as a hostess at Mr Lady, a hostess bar made up predominantly of Trans Filipino women.  This is a really great chat - we get to find out all about what is involved in being a hostess, what Tiffany learnt from the women she worked with, and we even get surprisingly deep talking about our parents...  Do you have any memories of Mister Lady, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Tiffany by following her on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/OfficialTiffanyRossdale) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/tiffanyrossdaleofficial), or by visiting her website (https://www.tiffanyrossdale.com/)

So, you may have heard the joke before that watching Drag Race in a bar is the gays equivalent of watching football or rugby in a bar. And, yes, ok, it's a basic, basic stereotype...but... well... maybe there's a smidgen of truth in it? (Just a smidgen, mind you...!) This week I'm joined by the comic book legend Sina Grace, who has written and/or drawn queer superheroes like Ice-Man, and his own Rockstar and Softboy, to talk about his experience in finding what he calls 'platonic queer joy' at the West Hollywood bar Flaming Saddles... Now, i don't think he'd mind me saying that this wasn't his usual type of haunt. No, he prefers the leather bars and places that are a little less twinky, but it was through their weekly screening of Ru Paul's Drag Race that he got to experience community and soak up that camaraderie...  Ooh, and some terminology that we use in this episode: Side - which means your sexual preference does not include penetrative sex  Pup play - a sexual act that involves role-playing as a dog and the dog's master Do you have any memories of Flaming Saddles, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Sina by following him on Twitter (https://twitter.com/SinaGrace) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/sinagrace/), or visit his website http://sinagrace.com/. 

You know, it's been a while since we've had a really rambly, all-over-the-shop conversation on this show.... and, the reason that I mention this fact is because this week we've got ourselves a rambly, all-over-the-shop conversation... But that's not a bad thing!  In fact, I loved this conversation that I had with John, who is the man behind the drag character Taylor Trash.  Taylor is the host of the drag web-series competition The Gold Rush, which is just about to launch Season 3 on YouTube. So, I thought it was a good time to sit down and learn all about one of her most treasured lost spaces, London's Ghetto (which is also one of my favourite lost spaces)...  Only, it didn't quite go according to plan, and we ramble a good bit of the episode.  But, it's all good stuff, cause we get to learn about John coming out to his dad (not once, but twice!), his early days flirting with drag, and why community is so important to him.  Do you have any memories of Ghetto, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Taylor on Twitter (https://twitter.com/MissTaylorTrash), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/misstaylortrash/), or do yourself a favour and subscribe to her YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@TrashTVOfficial) so you're all ready to watch the third series of The Gold Rush when it launches!

So, if you've ever listened to this show and thought to yourself 'queer clubbing is not as good as all these people seem to be remembering' then:  Firstly, maybe this show isn't for you....  Secondly, you'll be glad you stuck it out because this week we're doing something different! Yup, we're complaining about how rubbish queer clubbing is! And, who is joining me to be a big ol' grump? Well, it's the singer/actor and writer of the book 'Cancer, Musical Theatre, & Other Chronic Illnesses' Edward Miskie! Edward first moved to New York City in the mid-00s, and tried to embrace queer nightlife, including lost spaces like Splash and Vlada, but ultimately decided.... well, he'd really rather not. Along the way he became a sole survivor of a rare Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, which, as you can imagine, went right ahead and turned his life upside down. We talked all about the terrible life lessons we learnt from Sex and the City, how a cancer diagnosis changes your perception, and all the many, many things that are wrong with the queer scene... Do you have any memories of terrible, terrible queer clubbing that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Edward by following him on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/edwardmiskie/), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/edwardmiskie), and TikTok (https://www.tiktok.com/@edwardmiskie)

So, one of the things about drag that i'm really fascinated by is the decision-making process behind crafting a drag character...  Because, to me, deciding on who your drag character is - what they like, how they talk, how they present to the world - is a big commitment... almost like a marriage maybe?  And, by that I mean you are committing to another person (or, ok, character) that will forever be associated with you. Because of this you've kind of got to make sure you think it through.... But, then, I guess, you run the risk of OVERTHINKING it (my signature move!).... To find out a little more about this I sat down to pick the brains of Ty Jeffries, the man behind the drag character Miss Hope Springs (an old-school, glamourous chanteuse).... We got together to talk about Madame JoJos, a legendary nightclub in London's Soho that closed in 2014 after being open continuously since the 60s... So, of course we talk all about the gentrification of Soho, the evolution of drag, and... what it's like to be a horny teenager on the train... Oh, and I should also say that there is a mention of Polari in this conversation, which is a slang language used by predominately gay men in the UK up until about the 60s when it started to fall out of favour... Do you have any memories of Madame JoJo's, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Ty by following him on Twitter (https://twitter.com/TyJeffriesPiano), visiting his website (https://www.tyjeffries.com/), or visiting Miss Hope Springs' website (https://www.misshopesprings.com/)

When you’ve never been to a leather bar it’s easy to view them as seedy and debaucherous and a little scary... and, yeah, ok, they are all of those things - but they’re also surprisingly quite wholesome!  Well, maybe not wholesome, but they definitely offer a more down-to-earth and judgement-free alternative to the more mainstream queer spaces that you often find in big cities… And one of the lost leather bars with the absolute best name ever? Why, it's Chicago's Manhole! This week I am joined by singer/songwriter Homer Marrs, who first moved to Chicago at the turn of the century to study improv comedy, and slowly but surely spread his wings in the city's queer scene. With one or two 'hard lessons' along the way... Do you have any memories of ManHole, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Homer by following him on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/homermarrs), or Twitter (https://twitter.com/HomerMarrs)

This week I learnt a new word, and that word is.... thelephobia... which, if you didn't know already, is the fear of nipples... And why is that important? Well, it just so happens that this week's guest, Dr Joshua Lobb - who is a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Wollongong (and our first ever doctor on this show!) - happens to have a fear of nipples. But, not just any nipples. REALLY big nipples... The kind you would find on the bartenders who worked at Sydney's The Albury Hotel (which is, coincidentally, the lost space we talked about on this week's show!). We talk all about gay fashions, being intimidated by a certain type of coolness, and.... friendly groping? Do you have any memories of The Albury Hotel, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Make sure you read Joshua's book 'The Flight of Birds: a novel in twelve stories', which is available now! http://purl.library.usyd.edu.au/sup/9781743325834

If you love a good ol' fashioned leaving-my-hometown-to-find-myself story, then this week we've got a doozy. Naomi Mourra, (who happens to be Sydney’s only Lebanese, lesbian, ex-Jehovah’s Witness, comedian), first came to London in the late 90s when she was trying to reconcile the thoughts she was feeling about women-folk with the teachings of her religion. And, it was in London that she got to explore Soho's Candy Bar, a lesbian bar that first opened in 1996, but closed in 2014 due to rising rents in the area. Boo! We talk all about the magic of London, finding your bearings in a new city, and wooly jumpers... Do you have any memories of The Candy Bar, or clubbing from your own queer scene that you want to share? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Naomi by following her on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/naomimourra/) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/naomimourracomedy)