Queer Urbanisms and Nightlife
This thread centres on the spatial politics of queer life and nightlife in the city.
Queer Urbanisms and Nightlife investigates how LGBTQ+ communities and other marginalised groups claim, contest and recreate space, especially under conditions of gentrification, crisis or displacement. Nightlife is approached as both a cultural form and a site of resistance, deeply tied to belonging, identity and visibility. From the disappearance of queer venues to the adaptive practices of migrant communities during curfews, this thread highlights how nocturnal urbanism becomes a terrain for struggle, creativity and care.
Sexuality at Home was an interdisciplinary research workshop held on 11 December 2012, exploring the intersections between domesticity and sexuality. Hosted at the Bartlett School of Architecture and supported by UCL Urban Laboratory, the event brought together architects, geographers, historians and sociologists to examine how sexuality is shaped, expressed and regulated within domestic spaces. The workshop featured keynote lectures, presentations, and discussions, and led to the publication of the book Sexuality and Home (Bloomsbury, 2017).
Contributors: Keynote Speakers: Aaron Betsky (Architect and Critic; Director, Cincinnati Art Museum) and Dr Andrew Gorman-Murray (Geographer, University of Western Sydney). Presenters: Carla Barrett (University of Southampton), Dr Katarina Bonnevier (Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm), Dr Ben Campkin (UCL Urban Laboratory), Prof Matt Cook (Birkbeck College, University of London), Dr Martin Dines (Kingston University), Prof Jacqui Gabb (The Open University), R. Justin Hunt (Syracuse University, London), Dana Kaplan (The Hebrew University / The Open University, Israel), Dr Matt Smith (University of Brighton), Carin Tunaker (University of Kent).
Derek Jarman: Sites and Spaces
Derek Jarman: Sites and Spaces was a study day hosted by UCL Urban Laboratory in collaboration with the Slade School of Fine Art on 13 February 2014. The event brought together artists, writers, academics and students to explore the spatial and urban dimensions of Derek Jarman’s life and work.
Contributors: Sabina Andron (UCL Bartlett School of Architecture), Ben Campkin (UCL Urban Lab), Stephen Farthing (Royal Academy of Arts), Alan Hollinghurst (novelist), Brighid Lowe (Slade School of Fine Art), Richard Maguire (Arcadia), Bob Mills (UCL History of Art), Jayne Parker (Slade School of Fine Art), Hilary Powell (artist and AHRC Fellow, UCL Bartlett School of Architecture)
Soho Spirit: Our Space or a Space in Our Minds?
As part of UCL LGBT+ History Month, this symposium held on 20 February 2016 explored the past, present and future of Soho as London’s historically recognised gay district. Organised by Marco Venturi (Gender and Sexuality Studies, UCL), the event examined the formation of LGBT spaces in Soho, their contemporary transformations, and the impact of their decline on community life. Through historical reflection and critical debate, participants questioned whether Soho still holds relevance for London’s LGBT+ community and considered how new forms of queer urban space may be emerging. The symposium was supported by JFIGS, qUCL, and UCL Urban Laboratory.
Contributors: Organised by Marco Venturi, Gender and Sexuality Studies (CMII - Centre for Multidisciplinary & Intercultural Inquiry at UCL) with contributions from Judith Summers, Clayton Littlewood, Marco Venturi, Bob Mills, Stav B, Sam Miles, James Watson, Federica Buzzi, Damiano Sacco, Samuel Douek, David Gleeson, Alison Oram, Justin Bengry, Ben Campkin.
Cities After Hours (UCL, 13 May 2015) explored the nocturnal city through interdisciplinary lenses, investigating how urban life changes after dark. The colloquium featured diverse contributions on the cultural, spatial and political dimensions of the city at night.
Contributors: Sabina Andron (Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL), Max Colson (UCL Urban Laboratory), Margarita Saad (UCL French), Rafael Schacter (UCL Anthropology/UCL Urban Laboratory), Mara Arts (UCL Centre for Multidisciplinary & Intercultural Inquiry), James Kneale (UCL Geography), Chris O' Rourke (UCL Centre for Humanities Interdisciplinary Research Projects), Huda Tayob (Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL), Emma Whipday (UCL English), Ruth Austin (UCL French), Matthew Beaumont (UCL English/Urban Laboratory), Roland-François Lack (UCL French).
Urban Pamphleteer Issue 07. LGBTQ+ Night-time Spaces: Past, Present & Future
LGBTQ+ Night-time Spaces: Past, Present & Future explores the shifting landscape of queer nightlife in London, highlighting community resistance, spatial justice, and the cultural significance of LGBTQ+ night-time spaces amid gentrification and venue closures.
Contributors: Stuart Feather, DJ Ritu, Ben Campkin, Anton Johnson, Ben Walters, Chardine Taylor-Stone, Ben Campkin & Lo Marshall, Joe Parslow, Victoria Sin, Travis Alabanza, R. Justin Hunt, Josh Hepple, Planning Out, Friends of the Joiners Arms, Queer Spaces Network.
Urban Pamphleteer Issue 09. Reimagining the Night
This issue explores how the pandemic reshaped night-time urban life, focusing on how migrant communities navigate vulnerability, visibility, and cultural expression amid curfews and socio-political constraints.
Contributors: Robbie Kitt, Kuldip Singh and Yusuf Yassin Dualeh, Amy Lamé, Rut Blees Luxemburg, Ben Walters, Lena Évora, Rema Hamid, Ana Naomi de Sousa, Thys Boer and Julian Schaap, José Manuel Vilalonga, Jola Zych, Laura-Solmaz Litschel and Jola Zych, Hunnid22, Ragazza, Jorge da Veiga and Seger Kersbergen, Joshua Idehen, VibeLab
Queer Spaces: London, 1980s to today
Exhibition drawing on UCL Urban Laboratory research by Ben Campkin and Lo Marshall, showcasing rarely seen archives of London’s LGBTQ+ venues and networks from the 1980s to today. Featuring case studies like the London Lesbian and Gay Centre, The Glass Bar and The Royal Vauxhall Tavern, alongside contemporary artist commissions, it mapped shifting queer geographies and celebrated creativity, care and activism in the city.
Research and Curation: Professor Ben Campkin (UCL Urban Laboratory), Lo Marshall (UCL Urban Laboratory)
At the 2016 Peckham Festival, the CAMP-er-VAN – a mobile performance and community venue created by Samuel Douek – hosted over 20 performances celebrating LGBTQI communities. As part of the programme, the Night Scenes project shared research on London’s queer nightlife, followed by a panel on venue closures, community-led spaces and the growth of inclusive, politically engaged nightlife for marginalised groups.
Contributors: Samuel Douek (Designer, filmmaker; Creator and curator of CAMP-er-VAN; UCL Bartlett BSc Architecture graduate), Ben Campkin (UCL Urban Laboratory), Lo (UCL Urban Laboratory), Jeffrey Hinton (DJ, producer, visual artist; key figure in London’s gay and queer nightlife since the 1980s), Mzz Kimberley (Performer in London’s gay, queer, and cabaret scenes since the 1990s), Tia Simon-Campbell (Founder, curator, photographer; Bbz London), Olivia Mastin (Resident DJ; Bbz London)
Part of UCL Urban Laboratory’s 2016 research on LGBTQI nightlife in London, this Night Scenes event explored the past, present and future of queer venues through personal stories and critical discussion. Facilitated by Dr Sharon Husbands, and organised with Raze Collective and the Queer Spaces Network, it addressed venue closures, community significance and strategies for sustaining inclusive and creative nightlife cultures.
Contributors: Dr Sharon Husbands (Facilitator), Dan Beaumont (Co-owner, Dalston Superstore), DJ Ritu (Co-founder, Club Kali), Lyall Hakaraia (Creative Director, Vogue Fabrics Dalston), Dr Ben Campkin (Organiser; UCL Urban Laboratory), Lo Marshall (Organiser; UCL Urban Laboratory)
Queer Zoo brought together artists and academics to explore the politics of naming and classification through queer experience. Using the idea of 'queer animality', the event examined how evolving taxonomies – from homosexual to queer – shape understandings of identity, desire and belonging in relation to nature, the body and citizenship.
Contributors: Oreet Ashery, Ginger Farbrother, Dr R. Justin Hunt, Dr Johanna Linsley, Dr Bob Mills, Regner Ramos, Olga Raciborska, Dr Sophie Robinson, Matt Smith, Jenkin Van Zyl
Night spaces: migration, culture and IntegraTion in Europe (NITE)
A transdisciplinary European research project exploring how migrant communities create, navigate and narrate night-time urban spaces, aiming to inform more inclusive night-time policies across eight cities.
Leads: Ben Campkin (UCL Urban Laboratory) and Sara Brandellero (Leiden University)
LGBTQ+ nightlife spaces in London
A long-term research collaboration documenting the evolution, significance, and challenges facing LGBTQ+ nightlife venues in London since 1986, highlighting their cultural, spatial and political relevance.
Researchers: Ben Campkin, Lo Marshall, Raze Collective, Queer Sapces Network
Animating the interstice: Protest as a creative act on the fringe of the ‘creative city’
- Jordan Rowe reflects on how UCU strike teach-outs at UCL redefined overlooked urban interstices as sites of collective creativity and resistance. He argues that these temporary activations challenge dominant paradigms of the ‘creative city’, reframing protest and placemaking as integral to urban cultural production.