Duckie visits the Gateways Salon

On Wednesday 12 June Duckie held a pre-Gateways Salon discussion event at the RVT. It was incredibly refreshing to see the  most diverse and inclusive audience I've come across at the RVT, well ever.

Duckie is going to the Gateways Salon for 2 nights only during London Pride, as part of a retrospective of LGBT social history, on the 28th and 29th June, at the Camden Centre. Exploring the butch/femme identities across the decades, the events bring the experience of the Gateways to new generations in all it's bent, vintage, racy glory.  The Gateways salon was one of the original lesbian clubs, based in Chelsea(when it was more like Shoreditch), and a home for lesbians from the 40s up until its closure in 1985.

Tickets are £15 and include Illegitimate entertainment from Ursula Martinez, Jess Love, The Eggs Collective & Figs in Wigs, sideshows from Lucille Power, Sue Frumin & The Drakes, hairdressing by Open Barbers. Event details

Going to the Gateways is part of a Duckie project to explore queer history, capture the essence of the social past and rebuild some oral history for the queer community.

The RVT event was a panel discussion with an interesting range of women - regular patrons of the Gateway and historians/documentarians who have played a roles in capturing the spirit of the Gateways. Chaired with wit and sensitivity by Amy Lamé. Many of the audience were able to share their stories and tales much to the delight of those of us who are a little newer to the scene.

Not just stereotypes
The discussion started off exploring the themes of butch and femme and how important these identities were to out women in the scene of the 40s - 80s, and how these identities permeated lesbian identities, relationship dynamics, affections, behaviour and fashion - and how these identities were used to confuse as well as uphold traditional stereotypes. However there was an inbetween, and androgeny has been around for a while. For some, the butch identity offered an outlet for 'trans' feelings, of which at the time there was no real language to identify gender dysphoria.

The first time
The panel and the audience reflected on the similiraties and differences of going to a gay bar for the first time. The sheer fear many of the patrons felt before they stepped through the door (if indeed they would be 'allowed' to following a strict entrance code for the members only bar). Many women turned up, and went home before even knocking on the door. Many looked for 'women like them' in the surrounding to join through that door for the first time.

Once inside however, that feeling of 'being at home' and safe, and with like minded women dominated the ambiance. Safety was paramount - and Gina & Smithy ran a tight ship. Being barred from the bar was described as 'the death of one's social life' and as a result there was very little violence between patrons. 

For most, being able to come to such a venue was a life line particularly in those early days where media representation was non existent or entirely negative, and there was no Diva magazine or Planet London to find out what's on - not that there was spaces for many events or venues to take place anyway. Most women 'stumbled' across the Gateways via word of mouth connections.

Depicted on film
Gateways made it to the big screen in the Killing of Sister George, in the late 60s which inevitably gave a large amount of publicity for the venue - not totally welcomed, when considering security and safety of patrons - but giving the opportunity for many more queer women to find out about the place. Real patrons were used as background extras.

The ebb and flow
Longevity is a real issue in terms of preserving a lesbian scene of any kind of visibility. The number of venues and events available for queer women has ebbed and flowed since the start of their existence. The Gateways eventually closed in 1985 to give way to new events - there was even a super club night at Brixton's Fridge at one point - but the cycle of too many and not enough and not for me seems to have persisted throughout the decades. 

Did you go to the Gateways Salon or other lesbian venues that are since gone? Please share your experiences below.

By Katie