Queer London
Unfortunately this course has been cancelled. Ticketholders will be contacted by our box office.
London has played host to a vibrant array of queer experiences, from the cruising ground of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens and Hampstead Heath, riotous Molly houses of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, "scandalous" displays of lesbian affection by High Society, and the birth of queer activism. Yet all of this has taken place amidst a culture of criminalisation, policing, and violence.
By telling the stories of radical queer individuals and communities, and exploring important cultures that underpin queer history, such as cruising, sex work, policing, and Aids activism, this course offers an exploration of the rich and contradictory world of pleasure and constraint.
The course will use a broad selection of archival material, drawing on oral history, interviews, pamphlets, films, and fiction. Through these resources, we will consider the constrictions of gender, race, and class in shaping the possibilities and experiences of being queer in London and the unique place London has in the development of queer cultures and communities.
Do I need any previous skills or knowledge?
This course is for anyone with an interest in LGBTQ+ history and queer British culture and archives. No prior experience or knowledge is required.
What can I expect?
The course will involve discussion of historical documents as well as cultural texts such as novels, poems and film. It will be delivered through a mix of interactive lectures, small and large group discussion and video clips, images and short texts. There will be optional reading for each session.
Image: Gordon Rainsford Archive
Need to Know
You will learn
- Track the development of queer cultures in London from C16 to the present day
- Gain a broader understanding of the history of criminalisation and discrimination against queer community in Britain as well as their resistance to this
- Be introduced to rare and fascinating sources from the LGBTQ archives at Bishopsgate and learn to read archival material
- Engage in a queer alternative mapping of the city
Meet the Tutors
Dr Peter Ely
Dr Peter Ely is a lecturer and researcher in English literature with an emphasis on Black and Asian British writing, contemporary fiction and the history of London. He has published a number of articles and chapters, and is the editor of ‘Community in Contemporary British Fiction: From Blair to Brexit’.
Dr Isabell Dahms
Dr Isabell Dahms is a lecturer in Queer History at Goldsmiths University and researches the intersection of the histories of philosophy, gynaecology and feminist health movements. She completed a PhD at Kingston University London on notions of speculation and performativity in philosophy and gender studies.
Course Overview
Week 1
Criminal Queers
A Timeline of Criminalisation, the Vagabond Act and Sodomy Laws
Week 2
What Happens at Home
A History of Gay Domestic Spaces
Week 3
Cruising London
A Mapping of Public Sex
Week 4
Nameless offences
Lesbian, Bi and Trans Histories of London
Week 5
Making a Living
Sex work, Soho and the City
Week 6
Queer Resistance
A History of AIDS Crisis, Act-Up and Pride
Dates and Times
Queer London
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