The Joiners Arms

The Joiners Arms was an LGBT pub and nightclub on Hackney Road in East London.^[1]

The Joiners Arms
Joiners' Arms
The Joiners Arms Show map of London Borough of Tower Hamlets The Joiners Arms Show map of Greater London
General information
Address	116-118 Hackney Road
Town or city	London, E2 7QL
Country	England
Coordinates	51°31′47″N 0°04′29″W
Opened	1997
Closed	2015

The original pub, which closed in 2015, had been central to the East London gay scene since it was opened in 1997 by David Alexander Pollard.^[2] It had been described as "Britain's trendiest gay dive"^[3] with gay public figures including Alexander McQueen, Christopher Kane and Patrick Wolf known to have frequented the venue, and with events hosted by gay entertainers Scottee and Jodie Harsh.^[4] The venue had been open to a range of gay subcultures such as the bear scene and drag queens. Due to its late night opening and free entry, the Joiners Arms had a reputation for being a "last chance saloon" and sometimes having a rough crowd,^[5] but this has also been described as part of its appeal.^[3]

Plans were announced in 2014 to demolish the venue and replace it with a block of flats,^[6] but supporters of the venue successfully campaigned to have it recognised as an Asset of Community Value.^[7] Tower Hamlets Council only allowed the construction to proceed if the development included a pub that would "remain a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender-focused venue for a minimum of 12 years". This was believed to be the first time that the sexual orientation of a venue's customers had been included as a condition of planning approval.^[1][8]

References

1. Neate, Rupert (4 August 2017). "You must include gay venue on site of Joiners Arms, planners tell developers". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
2. Pollard, David (16 December 2013). "GAY PUB WINS CASE TO KEEP LATE HOURS". Joiner's Arms. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
3. Henderson, Bob (January 2009). "Britain's Trendiest Gay Dive". Gay Times Magazine. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
4. Lismore, Daniel (3 March 2008). "JOINERS ARMS - WETYOURSELF".
5. "Joiners Arms Review". Time Out London. Time Out. 20 June 2012.
6. Joannou, Cliff (4 November 2014). "The Joiners' Arms is Closing and It's a Travesty". Vice News.
7. "Legendary gay pub The Joiners Arms "back in business" with events on Hackney Road". Hackney Citizen. 18 May 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
8. Burchiellaro, Olimpia (2021). "'There's nowhere wonky left to go': Gentrification, queerness and class politics of inclusion in (East) London". Gender, Work & Organization. 28 (1): 24–38. doi:10.1111/gwao.12495. ISSN 0968-6673.