A history of Manchester's Gay Village
How Manchester's LGBTQ+ scene grew into the Gay Village, told through dated, sourced milestones.
Timeline
- 1804The Rochdale Canal is built, and pubs and businesses grow up along it to serve canal users.
- 1950sTraffic on the canal declines, leaving quiet streets and warehouses behind.
- 1985The first Pride event in Manchester is held in the Village over the August bank holiday, with support from newly elected councillors.
- 1988Section 28 becomes law, which helps unite Manchester's gay community.
- 1990Manto opens with big plate-glass windows, a deliberate break from hidden bars, and the council buys Sackville Gardens.
- 1990sThe council recognises the Village, and more bars open along the canal, including Via Fossa, Velvet, Eden and AXM. The festival runs as Manchester Mardi Gras.
- 1999Queer as Folk is filmed on Canal Street, making the Village famous far beyond the city.
- 2013Manto closes after more than two decades; the site reopens as ON Bar in 2015.
- 2019 to 2020The council commissions a strategic review of the Village from the consultancy Hatch.
- March 2024The council launches Manchester's Gay Village Action Plan to protect the Village's character.
- 2025Manchester Pride's events company collapses with considerable debts.
- August 2026Manchester Village Pride, run by a new community interest company, brings Pride back to the heart of the Village.
Venues we remember
- Manto: The plate-glass Canal Street bar that opened in 1990 and is seen as the catalyst for the modern Village. Closed October 2013; the site reopened as ON Bar in 2015
- AXM: One of the Canal Street bars that opened in the 1990s. Closed 2017