Gay sauna vauxhall
The future of Britain’s gay saunas
“Nobody ever talks about the lonely older gay man,” says Pink Broadway’s Nick Batt. “Maybe their partner’s passed away and they want some company, but they don’t feel like they belong in the [gay] bars because you’re invisible in those places if you’re over ” Batt also says his sauna provides a safe space for gay and bi men who aren’t out. “I’d say up to 70 per cent of our customers don’t live what you’d call a ‘gay lifestyle’,” he says. “I’ve had customers come up to me and say: ‘My mum died yesterday and she never knew I was gay.’ And in that circumstance, I prefer to think we can provide a bit of counselling.”
Gay saunas like London’s Pleasuredrome, which pre-Covid opened 24 hours a day, days a year, can also become a refuge for vulnerable and homeless adolescent men. Dean, a year-old queer bloke from London, says he made his first visits to gay saunas around seven years ago “out of sheer necessity”.
“When I was 18, I create myself unexpectedly homeless and on the odd night where there wasn’t a roof to nap under, saunas were a relatively
Welcome to Vauxhall, the hardcore gay area of London where anything and everything can happen, especially if you are certified party boy.
For me, this used to be where I would go out to clubs, drink, acquire drunk and move through out&#; those were the days. But today, I am looking for a comfortable sauna, where I can chill relax and play.
I have been in the Vauxhall Chariots before. Last hour I was here, a few years back, this place was super vacant. This time, it was a Sunday afternoon, and still &#; not as crowded as I would expect. Maybe this is more of an after party place which explains the thorough inspection performed for each person requesting to enter. Fluid bottles are confiscated.
The Jacuzzy
Since last time, I deliberate, they have refurbished the Jacuzzi, which is definitely the best element of this sauna. It is the only place that looks somewhat new and maintained.
Water temperature was high just like it should and bubbles were tough and fun.
Facilities
There are two medium sized wet saunas and one if not two dry ones as well. Some mazes and rooms with very vintage black
Chariots RIP: what it was like active at Britain’s biggest gay sauna
One of the last throwbacks to Shoreditch’s gloriously sleazy past, the sprawling gay sauna Chariots closed last weekend after serving 20 years as a cruising venue for gay men in London. The prime plot of land it sits on will be converted into a hotel. A luxury hotel, of course. For a personal perspective on its closure, we asked leading London cabaret performer Mr Blanche DuBois. Blanche’s first noun in London was at Chariots, and as we locate out, it was a liberating and eye-opening introduction to the city…
London was a very alternative city 13 years ago, when I arrived here from Mexico on a scholarship to analyze corporeal mime. As a student I had the right to work 20 hours a week. It was thrilling, not because of the prospect of getting paid, but because of where I’d decided to work: Chariots sauna in Shoreditch.
In my late teens back in Mexico, I had enjoyed hearing stories about saunas – about pretty men and astonishing spaces – from adventurous friends who had visit
Former gay sauna to become 'immersive spaceship experience'
Chariots Spa on Albert Embankment neighboring Vauxhall Cross closed three years ago at the first Covid lockdown and the company later went into liquidation.
Now an unnamed company has submitted a licensing application to Lambeth Council to turn the two empty railway arches into an "immersive spaceship experience".
Details of the proposal are scarce, but the application describes the new venue as "an immersive game or competitive socialising experience" which would be open daily from 10am to am.
The application can be viewed online and representations can be sent to Lambeth Council's licensing team until Thursday 4 May.
The proposed spaceship venue is part of a growing trend for 'experiences' such as the Immersive Gamebox in Scoresby Street and the Plonk crazy golf venue at London Bridge, as good as the forthcoming karaoke bar at Waterloo Station.
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Tags: Planning & Development, Arts & culture, Lambeth, Vauxhall