Two new gay bars to open in Coventry

Two new gay bars are set to open in Coventry soon, taking the total number of LGBT venues in the city to three. Coventry’s current gay bar, The Yard, opened last year.

The first of the two venues, called Glamourous, will open on March 2 and will be located on Short Street, in the building formerly occupied by Rainbows. Rainbows, which opened in 1997 and was one of the city’s first gay bars, was forced to close on New Year’s Day due to financial difficulty.

The other bar opening soon is the Kiki Lounge, which will be located in Earlsdon, in the building which was formerly the Watchmakers bar.

In a post on their Facebook page, the Kiki Lounge wrote: “We are pleased to confirm that a new and exciting bar/lounge and cabaret club will soon be opening in the heart of Earlsdon, Coventry.

We are pleased to confirm that a new and exciting bar/lounge and cabaret club will soon be opening in the heart of Earlsdon, Coventry

“Formerly the Earlsdon Cottage/Watchmakers, will see a further transformation into a stylish and exclusive lounge/bar with weekly live music acts aimed at attracting a very mixed crowd every Friday and Saturday evening with BIG name DJs and fantastic live performances in the ‘Loft’ Lounge.

“Four bars over two floors, a heated garden terrace and the most stylish crowd to descend on Coventry in years.”

It has not yet been announced when the Kiki Lounge will open.

Sean Laycock, a second-year student of French with Spanish, is happy at the prospect of two new gay bars in Coventry, he commented: “I think it’s a great idea. Especially since Rainbows closed down recently. It’s important that members of the LGBT+ community within Warwick University and elsewhere have places like such to go to and feel further embraced and accepted.”