things to do in Brighton

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Background

Brighton has long been widely known as a city of pleasure and it’s unsurprising that it has held an attraction for LGBT people for centuries. A fascinating insight into Brighton’s gay and lesbian heritage has been compiled by Brighton Ourstory.

Brighton is often described as the gay capital of Europe and it's easy to see why. The gay scene is vibrant with plenty to offer, whatever your predilections. Most of the venues, but not all, are in the St James Street and the seafront areas East of Brighton Pier. However, that's not to say we're reduced to a gay ghetto - you'll be as welcome in the majority of the local boozers and clubs as you are in those venues that are predominantly gay.

drinking & clubbing

On the club scene, you'll find clubnights catering for the bears, one of the best lesbian scenes in the country, and there's always plenty for house and dance enthusiasts and the alternative/indie crowd given the city's large student population.

Brighton has one of the largest numbers of gay bars and pubs operating in the UK outside of London and there are plenty of styles to choose from with modern, contemporary bars to traditional pubs. Cabaret forms a large part of the city's gay scene and you'll find many of the venues have some form of nightly entertainment - from drag and cabaret, to piano bar to karaoke.

Brighton was one of the first cities to trial 24 hour licencing so you'll find the city by the sea never sleeps. There are plenty of bars that will stay open until the last person leaves, often well into the early hours, and some weekend clubnights that finish just in time for a late breakfast.

If you're coming to Brighton for a short break, it's worth pointing out that the majority of hotels offer deals for extended weekends or midweek breaks. We would thoroughly recommend Thursday nights for clubbers or, perhaps unique to the city, Brighton Sundays has a whole circuit of cabaret that is something of a tradition. You'll also find afternoon terrace parties in the summer and big monthly Wild Fruit parties on a Sunday night too. You'll find it easy to fill a Thursday to Monday break. If you're visiting the UK and plan a stay in London, then Brighton is a must-see city, just an hour from the capital's centre by train.

Pride in Brighton & Hove

Brighton Pride is the largest free event of its kind in the UK and, quite possibly, Europe (depending on which figures you go by), and remains a highlight of the world gay festival programme. The event is usually held on the first weekend of August with a parade and park festival and all sorts of events in the week's run up. Winter Pride, a more local affair but lots of fun, is usually held in February and offers a range of activities and events from arts to clubbing, sporting events to quizzes.

More information

Check our comprehensive listings for full details – REALBrighton.com is unquestionably the most up to date resource for finding out about what’s on and when in gay Brighton.

REALBrighton works closely with Gscene, the freely distributed local gay magazine which is packed full of information, news, entertaining local features and politics - you can pick it up and most gay venues across the city. You'll also be able to pick up the more national 3Sixty magazine, and their sister fortnightly newspaper One80.

Brighton LGBT Switchboard provides support to the local LGBT community with counselling services and information on local support services.