TripOut Gay Travel:
Liverpool

Liverpool is music to our ears. The city from whence The Beatles sprung – and the 1960s “Merseybeat” sound – was also home to 1980s queer pop music icons including Holly Johnson of Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Pete Burns of Dead or Alive (Soft Cell’s Marc Almond was also born in the region).

This is also the city that acclaimed queer UK filmmaker, and Liverpool native son, Terence Davies immortalized in films The Long Day Closes and 2008’s elegiac Time and The City. As a major port town via the River Mersey, more than a few gay sailors strolled its streets between stints at sea.

Yet while Liverpool’s eventful past – from art to its pummeling by Axis forces during WWII to politics – plays a major role in its identity and place on the cultural map (and will be celebrated in a £70 million history museum to open in 2010), the region has certainly evolved over the years.

Declared 2008’s European Capital of Culture, this UNESCO World Heritage City has sprouted modern shopping developments, new galleries including a Tate Modern, lovely restaurants, lively nightlife, and plenty of cultural events and venues. And the music keeps coming – like current synthpop act, Ladytron – while other famous Scousers (those hailing from Liverpool/Merseyside) include studly movie spy-daddy, Daniel Craig.

Liverpool is incredibly walkable, and the recent proliferation of slick commercial developments, shops, and hip contempo art galleries has made it even moreso. There are a bevy of queer bars, and clustered pretty tight together. The crowds tend to be very young, both gay and lesbian, while straight girls typically tag along with the lads.

Lesbians typically mix in with the boys, but they do have a few of their own parties: On first Sundays, the monthly Girls Go Down (see myspace.com/girlsgodown for details). Fall sees two major queer events: Homotopia and Outsiders, the Liverpool LGBTI Film Festival.

Home to the oldest Chinese community in Europe, and the largest Chinese Arch found outside Shanghai (it was a gift from said city), Liverpool is just beginning to shape up as a foodie’s city, with more and more diverse restaurants appearing on the scene. Scouse, however, is the classic Liverpool everyman’s dish, a hearty Irish-style stew. “Blind Scouse” is vegetarian. Why’s it called “blind?” Because you can’t see any meat in it!

As for beer, the local brew of choice (and dubbed one of the “100 Best Things in the World” by GQ) is Cains – be sure to try their Raisin Beer. After a few bottles, you too will be crying (happily) for Mersey!

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