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Situated in north-west England, Manchester is the UK’s sixth largest city. It’s the birthplace of the world’s first programmable computer, the Women’s Suffrage movement and the world’s longest-running TV soap. It’s where the atom was first split, where graphene was isolated and Vimto was created.
Within its environs are several canals. Hugging the north side of one, is the aptly named Canal Street. This is the vibrant centre of Manchester’s Gay Village, packed with bars, clubs, cafés and restaurants. It was the setting for my long-awaited night out with my CDH partner-in-crime, Ellie Davis.
Early on Tuesday 3rd of December 2024, I travelled by train from Newcastle to Manchester for a work meeting, due to take place the next day. I’d arranged to meet Ellie at 2pm in the lobby of the Travelodge hotel I’d booked for our overnight stay. However, Ellie’s four-hour drive from her Norfolk home was beset by slow traffic, delaying her arrival by an hour and a half.
At 3.40pm Ellie texted to say she’d arrived, and I walked down Tib Street to the car park to meet her. Unbeknownst to me, Ellie was already walking up Tib Street towards the hotel! Remember, neither of us were en femme at this point, so it was perhaps understandable that we failed to recognise each other in Tib Street! It was a surreal moment when we finally came face to face sans makeup and wigs.
After checking in to our room we chatted for a bit about this and that, and then began to dress. My outfit consisted of a dark green knee-length skirt, a blue lace top and a denim jacket. Ellie wore a floral dress and a leather jacket.
Then Ellie announced that it was time for her to make “the presentation”. Two presentations, in fact. The first was a lovely CDH medal for my services to the site as Ambassador. I proudly pinned it to my jacket. The second presentation was a personal gift from the wonderful Liz K; two bars of shea butter soap, brought over specially for me from the USA. I’d been unable to meet her in person during her August trip to the UK, so this gift was hugely thoughtful and very touching.
“The hardest part comes next,” I said, after calling for a taxi. “Walking out of this hotel room.”
My mind went back to a previous occasion, when I had dithered behind my hotel door for half an hour, before summoning the courage to open it and step outside. This time however, there was little chance to dwell on it, for within minutes a text came saying the taxi had arrived. Ellie and I grabbed our handbags and practically ran to the lift, and then out into the chill evening air.
The taxi driver didn’t bat an eyelid at our appearance; they’ve seen it all before. We could have walked to Canal Street in fifteen minutes, but that would have meant passing through the heart of the city centre. I didn’t fancy doing that, despite Manchester being a very LGBTQ-friendly place. Our first port of call was an Italian restaurant in the village called Nell’s, where Ellie and I shared a delicious pizza, washed down with a glass of white wine.
There are loads of bars to choose from in the village. Being a Tuesday it wasn’t particularly busy, and it soon became apparent that Ellie and I were the only crossdressers on duty. I’d already made a list of bars to visit; first up was The Molly House, a cosy tapas bar in Richmond Street. I’d been there on my last visit some years ago, and was now taken aback by how much it had changed in the meantime.
“This place used to be huge!” I told Ellie. I asked one of the bar staff when the changes had happened, but all I got in return was a blank look. Ellie and I went to the upstairs room and stood in one corner with a glass of white wine each, chatting happily. We left The Molly House after half an hour, by which time it was 8.50pm.
I took Ellie into Sackville Gardens, a small park on the opposite side of the canal, at the centre of which is a memorial statue of Alan Turing. Despite his brilliance as a scientist and philosopher, Turing was imprisoned in 1954 for “gross indecency”, which is what the UK justice system called homosexual acts in those days. A broken man after his release, Turing died in Manchester in 1955. The story goes that he committed suicide by eating a poisoned apple. The statue poignantly depicts Turing sitting on a bench with an apple in his right hand. Ellie and I spent a few reflective minutes here before setting off to the next pub on my list.
Oscars is an intimate, musical theatre-themed bar, with clips from shows playing constantly on screens dotted around the room. They also have the most amazing cocktails list, with dozens of drinks named after musical theatre in one way or another. I had a “Ruby Slippers” and a “Sweet Charity”, both of which were gorgeous!
One thing about Gay Village pubs is that you will always encounter friendliness and high spirits, and in Oscars this was proven once more. No sooner had Ellie and I walked to the counter (eyeing up that fabulous cocktail menu) than we found ourselves in conversation with three total strangers. Nicola and Lucy, a couple from Yorkshire, were a sheer delight to spend time nattering with; and Callum, a theatre costume assistant, was in awe of Ellie and me.
“You girls are amazing,” he said to us. “You dress up and live your best life and enjoy it. You keep on being who you are and who you want to be, because you’re beautiful!”
Callum left us at 10pm, as he was on costume duty at the Middleton Arena theatre the next morning for the pantomime, "Sleeping Beauty". Ellie and I chatted on with Nicola and Lucy until 11.45pm, then hugged our farewells and made our way outside.
To our dismay a light drizzle had started, so we lost no time in getting to the next venue on my list. This was to have been 'New York New York', whose website had promised a lively evening of disco with 'Auntie Ginger' on a Tuesday. Unfortunately we found it closed, so we hurried along (under Ellie’s folding umbrella) to a nearby bar.
The Centre Stage describes itself as a “dive bar” offering “nostalgia alongside camp cabaret and a flamboyant atmosphere”. We ordered a bottle of white wine, found ourselves a seat and listened to some old hits played by the resident DJ. Having been deprived of 'Auntie Ginger', we were pleased to discover an absolutely hilarious drag DJ on duty at the Centre Stage. We didn’t get her name, sadly, but her barbed, risqué wit was brilliant to listen to. As Ellie and I sipped our wine my body began to sway in time with the music, and I realised that we hadn’t yet had a dance. Depositing our bottle behind the bar for safe keeping, we sashayed to the dance area and wiggled away to hits by the likes of Cyndi Lauper, Abba and Madonna. My feet were killing me by this time, so I gladly took off my 3-inch heels and bopped in my stockinged feet.
The next two hours flew by, and at 2am the DJ announced that it was “chucking-out time”. There are a handful of bars in the village which stay open until 4am, but as I had to go to work the next morning, Ellie and I decided to call it a night. A convenient taxi whisked us back to our Travelodge, and then it was time for two tired but very happy girls to re-drab.
That was quite an adventure Jaqueline, you both look lovely. I hope your head was clear next day at work after that wine, dancing and a late-ish night.
Hi Jacqueline sounds like you had a great time up in Manchester, I'm a Manchester girl but i never got to go to any of the places you mentioned, I once went to a gay pub in Manchester called the Shakespeare, that was back in the late 70s early 80s that was when i was going through a tough time with my sexuality at the time i thought i might be gay, I soon realised that i was a Bi crossdresser, it would be nice to be able to go out with a couple of girlfriend's and paint the town red,
Love Roz ❤️
What an amazing adventure Jacqueline. It sounds like you had a fabulous time and I bet it is indelibly marked in your memory as a No1 fun day of all time. Ellie is such a lovely lady and a fantastic Ambassador to everyone on CDH. I cant imagine how much fun it must have been going out for the night with her. I really enjoyed your article, and as a northern UK girl I can relate to the cold wet drizzle you encountered. Fortunately I now live in Perth, Australia so cold drizzle isnt something we encounter much. Thanks again for a great, well written article.
Absolutely wonderful article , sounds like a fabulous night ladies x
I've just reread the article, such an inspiration x
What a fab story and a great adventure for you Jacqueline and Ellie - it is really great to hear about more UK ladies getting out there and enjoying themselves - I'd like to get to Canal Street one day, it sounds amazing fun - who knows, one day maybe I can make it there.
It sounds like you had great fun even if the weather was against you, no doubt you'll be planning a return visit one day soon!
Jen x
Sounds like you had a lovely night out wish I was there or indeed had the confidence to even leave my house en femme
Thank you, Lizzy, we had a great time. I'm sure that you'll find a way to step out when the time is right for you.
x
Thank you for sharing what sounds like a wonderful time! I love Callum's comment.