Funnyboyz owner Linda Gold says Liverpool has become a gay tourism destination at last

The owner of Liverpool cabaret showbar Funnyboyz says reviving three bars in the Pride Quarter has helped to make the city a gay tourism destination at last.

Funnyboyz owner, and Drag queen, Linda Gold was assigned the 3 vacant units from Landlords JSM after former owners JD Concepts, closed the bars in September last year.

Linda had no expansion plans until she heard the business was closing and says she didn’t want them to be lost from Liverpool’s Gay Scene for good.

Linda Gold said:

“We already had Funnyboyz in the Baltic Triangle, another one in Manchester and one in Middlesbrough, but a lot of the gay bars in Liverpool started shutting down. About 10 went in as many years, and then The Navy, Social and Icon on Stanley Street closed too.

“I thought so many gay bars going under in the city was eliminating any chance of ever having a positive gay scene here.”

“They were lying empty and whilst I knew my involvement would be controversial, I couldn’t let what was already a depleted scene disappear.”

Linda, who opened the FunnyBoyz Cabaret ShowBar in Blundell Street in March 2021, secured an 11th-hour deal to rescue The Navy brand but the remaining units which had struggled financially for years were unsalvageable & needed a complete refurb, subsequently rebranded The Benidorm Bar and DysCo.

Unlike FunnyBoyz, which focuses on Cabaret shows, she said the three on Stanley Street are all “proudly 100% gay bars, gay-owned and flying the pride flag outside”.

The venues are already home to over a dozen Queer community groups including ‘Paw’ a men-only bear event & BabyStorm, Liverpool’s oldest lesbian event which launched way back in 2007, as well as many more including ‘QUEEARE ICONIC’ & The Award-winning IN-Club, the city’s largest network of LGBTQ+ Business people.

Linda said:

“We even operate an industry/local residents card system which means Liverpool’s gay community get substantial discounts on food and drink”

“Creating safe spaces, where everyone is welcome, has seen a boost in business for the Pride Quarter and beyond.

“What it has done is bring in visitors from all over the UK who would normally have never come to Liverpool. Now they come here instead of Canal Street in Manchester or Blackpool.

“They’ll come to The Navy or one of our other bars for a few hours and then go to all the city’s other venues, so we’ve really widened that network which benefits everyone.

“We work with the walking tours, with the city tour bus, with nearby restaurants and with other clubs where they can go afterwards.

“It has helped bring so much vibrance to Liverpool and I love it.”

Linda says restoring The Navy in particular has been personal because it played an important part in her own life.

“It’s the centre of ‘gay-town’ and it has kept its name since 2001, so even though it was impossible to revive to 2 other brands, my partners agreed we had to at least try and restore The Navy to its former glory days.”

When Linda announced she was opening The Benidorm Bar, after working in the Spanish resort pre-Covid, she admitted not everyone was happy.

Linda Gold said:

“Benidorm is my spiritual home & my biggest event in the UK is ‘Benidorm Bingo’. As well as FunnyBoyz, the bingo is also played in over 50 locations such as other bars, The Mersey Ferries & dozens of Buzz Bingo halls across the country… so it made sense to call one of the bars ‘The Benidorm Bar’.

“When the former owner closed the doors, everything happened at super speed and this concept was the fastest and most obvious solution at the time.

“If I could turn the clock back, would I have done things differently? Yes & No… Yes, if time would have permitted, I would have consulted with the community & listened to their feedback and I am sorry I didn’t – I can only hope time will heal that one, but also no, I wouldn’t have changed the name as it has subsequently brought so much Queer tourism to the city”

The Bar is based on Benidorm and has tribute acts and a big focus on karaoke & really divided people in the city.

Linda Added:

“Half hate Benidorm, and half adore it, we have people who come every single week and they’re obsessed with the place but there was a real split reaction when we said what we were doing.

“I think there was a feeling that it could attract trouble to the quarter because it would bring in a stereotypical rowdy crowd but at least 90% of the people who come in are LGBTQ+ from across the country or women on a girl’s night out who want to feel safe.

The success of the original FunnyBoyz over the past 3 years has had a knock-on effect on the Pride bars.

Linda continued:

“All my venues are considered safe, inclusive spaces, so whilst we don’t exclude anybody, our zero-tolerance policy ensures that at the first sign of disrespect to trouble, they’re out.

“We seem to attract the most respectful customers & regulars who we love; There really is no safer place for the LGBTQ community than our venues.”