Good news for Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club

Theatres Trust is proud to have played a key role in the campaign to protect the significant London LGBTQ+ performance venue.

Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club is an iconic venue in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, predominantly serving the LGBTQ+ community and providing an important stage for the drag and cabaret sector.

In 2024, the Committee of Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club gave two months’ notice to vacate to the venue’s programmers, with an intention to sell the building to developers. Friends of Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club, a group formed of performers, customers, programmers and trade union members, has been campaigning to protect Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club as a live performance venue and approached Theatres Trust for support.

Theatres Trust played an instrumental role in a crucial positive step towards securing its future. Our National Planning Adviser visited the venue to understand the building and how its historic and current uses could be interpreted under planning legislation. Our expert advice was that given its layout and usage, it should be considered a theatre. This played a significant role in Tower Hamlets Council confirming the venue's lawful use as performance venue, nightclub and members club. Local and national planning policy make it difficult for recognised arts and cultural facilities to be converted into other uses, so this gives Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club additional protection.

Our Advice Team also provided fundraising and grant advice to the group, which will be vital if the venue is to return to community ownership. The group has now launched a crowdfunder campaign.

Nick Keegan, Variety Organiser at Equity, a lead member of the campaign group, expressed his gratitude to Theatres Trust for our support, “Thank you so much for all your help, couldn't have done it without you.”

While this is a positive development, we recognise that the venue is not yet saved, and we will continue to provide support to the campaign group, local authority and any other interested parties on the best way forward.