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23 January 2020

Gay club XXL will arrive in Brighton next month

The popular but controversial gay night is expanding after its London venue was closed last September.

By Steve Brown

Words: Steve Brown

Earlier this month, XXL announced a series of new monthly nights across the UK following the closure of its regular London venue.

The popular men-only gay night, which was held twice-weekly at Pulse nightclub in Southwark before the venue was closed pending redevelopment last September, confirmed it plans to hold new monthly nights in Bristol, Brighton and Liverpool in 2020, as well as continuing to host a regular monthly night at Birmingham’s Tunnel Club.

The move comes after one-off XXL nights were held in Bristol and Liverpool last month as part of a ‘Christmas tour’ across the UK.

And now, the official Twitter account for the club have revealed it will be arriving in Brighton on February 7.

They wrote: “BRIGHTON WE’RE HERE!

“XXL BRIGHTON lands with a bang on February 7. With special guest Katherine Ellis from the Freemasons and XXL’s own Paul Morrell!

“BOOZE, BOOGIE & EXTENDED CRUISE

“•Find us: CHALK, 13 Pool Valley Brighton BN1 1NJ

“•ENTRY: £10 ON THE DOOR ONLY”

Despite its enduring popularity, XXL – which was established in 2000 to cater to the ‘bear’ community and includes dark rooms and cruising areas – continues to elicit controversy for an entry policy that excludes people who don’t present as male.

Established as a “private male-only members club” which can enforce its own dress code and door policy, XXL specifies that attendees wearing “high-healed footwear”, “female shoes, clothes, wigs, overtly female hairstyles and make up” may be refused entry.

While there’s no news about whether XXL will make a return to London following the loss of Pulse Club, discussions about finding a new venue to host the night are said to be ongoing.

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