A 70-minute interview with legendary Manchester gay village business woman Julia Grant.

A decade ago, Julia Grant was one of the best-known business owners in Manchester’s gay village and an outspoken voice in both the LGBT and mainstream media.

After Mardi Gras 1999 raised nothing at all for good causes, she ran the successful and free-to-enter GayFest for two years. But, some people — including local councillors and Manchester City Council — weren’t happy at all.

Unexpectedly, in 2002, Julia sold Hollywood Showbar and her other businesses and left. Despite rumours and malicious gossip since then, she didn’t speak out in public.

Now, in this exclusive interview Julia Grant reveals the LGBT history that you won’t see at the current Manchester Pride exhibition at The Lowry gallery. Plus she recalls the events that drove her out of the city.

This was recorded on 10 July 2011 during the Sparkle weekend.

Note: eventually, when time allows, archive photos, video and other media will be added to this interview.

As you can see, even if we ignore the thousands of pounds that are charged for removal of rubbish, in four out of the last six years the City Council has clawed back in charges more than it gave the event.

It gives with one hand and gets the kudos for supporting the LGBT community, while taking with the other.

The City Council gave more than £2m towards the running costs of Manchester’s International Festival in 2007. The Festival was expected to bring in £32m of extra business to the city, while we’re told Pride brings in £22m of extra business some years.

And about £250,000 given for the Manchester Day Parade in 2011 (BBC).

Perhaps you thought you’d seen every half-baked, damaging, badly-thought out planning decision that Manchester City Council could come up with or approve for the gay village area?

It allowed ugly modern buildings to go up next to Victorian warehouses on Canal Street, replaced the cast-iron bridge with a concrete one, gave the go ahead for a giant skyscraper that would overshadow the whole street and granted endless licences for bars. It allowed the gay village, which was once a safe space, to become a binge-drinking hellhole where people get murdered.

Well, if you thought you’d seen it all, think again, because the latest lunatic proposal will make you gasp… (more…)

For years the LGBT community has been told that one of the reasons why the gay village must be fenced off and ticket-only during Manchester Pride is due to the bylaws concerning public drinking.

Now, once again, that policy has been exposed for the fraud it always was.

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