Gay Bars in Birmingham: Hurst Street & the Gay Village
Birmingham's gay bars street by street: the Hurst Street bars and late club, Missing on Bromsgrove Street, the Nightingale and the Village Inn on Kent Street, the pubs on the Village's edges, and where to stay.
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Birmingham's Gay Bar Scene at a Glance
Birmingham's Gay Village sits around Hurst Street, on the southern side of the city centre. Hurst Street holds the cocktail bars and the after-hours club. Bromsgrove Street, a few steps off it, is home to Missing, the all-day party bar. Kent Street and Lower Essex Street are where the big nights happen: the Nightingale and the Village Inn share one building on the corner, with The Fox a minute away. Then there are Eden on Gooch Street and The Fountain Inn on Wrentham Street, both a short walk from Hurst Street.
- For your first night in the Village: Missing, The Village Inn, Equator
- For a big club night: Nightingale Club
- For drag and cabaret: Missing, The Village Inn, Eden Bar, WashWorx
- For karaoke: Missing, The Village Inn, The Fox, Eden Bar
- For an after-hours finish: Glamorous, The Village Inn, Eden Bar
- For an afternoon drink: Equator, Missing, The Fox, The Fountain Inn
- For cocktails: WashWorx
- For a proper pint: The Fountain Inn, The Fox
See all Birmingham venues on Out x Out →
Hurst Street
Hurst Street is the spine of the Village. Glamorous sits at the city-centre end, with Equator and WashWorx a few doors apart further along.
Equator Bar
A bar at 123 Hurst Street that calls itself Hurst Street's little gem, and its own site says it has been going for more than 20 years. It's a good daytime option: it opens in the early afternoon most days, it's mellow in the afternoon and gets more upbeat at weekends. Behind the bar you'll find draught and bottled beers, spirits, wines and champagne. It finishes around 10pm midweek and later at weekends; its website and Google listing give different hours, so check before you go, and treat it as a first stop before the clubs.
WashWorx
A few doors along at 131 Hurst Street, WashWorx calls itself a cocktail and LGBTQ+ bar in the heart of Birmingham's Gay Village. The draw is theatrical cocktails and premium pours, with sharing plates and tapas if you want to eat. Entertainment runs from live music to DJs, and it puts on drag-led events, including a bottomless drag brunch it has hosted. It opens in the late afternoon on weekdays and from midday at weekends, staying open until 2am on Saturdays, and the space is available for private hire. Pair it with Equator before heading on to the clubs.
Glamorous
A late-night LGBTQIA+ nightclub at the city-centre end of Hurst Street, and the Village's after-hours stop. Doors open at 11pm Thursday to Saturday and at midnight the rest of the week, and it runs through to 6am every night, with last entry at 4:30am. It's a small room, with a stated capacity of 120, and part of a group with sister venues in Coventry and Oxford. The door runs Challenge 25, so bring a driving licence, passport or PASS-hologram card if you look under 25. It's a short walk down Hurst Street from Missing and the Kent Street clubs.
Bromsgrove Street
Bromsgrove Street runs a few steps off Hurst Street, and its main draw for a night out is Missing.
Missing Bar
Missing calls itself Birmingham's party bar, with the line "7 days to play, 7 nights to party". It's an LGBTQ+ bar in an 1897 Victorian building at 48 Bromsgrove Street, and it opens from midday every day. Downstairs is easy-going for an afternoon drink, then the evenings bring resident DJs, drag queens and karaoke. Upstairs, Studio 48 hosts karaoke, cabaret and private parties, from birthdays to work dos. The bar describes itself as award-winning and says it backs local charities, Pride and LGBTQ+ performers. It stays open into the early hours most nights, so it's a handy choice when you want to keep going.
Kent Street and Lower Essex Street
This is where the big club nights are. Essex House, on the corner of Kent Street and Lower Essex Street, holds both the Nightingale and the Village Inn, and The Fox is a minute away on Lower Essex Street.
Nightingale Club
The Nightingale is the Village's big club, set in Essex House on Kent Street. It bills itself as Birmingham's oldest and largest LGBTQIA+ venue and gives its capacity as 2,000, and it's where plenty of Village nights finish. Entry is 18+, and it currently opens on Saturdays only, from 10pm, with last entry at 2:30am. Tickets for the bigger nights and events are sold through Skiddle from the club's own website, so check Skiddle or its Instagram before you head over to see what's on. With the Village Inn in the same building, it's easy to start in one and finish in the other without going back outside for long.
The Village Inn
Now branded The Village Birmingham, the Village Inn calls itself one of Birmingham's oldest LGBTQ+ spaces. It shares Essex House with the Nightingale, on the corner of Kent Street and Lower Essex Street, and opens Thursday to Saturday from 9pm, until 2am on Thursdays and 4am on Fridays and Saturdays, with free entry advertised on many nights. There are two rooms. The Main Room plays pop and party tunes, while the Underground does RnB, bashment, garage and hip hop with resident DJs on Fridays and Saturdays. Drag is a big part of the week: there's a resident line-up of queens, Kaos Karaoke hosted by Blanche on Thursdays and big-name cabaret at midnight. Booths can be reserved through its website.
The Fox
The Fox on Lower Essex Street says it has been running as a gay bar for over 25 years, and it bills itself as a little gay bar. It says everyone's welcome. It runs karaoke nights with a resident DJ, and there's a pool room and a private beer garden at the back that hosts live music in summer. Its own site gives Thursday 7pm to 11pm, Friday from 7pm, Saturday from 3pm until late and Sunday 3pm to 11pm, and it's a minute from the Nightingale and the Village Inn.
Gooch Street and Wrentham Street
Two more bars sit a little way from the Hurst Street strip, each a short walk away: Eden at the southern edge of the Village on Gooch Street, and The Fountain Inn to the south-west on Wrentham Street.
Eden Bar
Eden describes itself as an inclusive, friendly venue in Birmingham's Gay Village, built around live entertainment. It's on the corner of Gooch Street and Sherlock Street, at the southern edge of the Village, about five minutes' walk from Hurst Street. Expect drag acts and singers on the bill, early-doors karaoke from 8 to 10pm on some nights before the DJ takes over, and a weekly quiz you can reserve a table for. It opens Wednesday to Sunday from 5pm (2pm on Sundays) and runs to 3am on Fridays and 4am on Saturdays, so it works as a first stop or a late one.
The Fountain Inn
The Fountain Inn on Wrentham Street describes itself as a small independent gay bar with letting rooms in the heart of Birmingham's Gay Village. It's a proper pub, and its own line is that you should always pop in for a pint on your night out. The bar opens Wednesday to Sunday: 5pm to 10pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays, 5pm to midnight on Fridays, 2pm to 1am on Saturdays and 2pm to 11pm on Sundays. It's closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. The pub posts what's on via its social media, so check there before you go.
Birmingham's Gay Saunas
Birmingham has two gay saunas, both outside the Village. Spartan is a gay sauna for men on George Road in Erdington, beside Brookvale Park and about three miles north-east of the Gay Village. It doesn't run a website or its own social accounts, so the Google listing is the best guide to opening times, and it's worth phoning ahead on 0121 382 3345 if you're making a special trip. Google reviewers describe a small, clean venue with a dry sauna, a steam room, a gym area and TV lounges, plus food and drinks during the day, and recent reviews say it's cash only, so bring notes. It's a bus or taxi ride from town. Yumbo, on Hockley Hill at the edge of the Jewellery Quarter, bills itself as Birmingham's newest men's sauna and cruise bar: a men-only gay and bisexual sauna upstairs, with a dry sauna, steam room and jacuzzi, and a bar that runs cruise nights on Fridays and Saturdays from 7pm. Full details:
Where to Stay
If you want to sleep inside the Village, the simplest option is upstairs at the pub.
The Fountain Inn Rooms
The Fountain Inn lets rooms alongside its small independent gay bar on Wrentham Street. Rooms are room only, with an en-suite wetroom, Wi-Fi and 24-hour private access, and there's local car parking. Check-in is after 2pm, and it's about a ten-minute walk from New Street and Grand Central stations. There's no online booking: call or message the pub to check availability. Hurst Street is a short walk away.
Getting Around
Pro Tip
You won't need transport inside the Village. Glamorous, Equator and WashWorx are all on Hurst Street, Missing is a few steps off it on Bromsgrove Street, and the Nightingale, the Village Inn and The Fox are within a minute of each other at Kent Street and Lower Essex Street. Eden is about five minutes' walk from Hurst Street, and The Fountain Inn is about a 12-minute walk from New Street and Grand Central stations. Only the two saunas, Spartan in Erdington and Yumbo in the Jewellery Quarter, are outside walking range of the Village.
FAQ
Where is the gay village in Birmingham?
The Gay Village is built around Hurst Street. The surrounding streets, including Bromsgrove Street, Kent Street, Lower Essex Street, Gooch Street and Wrentham Street, hold all of the bars on this list, and they're all within a short walk of each other.
What are the gay clubs in Birmingham?
The Nightingale on Kent Street bills itself as Birmingham's oldest and largest LGBTQIA+ venue, with a stated capacity of 2,000 and 18+ entry, and it currently opens on Saturday nights only. Glamorous on Hurst Street is a small LGBTQIA+ club open until 6am, and the Village Inn, in the same building as the Nightingale, runs two rooms of DJs until 4am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Which gay bars in Birmingham stay open late?
Glamorous on Hurst Street runs to 6am every night, with last entry at 4:30am. The Village Inn and Eden Bar both stay open until 4am on Saturdays, and Missing on Bromsgrove Street stays open into the early hours most nights.
Where can I get a daytime drink in Birmingham's Gay Village?
Missing opens from midday every day, and Equator on Hurst Street opens in the early afternoon most days. The Fox opens from 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays, and The Fountain Inn opens at 2pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
Are there gay saunas in Birmingham?
Spartan on George Road in Erdington, about three miles north-east of the Gay Village, is a gay sauna for men. It has no website, so phone ahead on 0121 382 3345, and recent Google reviews say it's cash only. Yumbo on Hockley Hill, in the Jewellery Quarter, describes itself as a men-only gay and bisexual sauna and cruise bar.
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Robbie S.
I'm Robbie, the founder of Out x Out. I'm from Minneapolis, though I'm spending 2026 building this community from the road — somewhere between South America and Asia. The idea for Out x Out came from a trip to Berlin, where the gay nightlife calendar was years ahead of ours: you could see not just where to go out, but which night to go — so naturally I wanted that kind of insider info for every city in the US (and beyond... eventually). I'm more of a behind-the-scenes type, but the whole point of this is connection: I'd take one real one over a hundred surface-level ones, and I'm trying to build that for the community, city by city.
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