The G-A-Y and Heaven owner announced his plans via Twitter
BY ELEANOR NOYCE, IMAGE VIA @HEAVENLGBTCLUB ON INSTAGRAM
Owner of LGBTQI nightlife venues G-A-Y and Heaven Jeremy Joseph has, today, announced the G-A-Y Foundation. An initiative aiming to support LGBTQI mental health inspired by the mental toll of the pandemic, Jeremy states that it will help to “support people so they can live their true lives, including within the trans community; to be able to fund IVF treatment for people in need, to be able to do things that will change lives & do more to help with mental health, particularly men with eating disorders.”
The G-A-Y Foundation is currently in talks with the Charity Commission regarding gifting 24% of G-A-Y Group to The G-A-Y Foundation. This plan seeks to create a long-term future for the G-A-Y Group, which would come under the control of G-A-Y Foundation should Jeremy Joseph cease to continue his role. As the intricacies are still in discussion, plan B involves sharing profits with the charity.
The Foundation’s goal is to raise £110,000 for the TCS London Marathon, raising £10,000 for 11 charities including The Albert Kennedy Trust, Mind LGBTQ, The Naz Project, Amnesty International, Kaleidoscope Trust, Mermaids, ILGA, UK Black Pride, LGBT Foundation, Peter Tatchell Foundation and the British Heart Foundation.
“The future of G-A-Y & Heaven is to change lives”, Jeremy remarked. “So when you go out, I want you to be part of more than just a night out, so you too are also helping to change lives & this will continue when I am no more. The pandemic has educated me & has changed people’s lives. I nearly let it destroy me, but now I want it to change mine & others for the better.”
“I hope that this announcement for the future of G-A-Y & Heaven is something that you will be as proud & as excited about as I am. Fingers crossed we get the go ahead to make this happen”, he finalised.
Notably, Heaven in particular is an historic LGBTQI venue. Opened in December 1979 by Jeremy Norman, Heaven continues to draw crowds into its arches beneath Charing Cross Station in central London. Prior to its opening, LGBTQI nightlife was relatively low-key, and Heaven quickly established itself as a new favourite. Bringing queer nightlife into the mainstream, it brought the New York-based concept of the “gay super club” to the UK, attracting huge names across the global DJ scene from house pioneer Frankie Knuckles to Tony De Vit. It remains an important cultural venue to this day, attesting to the healing, political power of dance music for LGBTQI people.
DIVA magazine celebrates 28 years in print in 2022. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQI media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
