DIVA sat down with the co-creators of Shameless Hussies to find out how this history is being preserved
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY RUTH RABINE
If you were a lesbian looking for house music in the early 90s, there was likely one night that you looked forward to every month: Venus Rising. Taking place in Brixton’s iconic venue The Fridge, it was a space to be sexy, sapphic and gloriously sweaty. Kate Wildblood would make their way there religiously, even if it meant having to hitchhike back home to Brighton.
But no lesbian can survive on one club night a month. Especially when it was on a Wednesday. Kate wanted to bring house to Brighton. After becoming enamoured by DJ Vicki Edwards, who played at Venus Rising, Kate gathered together a crew to help bring a new night to Brighton. Shameless Hussies was born.
“We traipsed around Brighton trying to find someone who would give us a space,” Kate laughs when remembering the first night. “It was filthy, it was manky, they let us have it on Thursday. Together with Tiz Cartwright, Michele Allardyce and Queenie, I made sure it was our playground and it was playing the soundtrack that we created.”
The rest was history. Armed with a team of dedicated volunteers, flyer designers, photographers, DJs, and more, Shameless Hussies became a vital part of Brighton’s lesbian scene. At a time when most of the clubs playing house were targeted at gay men, Shameless Hussies dedicated itself to the dykes.
30 years later, the impact and memory of Shameless Hussies is still going strong. Due to the Queer Heritage South’s new digital archive, you can see the posters, flyers, and photographs which capture the heart of this period. Speaking with Kate and their partner Queenie, who actually played her bongos (not a euphemism) at one of the first Shameless Hussies nights, it’s clear that preserving this history is vital.
“When Shameless Hussies started it felt like we finally had our space but it wasn’t just about lesbians,” Kate explains. “It was about lesbians who liked a certain type of music. I wanted something that was about music as much as it was about sex and sass. It took a long time to carve that space out. It was ours and it was playing the soundtrack that we created. We wanted to not be an afterthought.”
Queenie adds: “There were a lot of wilderness years. It was important that we had something that we could own.”
Now, you’re likely to see house music played by lesbians across clubs and Pride events up and down the country. Kate and Queenie recount DJing with Dykes On Decks at The Tempest for Brighton Pride in August 2024 with DJs Lebby Leb and Alex Berry.
“It felt like the energy of the old Shameless Hussies days. It was full of young, sassy, saucy dykes,” Queenie laughs.
“I felt quite moved by it,” Kate continues. “The difference is that there are more dykes in positions able to make greater change.”
By archiving the story of Shameless Hussies in the Queer Heritage South digital archive, Kate and Queenie are ensuring that this history isn’t lost. “It’s planting a flag in the city,” Kate says. “Lesbians our age are underrepresented in archive projects. It was important to tell those tales and have a space to tell those tales.”
Queenie also tells me, “It’s history that would have disappeared. I’d have loved to look at something like this when I was 18. It takes you down a memory lane which is very positive, it captures things that you’d forgotten about.”
You can browse and contribute to Queer Heritage South’s archive at www.queerheritagesouth.co.uk or follow the project at @queerinbrighton on Instagram. Queer Heritage South is a programme of Marlborough Productions and is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
DIVA magazine celebrates 31 years in print in 2025. If you like what we do, then get behind LGBTQIA media and keep us going for another generation. Your support is invaluable.
