Written by Amanda David
The Bishopsgate Institute’s Special Collections and Archives holds one of the most extensive and fascinating collections on LGBTQIA+ history, politics and culture in the UK from the late nineteenth century onward.
It’s an absolute treasure trove with a library of over 10,000 LGBTQ+ titles from poetry to academic works, a pamphlet collection, archives from Stonewall and Switchboard plus a fabulous collection of club flyers, t-shirts and badges – and it’s also home to the UK Leather and Fetish Archives.
They are open weekdays (with late opening on Wednesdays) and entrance is free.
As if that wasn’t reason enough to visit, the Institute is also home to the Darlish ice cream parlour, serving both dairy and vegan ice cream with a focus on Middle Eastern flavours, faetured in our guide to the Best Ice Cream and Gelato in London: think Saffron, Rose and Pistachio, Chocolate & Halva or Turkish Coffee.
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- 297 m from Liverpool Street London OvergroundCircle LineHammersmith & City LineMetropolitan LineCentral LineElizabeth Line
- 0.6 km from Aldgate Circle LineMetropolitan Line
- 0.6 km from Shoreditch High Street London Overground
