Heaven nightclub and G-A-Y venues could close as owner considers "selling up"

London's infamous Heaven nightclub, as well as other nightspots also owned by G-A-Y, are under threat of shutting down as the owner is considering "closing and selling up."

The venues are currently shuttered "temporarily," however owner Jeremy Joseph announced that he is considering shutting them down for good.

All G-A-Y-owned bars and clubs are currently closed and have been since June 12, to allow workers to take a break.

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All venues are due to re-open on June 20, however, Joseph warned that this may not be for long. He told Virgin Radio Pride UK: "There are probably three or four options on the table, including closing and selling up.

"I’m not saying that’s what I’m going to do. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’m not even going to think about what I’m going to do. But I know what the options are."

While the G-A-Y venues are closed for the next week, Joseph is on holiday and plans to contemplate the company's future.

He explains this further on Virgin Pride Radio UK, saying: "The problem is that there are a lot of things that happen. So it’s not that I don’t trust the managers to run it while I’m away.

"But there are things that happen when the venues are open, problems, social media, whatever, that when you're on holiday they can overtake the break.

"I don’t know what I want anymore, I truly don’t know. Like you can’t make decisions while you’re open, while you’re doing things.

"So the idea is to take a complete break to close the venues. Everyone has a break. Hopefully, nothing can happen while that happens.”

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Joseph has had to make hard decisions regarding his nightspots before. Over the pandemic, he lost roughly £1 million in rent and bills in keeping Heaven alone running, according to Pink News.

In 2020, he started serving McDonald's meals at Heaven to comply with a regulation requiring venues to offer a "substantial meal" with alcoholic orders.

Later, he attempted legal action against the government over the 10:PM curfew, but the court rejected his request.

G-A-Y venues across London have long welcomed some big names as both performers and as guests, including Adele, Doja Cat, Lady Gaga, Carl Cox, Vengaboys and The Spice Girls.

[Via: MyLondon and Metro]

Aneesa Ahmed is Mixmag's Digital Intern, follow her on Twitter