Lead image cred: Khuram Qadeer Mirza
Back in June 2021, Scene reported that King’s Heath Birmingham had been named as an LGBTQ+ friendly neighbourhood by the Gayborhood Foundation but I had no idea the depths and the work that went on behind it, nor which comedian was pulling the strings. Until, that is, I saw his most recent live stand-up show, More, More, More, How Do You Lycett? How Do You Lycett? at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, as the special was being recorded. The show was a labour of love created over four years, and it involves, in Joe’s words, “one of the most fulfilling and joyous stunts I’ve ever pulled off”.
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!
To hear the story in full, you’ll have to watch Joe Lycett’s special but to briefly sum it up: the stunt involved a secret identity, the Gayborhood Foundation, and King’s Heath – which soon became known Queen’s Heath in an attempt to make the area feel safer for LGBTQ+ people, following the protests against the ‘No Outsiders’ teaching at a school in Birmingham.
When King’s Heath appeared on the Gayborhood Foundation’s list of LGBTQ+ neighbourhoods, locals to Birmingham were understandably quite confused – since Birmingham already has a prominent gay village in the centre of the city. Instead of refuting the claims, however, the community embraced their new-found status with a Pride event that featured a short Pride march, alongside performances from the likes of Fatt Butcher and Alanna Boden.
This elaborate stunt – which at one point has West Midlands Police involved – was so successful that local news outlets – including Scene magazine – ran stories about Queen’s Heath, and the area was quickly embraced as a safe space for LGBTQ+ people.
In fact, Lycett even hinted about Queen’s Heath Pride when we spoke to him prior to his – unfortunately cancelled – Queer Christmas House Party. He told us, “There was a Pride in my local area this year and it was so beautiful to see loads of local people coming out for the community, and it wasn’t like a big organised thing really, it was just like a natural thing that happened, and that for me was the best Pride I’ve been to because it was local and it was very real and very sort of family-driven, and so for me that was a great event.”
Following the third, annual Queen’s Heath Pride, Joe Lycett spoke to Scene magazine about this incredible stunt…
How did you come up with the idea for the Gayborhood Foundation?
I worked with a very small, trusted group to work out how to pull off the ‘stunt’. We realised, having failed to get much traction with other routes, that we needed to get some press attention about the new gay village. We knew that these sorts of lists often attract PR attention and we were right! Amazingly Edinburgh Evening News and an obscure Ibiza news outlet ran the story too!
How long did the planning take?
All in the whole thing was about four years. Which is an insane amount of time to work on one stand-up show, but here we are.
Did you ever think people around you might guess that you were behind the Gayborhood Foundation?
That was a huge fear, and if they did then the chances of it being successful became much smaller, hence the secrecy. Even now many people in the local area who haven’t seen the show don’t know of my involvement, and to be honest I’m very happy with it staying that way!
How did you feel when you started to see news outlets pick up the Gayborhood Foundation?
It was the first moment I thought, ‘wow, we might actually do this’. I remember being incredibly excited to see it getting pick up. I felt both thrilled and also VERY naughty!
What was the reaction like when you eventually told those first few people who were part of Queen’s Heath’s first Pride?
People were surprised but also sort of shook their head as if to say, ‘what are you up to this time?’. Nothing surprises my friends and family anymore. If I told them Nadine Dorries was actually a drag character I created they’d be like, ‘sure, whatever you say Joe’.
What are the plans for Queen’s Heath Pride in the future?
We’ve now done three Prides. The first one was the secret one, the last two I’ve been there in a more open capacity. We’ve kept it local and only tell people in the area, and quite soon to the event, to prevent it becoming too big and pushing out local people. 2023 was a ridiculous year – we had a stage, the unicorn was back, and we had amazing performances and special surprises. It was magical.
How has it felt telling audiences about your stunt and seeing their support as they’ve kept the secret over all these months?
It’s been beautiful, truly. I don’t think I’ll ever make anything like this last stand-up show again, it’s my favourite project and I’m so proud of how it’s developed. And throughout the entire tour, playing to well over 100,000 people, as far as I can tell not one person revealed anything about it on social media. Stunning.
More, More, More, How Do You Lycett? How Do You Lycett? is streaming now, exclusively on JoeLycett.com
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