With homage to Oscar and Centre Stage!
After a quick refit, Bar Broadway threw open its doors on the eve of Pride 2014 with the promise of bringing something ‘completely different’ to the Brighton commercial gay scene.
Business partners Alasdair Jarvie and Michael McGarrigle have joined forces to open Brighton’s only gay bar dedicated to the movies, musicals and all things camp. The concept is very simple, premium drinks, friendly staff, glamorous surroundings and singalongs with a live piano player which all creates a great social atmosphere for people of all ages.
The venue has been decorated very tastefully with plenty of high stools around the bar to sit and view the showclips on the TV screens, listen to the live piano player or watch the entertainment.
Even when the TV screens are on, sound levels aren’t too high and you can still chat and socialise. Michael says, “if you can visualise something like Centre Stage in the Canary Islands, or Oscars on Canal Street in Manchester, it’s that type of bar.”
Michael who formerly owned Oscars has worked as a costume supervisor and buyer in TV and film for the last 30 years, working most recently on Benidorm. His other credits include DCI Banks, Whitechapel, Prisoners Wives and the Syndicate. Over the years he has worked with A list stars including Laurence Olivier, Paul McCartney, Sean Connery and Joan Collins to mention just a few and is good mates with Brighton based actress Denise Black who hosted the karaoke evening at Bar Broadway on Pride weekend.
Alasdair comes from a computer product planning and finance background at Intel Corporation. He loves writing and his play Someone Borrowed, Someones Blue – The Musical won the 3MT best comedy play award at Manchester Pride in 2013. Bar Broadway allows him to combine the two passions of his life, musicals and beer.
He started and ran his own theatre company in Manchester in 2010 with Jayne Marshall called the New Attitude Theatre Company producing eleven different productions in that period, and are planning to bring some of the productions to Brighton starting with Life In A Bubble this December.
The theatre above Bar Broadway will continue as a theatre space called Other Place at Bar Broadway.
Every Monday at 8.30pm is the Big Showbiz Quiz with weekly prizes and a rolling cash jackpot. The Fireplace Sessions every Tuesday from 9pm feature live music, comedy and cabaret. The inimitable Trudy Styles hosts Name That Show Tune with the Piano man every Wednesday from 7pm and Tabitha hosts the Open Mic night on Thursday from 9pm. Every Friday and Saturday it’s easy listening from 4-8pm, then modern musical clips on the TV screens from 8-11pm finishing with the Broadway Jukebox from 11pm-3am. Every Sunday a live pianist brings you the Sound of Broadway from 5pm.
Happy hour is all day Monday and Tuesday and 4-8pm on all other days with bottles of fine wine from Matthew Clarke at £11, Budvar at £3.50 and Tuacca at £2.
Already word from the cocktail circuit crowd is that Bar Broadway is different and offers the more mature customer a great night out with a camp twist.
You’ll find Bar Broadway tucked away at 10 Steine Street around the corner from Subline and Poison Ivy.
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