Bishopsgate Institute

What’s the cost of justice delivered too late?

Red Gold (BBC Radio 4) reveals the story behind the infected blood scandal, a billion-dollar industry built on contaminated trust.

Proud our archives supported Anita Sullivan's research

🎧 29 July, 14:15 or after on BBC Sounds.

Stef Dickers and me - in front rows of VCH Big Red Books

The won Ceri Thompson with materials from the archive

Feminist pamphlets

1970s Free Palestine papers

Fabulous afternoon @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social with the @ihr.bsky.social #London #SummerSchool, exploring this year's theme of #Rebels ❤️

An Archivist's Diary: Bishopsgate Insitute | Museum of Youth Culture Yeliz heads down to the Bishopsgate Institute to delve into the UK's largest LGBTQIA+ Archive and sits down with archivist Stefan Dickers.

A Pride zine made on a home printer. A 1950s gay rights newsletter. A drag ball ticket.

Yeliz Zaifoglu visits our archives & chats to
@stef-dickers.bsky.social about the quirks and power of what we keep.

Read the piece: bit.ly/4jU5l8a

#BishopsgateInstitute

250723 Tattoo history thorugh gay eyes: Rudi Inhelder's collection | Bishopsgate Institute In this talk, based on archival material held at the Bishopsgate Institute, Matt will discuss the central role that the organisational strategies and neces

🖋️ Queer ink & radical bodies.

📅 23 July: Discover how gay men shaped modern tattooing through Rudi Inhelder's collection. bit.ly/4ntrgpx

📅 26 July: Dive into rare flash, fetish materials & slides with tattoo legends. bit.ly/4ntrb5d

#TattooHistory

Photo of a photo of disabled people stop traffic in a protest

I took this photo of one of the many great photos as part of an exhibition at the Bishopsgate Institute, London. This reminds me of struggle of disabled people everywhere. I am so moved and inspired by this. Thx
@bishopsgateinst.bsky.social

250709 Desi Queers at Bishopsgate Institute | Bishopsgate Institute Join us for a launch of Desi Queers: LGBTQ+ South Asian and Cultural Belonging in Britain at the Bishopsgate Institute, which will also be the permanent ho

🌈 Who gets to belong?
📚 Who gets to tell the story?

Join us 9 July for the launch of Desi Queers, a new book exploring queer South Asian life in Britain.

🎤 With DJ Ritu, Manju Patel-Nair, Charan Singh, profsunnysingh.bsky.social ‬& @rkdasgupta.bsky.social.

🎟 Book: bit.ly/3I9RCN9

Self-employed teachers: wellbeing, movement and dance | Bishopsgate Institute Bishopsgate Institute is looking for a Venue Hire & Events Planner to join our Venue Hire & Events team

Do you teach movement, dance or wellbeing?

We’re looking for tutors to run weekday lunchtime & evening sessions for City workers looking to reset.

📍 Central London
🕛 Weekday lunchtime & early evening

🔗 bit.ly/3T4mjpp

#DanceTutors #MovementClasses #LondonJobs

✍️ Discover the power of queer storytelling.

Join kink practitioner and writer Matt Skully for a workshop exploring sexual subcultures through writing.

📆 13th of July & 10th of August.
🎟️ Book now: bit.ly/3HKMCOO

#QueerWriting #BishopsgateInstitute

At the @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social. 20 June 2025.

Our Pride Reception kicked off Pride 2025 with joy, community, and a toast to queer stories of the past, present, and future. 🏳️‍🌈

Thank you to all who joined us, and to Aldgate Connect for their support!

#PrideMonth #Pride2025

Pride Month 2025 | Bishopsgate Institute Welcome to Pride Month at Bishopgate Institute

Book via our website 🏳️‍🌈 👉https://www.bishopsgate.org.uk/whats-on/activity-subjects/pride-month-2025

This week is the start of online talks for Pride month with Bishopsgate Institute.

From the history of activism, through LGBTQIA+ Literature to Queer Musicals, through to the work of Russell T Davies, there's a Pride talk for everyone!

Join me online (via zoom) across June.

060625 Talk - The history of LGBTQIA+ activism – and what it teaches us | Bishopsgate Institute Times are troubling for the LGBTQIA+ community; legislation feels like it’s returning to decades past. So what can we learn from the LGBTQIA+ activism of d

London friends! Fancy kicking off Pride month with a talk on Activism led by...well, me?

I'll be at @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social on Friday 6th, come for a history lesson, stay to nerd out with me and learn about their great work!
www.bishopsgate.org.uk/whats-on/act...

250424 Archive Tour – LGBTQIA+ Collections | Bishopsgate Institute Why was John Gielgud told to see a doctor? How many lesbian pulp fiction novels can one library hold? We are a treasure trove of LGBTQIA+ history with exte

If you're in London, book a Pride month tour of the incredible LGBTQ+ archives @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social

www.bishopsgate.org.uk/whats-on/act...

This Pride Month, join us at the Institute for talks and workshops on queer activism, literature, musicals, and the TV legacy of Russell T Davies.

Led by @emilygarside.bsky.social and others, open to all.
Explore events → bishopsgate.org.uk/whats-on/sea...

#PrideMonth2025 #QueerHistory

Wizard robes. Pulp zines. Protest banners.

Step into 300,000+ stories of queer history this #PrideMonth.

🏳️‍🌈 5 archive tours. June 2025.
📍 Open to all.
🎟️ Book now - bit.ly/3Syku3s

"Needs more egg."

If you’ve ever thought that while eyeing a tin of beans… you’re not alone.

For the adventurous cooks and archive-diggers: this 1950s recipe might just tempt your tastebuds, or test your limits.

📸 From 57 Ways With Heinz Baked Beans (c.1950) | LCM/527

Mapping Museums Oral Histories | Bishopsgate Institute During the late twentieth century, the number of museums in the UK more than tripled. The Mapping Museum research project was devised in response to the ab

Between 1960 and 2020, UK museums more than tripled in number, many founded by local communities, not institutions.

Explore the stories behind them in our Mapping Museums oral history archive, ahead of #InternationalMuseumsDay (18 May).🔗 www.bishopsgate.org.uk/collections/...

Archivist (Maternity Cover) | Bishopsgate Institute Bishopsgate Institute is looking for a Venue Hire & Events Planner to join our Venue Hire & Events team

Job klaxon! Archivist role (part-time, maternity cover) at @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social, a truly wonderful collection: www.bishopsgate.org.uk/jobs/archivi...

Spring sunshine, sandwiches in the park & a hint of hayfever - a May afternoon well spent. ☀️

Our Library holds a wealth of information on the social and political history of London’s parks and open spaces.

📸 River Christian Centre Archive

In 1912, a Lantern Lecture lit up our halls.

Today, you can still hire the same historic spaces for talks, launches, rehearsals and more.

A venue with real history.
🔗 www.bishopsgate.org.uk/hire/promote...

#VenueHire #LondonEvents #BishopsgateInstitute

A woman standing in the Bishopsgate Institute library with archive material surrounding her.

Your year in the archives, at a glance:

🧾 7,547 research requests completed
👋 2,483 research visitors and 1,251 were first-time visitors
🔍 Top focus? LGBTQ+ History 🏳️‍🌈 (3,642 requests!)
👆 Most-used archive? Our LGBTQ+ Reference Library (1,060 times)

Thanks for keeping history alive.

This March, we launched our new heritage project: Unjust Deaths.

Thank you to all our supporters who came to @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social to celebrate the work of the project including:

There’s a quiet kind of magic in getting married at Bishopsgate Institute. You’re surrounded by stories & your own becomes part of them.

These moments, shared by one of our couples, capture something of what it feels like to be here. It’s not just a venue. bishopsgate.org.uk/hire/celebra...

Throwback to Desire in the Archive 💘✨ On 10 Feb 2023, our Library became a haven for queer desire, beyond Valentine’s clichés.

Poetry, life drawing & dazzling drag reimagined love. Guests explored LGBTQIA+ archives, uncovering stories of love, activism & resilience.

Shakti Khabar: Queer South Asian lives in Britain | Bishopsgate Institute By Sreya ChatterjeeAs part of my placement funded by the White Rose College of Arts and Humanities, I have been looking into the Bishopsgate LGBT Archives

Last year, Sreya Chatterjee explored Shakti Khabar’s legacy as part of her placement with the White Rose College of Arts and Humanities.

One of the first UK newsletters by & for queer South Asians, it built a vital space for activism, support & connection.

#LGBTHistoryMonth #QueerSouthAsianHistory

Bishopsgate Institute LGBTQ+ collection

Join Stefan Dickers to hear how the @bishopsgateinst.bsky.social  LGBTQ+ historic, political and cultural collections were gathered and the stories behind the objects.

13 February at 7pm. Free:
https://www.stalbansmuseums.org.uk/whats-on/bishopsgate-institutes-lgbtq-collections

Note expresses gratitude to the Institute for creating a welcoming and understanding atmosphere and making archives more accessible.

This note expresses gratitude for access to materials and resources at the Institute.

The note reads "An Amazingly Beautiful Library, with so many Wonderful Books to Read."

Handwritten note expressing admiration for the LGBTQ+ archives and display at Bishopsgate Institute.

💡 It’s #InternationalDayOfEducation, and we’re celebrating the joy of learning and how it brings people together. Whether you're exploring our archives or getting lost in our library, you'll learn something new with every visit.

Come and learn 👉 bit.ly/3Pypwf7

Entrance to Bishopsgate featuring a large arched doorway and detailed stone carvings on the facade. A colourful Pride flag with the Bishopsgate logo printed.

We might be biased, but we can’t help loving the timeless design of Bishopsgate Institute. And it’s always a joy to see our community admire it just as much when they visit. 💚

Have you explored our halls yet?

📸: michaelhandrick

A group of people looking through archive material at Bishopsgate Institute.

📣 Join us as a Trustee in our 130th year! Are you a qualified accountant with a passion for heritage, arts & education?

👉 Senior financial experience
👉 Clear communicator
👉 Trustee experience (not essential)

🗓️ Apply by 13 Jan: bit.ly/3WcV4uC