Stuart Linden Rhodes established the Instagram account Linden Archives during the lockdowns of 2020-21, scanning and digitising hundreds of photographs – primarily as a way to preserve his reportage photography for All Points North and Gay Times magazines, images that had been unseen for thirty years.
The archive has since gained a substantial following with its affectionate look back on the brash, thriving gay scene of the 1990s. An era in which the pink pound and LGBTQ+ clubbing came to prominence. The event is a chance to see a range of photographs from the queer scene of the 1990s across England and hear the stories behind them. From small pubs to club nights in Heaven and the Paradise Factory to Pride events in London and Manchester.
During this period, Stuart also lead an uneasy double life… By day, he was a lecturer at a local further education college – the pseudonym ‘Linden’ adopted due to concerns generated by draconian Section 28 legislation sanctioned by successive governments of the era. By night, he would rove clubs and pubs, honing his self-taught photography skills in service of a culture defiant in the face of the HIV epidemic and discriminatory laws. Over the years, Stuart learnt to wait in the corners of bars and clubs with his camera, waiting for the perfect shot. Then, click. Photographs of everyday people dating, dancing and drinking, alongside the occasional celebrity.
This selection of images is presented as a celebration of the northern gay scene of England at a moment in time. Something to look back on with joy and ask ourselves: “Oh my, what was I thinking wearing that outfit?” and “Did I really have hair?” The first edition of Out & About with Linden: A Queer Archive of the North was a selected study of the pub and club scene from Birmingham to Newcastle, with contributions from luminaries such as Harry Clayton-Wright, Boy George, Julian Clary, Mel B, Paul O’Grady, Su Pollard and more.
Initially published by film-maker Joe Ingham in 2022 – and sold out in a print run of 500 within six months – the book was republished by PARIAH PRESS in a second edition of the work in more formalised, archival style whilst retaining the dynamism and excitement of the original.
The Linden Archives / Out and About with Linden is at Triangle LGBTQ+ Cultural Centre, 34 Watson’s Street, London, SE8 4AU, tonight at 7pm. More info HERE
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