We're on the Move

We're not yet in a position to open to the public - we will need bigger premises - but intend to spend the next year raising the necessary additional dosh to do this. All offers of ideas, expertise and connections will be fallen upon by us with deepest gratitude and rewarded with a cup of tea, two chocolate marshmallows and an invitation to visit our reliquary. This isn't altogether a joke - we do need help and support to raise money from people of noble character who ask little in return. It is necessary, to protect the precious and sensitive material we now hold in the archive, to obtain premises that are secure, permanent and independent. This means buying - not renting and not lodging with some larger organisation.

Almost every time Brighton Ourstory Project produces an exhibition, a show or a book - and we now have fourteen such productions under our belt - we gather another thirty to forty hours of tape recorded life stories. Often these stories come accompanied by photographs. We do more research through newspapers, books and newsletters, checking memories against documented evidence. All of this is stored in the archive. Combined, it paints an increasingly complete picture of what life has been like for successive generations of Brighton & Hove's queer communities. It all needs to be treated with the greatest possible respect. And it needs to be kept somewhere where it is available to inspire, ignite, console and delight us all, without risking its safety at the hands of those who continue to hate us. We're bursting with ideas to implement once the hard graft of cataloguing is done. Watch this space.

In the meantime, have you visited our website recently (obviously YOU have)? We now have our own domain as they say - you can reach us direct at www.brightonourstory.co.uk, where Alf has been chipping and carving away to make a super cybermonument to our work. Look in for the latest news.

Things to watch out for in the coming months - a second chance to see our Queer About Campus exhibition which revels in forty years of kisses, cuddles and campaigns at the universities of Sussex and Brighton. You'll find this in a seafront arch near the Fishing Museum and south of the Old Ship Hotel, 12 midday to 5pm, daily, Sun 12th Aug to Sun 19th Aug. And at the beginning of December, Brighton Museum opens the door to its new local history galleries. We have been working with museum staff for over a year and, while displays are yet to be finalised, it looks as though a substantial part of the proposed lesbian and gay content will be provided by us. We hope you will visit and enjoy.

And finally, we'd like to thank Chris and Richard for their years of hard work and devotion in making OUT! Bookshop such a friendly and welcoming place for us all. We mourn its passing and wish them well for the future.