The paper reports a three-month research on the evolution of gay spaces in Soho, City of Westminster - an area popularly dubbed as the ‘Gay Village of London’ (Collins, 2004). It investigates how ideas such as ‘gay villages’1 represent the physical embodiment of gay cultural identity and through spatial analysis explores whether this identity emerged from space or was it imposed onto space. The investigation begins by identifying spaces which are/were gay spaces through three historical periods selected upon certain principles and understanding on the study area and culture of gay men. The exploratory phase of the research delves into literature on cultural identity and the ‘placeness’ of gay men to identify these gay/queer spaces. How are they positioned in the network? The research also explores gay practices and identifies the spatiality of these practices. A reference is made with space syntax theories on segregation of cultures in urban areas and builds on studying gay community clustering as spatial.
