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You've heard it all before, "times are a changing...", "back in my day...", etc etc, but this time it really is true. We were flabbergasted to hear that, fast on the heels of Bromptons, Copa and many other SW5 establishments, the Coleherne in Earls Court was closing its doors, and by the time you read this the shutters will have come down for the last time. Probably the most famous gay pub in the UK, the Coleherne features in Armistead Maupin's 'Tales of the City' book 'Babycakes' and, rather more worryingly, it was named as a stalking ground for gay serial killers Dennis Nilsen and Colin Ireland. It was the playground of gay trendsetters like Freddie Mercury, Rudolf Nureyev and Kenny Everett and was a traditional smoky and atmospheric pub popular with the leather and denim crowd ’Äì in fact, aged 17, it was this writers first ever gay bar on moving to London!

We joined landlord Mike, assistant manager Cliff and the crew for their last night along with (or so it seemed) every punter from the last 50 years, as the bar, pool area and outside pavement were stuffed nipple-to-nose with the most diverse crowd you would find in any establishment. There were 70's leather clones, 80's bouffanted queens, 90's twinks, some real 'trucker' drag and a plethora of rough and tuff hotties. The atmosphere was relaxed and frolicsome despite a longer than usual wait for a pint and indeed when a good tune came on the sound system most of the staff jumped on the bar, swigged champers and danced for 3 minutes before resuming duties!

As the last of the 'old guard' the loss of the Coleherne was unimaginable - yes it was 'just' a bar, but that's like saying Harrods is 'just' a corner shop or the V&A is 'just' a nice museum. It was a part of our queer history, it's the liquid equivalent of Gays The Word bookshop and with the current emphasis on legacy, the increasing profile of events such as Gay History Month (www.lgbthistorymonth.org.uk) and the all new Proud Heritage online museum (www.proudheritage.org) reflecting British lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans history and cultural ancestry in all its rich diversity, it is a sad, sad loss.