Making Shit Happen: Queer Utility in Nightlife

Patey-Ferguson, Phoebe and Parslow, Joe (2026) Making Shit Happen: Queer Utility in Nightlife. TDR: The Drama Review, 70 (2). pp. 144-162. ISSN 1054-2043

Text (This article has been published in a revised form in TDR: The Drama Review  at https://doi.org/10.1017/S1054204326101282. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution or re-use. © [Joe Parsloe and) Making Shit Happen, Queer Utility in Nightlife FINAL 260925docx.docx - Accepted Version Restricted to Repository staff only until 24 June 2027. Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (66kB) | Request a copy

Abstract

Between 2016-2018, we were both involved in the management of queer venues alongside others where our arms plunged elbow-deep into toilets, grasping through London's sewer networks towards each other. Our roles sustained flows of effluence removal, drinks, patrons, money, performers, and queer effervescence. These labours bonded us as working class, queer academics, leading us to consider how we know queer nightlife through utilities that enact social processes. Our DIY queer nightlife methodology embraces gossip, embodied knowledge, and mess, examining shocks, blocks, and leaks as both material and metaphorical dynamics to trace how use and misuse intertwine in these spaces.

Item Type:	Article
Divisions:	Queer Performance
Depositing User:	Joe Parslow
Date Deposited:	03 Dec 2025 13:18
Last Modified:	26 Jun 2026 07:00
URI:	https://bruford.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/83

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