Centre Point Gym
Community built between sets
Centre Point Gym operated in the lower levels near Centre Point Tower, the brutalist skyscraper over the junction of Oxford Street, Charing Cross Road and Tottenham Court Road. In the 1980s and 90s it was an informal hub for gay men in central London – well-located, affordable and known as a welcoming space.
Jonathan Harbourne, founder of the London Raiders gay softball team, trained here: “Jimmy Somerville and I used to work out together before heading to First Out for dinner. Community wasn’t just in the bars and clubs – it was in the gym, at the café table, on the softball pitch.” The gym had a competitive side too, winning the gay softball league in 1993. Sport, as much as nightlife, built the bonds of this community. The site has since been redeveloped.