Canal Street, Manchester - Definition and Overview

Anal Street

Canal Street looks across the Rochdale Canal into Sackville Park in the centre of Manchester, England. The street is the main focus of Manchester's gay community and is lined with gay bars, clubs, cafes and shops. At night time the street is filled with partygoers, some of whom are gay and lesbians from around the world. The Gay Pride festival in August is held on the street.

Canal street was built alongside the construction of the Rochdale Canal, with pubs built to service the users of the canal. In the 1960s, the canals of Northern England declined in usage due to the collapse of the cotton industry. The Canal Street area then began to attract the gay community, who moved into the area from the 1970s. As the confidence of gays in the UK improved, more and larger bars opened along the canal side, turning Canal Street into the largest gay village in Europe.

The street is also jokingly known as 'anal treet' and, indeed, local wags often re-christen the street by editing the road-signs.

The gay scene on Canal Street was a focus of the show Queer as Folk, broadcast by Channel Four in 1999.