Lavender Menace

Comics for Connection with Candice Purwin
2025-01-11 14:00 - 16:00 (Europe/London) | Scotland
Lavender Menace and illustrator Candice Purwin welcome you to Comics for Connection, an afternoon workshop in our archive where you will learn how to make your own art and zines on the topic of connection. Whatever your connection to queerness, to spaces and places, to self and others here and afar, the workshop aims to show you how to create a meaningful bridge through art and storytelling.

No experience of art, drawing, collage or zine-making is required to attend – just your enthusiasm! We will have basic art supplies but you are welcome to bring along your favourites. Candice Purwin is an illustrator, graphic novelist and animator living and working in Edinburgh.

Her work is feminist, political, poetic and fierce. Her ability to communicate powerful and emotionally complex ideas through images has led to her co-creating work with a wide range of artists, academic bodies and collectives. While she is able to adapt her traditional hand drawn craft across many disciplines, panelled storytelling remains her first and best language.

Book a ticket

BookingBooking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

'Coming Out': National Library of Scotland in conversation with Lavender Menace
2025-02-05 18:00 - 19:00 | Kelvin Hall, 1445 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8AW
Join the National Library of Scotland for a screening of the 1983 documentary ‘Coming Out’ followed by an exploration of the Lavender Menace archive.

Join the Lavender Menace bookshop co-founder Sigrid Nielsen and other members of the community group, for a showing of this documentary. It includes footage of the Lavender Menace bookshop which opened in 1982.

The film screening will be followed by an opportunity to see a live- streamed display of selected manuscripts from Bob Orr’s archive about the setting up of the Lavender Menace bookshop. The archive is held at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh. These manuscripts will prompt a discussion with Sigrid and the other members of the group about the establishment of the bookshop in the 1980s and the work that continues today.

The event is organised by the National Library of Scotland. Book your tickets through NLS:

Book tickets

Location and accessiblity

This event will be at Kelvin Hall, 1445 Argyle Street, Glasgow, G3 8AW.

Access information for Kelvin Hall is available on the National Library of Scotland website.

If you have any questions about this event, contact the NLS team: nlsevents@nls.uk

Desire Paths: Opening night
2025-02-18 18:00 - 20:00 | Gallery 2, Edinburgh Palette, St Margaret's House, 151 London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE
Join us for an informal party to celebrate the opening of our new co-curated exhibition! There’ll be drinks and nibbles, and the chance to hear more about the stories featured in the exhibition.

Book tickets

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens. Drawing on books from our collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history, this exhibition maps Edinburgh through queer literature and places. The exhibition encourages visitors to reexamine the Edinburgh spaces they encounter in their everyday lives and to add their own experiences to Lavender Menace’s archive.

Location and accessibility

The exhibition will be in Gallery 2, on the third floor of Edinburgh Palette at St Margaret’s House. You can find directions to Edinburgh Palette on our location and access page.

Gallery 2 is on the third floor of the building, which can be accessed via the staircase or the lifts.

Other Desire Paths events

This event is part of our Desire Paths programme, which includes the exhibition and accompanying events:

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens, drawing on books from the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history. 19th-25th February 2025, 11am-4pm

Lyra Celtica: Harry Josephine Giles on Wilfion – Join us for an evening celebrating the work and legacy of genderweird Celtic Revival writer Fiona Macleod / William Sharp with Harry Josephine Giles and special guests. Wednesday 19th February, 6pm-7pm

Eve by Jo Clifford – Join us for a reading from Eve by Jo Clifford followed by a Q&A with the writer and performer. Eve tells tells a story that is both gentle and passionate, intimate and political, to remind us that the journey towards our real selves is one we all need to make. Thursday 20th February, 6.30-8pm

This project is co-curated by a team of volunteers from Lavender Menace and funded by Edinburgh 900.

Find out more on the Lavender Menace website: lavendermenace.org.uk/events

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh
2025-02-19 11:00 - 2025-02-25 16:00 | Scotland
Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens. Drawing on books from our collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history, this exhibition maps Edinburgh through queer literature and places. The exhibition encourages visitors to reexamine the Edinburgh spaces they encounter in their everyday lives and to add their own experiences to Lavender Menace’s archive.

Dates: 19th-25th February 2025

Times: 11am-4pm (12noon-4pm on Sunday)

Location: Gallery 2 (third floor), St Margaret’s House, Edinburgh Palette, 151 London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE

Cost: Free, drop in (no need to book)

Lavender Menace is a community archive with roots in Scotland’s first LGBT+ bookshop. We have a mission to bring together the queer community in Edinburgh and beyond, celebrate LGBT+ authors and their works, and collect and preserve LGBT+ books.

This project is co-curated by a team of volunteers from Lavender Menace and funded by Edinburgh 900.

Location and accessibility

The Desire Paths exhibition will be in Gallery 2, on the third floor of Edinburgh Palette at St Margaret’s House. You can find directions to Edinburgh Palette on our location and access page.

Gallery 2 is on the third floor of the building, which can be accessed via the staircase or the lifts.

Other Desire Paths events

We will have programme of Desire Paths events running alongside the exhibition. Book your free tickets below!

Desire Paths: Opening Night – Join us for the opening night of the exhibition! There will be drinks and nibbles, and the chance to hear more about the stories featured in the exhibition. Tuesday 18th February, 6pm-8pm

Lyra Celtica: Harry Josephine Giles on Wilfion – An evening celebrating the work and legacy of genderweird Celtic Revival writer Fiona Macleod / William Sharp with Harry Josephine Giles and special guests. Wednesday 19th February, 6pm-7pm

Eve by Jo Clifford – A special reading from Eve by Jo Clifford followed by a Q&A with the writer and performer. Eve tells tells a story that is both gentle and passionate, intimate and political, about the journey towards our real selves. Thursday 20th February, 6.30-8pm

Lyra Celtica: Harry Josephine Giles on Wilfion
2025-02-19 18:00 - 19:00 | Scotland
Doors 5:30pm, event 6pm-7pm

Join us for an evening of readings exploring the work and legacy of genderweird Celtic Revival writer Fiona Macleod / William Sharp with Harry Josephine Giles and special guests.

Book tickets

Fiona Macleod was a well-known Scottish author in the Celtic Twilight, a correspondent to W. B. Yeats, and possibly the originator and probably the populariser of the name Fiona. After the death of William Sharp, a less popular writer in the same circles, it was revealed that Fiona was also the 12-year “second self”, “feminine self” or “dream self” of William Sharp. The combination of William and Fiona were known as Wilfion by their wife.

Wilfion is featured in our Desire Paths exhbition which explores Edinburgh’s queer history. Harry Josephine Giles will join us in the gallery space to discuss Wilfion’s life and writing.

About Harry Josephine Giles

Harry Josephine Giles is a writer and performer from Orkney, living in Leith. Her latest book is the poetry collection Them! (Picador 2024). Her verse novel Deep Wheel Orcadia (Picador 2021) won the 2022 Arthur C. Clarke Award for science fiction book of the year. Her poetry collections The Games (Out-Spoken Press, 2018) and Tonguit (Freight Books 2015) were between them shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, the Saltire Prize and the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award. Her stage show of her poetry sequence Drone toured internationally in 2019, and the performance of Deep Wheel Orcadia will tour in 2025. She has a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Stirling. www.harryjosephine.com

Location and accessibility

The exhibition will be in Gallery 2, on the third floor of Edinburgh Palette at St Margaret’s House. You can find directions to Edinburgh Palette on our location and access page.

Gallery 2 is on the third floor of the building, which can be accessed via the staircase or the lifts.

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh

This event is part of our Desire Paths programme, which includes an exhibition and accompanying events:

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens, drawing on books from the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history. 19th-25th February 2025, 11am-4pm

Desire Paths: Opening Night – Join us for the opening night of the exhibition! There will be drinks and nibbles, and the chance to hear more about the stories featured in the exhibition. Tuesday 18th February, 6pm-8pm

Eve by Jo Clifford – A special reading from Eve by Jo Clifford followed by a Q&A with the writer and performer. Eve tells tells a story that is both gentle and passionate, intimate and political, about the journey towards our real selves. Thursday 20th February, 6.30-8pm

This project is co-curated by a team of volunteers from Lavender Menace and funded by Edinburgh 900.

Find out more on the Lavender Menace website: lavendermenace.org.uk/events

Eve by Jo Clifford
2025-02-20 18:30 - 20:00 | Gallery 2, Edinburgh Palette, St Margaret's House, 151 London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE
At St Margaret’s House – on Floor 3 in Gallery 2

6pm doors open, event 6.30-8pm

Join us for a reading from Eve by Jo Clifford followed by a Q&A with the writer and performer.

Book tickets

Eve tells the story of a child raised as a boy, when she knew all along that was wrong. That child grew up to be one of the 10 Outstanding Women in Scotland in 2017. With trans rights again under threat, legendary playwright, performer, father and grandmother Jo Clifford tells a story both gentle and passionate, intimate and political, to remind us that the journey towards our real selves is one we all need to make.

Jo is a writer, performer, poet and teacher based in Edinburgh. She is the author of about 80 plays, many of which have been translated into various languages and performed all over the world. Her transition from John to Jo has enabled her to become an actor and performer. Performances include “God’s New Frock”, “Sex, Chips and the Holy Ghost”, “The Gospel According to Jesus Queen of Heaven”, “High Heels Aren’t Compulsory”.

Location and accessibility

The exhibition will be in Gallery 2, on the third floor of Edinburgh Palette at St Margaret’s House. You can find directions to Edinburgh Palette on our location and access page.

Gallery 2 is on the third floor of the building, which can be accessed via the staircase or the lifts.

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh

This event is part of our Desire Paths programme, which includes an exhibition and accompanying events:

Desire Paths: Reading Queer Edinburgh is an exhibition which explores our city’s histories through a queer lens, drawing on books from the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive collection and Edinburgh’s rich LGBT+ history. 19th-25th February 2025, 11am-4pm

Desire Paths: Opening Night – Join us for the opening night of the exhibition! There will be drinks and nibbles, and the chance to hear more about the stories featured in the exhibition. Tuesday 18th February, 6pm-8pm

Lyra Celtica: Harry Josephine Giles on Wilfion – An evening celebrating the work and legacy of genderweird Celtic Revival writer Fiona Macleod / William Sharp with Harry Josephine Giles and special guests. Wednesday 19th February, 6pm-7pm

This project is co-curated by a team of volunteers from Lavender Menace and funded by Edinburgh 900.

Find out more on the Lavender Menace website: lavendermenace.org.uk/events

Archive-inspired poetry: writing workshop with Éadaoín Lynch
2025-04-17 18:30 - 19:30 | Scotland
Doors at 6pm, Workshop 6.30-7.30pm

Join Typewronger’s writer-in-residence Éadaoín Lynch (they/them) for a practice-based poetry workshop in (and inspired by) the Lavender Menace archive!

You’ll have the chance to interact with unique archvial materials, plus built-in time and prompts to write with. No experience necessary, just bring a notepad or a laptop, whichever you prefer. There’s no expectation to share work aloud (unless you want to).

Supported by Scottish Book Trust’s Live Literature programme.

Book a ticket

About Éadaoín Lynch

Éadaoín Lynch is an Irish poet & researcher living and working in Edinburgh. Their debut pamphlet, Fierce Scrow, launched with Nine Pens Press in 2022. From December 2024-May 2025, they are a writer-in-residence with Typewronger Books, creating original poems in response to materials from the Lavender Menace Archive.

In 2024-5, they are also project mentor on the ACE-funded Eff-able Anthology, co-edited by JP Seabright and George Parker. Eff-able is a project in two parts – an anthology of poetry from the best contemporary poets identifying as queer and disabled, and a touring showcase of this work.

Find out more about Éadaoín on their website: eadaoinlynch.com

BookingBooking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Social Sunday: Trans & non-binary open mic
2025-05-25 14:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
Sunday 25 May, 2pm-4pm

A relaxed Social Sunday open mic with tea, coffee, and snacks.

Social Sundays are usually an informal, drop in session every 2nd and 4th Sunday. We decided to run a special open mic Social Sunday this month to celebrate trans and non-binary writing.

We invite you to bring along your favourite poem, extract, or piece by a trans or non-binary writer, or share your own work. It will be a relaxed, friendly space, with no pressure to “perform”.

Book a ticket

BookingWe only have capacity for a limited number of people in the archive, so please book in advance. If you are unable to attend, please let us know so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location and accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Mapping Your Library with OurStory Scotland
2025-05-31 14:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
Doors open 1.30pm. Workshop 2-4pm.

Join Lavender Menace for a creative oral history workshop with Dom Millar-Graham, chair of OurStory Scotland. In Mapping Your Library, participants are invited to narrate their lives through the books that have meant something to them. Tell your queer story through books. Where do you find yourself on the library or bookshop shelves?

Refreshments provided and no preparation needed.

Book tickets

BookingBooking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Social Sunday: Spike, Saturn & Friends of Storm
2025-07-27 14:15 - 16:00 | Scotland
On the 2nd and 4th Sunday of every month, the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive is open 2pm–4pm for our informal Social Sundays.

On Sunday 27th July, we are running a special Social Sunday to remember our friend Lesley Storm. Lesley recently passed away and she is very much missed by the Edinburgh poetry community. In 2023, Lesley read her poetry at a Lavender Menace event “Spike, Saturn and Storm”. Spike and Saturn will return to share her work and remember her.

Please join us to read her work and your own, and learn more about her extraordinary life.

No need to book, just drop in.

Venue & Accessibility

Social Sunday takes place at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Queer Community Programming Group with Filmhouse
2025-08-05 18:00 - 20:00 | Scotland
Book here

Are you interested in queer films?Would you like to be involved in deciding which queer films are shown atFilmhouse?Come along to our new community programming group, a collaborationbetween Filmhouse, Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, and Programmedwith Pride.Filmhouse is an independent cinema in the heart of Edinburgh, celebrating themagic of cinema in all its forms. Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive collectand conserve LGBTQ+ books, preserve queer history, and provide a space forthe community. Originally established in 2018, Programmed With Pride is avolunteer-run group of young film lovers based in Edinburgh who arepassionate about LGBTQ+ stories in cinema and bringing them to thecommunity through hosting and programming events.We will meet quarterly to discuss all things queer cinema and decide whichfilms we would like to show in the recently reopened Filmhouse on LothianRoad.BookingPlease complete the registration form to attend:https://forms.office.com/e/DSZCVVS10nWe welcome LGBTQ+ people over the age of 18 to join us on Tuesday 5thAugust, between 6pm to 8pm at Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive,Edinburgh Palette, 151 London Road.The group is free to attend.Booking in advance is essential as places are limited, and if you are unable toattend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place tosomeone else.If you have any access needs it would be helpful for us to know about, or anyquestions, please get in touch at learning@filmhouse.org.ukVenue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in EdinburghPalette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car,along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Archiving Queer Futures: Eman Abdelhadi in conversation with Nat Raha (online)
2025-08-19 18:00 - 19:30 | Scotland
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Join Lavender Menace for an online discussion between two activist scholars on imagining and archiving queer futures.

Dr Eman Abdelhadi is an academic, activist and writer who thinks at the intersection of gender, sexuality, religion and politics. She is an assistant professor and sociologist at the University of Chicago, where she researches American Muslim communities. She is co-author of Everything for Everyone: An Oral History of the New York Commune, 2052 – 2072 (with M. E. O’Brien, 2022).

Dr Nat Raha is a poet and activist-scholar. Her current research focuses on transfeminism, practices and collectives of care and social reproduction, racial capitalism and decolonisation, across poetry, art, politics and hi(r)story. Nat is the co-author of Trans Femme Futures: Abolitionist Ethics for Transfeminist Worlds (with Mijke van der Drift, 2024), and co-edited ‘Imagining Queer Europe then and now’, Third Text special issue (2021). She is the author of four books of poetry, including apparitions (nines) (2024) and of sirens, body & faultlines (2018). Her critical writing has appeared in Social Text, South Atlantic Quarterly, TSQ and more.

Window(s) of Tolerance: Tools for Ideal Collaborations in an Un-Ideal World
2025-08-21 18:00 - 20:00 | Scotland
Doors open at 6pm, workshop 6.30-8pmA workshop from Feminist Culture House, supported by Edinburgh Art Festival

Book here

Let’s pollinate the cultural field with intersectional feminist working practices! This 1.5hr workshop uses verbal, edible, and textual prompts to guide a conversation about identifying and distributing different skills and currencies within collaborative creative practices.

During the workshop, Katie will share excerpts from Feminist Culture House’s new online publication Windows of Tolerance: Tools for Ideal Collaborations in an Unideal (Art) World, as well as a foraged pine pollen and valerian root infusion from Finland—this might prompt lucid dreaming later that night.

Welcome if you’re interested in chatting about the practicalities of curatorial and collective practices, hanging out, and dreaming of how to create kind working conditions that feel nourishing for everyone involved

What to expect

an informal group gathering of maximum 15 people

an introduction round

friendly facilitation grounded in Safer Space principles and these ethical guidelines

to hear someone with an Australian accent read short textual excerpts

moments to reflect upon and share about your own experiences with collaborative practices, and how they were compensated, if you wish

a take-home pamphlet with space for notetaking, and a link to the Windows of Tolerance publication

time to reflect and write

a break for a drink and snack: alcoholic and non-alcoholic options available

time for informal socialising

About the FacilitatorKatie Lenanton (she/her) is a queer intersectional feminist curator, artistic researcher, writer, and editor who works collectively through mediums like exhibition-making, social practice, wildcrafting, conceptual cocktails, publishing, scent, and sustenance, amongst others. An important question in her work is “who is in the room, and under what conditions?”

In 2019, she co-founded Feminist Culture House, a Helsinki-based curatorial and editorial platform that produces exhibitions, publications, and tools for more equitable collaborations within the art field.

BookingWe only have capacity for a limited number of people in the archive, so please book in advance. If you are unable to attend, please let us know so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location and accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Sapphic Spaces: In conversation with June Thomas
2025-10-02 19:00 - 20:30 | Epworth Hall, 25 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9BX, United Kingdom
Join Wuthering Dykes Book Club and Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive for an evening with the lesbian legend June Thomas, author of A Place of Our Own. June will be in conversation with Sigrid Nielsen, co-founder of both Scotland’s first LGBT+ bookshop and Lavender Menace, and Sophie Haynes, who runs Wuthering Dykes.

The event is free. Just click here to book a ticket through Eventbrite:

Book ticket

About the speakers:

June Thomas is a journalist, podcaster, and the author of A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces That Shaped Queer Women’s Culture. She spent 25 years as a writer, editor, and podcast host at Slate.com, and her freelance work has appeared in Bloomberg Businessweek, Marie Clarie, the New York Times’ T magazine, the Washington Post, and the Advocate. She is now working on a biography of Rita Mae Brown.

Photo: Rachel Hein. [A photograph of June smiling outside a bookshop with stylish round glasses and a purple jumper]

Sigrid Nielsen is a graduate of St John’s College in Santa Fe, New Mexico. In Edinburgh in 1979 she joined Bob Orr in Open Gaze, the bookstall he ran at Edinburgh Gay Centre, and worked in other bookselling and publishing groups. She and Bob opened Lavender Menace, Scotland’s first Lesbian and Gay Community Bookshop, as a partnership in 1982. Sigrid managed author readings, mail order lists, and bookshop events. She left as a partner in 1987 and later co-edited In Other Words: Writing as a Feminist (Hutchinson Education, 1987) and published articles and short stories. In 2019, she and Bob revived Lavender Menace as an LGBT+ books archive and heritage organisation.

Photo: Liam Baker. [A headshot of Sigrid smiling at the camera wearing glasses and a rainbow knitted jumper.]

Sophie Haynes runs Wuthering Dykes Bookclub and holds an MLitt in Gothic Literature. She’s passionate about building queer community and where to find the best whiskey soda in Leith. Catch her browsing bookshops, marching at protests or making an appearance at the best lesbian events in the city.

Photo: Sophie Haynes. [A headshot of Sophie who is looking straight at the camera and wears a leather jacket.]

Venue & Access

The event will be held at Epworth Hall, Nicolson Square Venues, 25 Nicolson Square, EH8 9BX. This is a dry event and no alcohol is allowed on the premises.The venue has step-free access and an internal lift. There is parking next door at 27, and an accessible gender neutral toilet on the ground floor: https://www.euansguide.com/venues/nicolson-square-edinburgh-edinburgh-14614/information

To see what the event room looks like visit: https://www.nsvenues.com/the-epworth-hallFor further information about the venue contact info@nsvenues.com and for questions about the event contact themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Asexuality in the Archive
2025-10-04 14:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
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This interactive workshop introduces how asexuality was treated as a medical issue in the Victorian Age and its impact on contemporary media representation. It will begin by examining how nineteenth-century doctors constructed a set of symptoms that supposedly diagnosed individuals as asexual. Together, we’ll look at how this conceptualisation is mirrored – or challenged – in contemporary popular culture representations of asexuality. Participants are encouraged to bring in their own examples to discuss, alongside those provided by the workshop leader.

What to expect

The workshop will begin with a short introductory talk on the history of asexual medicalisation, followed by work in small groups and general discussion. Participants are encouraged to offer their own examples of asexual representation: these should be introduced with a short description of the media and the character they want to discuss.

About the Facilitator

Claudia Sterbini is a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh. Her project explores theconstruction of pathological asexuality at the turn of the twentieth century. She is interested in queer history, the medical humanities, Victorian literature, and generally all that is queer and ace.

BookingBooking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Gay Scotland Now Collage Workshop at Edinburgh Zine Fair
2025-11-01 15:00 - 16:00 | Edinburgh Zine Fair, Floor 3, 151 London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE
Join Lavender Menace for a free and fun collage workshop remixing text and images from Gay Scotland. Gay Scotland was a staple of the Scottish queer scene when it was published in the 1980s-2000s. Explore LGBT events, adverts, articles, and classifieds from the past and remix them to reflect what Scotland means to queer communities now.

No need to bring anything – we have materials and photocopies of vintage queer magazines.

Lavender Menace is a community archive with roots in Scotland’s first LGBT+ bookshop. We have a mission to bring together the queer community in Edinburgh and beyond, celebrate LGBT+ authors and their works, and collect and preserve LGBT+ books. lavendermenace.org.uk

Book a ticket

This event is free.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located on Floor 3, ScotART, St Margaret’s House (that’s three floors above the Lavender Menace archive). There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

3,000 Lesbians Go to York
2025-11-03 18:00 - 20:00 | Filmhouse, 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh, EH3 9BZ
Join Lavender Menace at the Filmhouse for a screening of this brilliant new film. Followed by a Q&A with author Jane Traies and director Rachel Dax, and a booksigning.3000 Lesbians Go To York tells the extraordinary true story of how a lesbian bookseller (who also happened to be trans) created the largest gathering of LGBTQ+ women in the UK, and how from 1998 to 2008, the quietly conservative city of York became the unlikely centre of all things lesbian!

For one thrilling decade, thousands of women flocked to the York Lesbian Arts Festival (YLAF) each autumn, to meet their favourite authors, buy books, hear top female artists live on stage and dance the night away at the ‘disco of a thousand lesbians.’

Featuring interviews with world famous writers Val McDermid, Sarah Waters and Jackie Kay, and the legendary singer Horse, 3000 Lesbians Go To York is a real celebration of the historical significance of this iconic festival!

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Venue & AccessibilityThe event will take place at Filmhouse on Lothian Road. You can see accessibility information on the Filmhouse website. Contact Filmhouse directly if you have more questions.

CANCELLED: Scotch Verdict with Lillian Faderman
2025-11-12 19:30 - 20:30 | Scotland
UPDATE: Unfortunately, we have had to cancel this event due to unforeseen circumstances.

Join Lavender Menace for a conversation with Lillian Faderman about the writing of her acclaimed book Scotch Verdict. First published in 1983, the book details the experience of uncovering the story of a scandal surrounding a 19th-century boarding school in Edinburgh’s New Town.

This online event will be held on Zoom. We’ll email attendees a Zoom link before the event. Just book a free ticket to attend.

About Scotch Verdict

Award-winning author Lillian Faderman recreates the events surrounding this notorious case, which became the basis for Lillian Hellman’s famous play, The Children’s Hour. Reconstructing the libel suit filed by Pirie and Woods—which resulted in a scotch verdict, or a verdict of inconclusive/not proven—Faderman builds a compelling narrative from court transcripts, judges’ notes, witnesses’ contradictory testimony, and the prejudices of the men presiding over the case. Her fascinating portrait documents the social, economic, and sexual pressures shaping the lives of nineteenth-century women and the issues of class and gender contributing to their marginalisation.

In 1810, a Scottish student named Jane Cumming accused her schoolmistresses, Jane Pirie and Marianne Woods, of having an affair in the presence of their students. Dame Helen Cumming Gordon, the wealthy and powerful grandmother of the accusing student, advised her friends to remove their daughters from the Drumsheugh boarding school. Within days, the institution was deserted and the two women were deprived of their livelihoods.

About the speaker

Lillian Faderman is an internationally known scholar of lesbian and LGBT history and literature. She is professor emerita of English at California State University, Fresno. Her award-winning titles include: Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers, Surpassing the Love of Men, Naked in the Promised Land, Power Politics, and Lipstick Lesbians.

The event will be chaired by Indigo Dunphy-Smith

Indigo Dunphy-Smith (she/her) is a researcher and writer based in Edinburgh. She specialises in research and public programmes that create space for marginalised stories in traditional spaces. She is the author of How to: Queer Your Historic House, a practical toolkit for uncovering queer stories in museum collections, and co-chairs the National Trust for Scotland’s LGBTQ network and supports organisations to queer their heritage spaces.

Image credits

Lilian Faderman photo by Phyllis Irwin; map reproduced with the permission of the National Library of Scotland Map Images website.

Fashioning Our Selves with Katrina Rolley
2025-11-22 14:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
Join Lavender Menace and writer Katrina Rolley for an intimate creative non-fiction workshop exploring how we fashion our selves and our identities through clothing.

Book a free place if you’d like to attend.

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What to expect

An informal conversational workshop in a small group lasting 2 hours (with a short break and refreshments). You don’t need to prepare anything in advance but you’re encouraged to bring a photograph or piece of clothing that’s meaningful to you or someone you care about, to help us describe and share stories and experiences together.

About the facilitator

Katrina Rolley is a writer and digital creative whose work centres around identity, appearance and our sense of self. With a background in fashion and identity studies, Katrina’s current work uses personal experience combined with research into the self-presentation of lesbians in ‘20s and ‘30s Britain to explore how we all fashion our unique selves.

BookingWe only have capacity for a limited number of people in the archive, so please book in advance. If you are unable to attend, please let us know so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location and accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Keepers of the Flame with Janette Ayachi
2025-12-13 14:00 - 15:30 | Scotland
Join poet Janette Ayachi for a creative writing workshop exploring fire as both a literal & metaphorical force – destruction & renewal, love & loss, desire & transformation – while creating a safe, creative space for participants to reflect on their own inner fires.

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What to expect

An intimate and life-affirming creative writing workshop. We will have pens and paper but feel free to bring your own writing material.Introduction & Reading (15 mins): A short reading from QuickFire, Slow Burning to set the tone — fire as illumination, resilience & sacred responsibility.

Guided Discussion (15 mins): On how fire, heat & light manifest in our emotional lives & creative processes — how we sustain warmth in community & art.

Writing Exercises (45 mins):

Ignition: writing from spark — what lights us up?

Burning: writing through intensity, transformation or conflict.

Ash: writing from aftermath — what remains, what renews.Sharing & Closing Reflection (15 mins): A chance to read excerpts & discuss how we can carry creative heat through the winter.

BookingWe only have capacity for a limited number of people in the archive, so please book in advance. If you are unable to attend, please let us know so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location and accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Collaging Queer Edinburgh with Kamal Malhotra
2026-01-14 18:00 - 20:00 | Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, Edinburgh Palette, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH7 6AE
Join artist Kamal Malhotra to explore Edinburgh’s queer history through vintage maps, images, magazines, scissors, and glue! This informal collage workshop looks at the material Lavender Menace used for our Desire Paths exhibition and encourages participants to remix and redesign Edinburgh’s queer past.

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About the facilitator

Kamal Malhotra is an Edinburgh-based illustrator who graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 2024. His favourite subjects to explore are queer experiences of the body, the internet and digital culture, and gay sex. He has an interest in printmaking and regularly works with risograph, linocut, and monotype, often combined with digital and other traditional media. He also enjoys designing posters and publications.

What to expect

An informal creative workshop in a small-group setting. The workshop lasts for 2 hours with a break in the middle. No experience necessary and no advance preparation needed. We will have material for you to use here.

Booking

Tickets are free – donations are appreciated but optional. Booking in advance is essential as places are limited, so if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & Accessibility

The event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Making Art in Dark Times with Mae Diansangu
2026-01-24 14:00 - 16:00 | Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, Edinburgh Palette, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH7 6AE
Create found poetry and collage art in ‘Recover, recycle, reimagine: making art in dark times’ – a workshop led by poet Mae Diansangu.

Participants will explore what it means to make art in times of multiple crises, using materials from mainstream media to critique, reclaim, and reimagine the dominant narratives that shape our society.

This workshop was originally developed as part of ‘Eternal Ecstasy’, an exhibition of the artist Jamie Reid at the worm, Aberdeen.

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About the facilitator

Mae Diansangu is a queer poet from Aberdeen who writes in Scots and English. Her practice is rooted in the belief that storytelling is a collaborative act, and she is particularly interested in reframing contemporary issues through the retelling of shared histories and myths. Much of her work explores themes of identity, resilience, power, transformation, and belonging. Her debut collection, Bloodsongs (Tapsalteerie), was longlisted for a 2025 Saltire Book Award.

What to expect

An informal creative workshop in a small-group setting. The workshop lasts for 2 hours with a break in the middle. No experience necessary and no advance preparation needed. We will have material for you to use here.

Booking

Tickets are free – donations are appreciated but optional. Booking in advance is essential, as places are limited. If you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & Accessibility

The event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Who’s Lore is it Anyway? Queering Scottish Folktales with Elisabeth Flett
2026-02-07 14:00 - 16:00 | Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive, Edinburgh Palette, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH7 6AE
Come along to the archive for a queer folklore-themed writing workshop with Scottish author Elisabeth Flett! Elisabeth’s 2025 novel No Such Thing As Kelpies is an LGBTQ+ modern re-imagining of Scottish fairy tales and folkloric creatures. Together we’ll be learning a few fun facts about Scottish folklore, hearing a couple of extracts from Flett’s book and trying our hands at writing our own queered tales. This will be a relaxed, fun session – no need to have previous experience in writing, just come with something on which to write and a hunger for some tale twisting!

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About the facilitator

Elisabeth Flett (she/they) is an award-winning writer, theatre-maker, musician and general feminist trouble maker. A 2021 graduate of the Elphinstone Institute MLitt course in Scottish Ethnology and Folklore, Flett is fast becoming a well-known figure in the world of queer Scottish folklore with their 2024 solo storytelling show The Selkie’s Wife enjoying particular acclaim. They are passionate about mental health awareness, LGBTQ+ rights and gender equality, themes which often feature in all forms of their work as a creative practitioner.

What to expect

An informal creative workshop in a small-group setting. The workshop lasts for 2 hours with a break in the middle. No experience necessary and no advance preparation needed. We will have material for you to use here.

Booking

Tickets are pay-what-you-can. Booking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & Accessibility

The event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Lesbian Words
2026-02-15 14:15 - 16:00 | Scotland
Join us for our monthly discussion about lesbian books! We get together on the third Sunday of each month to chat about books and media about lesbians, sapphics, bi and/or queer women.

We usually pick a specific topic to discuss each month, like our favourite book to movie adaptations, controversial books, or lesbian representation throughout history.

The theme for February is Romance – come along and talk about your favourite sapphic romance!

Lesbian Words is open to anyone who wants to talk about lesbian or sapphic books. You don’t have to be a lesbian to join, and the group is trans inclusive: trans women, trans femmes, and non-binary folks welcome.

Booking

Booking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please let us know as soon as possible so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Future Drop Outs: co-working group
2026-02-16 13:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
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Future Drop Outs is a co-working group for queer students, researchers, and writers. Join us for a calm, supportive studying session, 1-4pm on the third Monday of the month. What to expect

A relaxed and relatively quiet space to work on your own project in the company of others. Because of the nature of the building, we can’t guarantee silence but we will hold the quietest space we can within the room. We will have basic refreshments (tea, coffee, biscuits) out.

The final half hour of every session will be an informal conversation and people are welcome to share their work if they would like to.

BookingWe only have capacity for a limited number of people in the archive, so please book in advance. If you are unable to attend, please let us know so we can offer your place to someone else.

Venue & AccessibilityThe event is located at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location and accessibility page.

Any other questionsPlease email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

The Museum of Transology in conversation with Richard Sandell
2026-02-18 18:00 - 19:30 | Scotland
Join Lavender Menace and the CILIP LGBTQ+ Network for an online evening discussion about protecting and sharing trans heritage. Curator E-J Scott will be in dialogue with Professor Richard Sandell in an event chaired by historian Elena Fritzsch.

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About the speakers

E-J Scott is a curator, cultural producer and academic whose practice focuses on enabling communities who may traditionally have been marginalised in museums to recentre their histories via interventive participatory practice. E-J is a Senior Lecturer on the BA (Hons) Culture, Criticism and Curation at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London. They founded the Museum of Transology in 2014, now the largest collection of material culture representing trans lives in the world (Bishopsgate Institute, London).

Richard Sandell is Professor of Museum Studies and co-director of the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries at the University of Leicester. He is a co-author of Trans-Inclusive Culture: guidance on advancing trans inclusion for museums, galleries, archives and heritage organisations.

Elena Fritzsch is an historian and a former volunteer archivist at Lavender Menace. She has an MA in History and Politics from the University of Edinburgh and a postgraduate degree in History from Leiden University, where her research focused on gender-affirming healthcare in trans magazines.

Booking

Tickets are free – donations are appreciated but optional. Booking in advance is essential as places are limited so, if you are unable to attend, please cancel your ticket.This event will take place on Zoom. A meeting link will be sent out on the day of the event.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Social Sunday
2026-02-22 14:00 - 16:00, 2026-03-08 14:00 - 16:00 | Scotland
On the 2nd and 4th Sunday of every month, the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive is open 2pm–4pm for our informal Social Sundays. Join us for tea, cake and lots of queer book discussion!

There is no need to sign up in advance, you can just turn up.

Social Sundays are a great way to learn more about the archive and chat about your favourite LGBTQ+ books. You can come with friends or on your own – our volunteers will make you feel welcome.

Venue & Accessibility

Social Sunday takes place at the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in Edinburgh Palette. There is information on how to get to us on public transport and by car, along with access information, on our location & accessibility page.

Any other questions

Please email us: themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk

Pub Quiz Fundraiser for Lavender Menace
2026-02-23 19:00 - 23:30 | Scotland
Join us for a pub quiz, raffle and social with Dyke Bar!

Fundraising for non-profits and LGBTQ+ organisations is especially tough right now, and we’d love your support to help us keep the archive doors open.

Lavender Menace volunteers will host a big gay pub quiz, with questions themed around LGBTQ+ books, Edinburgh’s queer scene, and other queer media. We’ll also be running a raffle with amazing prizes from local organisations and artists!

And after the quiz, stick around for Dyke Bar for a pint and a blether. Follow @edinburghdykebar for more info.

How to book/take part

Please book a ticket via Eventbrite. You can donate when you sign up, or you can book a free ticket if you plan to donate on the night:

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You can choose your own donation amount for the pub quiz. Raffle tickets are £1 each or £4 for a strip of 5.

Location & access

This event will be at Leith Depot.

The bar is at ground level with ramps at the main entrance and into the venue. Ramps are also available for access to the stage performance area. An accessible toilet is located within the venue. Find out more on the Leith Depot website: https://leithdepot.com/about-us.html

Donate

If you can’t make the event but you want to support us, you can donate to the archive here:

Support the archive

Donations help us with the costs of book preservation, events, opening hours, staffing and volunteer management. Thank you so much!

Past Shelves: Histories of Queer Reading (Exhibition)
2026-03-05 10:00 - 2026-05-03 17:00 | Museum of Edinburgh, 142-146 Canongate, Edinburgh, Midlothian, EH8 8DD, United Kingdom
Opening hours: The exhibition runs 5 March to 3 May. In March, the museum is open Wednesday to Sunday. In April/May, it is open every day.

Join us for the Past Shelves exhibition to explore the impact of LGBTQ+ reading, publishing, and bookselling. The exhibition is inspired by Scotland’s first LGBTQ+ bookshops, community experiences of reading and life in Scotland from 1980-2000.

The Past Shelves exhibition follows on from the Past Shelves oral history project run in 2025-2026 by the Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive. The project interviewed dozens of members of the LGBTQ+ community whose lives were shaped by books and reading. You can hear some of these interviews in the exhibition.

Lavender Menace was Scotland’s first gay and lesbian community bookshop. Co-founded by Bob Orr and Sigrid Nielsen, it opened in 1982. After five years of bookselling, the bookshop was reborn as West & Wilde (1987-1997) owned by Bob Orr and Raymond Rose. These spaces were a haven for LGBTQ+ people and sold queer books at a time when mainstream bookshops would not stock them. The bookshops were also important community spaces where LGBTQ+ people could feel welcomed and connect with each other. In 2019, Lavender Menace was revived as Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive.

Discover the world of Lavender Menace and West & Wilde with us, through books, magazines, interviews and more.

Credits

This exhibition was created by Lavender Menace Queer Books Archive in partnership with Museums & Galleries Edinburgh. Thank you to our funders, the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Awards for All.

Location & access

The exhibition takes place at the Museum of Edinburgh, 142-146 Canongate, Edinburgh EH8 8DD.

The main entrance has 1 step. There is no lift and no ramp and the upper levels are accessible by stairs only. There is level access from the main entrance to the Foyer section of the exhibition and the accessible toilets. Some parts of the exhibition are located upstairs, which are accessible by stairs only.

We appreciate that this means some of our audience won’t be able to access the exhibition, and we are committed to producing a digital guide of the exhibition in order to make the exhibition more accessible.

If the inaccessibility of the building is preventing you from seeing the exhibition, please email themenaces@lavendermenace.org.uk and we will send you the digital guide when it is available (currently expected late April).
