East London’s historical gay bar, Club Eden, has been sold.
For the past 20 years owners Sally Prins and Carol van der Berg have created a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community and its allies to dance, connect and come together.
They hosted the first Pride march in the metro, the first gay pageants and drag shows and new owners Jessie Nezar and fiancé Suenë Beyleveld hope to keep this legacy alive.
On Wednesday, the Dispatch visited the venue, where Prins, Van der Berg and Lynda Ngcobo were unpacking old Halloween decorations — plastic bats, pumpkins, the bust of a bald two-headed drag queen, a papier-mache man stuffed with old Dispatch newspapers and a knife sticking out his head.
“If we knew about the rugby we would’ve played it on the screens!” Prins laughed.
Located in the factory district of Arcadia, the dusty black walls were painted with rainbows, mirror mosaics and a giant banner at the entrance that said “Bringing Communities Together.”
She said: “Eden is a diversity club, which is why this is our slogan.
“I’m very sad, this is my last weekend. But Jessie and Suenë are young, they are the next generation.
“There is so much here, I don’t have the time, I’m 58! I’m supposed to have retired already.”
Prins opened the club in 2004. It operates in the evenings above panel beater shops and mechanics, swapping the use of the parking lot from day into night.
“Before this, I had a club in Quigney called Stardust. It was exclusively for gay men and located on Fleet Street.
“Then, my mom passed away, so I left town for 10 months. I sold that club, and three months later, it closed.”
“Then the guy who originally bought it for his friend asked: ‘Can we open a club again because now we don’t have a gay club?'
“I came back and found this place. Within the first three months, we had a break-in and they took everything.”
“The message was clear; they even took the ice and the empty bottles. At that time, we only had a smaller dance floor space. Then, I thought, “Forget that — I’m staying.”
Prins said some of her best memories were past events held during the summer,including hosting East London’s first-ever Pride march, commercial drag shows and gay pageants.
“Also my foam parties! Oh, we had the best foam parties! One year in December, we put up an outside tent in the courtyard. They moved all the cars, and we had foam parties in there with DJs outside!”
Prins’s partner Van der Berg, affectionately called “Ma”, said the couple were moving with their family to Cape Town.
“After 10 years, I’m going to miss them dearly. This is our baby, it’s a good move but I’m tired.
“Still going to miss the children though, and hoping someone else will step in and be a ‘Ma’ to them because they really need it.”
Van der Berg said she would receive phone calls at all hours offering a kind word.
“It’s everything — family, friends, coming out. There is nowhere for them to go to feel accepted, this is home.”
Beyleveld, 28, from Summerpride, said: “It’s been like a second home. Whenever you have a bad day or week you can go there and relax.
“Everyone feels like family.”
“We are very excited, happy and grateful that Sally and Carol have given us this opportunity — we’ve got big shoes to fill!
“It’s exciting and nerve-racking at the same time.”
Nezar, 28, from Cambridge West, said the couple had been regulars at the club for 10 years.
“We've always enjoyed the vibe. Being gay, it’s nice to be in a gay-friendly place, you always feel so welcome.”
The couple were devastated when they saw a post on Facebook looking for new owners.
“We saw a post that it was for sale and were so concerned about who would take over, what if it’s not the same as it used to be? We thought 'Why don't we buy it?' We wanted to keep Carol and Sally’s legacy going, so contacted them and ja, we got it!
“This would be our first business. We have worked behind bars and been managers, but being owners will be different pressure-wise.”
Over time they hope to revamp and update the space.
“Slowly we are looking at improving the look and look forward to people’s suggestions as well. We will hopefully make it better, but keep its heart the same.”
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