A Conversation with Matthew Cornford – Social Refuge and Queer Lit
We spoke to Matthew about his huge ambition in setting up award-winning LGBTQ+ bookshop Queer Lit and the newest queer space in Manchester, Social Refuge.
Watch the full interview with Matthew here:
Three years ago, Matthew set up a website where people could buy LGBTQ+ books online after getting frustrated that his local bookshop had no specific section for queer titles. Having initially featured a selection of around 700 different books on the Queer Lit website, Matthew now has more than 4,375 different titles available at the fabulous Social Refuge on Great Ancoats Street – and the collection is continuing to grow. There’s also an in-house coffee shop, an events area and a co-working space.
He told the Manchester Evening News:
“I remember trying to find queer titles in Waterstones on Deansgate and I was getting frustrated that I couldn’t really find anything. I was told that they basically didn’t have a LGBTQ+ section besides in the summer during Pride. Even their own website made it difficult for you to find any queer books.
“I thought ‘let’s fix this’ as I was dying to read more queer books. I read a lot but I don’t always see myself in those books. I like crime novels – really dark and nasty stuff – but the detective never went home to a husband at the end of the night.
“I thought if we’re going to have somewhere this big then we need somewhere where we could also bring in our events,” Matthew says. “Previously, we were hiring out spaces in the Northern Quarter and the Village for our book clubs and author events, but we wanted to do it properly. “I love the village – I absolutely love getting absolutely ****** up and seeing a drag queen on stage, but there are not always spaces there where the community can feel comfortable going to. Sometimes it’s too loud and people just want to play Dungeons and Dragons for four hours straight – it’s about us having the space to let people do that.”
He added: “On the first day, someone broke down in the shop saying they had just found out about queer literature and were moved by the fact they could finally see themselves represented. That’s exactly why we’re here.“You often find that the backs of books don’t really specifically mention if they’re a LGBTQ+ title or not. If you go into a big book store, you’ll be hunting for hours just to find one queer title. Having a space like this which is completely queer, you know you’re going to be able to find those books in an inclusive and open space.”
