The bar’s licence has been controversial in the past
Long Legs lap dancing bar has been given permission to remain open for another year — on the condition GMP can enforce a dress code.
The club has been a staple of Chinatown ‘for 25 years’ despite campaigners frequently trying to strip Long Legs’ licence. In 2019, a political party hit out at the George Street bar. Four years later, two pressure groups said the venue ‘feeds a culture of male entitlement’ which ‘underlies the massive amounts of male violence against women’.
In both instances, Manchester council decided to extend Long Legs’ licence. It did the same again on Monday (December 15) after representatives argued there is ‘no cause for complaint’.
“Year after year Long Legs continues to meet all the mandatory and discretionary grounds for renewal. We are seeking renewal on the same basis as last year,” solicitor Claire Morris argued.
“As we know this application has not been met with objection at all — there aren’t any from police, residents, residents’ groups, councillors, businesses, or anyone who lives, works or uses the area. They have no cause for complaint.
“[Licensee] Sandra Chan remains eminently suitable to operate Long Legs for another year. She remains of impeccable character, she has been involved with Long Legs at this address for 25 years.
“She is qualified to continue operating given this experience. The sexual entertainment venue licence has been renewed for 13 years in a row because of Sandra.”
Long Legs applied to renew its licence with the same conditions it already adheres to. One condition requires the lap dancing bar to ‘operate a dress code for customers to the satisfaction of Greater Manchester Police’.
Other conditions include a ban on ‘intentional physical contact’ between dancers and customers. They also ‘must not use any inappropriate, lewd, suggestive or sexually graphic language in any public or performance areas of the premises’.
The licence was granted in a straightforward town hall hearing. Licensing committee chair Coun Julie Connolly said: “After reading the papers and listening to submissions, we have agreed to renew the licence. We cannot identify any discretionary grounds to refuse.”
