Dukes Mound is a wild place. A little corner of the city still left untamed. It lays on a threshold of the wild and queer worlds, an otherworldly place were the ever-present bounds of societal norms are not as strong and love can flourish freely in all it’s forms. It’s a place of uninhibited connection among strangers.
I can’t vouch for everyone but I treat park cruising with reverence. It’s an inherently queer experience that should be respected and cherished as a human cultural phenomenon. It can be a source of a lot of public good and an integral part of people’s life and identity. As Gayle Rubin said:
A democratic morality should judge sexual acts by the way partners treat one another, the level of mutual consideration, the presence or absence of coercion, and the quantity and quality of the pleasures which they provide. 1
Located right behind a nudist beach, most of the gay cruising area is concealed by tall bushes that provide shelter and a discreet space away from the public eye. It can get busy both day and night, making it one of the most frequented cruising spots in the UK.2
This year I was in the South for Brighton Pride and planned to visit Dukes Mound (or simply The Bushes as it’s colloquially3 and lovingly known). As midnight approached, the village party died down and I slowly made my way to the seafront, passing people drifting away as cleaning crews moved in to sweep the streets for the coming day. I headed west along Marine Parade until I found a staircase descending to a lower level. As I walked past Concorde 2, it seemed to be winding down for the night and the further I went – the quieter it got.
Eventually I crossed the Volk’s Railway and followed the newly redeveloped beachfront walkway toward the Marina. After a short walk I took a sharp turn left, slowly opened the gate to cross back to the other side of the railway and cautiously made my way to a dark path leading up the hill.
Only after a few short steps it was clear that it was a no ordinary day. It was absolutely packed with people. Encouraged by the sight I decided I wasn’t ready to settle down quite so soon and just as a hand slowly reached out to me a squeezed through the crowd and walked away. It was a dark night, you could hardly see anything and I was only glad for it. Stopping only for brief moments just to look and adjust my eyes I slowly made my way through the ascending and descending pathways to the other side. It was busy everywhere, yet not as busy as I would have thought or as Berlin is on an ordinary summer day, nor was it as packed as it was back in the day before the hookup apps took over. Back then you could find a hundred guys or even more during Pride.4
The atmosphere difference between the glitter and rainbow-filled streets of Brighton and the dimly-lit pathways coudn’t be more striking. Yet it still felt open and welcoming, with the darkness offering a more specific and deliberate kind of hospitality.
The crowd was mixed: some clearly locals but most looked like they came down here from London just for the weekend. I had been here several times before, though only briefly. Eventually I reached a wider opening with a bench. From here three paths diverged: one leading back the way I had come, another down a few steps to the road, and a third leading past the tall hedges.
I went further in, here the path frequently opened wider to accommodate the benches. As I reached the last of these wider spaces, where a group of men gathered mulling about. However just to the right of the bench a dark opening in the bushes caught my eye. I was in the mood for a more intimate setting, so without hesitation I went up a little stone wall and stepped into the shadows.
The ground was well-trodden and the branches above looked like they had been grabbed by many hands before. At the far end of the clearing a figure bent over a twisted tree trunk, while several others stood around him, their stance tense with anticipation. I couldn’t really make out all the details but he was dressed in dark sporty clothes and his shorts were down. The thrill of being here and of witnessing it all was intoxicating. It wasn’t long before someone stepped forward to have a go and soon he was replaced by another, and then another. These connections happened so fast – blink, and you’ll miss them. And yet sometimes in these fleeting moments bonds are formed that will last a lifetime.
As the space grew more crowded, I decided to explore further. I retraced my steps, leapt off the low stone wall, and searched for another opening among the bushes. I spent the night slipping in and out, sometimes joining in when I felt like it, but mostly keeping to the shadows.
Dukes Mound, a popular cruising spot hidden by tall bushes near a nudist beach, is currently facing controversy over potential changes that could end its use as a cruising area. In 2021 the city council removed large swathes of evergreen tamarisk trees5 that provided both shelter from the public and a safe space for expression. The council wanted to “improving native plant biodiversity” and “bring this area back into use for everyone and make it more of a pleasure to visit”.6
It’s rather curios that a queer cruising ground was the one area in the whole city in the most need of increased biodiversity to “combat the biodiversity crisis”. Perhaps the esteemed councillors and city planners felt the need for more biodiversity in the human population too, as if the crowd was too ‘homogenous’ without enough bears and otters. It’s difficult to tell. But one thing is clear: it’s disheartening to hear such rhetoric from a council that prides itself on being progressive.
I hope Dukes Mound continues to thrive as a cruising ground for generations to come. If you’re planning a visit – take a stroll down the esplanade and see for yourself what makes this place so special.
Sources
- Rubin, G.S. (1998). Thinking Sex: Notes for a Radical Theory of the Politics of Sexuality. ↩︎
- Klineberg, A. (2021). The Bushes. Scene Magazine, [online] May, p.41. Available at: https://issuu.com/gscene/docs/05_scene_may_2021/41 [Accessed 8 Aug. 2024]. ↩︎
- Alf Le Flohic (2024). Brighton’s queer seaside: a salty-sweet history. [online] Gay History. Available at: https://gayhistory.co.uk/brightons-queer-seaside-a-salty-sweet-history/ [Accessed 8 Aug. 2024]. ↩︎
- Klineberg, A. (2021). The Bushes. Scene Magazine, [online] May, p.41. Available at: https://issuu.com/gscene/docs/05_scene_may_2021/41 [Accessed 8 Aug. 2024]. ↩︎
- Brighton & Hove City Council (2022). Our plans for Black Rock. [online] Brighton & Hove City Council. Available at: https://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/our-plans-black-rock [Accessed 11 Aug. 2024]. ↩︎
- Brighton & Hove City Council (2021). Dukes Mound to get a facelift as part of Black Rock regeneration. [online] Brighton & Hove City Council. Available at: https://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/news/2021/dukes-mound-get-facelift-part-black-rock-regeneration [Accessed 11 Aug. 2024]. ↩︎
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