The Calls is an area and street by the River Aire

River Aire

The River Aire is a major river in Yorkshire, England of length . Part of the river is canalised, and is known as the Aire and Calder Navigation....

 in Leeds city centre

Leeds City Centre

Leeds city centre is the central business district of Leeds, England. It is within the Leeds Central parliamentary constituency, represented by Hilary Benn as MP since a by-election in 1999...

, West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. Coupled with Call Lane and Lower Briggate the area makes up the heart of the Leeds gay village.

The Calls area is the location of the second part of Leeds Pride

Leeds Pride

Leeds Pride is an annual Gay Pride celebration held in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.It has been running since 2006, and in its fourth year had over 17,000 people in attendance, with the figure expected to grow in 2010....

 after the Pride Parade has left the stage and stalls in Millennium Square.

The Leeds Gay Village

Today The Calls, Call Lane and Lower Briggate have become Leeds' main gay district,There are many pubs and bars around the area (such as the Aire Bar, Calls Landing, Elbow Rooms, Oporto, Queens Court and Revolution). The most notable perhaps is The New Penny

The New Penny

The New Penny is a Gay pub in The Calls area of Leeds, West Yorkshire.It is reported to be the oldest gay pub in the UK. The Pub first started as the Hope And Anchor in 1953. Although difficulty with the law meant it was a secretive place it was the first gay venue to open outside of London...

, which is supposedly the UK's longest running gay pub. The Calls area is also the setting for the post parade street party and stalls at Leeds Pride. many companies have also set up offices in the area. A new footbridge links The Calls to Brewery Wharf, part of the Tetley's brewery

Tetley's Brewery

Tetley's Brewery was a large brewery in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The main product was Tetley's Bitter, although Skol and other beers were also made there.-History:...

. A new footbridge further East close to Leeds Parish Church

Leeds Parish Church

Leeds Parish Church, or the Parish Church of Saint Peter-at-Leeds, in Leeds, West Yorkshire is a large Church of England parish church of major architectural and liturgical significance. It has been designated a grade I listed building by English Heritage...

 which links the area to Clarence Dock.

Village Establishments

The Calls area has many LGBT

LGBT

LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...

 bars, pubs and clubs some of these include:

• Queens Court
• The Loft
• Mission
• Mission2
• Blayds Bar
• Bar Fibre
• ABUV
• The Viaduct
• Mook
• Religion
• The Old Red Lion
• Xibit
• The Bridge Inn
• The New Penny
  The New Penny
  The New Penny is a Gay pub in The Calls area of Leeds, West Yorkshire.It is reported to be the oldest gay pub in the UK. The Pub first started as the Hope And Anchor in 1953. Although difficulty with the law meant it was a secretive place it was the first gay venue to open outside of London...
  
  

The Majority of the other local establishments are LGBT friendly and some even have gay nights such as The Cockpit.

History

The Calls area along with neighbouring Clarence Dock served as docks on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal

Leeds and Liverpool Canal

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of , it crosses the Pennines, and includes 91 locks on the main line...

 and the Aire and Calder Navigation

Aire and Calder Navigation

The Aire and Calder Navigation is a river and canal system of the River Aire and the River Calder in the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England. The first improvements to the rivers above Knottingley were completed in 1704 when the Aire was made navigable to Leeds and the Calder to...

 throughout the industrial revolution

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...

 and the early 20th century.

The areas decline began in the early 20th century when Leeds' industry moved away from the centre out towards Hunslet

Hunslet

Hunslet is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is south east of the city centre and has an industrial past.Hunslet had many engineering companies based in the district, such as John Fowler & Co...

, Holbeck

Holbeck

Holbeck is a district in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.The district begins on the southern edge of the Leeds city centre and mainly lies in the LS11 Leeds postcode area. The M1 and M621 motorways used to end/begin in Holbeck. Now the M621 is the only motorway that passes through the area since...

, Armley

Armley

Armley is a district in the west of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It starts less than a mile from Leeds city centre. Like much of Leeds, Armley grew in the industrial revolution and had several mills, one of which is now the Armley Mills museum...

 and Kirkstall

Kirkstall

Kirkstall is a suburb of north-west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, on the eastern side of the River Aire. To the west is Bramley, to the east is Headingley and to the north is West Park. Kirkstall is around from the city centre and is close to the University of Leeds and Leeds Metropolitan...

. Leeds' post-war industrial decline spelled the death knell for the area and the area became rundown and suffered from crime and vagrancy. Redevelopment began in the area in the 1990s.