Flinders cat
When Darlinghurst's iconic Flinders Hotel floundered in the early noughties, the godfather of queer publicans was called in to resuscitate the old girl. Andrew Georgiou talks to an old bar hand with fresh ideas - Chris Milne
Bossman Chris Milne has resurrected the historic Flinders Hotel as a watering glory hole
Sydney's old school queers have a soft spot for the Flinders Hotel. Built in 1916, the watering hole reigned as the gay pub du jour throughout the 80s and 90s and hosted the city's most essential recovery parties in the surrounding laneway. A Mardi Gras and Sleaze Ball recovery was never complete in gay Sydney without a sit, smoke and post-party pash in the gutters and laneways which saw drag queens melt in the morning sun and a chorus line of shameless public comedowns.
Alas, a changing gay scene in early 2000 saw the Flinders Hotel suffer an identity crisis. After a decadent facelift, the Flinders still failed to make its mark until its leaseholder called for the expertise of one of the community's most experienced publicans.
"I was offered the role as the general manager, licensee, advertising and promotions manager and restaurateur all in one," says the Flinders manager Chris Milne. "The biggest challenge I faced was creating an identity for a then relatively faceless venue. The bar was trying to be something different, but it wasn't quiet sure what that was," he says.
Once he confirmed the owners' interest in seeing the venue continue as one of the city's few gay owned and operated venues, Milne used his 20 years of experience and industry contacts to inject new blood into the Flinders weekly line up.
Since his appointment, Milne has turned the Flinders around, by shaking up the mid week lull with nights such as Thursday's Health Club which he cites as one of the venue's strongest players. "It's a Surry Hills, arty, cross-over crowd who don't give a shit who you are," says Milne. "It offers an edge by having various themed nights, such as a Love Song Dedications night or a Reggae night. The guys who run it don't do much advertising as the strength of the night is based on word of mouth.
A return to live music has seen Wednesday night's live sets pull an entirely new crowd for the Flinders while unearthing some amazing local talent. Milne says: "There is a strong trend toward live music within the local scene and we are proud to showcase it." When the working week comes to an end a much furrier crowd make tracks for the Flinders for Friday night's Harbour City Bears social drinks. This full house sees a queue of hairy grizzlies streaming down Flinders Street waiting to man-mingle in the den.
"The HBC approached us with the idea, and the night has been incredibly successful for over a year now," says Milne. "There is a great sense of loyalty between us as a venue and the Bears, so it's here to stay."
By welcoming promoters' ideas for new nights, Milne has devised a rotating roster of success for the Flinders Saturday nights. Through its buffet selection of rotating Saturday gigs, the Flinders has re-invented itself as a destination for diversity. Between its gay-gal club night, ‘Luscious', its lesbian hip-hop gig ‘Bada Bing' and its les-centric alternative night ‘Rock Out', the Flinders pulls in a healthy crowd of the city's hippest grrrls. "Being a closeted lesbian myself, I'm all for promoting great nights for the ladies," laughs Milne.
When it comes to the ingredients for success, Milne doesn't claim to have all the answers but does believe in never limiting a venue's potential by refusing to experiment. "You can spend a fortune on advertising, but it doesn't mean you are going to get anyone through the door," he says.
"We are a gay, straight-friendly pub if you like, and we don't close ourselves off to anything."
It seems as though his strong ethos and appetite for diversity will see Chris Milne last another 20 years in one of Sydney's toughest games.
The Flinders Hotel sits rather historically at 63 Flinders St, Darlinghurst NSW 2010.