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Download Plymouth's Rainbow Connections Trails app and explore historic city

Jan 26, 2021

Rainbow Connections is a trail which launched on the Plymouth Trails app on 3 February 2021 during the Mayflower commemorative year.

The three-mile route runs from Stonehouse to the Barbican – including passing by the Mayflower Steps with mentions of the passengers - stopping at 17 sites with a connection to LGBTQ+ people, events and stories.

Find out about the now-lost underground gay clubs of Union Street, Mark Weston who transitioned in 1936, and the link between Gus Honeybun and Plymouth's gay community.

The trail celebrates Plymouths LGBTQ+ heritage but also remembers the darker moments, including the brutal murder of Terry Sweet in 1995.

The trail was developed with Pride in Plymouth for Rainbow Connections, a National Lottery Heritage-funded project which sees them work with multiple partners across the city.

It built on the work of the existing Plymouth LGBT Archive in collecting and exploring the heritage of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. The project focuses on how this heritage is handed down to the younger generation.

The trail uses archival images along with audio of oral histories from members of Plymouth's LGBTQ+ community. Users can follow the route with a real-time map. The route is suitable for wheelchair users, with one small alternative route suggested near the end.

The Rainbow Connections trail is the seventh trail to be added to the app, alongside the Mayflower Trail, Waterfront Walkway and City Centre Trail.

You can download the Plymouth Trails app for free from the App Store or Google Play Store.

Find more information here.

Discover more about the Plymouth Trails app here.