Theatres

[Timefortea4]

The toilet situation is really putting me off going to the theatre. County Hall, for example, have 3 options. One women's toilet, massive queue. One "gender neutral toilet" which has 2 cubicles with sinks outside, so not safe to use, and one women's toilet at the end of a very long corridor behind 2 sets of fire doors. If a man followed you in and attacked no one would hear. I complained about the gender neutral toilets and they said no one had ever commented on them.

I have stopped going to the old Vic and the Barbican for this reason.

It is a myth that mixed sex toilets will cut queues

absolutely, anyone who thinks it will cut queues is a a complete idiot

it might make the queues ‘fairer’ as men will be in just as long a queue as women but its not going to make it shorter ESPECIALLY if they are repurposed toilets

Go for a pee beforehand?!

ODFOD

Are you currently in a queue for the ladies?! 😂

I saw two men's toilets.

Ona couple of occasions I’ve held my breath and darted in to to the men’s toilets when there’s been a huge queue at the theatre. I’ve been in and out in the time that it’s taken the women’s toilets queue not to have moved an inch!

The problem is when people have ibs or a heavy period (women) and (for men) prostrate trouble. Then theatres become inaccessible.

They should get a radar key then and use the disabled

I see the Barbican is getting mentioned but I thought they'd switched back to women's and men's after everybody complained about gender neutral? I haven't been since before Christmas but was just looking at tickets. I won't go if they've switched again as I had a horrible experience there of walking into a toilet and it being all men in there except me. Genuinely frightening :(

Why are so many of the replies here reacting to the existence of a gender neutral toilet? There's 2 women's toilets and a gender neutral toilet as well. I would understand if the issue being presented here was excessive queues, but what has "men being allowed in" got to do with anything? There were women's toilets, men's toilets and gender neutral.

Very unusual at the interval not for there to have been many many more women in the toilet than men!

It was the small one by the, is it called The Pit? So four men and me in a very small space.

Ok now that just shows you haven’t got any of these conditions (flooding periods we are talking about).
And the above people I listed are not disabled.

I have never known a disabled loo to have a radar key. Which is lucky as the disabled person I know has to get to the loos quickly too and takes a long time once she is in there. Her life is restricted by her disability and I think disabled loos are absolutely for people who are disabled.

However, there are disabled people for whom it is much safer for them to be in a visible toilet (with a door gap) which means single sexed toilets are best. People at risk of collapsing and seizures (hundreds of thousands have uncontrolled epilepsy) also should have their safety considered.

And for women/men for religious reasons or if they nervous/uncomfortable of being in the same toilets with unfamiliar people of the opposite sex.

It’s not just holding on and having a quick wee in the nearest loo.

Those theatres, described above, are making theatre going much less accessible for those with health conditions, disabilities, women and those with religious differences to you.

I forgot to say - lucky you. In my twenties I would have been the same.

Ha!

bladder prolapse
not registered disabled
bought a radar key but not had any reason to use yet (mainly because I go to the loo about 1000 times a day!)

I’m early forties

even took my 9 year old DD in with me last year.

Tumbleweed in the men’s!

When did you see this happen? I’d hardly ever seen a man in a women’s loo before a couple of years ago. It wasn’t just an expectation. If a man approached the wrong door he would be warned off. If he entered, women would order him to leave or get the management, who would throw him out.

You’re not comparing like with like. A man intent on harming a woman will find a place to attack one, knowing he faces the risk of arrest and imprisonment. Men entering women’s spaces now feel perfectly safe and are backed by cowardly authorities.

My Dh would have been uncomfortable being at a urinal with a women and her 9 year old daughter coming in.

when did i see what happen?

I’ve never seen anything “happen” in a theatre toilet

Anyone think there's any mileage in a protest where we go in and wee in the urinals? Too much fanny flashing?

Old Vic also has done this.

They claim the toilets are self selecting.

42 loos in total
18 urinals and 1 cubicle through 1 door
24 cubicle toilets through another door
So men have a choice of 42 loos and women have 25, presuming the women want to queue along side the urinals for the one cubicle in that room.

Absolutely ridiculous to claim they are self-selecting loos, do they not realise that women cannot pee in a urinal?

I honestly think women should all queue up along the urinals towards the 1 cubicle just to prove the point.

Not sure I could get my butt high enough 🤔 it would have to be one of those trough like urinals

dd has gone for a wee in a urinal, it was on her bucket list 😀

My issue is when single sex toilets are given a "gender neutral" sign. Proper gender neutral toilets are self contained with sinks inside. These were not.