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Cilla Slack
Name and position
John Newton (aka Miss Cilla Slack),
Manager / Co - Owner of Planet Bar
How did you get involved in Planet?
I was DJing as Miss Cilla Slack @ GHQ
and hadn’t been working in management
in a bar for a while and decided I needed
a new challenge - Planet seemed to be
the perfect project to undertake and
bring it back to its former glory as
Edinburgh’s No.1 Gay Bar. Although it
was the main bar years ago, it needed
new direction as it was using the old
motto and branding from when the bar
originally became gay nearly twenty
years ago when it was re-named from
the Stage Door to Route 66.
What makes Planet different from the
other gay bars in Edinburgh?
On my appointment to Planet I first
needed to reward the girls for their
support to the venue for all the years
and establish a nice balance of Male and
Female customer so we could form a
proper LGBT Community Bar and make
sure we weren’t labelled as a solely
Lesbian or solely a Gay Men’s bar. We
have strived to ensure the staff we
employ are people focused and are
friendly, helpful and have an outgoing
personality. We put service and
standards first and make sure
customers feel welcome and special. We
are unique with our pricing as we have
value drinks using branded spirits so
that we promote responsible drinking
and this shows with the low level of
problems or trouble in the bar: we’ve
not even had a police call this year!
Do you have a favourite
customer/customers?
Well, to be honest, all customers are
equally important and valued but I do
love a character - someone that brings
laughter and fun to the bar and can rub
off on everyone else, creating my
famous dayshift banters which can be
such a great laugh. We have a great
number of people who come in regularly
and some daily, they become part of our
family and we are part of their’s too. For
instance, Gary is in after work each
night meeting his friends and what a
laugh we all get and share our stories
and tales of what’s been happening like
you do when you go home after work
and tell your own family. I love the old
values of a bar with the chat and the
banter and everyone supporting each
other. Gary’s earned his own name plate
at the bar hatch - he’s earned that being
a friend to the bar and all its staff away
back to Route 66 days and Louise from
the Street’s time here at Planet. Let’s
face it Arthur Fowler had to put up with
Pauline for years to get his own bench
on Albert Square on Eastenders! lol
Can you believe it’s two years already?
I’m amazed that its only two years as I
feel I’ve never worked anywhere else.
But it’s great for me to have got the
place on the journey and to the stage we
are at now without cutting corners and
getting everything right from the start
without trying to do too much at once. I
reckon we are on course although
there’s still loads to do. Where have the
past two years gone??
Tell us about the 2nd birthday
celebration!
We planned a formal dress event along
with a fundraiser for the LGBT Youth so
another organisation could benefit from
us have a busy night and people
celebrating the success of the bar and
being generous to a charity within our
community. We had an absolute ball and
I stood back from the event half way
through the night to see how I thought it
was all going and was overwhelmed and
overjoyed at the atmosphere and
everyone enjoying themselves as much
as they were. The Team behind me
excelled to new levels - all made such an
effort to dress up and ensure all the
customers and LGBT volunteers and
staff were looked after - going that extra
mile for them on every occasion
possible. Ped and Leaha looked great
and were perfect door hosts, myself and
Jude floated and oversaw the operation
working or helping wherever required,
Deejay bird played a great opening set
with Nadine overwhelming everyone
with her talent and Boytoy was a
massive hit with his Cheesy Party Set
and was flawless. DJ Fredstar was also
the perfect host introducing all the acts,
hosting the raffle and auction to rip the
wax strips from Jamie Gray even one
from his Crack!!!! £50 from that strip
thanks grant (laughs)… but special
thanks to our friends who came along.
What are your future plans for Planet?
We are already working on a hot snacks
and a hot drinks menu and have new
monthly events ready just to introduce
into our weekly plans. New seating also
is planned with a newly fitted bar to
modernise our service and drinks
preparation area.
Name check your staff
Well, my No.2 is my good friend Jude.
We met working in GHQ and she was
my No.2 in there so we have now regrouped
here and may I say we have a
great time we have but work very well
and hard together planning and
operating Planet. I’m probably more
famously seen with my wee sidekick
Jamie Gray - we met also starting GHQ
together when Cilla first did her
moonlight flit from CC’s to there - lol -
we have a great chemistry and the same
sense of humour - he is like my older
brother- haha! I’ve got a gay lifelong
friend, Jordan, here as supervisor who
absolutely loves the buzz of being here
part time and again we have a great
friendship and this evolves into the staff
and creates a family like atmosphere.
There’s Mum and Dad (me and Jude - or
is it Cilla and Jude?). Then Jamie and
Jordan are the big brothers - all the rest
we cherish and look after so we are like
a massive extended family… and then
there is another good friend of mine
Liam who just works his way round the
customers every night after work!
Planet works with LGBT Youth.
I plan events for the year and try to
support all LGBT community charities.
LGBT youth and transgender
organisations often get forgotten and, as
I started working with Jodie Fleming
away back in the day at CC Blooms
when I organised events in my time
there with Dianne and Brian, I admire
Jodie’s passion and hard work in her
role at LGBT Youth and I love to support
her and the team as much as I can.
And finally, what’s your favourite drink
served at the bar?
I research and try and find new drinks
and brands to keep us an exciting place
to drink and my best find so far is the
Agwa Coco Leaf Liqueur which we sell
in a bomb or on its own - it tastes nice
and is very popular. Personally I love
our Draught Smirnoff Mojito with
crushed ice and fresh mint - aww it is