South West's first drag queen café opens in Redruth, Cornwall

  • ITV News West Country has been along to the opening day of the cafe.

The first drag queen cafe in the region has welcomed its first customers in Cornwall.

Ginger's Diner in Redruth is thought to be the only drag cafe in England outside of the capital.

The business belongs to Ashley Sweet, aka drag queen Ginger, who has worked for many years as a wedding and events coordinator.

Ashley says the amount of support out there "has been insane" and hopes the venue will encourage more people to explore the rest of Redruth.

"With being a Redruth lad I want to bring some life to it."

"A lot of people have commented saying 'Oh I don't really go down that way but now I will' and that's amazing."

Customers say its important people from LGBTQIA+ communities have places they know they'll be welcomed Credit: ITV News

The 1950s inspired diner prides itself on being an inclusive space for everyone but in particular the LGBTQIA+ community.

Before the grand opening, Ashley says the response from the local Redruth community has been mostly positive."I think sometimes people are a bit scared by change. If this [Ginger] character wasn't here and I opened the cafe that called Mr. Sweets or something like that, there wouldn't be that kind of a question."

Matt and Phil were first in line for opening day and say they really wanted to support a business which would not have opened in Redruth in years gone by.

Matt say: "I grew up in this town and we've not had anything so wildly flamboyant."

Ashley's friends and family supported him as extra staff on his opening day.

Matt and Phil say they will be definitely coming back to support Ginger's Diner Credit: ITV News

Fellow drag queen Roxy Moron says it was "incredible" how busy they were this morning and she's so pleased and proud of her friend.

"We see so many shops closing and places not staying open I think it deserves to do really well."

Ashley's mother Mel Sweet helped her son with serving customers today, and she's incredibly proud of what he has achieved.

"I'm loving it for him. They're always pushing the boundaries a little bit and doing things that aren't perhaps what we would call traditional. But actually, for the younger generation coming out, I think it's so essential that someone's doing that because we're an ever changing times aren't we?"