... Kingdom CLOSER THAN BREATHING A Light Gay Odyssey One On Thursday night, as usual, I called in at the Give and Take, a West London gay bar a short walk from home Obvious shadows under my eyes, caused ... rather than to pick someone up – an activity the barman Miles calls ‘looking for take-away’ His nickname is Smiles, because he can flash one that would cheer up a funeral ‘You okay, Ben? What’s ... office and went to stand by the till, ready to make a sale A man about my age or a bit older, tall and fair, tidily dressed in good casual clothes, walked towards me and said, ‘Excuse me, are you...