 According to Alastair Forbes and Felix Hope @-@ Nicholson , during World War II , the basement bar at the Ritz was reserved for gay and lesbian guests , while the one upstairs was for heterosexual guests . Hope Nicholson described it as " notoriously queer " , and stated that " the Ritz bar became too chic , too popular and above all , too queer for the authorities " . Evan Morgan , 2nd Viscount Tredegar , MP Harold Nicolson , Brian Howard , and Pauline Tennant were all regulars at the basement bar . 
