Memorable days and nights. A club with really innovative nights and for the hardcore Metalheadz on a Sunday night. The Cross, bouncers nicking you gear *unts. . You had, in all probability, just left Turnmills, the first club in the UK to receive a 24 hour license. Those Cranks days were the era that I fully embraced the concept of the 3-night sleepless weekender and other wonderous, if slightly unprofessional, ways to fill the hours between shifts. Best crowd ever! The Norman-style Welsh Chapel was built in 1888 by James Cubitt for inner London's Welsh community and was empty for 15 years before it found new life as nightclub Limelight. ; Beargarden Club - A St James's club in Trollope's Palliser novels; Bellona Club - Lord Peter Wimsey's club and location of a murder in Dorothy L. Sayers novel The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club Billiards Club - Setting for the improbably tall . In the early 2000s it incorporated the successful Pitt Street club Sublime in the late 1990s, run by Simon Page. Glad to have been part of that London dance scene. I was the promoter of Double Dipped at Bagleys on Friday nights around 91 93 Sadly, the chances of mere mortals gaining access to the club today are about as likely as Keith Moon making an appearance and he died in 1978. Pretty sure the very last ones got dished out at the end of that rather special final bash, Xmas 07. Turnmills building being totally destroyed is the ultimate, inexcusable vandalism though. Im rambling anyway. Sad to see the old clubs flattened, but everyone clearly took so much from their experiences there that I hope the post is also a real celebration. It hosted huge weekend parties that were at hit with House music fans. Peter Gatien is mentioned in the lyrics of three songs: 17. Great article. Its really sad that the times have achanged and in a reflection of this, all these fantastic places are being bulldozed. I walked into the toilet and my brother was stood at the urinal. The brand name is constantly evolving and the club continues to survive despite numerous threats of closure. Turning around and seeing floor fountains and Mail on Sunday readers sipping lattes and eating Danish pastries made my heart sink. 12. the cross in king cross the best partyever is vertigo italian style, thanks Joel glad you like Electric and the Van Dyk show smashed it. Sold out, obviously, although there might be a ticket on the door for 30. I (just about) have wonderful memories of all 5 of those venues. So many wonderful memories, so many great pills. It was one of the premiere south London nightspots of the time, with Glenn Miller, Audrey Hepburn and Charlie Chaplin among the top names to grace its stage. The regulars often spent hours preparing for the night, and the morning the night morphed into. Boy George was a regular at this New Romantics haunt which hosted some of the capital's biggest gay nights. I would also like to add The Blue Note to this list of sadly missed. 59 old bars and nightclubs we wish we could bring back for one last THANKS. The very social cafe upstairs, the dense dry-ice on the main floor with the mesmerising lasers, hottest guys, new bizarre sounds, the knowledge that the rest of England was sleeping and had no idea that such hedonism was taking place on a Sunday morning and night (you missed out Warriors) all fuelled after an initial polite and orderly wait in line to see Nick (is he out yet?) The venue stopped running the events to save its licence, but as a result lost a lot of money through cancelled bookings and by March 2010 was broke. Its really not surprising nobody has any sense of ownership or love for these places, because both promoters and punters are using them on such an ad hoc basis. Top 5 Lost London Nightclubs of the 90s - The pace of progress eh? Nice article Tom, brought back some memories. #5 Where could you find warehouse raving complete with funfair rides right in the heart of the capital? As of today, we can once again form outdoor queues seemingly without point or purpose, lose our cloakroom tickets and get furiously sweaty to throbbing, seductive and oft just downright filthy beats in darkened rooms until the earliest of hours. Sir Bob Geldof had his stag do at Limelight before he married Paula Yates in 1986. Well, sort of in fairness as all venues involved being pretty blitzed. The site on Curtain Road is now the uber-cheesy Sunset cocktail bar and offers VIP Packages underneath a branch of the burger chain Hache. These cookies do not store any personal information. The street was home to the 1980s Batcave nightclub where regulars such as Robert Smith, Marc Almond and Alice Coop. Now can you expand on one for the rest of London please, would love to see Club UK brought back to life if only in words! Vauxhall became the locus of gay clubs from 2000. Fantastic times. A bare room with the most rudimentary of bars at one end (cans of Red Stripe or nothing) in a Hoxton basement, the place came to prominence in the Nineties and Noughties as an incubator for dubstep and for possessing one of the greatest sound systems ever owned by a nightclub. When the lease ran out, Turnmills left amicably, leaving the buildings owners to develop the site into an office block. He looked down at me, then to my brother, we both leant forward in unison, looked at each other, as if to say Have you seen this, dude? and then back up at him. I was a fresh of the boat straight laced Kiwi lad who was let loose in London in the mid nineties , I was lucky to become a promoter of Fevah and Fahrenhite ,I was blessed with bring able to run events in most of the iconic venues , experience the glamour and the seedy side of all , to me the cream was either the sound shaft or the London Astoria , but have so many sensational memories and adventures from most . Remember one night trying to adjust the needles for them not to jump on the vinyls. Finally closing after 18 years in 2008, Trade never again found a permanent home as Turnmills itself was demolished; the site is now home to the most anonymous possible looking corner office block. Worse than that, advanced ticketing is now the only option promoters are now willing to risk, destroying that brilliant spontaneous thing of being in the pub and deciding who you wanted to see and where (knowing you had a good choice of reliable venues that you knew inside out.) From the Kinolibrary archive film collections. Weve picked our Top 5 such venues, all of which were in stumble-home-from distance for Kentishtowners (thats why theres no Club UK for example, if youre wondering). Its also a shame to lose 93 Feet East recently too. When Limelight fell out of favour as a celebrated nightspot it was sold and in 2003 became a Walkabout bar. Boy George worked the cloakrooms, Spandau Ballet played their early gigs here and you simply (for better or worse) would never have heard Ultravox or Visage were it not for the Blitz Club. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. Where to find the February issue of Kentishtowner, Where to find the January 2019 issue of Kentishtowner, Where to find the December issue of Kentishtowner, http://www.amazon.co.uk/CROSS-1993-2003-Jonathan-CUTTING/dp/B0010786KI, http://wharferj.wordpress.com/2011/09/29/stealth-the-blue-note/. Hi Martyn! Reading this article has caused me new inspiration watch out London. The Blitz Kids were the gang who unofficially ran the club, with members included Gary and Martin Kemp from Spandau, dance choreographer supremo-to-be Michael Clark and Siobhan Fahey (later of Bananarama). If the Mayor grants planning permission for a huge development of flats opposite Ministry of Sound, club bosses know their days at the Elephant & Castle bus depot cum internationally renowned temple of DJ culture will be numbered. Nobody came to Plastic People for the glamour or dcor. The energy and the hedonism of the club gave a new life to the scene and other clubs sprung up trying to emulate Trade, giving more choice to clubbers. Same here. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Hey Janine, I remember you well! Im amazed u didnt mention that John Newman was the father of both Danny and Paul Newman. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. 18. The clubs licence was suddenly revoked after a serious incident of disorder outside the venue, in which, according to the police report, bouncers used baseball bats to fight off a customer who had been throwing bottles at them. I took a diversion myself up York Way a while back and took similar snaps of Bagleys and The Cross. But the party was brought to an abrupt end after a stabbing there led it to lose its licence and subsequent closure. Limelight in London opened in 1985 in a Grade II listed former Welsh Presbyterian church in Shaftsbury Avenue in the West End borough of Westminster. In the middle years of the 60s this was the place to be seen. Because of the sleazy, druggy, mischievous late night vibe (exactly what makes such haunts so exciting), we tend to reduce their cultural significance. Killjoy councils, student debt and stolen phones: the slow death of British clubs, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. In the clubs of the 1980s and 1990s there was no such thing as excess The music was smooth and progressive, which moved into a feeling of just less than trance. 18 things that happened at former top West End nightclub - MyLondon Limelight in Atlanta was also a place to see and spot celebrities over the years. The End on a Friday and Turnmill on a Saturday were more my thing. Peter Gatien's daughter Jen Gatien made a documentary called Limelight in 2011, about New York City night life in the 1990s and the rise and fall of her father's club empire. When a property developer came along offering to buy the End and its sister bar next door, AKA, they decided to accept the offer. Zen's Dartford First Flicks in the 1980s and later Zen's, the nightclub on Essex Road was more recently known as Air & Breathe. Herbal, Shoreditch2000-2009It was small (and sweaty) but Herbal consistently pounded out some of the best drum and bass in the capital, filling out every Sunday for Grooveriders seminal night, Grace, as well as regularly hosting the likes of Goldie and the Metalheadz crew. Essex nightlife: The 13 iconic nightclubs and bars around - EssexLive Its a hardback coffee table monster, full of lovely photos and quotes. Located in the west lodge outside Euston Station, it ran from 1995 to 2008. This labryinth of a club was under the arches of London Bridge station and got packed out with sweaty 20-somethings without fail every weekend. Eighties London: where to party like it's 1980 | London Evening Must be sat looking pretty on a fair few coffee tables to this day, The cross & turnmills, nothing did or has come close. The gay scene in London has always been centred around the West End, especially Soho. At the fulcrum of the acid house scene, it became absurdly popular, partly thanks to its strawberry scented smoke machines and strobe lights. Turnmills was the first and best, never surpassed and so fondly remembered, well as much as my pitted brain will allow. 2. And there are also some intriguing facts about the nightclub's sister venues across the pond. Pubs and Clubs | Historic England Lashana Lynch: Its inspiring to see a young black woman on screen not be perfect, The biggest films coming out in 2023 and when theyll be released, Bulgari to open Serpenti exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery. Cue acid house, bucket hats, baggy T-shirts and lots of sweat. Special times in special places all round though. If you were staggering down the Clerkenwell Road on a Sunday afternoon at around 4pm in the early '90s then you can consider yourself a true nightclub pioneer. Madame JoJo's closure was a massive blow to Soho 's nightlife scene. I remember one of their selling points was drinks at pub prices. Good to see http://givingupdrugsforlent.tumblr.com/ in full swing again this year. Getting lost Then Dane Bowers went and ruined it all. Ask Billy if there are more? The Moonstone, St John's Precinct, 1974, from The Lost Pubs and Clubs of Liverpool City Centre DVD by John Harrison Barry Fairfield said: "Great memories, my favourite club was The Beachcomber." 53. An earlier version said incorrectly that the Turnmills site was developed into flats. A perfectly acceptable thing to do at the time. A great club pre-2001. Gaz ran a weekly night there from. Unfortunately, I cant say I experienced all of them. Would love to break that story! We do have to move on though and surely there are opportunities for a new generation of people who want to create new nightclub venues, with fresh ideas. But the magic was gone weve since seen the end for the Den, too. By the 1990s gay venues across the country started to transform. In the 1950s and 1960s, especially with the growing popularity of the Gateways nightclub in Chelsea, . surprised Heaven isnt in thereas well as SoundshaftGood article though! The basement of 69 Dean Street, Soho, housed Gossips (formerly Billy's) nightclub, which hosted various one-nighters, the best known being Gaz's Rockin' Blues. 2. Im surprised The Gardening Club wasnt there. Best London Club and Rave Venues that are now closed This week, Boris Johnson has been considering a decision that will affect the future of London's most famous nightclub. The sad fact of the matter is that there aren't the same options there used to be. 1. House night Freedom ran at the club for years and Philip Sallons Mud Club also took place there, as well as the Pussy Posse Party, which included mud-wrestling. George Michael often arrived at the nightclub accompanied by a woman before he came out as gay. After all, it did have a capacity pushing 4,000 people and a 24-hour drinking licence. Its industrial settings and position in the centre of London made it a unique offering. Ch N. Katz In Brick Lane was a small string and paper bag supplier until the late 1990's. Rising rents forced out the Owner after 57 years. It is quite sad seeing a place that holds so many memories for whatever reasons e.g. Wow. Mass and Babalou, Brixton1996-2012Bearing in mind this pair of venues were hosted within Brixtons St Matthews Church, which leased the space to them, it was always pretty cheeky for Mass to host Torture Garden events in the crypt. The West End night spot was based in a former chapel on Shaftsbury Avenue until its popularity declined and sadly, it was sold on and converted into a bar. Kids going out today wont realise its a tragedy, but it is. Slightly off topic but I fear for the Camden Brewery bars license once the new posh flats open at Talacre. 6. Ive loved reading ur write up about the old clubs and the memories came flooding back with the pics!! magazine. Hes right. A most excellent post Tom.. I think the concern is that given the way that redevelopment is happening across town, one day soon there wont be any suitable spaces where clubs can settle. It didnt last long though. Written by. Fictional clubs. I stood at one and there was one in between us, unmanned. I used to go to Whoop it Up every Friday during 1998-2002; it was a fantastic place to go. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. I remember them all so well!! Went to all of them, I think Turnmills shades it for me for atmosphere, but I probably had my best nights out at the End. Rather than join the party, Hackney council revoked the clubs licence following an undercover operation into drug dealing at the venue. Bob Geldof had his stag do at Limelight before he married Paula Yates, George Michael (pictured here in 1992) was often seen at Limelight with a woman on his arm, Inside the former Welsh chapel which was once home to the Limelight nightclub. Ah. It hosted huge weekend parties that were at hit with House music fans. 15. It was the image I had in my head before we got there of what Heaven might be like and then this guy walked in. Before the Millenium Dome became the O2 Arena we know today it was home to a couple of nightclub's. Its hours ran from 3am to 1pm on a Sunday afternoon, handily catering to the predominantly gay crowd who wanted to carry on partying after clubs like G-A-Y and Heaven closed. Its a shame that the ones boarded up or abandoned arent brought back to life. (1989) " London Nights " is British Europop duo London Boys ' biggest hit single, released in 1989 from their debut album, The Twelve Commandments of Dance. It closed after an issue with underage drinking was reported in 2009, before re-opening as Electric Brixton. Have some great memories from that place when the people from Hooj used to celebrate their parties there. So while we salute the nightspots that have weathered the Covid storm, lets now recall the clubs that have fallen, not just during the pandemic but way, way before that, all of whom, in their day, contributed to the aching limbs, sore feet and empty wallets of hedonistic Londoners of yore. Eight Liverpool nightclubs from the 90s everyone still remembers musical boundaries being broken, relationships being formed, inspiration etc, is then taken and truned into something else. Want the best food, film, music, arts and culture news in London sent straight to your inbox? Speaking to the Guardian after its closure, Marcus Harris, who co-ran the venues long-running indie night White Heat, described it as a community of fringe culture. R&B Clubs And Events In London. First there was Matter and then there was Proud2. 14. Depressing isnt it? Great article. I half remember a night at Bagleys sitting in an ice cream fridge next to the dancefloor. Me and my brother went there, 2 days before we flew out to Zante in 1994. The pictures are quite shocking, but their club history often deliciously more so. Memories of its glamorous showbiz past as one of the places to be seen in London in the 1980s echo around through the wall of this beautiful piece of architecture. Fantastic to look through it every so often and remember what wasa very much loved and much missed club . Great article, had some great and messy nights at most of them. However, its worth taking a moment to remember that nightclubs, by their very essence, shouldnt outstay their welcome. Demonstrators protest against the closure of Madame JoJos, in 2014. mixed the burlesque glamour of Soho with Londons contemporary music scene, Speaking to the Guardian after its closure, Marcus Harris, Hackney council revoked the clubs licence, the capitals biggest modern developments, stand in the way of the Crossrail development, taking the scalp of the Metro with the same swoop of the sword that ended the Astoria. The Astoria, Soho1976-2009Not even Londons largest live music club could stand in the way of the Crossrail development. Those that were there will never forget and those that werent would wish they were if they knew. The first Limelight club opened in Hallendale, Florida in the 1970s and after a devastating fire later that decade, Gatien opened his next Limelight venue in Atlanta. When I was at DJ Magazine, Paul Oakenfold once said to me that important former nightclubs should, at very least, have a blue plaque on the wall. Find out what is now open where you live by putting your postcode into our handy widget below. Clubbing at 1990s Ministry of Sound Nightclub, London Before and during the Second World War, most lesbian bars and clubs were found in central London. Last minute gifts? After searching for ages Ive just stumbled across an archaic website that still has photos and even videos of all three Kings Cross clubs Canvas, The Cross and The Key. Whats in the new July issue of Kentishtowner? It was around 2000 and I remember those times as probably the best of my life. MyLondon's brilliant newsletter The 12 is absolutely jam packed with all the latest to keep you keep you entertained, informed and uplifted. But before it was shut down to make way for King's Cross redevelopment, The Cross Club's six arches would fill with partygoers every weekend. The article was well written and for a change the comments are a nice read as well. Copyright 2023 London Belongs To Me Ltd|All Rights Reserved|More info: With your agreement, we and our partners (click on 'Find Out More' below for a list) use cookies or similar technologies to store, access, and process personal data like your visit on this website, IP addresses and cookie identifiers. Ironically, the development never happened and the club was eventually reopened as the Den and Centro. "Harlem Desire '89". It drew in big name DJs and its club night FWD>> was a rite of passage for many Londoners going out in the early 2000s. Wonderful write up of some of the clubs that paved the way for the scene today. A single noise complaint from posh new residents would threaten their licence and spell the end of one of the last remaining superclubs from the 1990s dance music explosion. He was about 50 years old and massive. Bring your dancing shoes and prepare for a night packed with tunes from the likes of Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Drake, Beyonce and Jay-Z as we introduce the best R&B events . Open till 5am and with no alcohol license, this, more than any other London club, marked the end of the sticky carpets and flock wallpaper design of clubs in the capital and triggered the beginning of nightspots being seen as somewhere to dance rather than a place to get hammered and attempt to grope members of the opposite sex. Peter Gatien produced the 1993 film A Bronx Tale after having produced it as a one-man play. 10. The massive venue had a 24 hour drinking licence and a 4,0000 people capacity. London's lost nightclubs in pictures - Time Out London Oasis performed their debut London show at The . How weve missed it all: the overly zealous bouncers in high vis jackets by the entrance, the larcenously overpriced plastic bottles of water, the sweaty bloke in the gents toilets who rents the watered down cologne and Chupa Chups lollies concession and the DJ whose pretence of being a serious artist is such that he spends his six hour set peering down at his decks in the manner of an A Level geography student cramming for the final exam. Having recently celebrated its 50th birthday, Tramp has changed remarkably little in the half century since the small door on Jermyn Street in Mayfair opened its doors. We could party on until 1pm without worrying if the police were going to turn up, says Smokin Jo, who was resident DJ at the night. The single was written and produced by Ralf Ren Mau, and its cover artwork features . Great article. Its a members only club but the present owners are open to granting membership to those who arent necessarily currently gracing the cover of Hello! Lead singer of the pop group Visage Steve Strange (left) pictured with Boy George at London's Limelight. Velvet Rooms on Mondays was one of the only places to continue getting even more spangled Wicked. Top 5 Lost London Nightclubs of the 90s - 88to98 Perhaps its biggest night was FWD>>, which moved there after Velvet Rooms closed, and the club played a significant role for the the whole dubstep scene. Sat 30 May 2020 17.00BST . The place was a really important hub for the fledgling dubstep family, says 6Music DJ Mary Anne Hobbs, who went to FWD>> religiously in the mid-2000s. Luxury London is not responsible for the content of external sites. However, a thumping set and fab laser show by the master PVD at the re-invented Fridge aka Electric Brixton a while ago demonstrated, with the right amount of desire, opportunity and application it can still be done. This week, Boris Johnson has been considering a decision that will affect the future of Londons most famous nightclub. So goooood memories!!!! From sweaty rave spots to Soho institutions, these are the iconic nightlife haunts we most miss. At Camden a Palace, I met my best friend, who is now the godmother of my 7 year old son. 6 great lost British nightclubs - mirror With a capacity of barely 200, the vibe, somehow, always kept its intimate, non-exclusive air. The place declined to the point that, by the 1980s, it was a strip club but was bought out and re-styled as a members only A-list speakeasy in 2012, now attracting Noel Gallagher, Mark Ronson, Harry Styles et al.