It was almost impossible due to vibration from the soundsystem Later feeling sick in the stomach because of the same reason. A great club pre-2001. The MyLondon team tells London stories for Londoners. First there was Matter and then there was Proud2. Then of course there was The Fridge, Studio 33, and some fantastic railway arch clubs buried away around London (Imperial Rooms in Camberwell New Road a particular memory). Electrowerkz was the name!!! have always wondered where he is now and what hes up to. People from across the capital will flock to Herbal, an exposed brick warehouse which regularly hosted big name DJs. You'll get 12 stories straight to your inbox at around 12pm. Ironically, the development never happened and the club was eventually reopened as the Den and Centro. The huge venue, which filled six arches, brought a Balearic party vibe to a run-down corner of London, with club nights including Glitterati and Cheeky People. Keep us up to date with how your inspiration is getting on. 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. Remaining stock was given away free at the apocalyptically hedonistic farewell party so they do crop up online occasionally. These cookies do not store any personal information. The Fridge, Brixton1981-2010When it opened, the Fridge was the club of the New Romantics Boy George was a regular before becoming famous for its nights hosted by Soul II Soul. The Soul City nights in Covent Garden were also really good. The massive warehouse club in King's Cross was a close as you could get to a legal rave. An earlier version said incorrectly that the Turnmills site was developed into flats. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. 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! Bagleys started to go downhill for me after the drugs raid. I do remember my first time in Trade and deemed it like the descent into Soddom and Gomorrah .. and there were many happy times there after!! The triple-bowed frontage of the Ace Cinema viewed from the south-west. It was where world-famous artists like Adele and The XX cut their teeth, and was a gem of the North London nightlife scene. Turnmills chutney still so much messy fun. Hearing those tunes led to me pestering the record shops for a record I didn;t kow the name of, who it was by but it went something like this Mmmm, mmm,mm uh-uh dah-dah! Acts to have played The Scala include Foo Fighters, The Killers and Coldplay. Oasis performed their debut London show at The . MoS is an institution, still respected by much of the dance music cognoscenti but derided in many quarters for having long since become the Bluewater of nightclubs; mostly now populated by coach parties from Essex. Bagatelle Card Club - One of Colonel Sebastian Moran's clubs in the Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Empty House. Its flagship night was Trade the original afterparty. Before and during the Second World War, most lesbian bars and clubs were found in central London. 3. next. Thanks Liam. 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. No Bar Rumba though? The works. Last modified on Tue 2 Jun 2020 05.49BST, Photograph: Ray Stevenson/REX/Shutterstock, Photograph: Dick Barnatt/Redferns & Paul Talling, Photograph: Paul Talling & Ilpo Musto/REX/Shutterstock, Photograph: Ray Stevenson/REX/Shutterstock & Paul Talling, Photograph: REX/Shutterstock & Paul Talling, Photograph: Paul Talling & Marc Sharrat/REX Shutterstock, Composite: David Corio/Redferns & Paul Talling, Photograph: Paul Talling & David Corio/Redferns, Photograph: Brendan Beirne/Rex Shutterstock & Paul Talling, Photograph: Alan Davidson/REX/Shutterstock, Photograph: Paul Talling & Ray Stevenson/REX/Shutterstock, Photograph: Suzie Gibbons/Redferns & Paul Talling, Photograph: Ray Stevenson/REX/Shutterstock & Paul Talling, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every The licence was subsequently restored, but the business was unable to avoid going into administration. Gilles Petterson on Monday, Kenny Hawkes and Luke Solomon on Wednesday, Bryan Gee on Thursday, Garage City on Saturday. It was where world-famous artists like Adele and The XX cut their teeth, and was a gem of the North London nightlife scene. how about PLEASED on a wednesday at the Velvet underground !!! This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. 12. 2023 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. 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. Great article. Something went wrong, please try again later. 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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. What is the Cross Book? From sweaty rave spots to Soho institutions, these are the iconic nightlife haunts we most miss. But Crossrail was the final nail in the coffin for the much-loved Soho venue. I stood at one and there was one in between us, unmanned. Great memories though. 14. Lead singer of the pop group Visage Steve Strange (left) pictured with Boy George at London's Limelight. Sign up to our weekly email. 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. Even Prince Charles has been to the Limelight club - he was snapped getting out of the royal car as he arrived to attend a reception for the Prince's Trust at the venue in December 1997. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. Cue acid house, bucket hats, baggy T-shirts and lots of sweat. 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. #5 Where could you find warehouse raving complete with funfair rides right in the heart of the capital? 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. All rights reserved. It wasnt always such a corporate machine, however. Great article and very sad reading. The pictures are quite shocking, but their club history often deliciously more so. I discovered house music whilst on holiday in Ibiza in 1990 and after that London was the only place on my to move to list. Im rambling anyway. 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. It hosted huge weekend parties that were at hit with House music fans. So move I did, all the way from Helsinki. Were you a Crank? Here are some of the South London clubs and bars that are sadly no more. Sad to see the blandification of London continues. Great article. (1989) "Megamix". But things turned sour after after a double stabbing took place in the club, leading to its licence being revoked. No 6 - Bagleys - London Bagleys was one of London's largest venues throughout the Nineties. 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. I half remember a night at Bagleys sitting in an ice cream fridge next to the dancefloor. Clubs in Mayfair London are the most prestigious nightclubs in town. The venue hosted international DJs as well as some seminal club nights such as broken beat fix Co-op and dubstep-founding FWD>>. Clip ref DW0126681990s Ministry of Soun. Standouts would have to be Logical Progression and Gallery at Turnmills, Buzzin Fly, Ram and Underwater @ The End and Type and the mighty Peace Division @ The Cross happy, happy times. It was the venues teen parties that got it into hot water, however, when police found evidence of underage drinking there in 2009. No sensible drinking cautions, no smoking bans, and generally less moderation of everything. Never crossed my mind that even the buildings would be gone. 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. Love it, smiling from ear to ear thinking about some of them. Cans of beer 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. When Limelight fell out of favour as a celebrated nightspot it was sold and in 2003 became a Walkabout bar. Paul Tunkin, who ran the club night Blow Up, which took over the running of the venue in 2001, significantly raising its profile, said at the time: It is another nail in the coffin for central Londons live music and club scene.. All the London clubs now are appearing and disappearing like mushrooms. Hope youre healthy and happy I completely agree would be a fitting tribute to see them all immortalised appropriately in some way. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Zen's Dartford First Flicks in the 1980s and later Zen's, the nightclub on Essex Road was more recently known as Air & Breathe. Sign up to our newsletter and be the first to know about the latest fashion, travel, going out and lifestyle happenings, Subscribe to the Luxury London print edition, Celebrate the return of clubbing with a trip through the capitals infamous after dark drinking dens. 5. circa 1990. Renowned for their sexy vibes, pumping playlists and heaving dancefloors, we've been out to track down the very best places for music in London. Great article, and Ill second and third and fourth what has been said here. The place has many special memories for many people. Turning around and seeing floor fountains and Mail on Sunday readers sipping lattes and eating Danish pastries made my heart sink. 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. Seems quite a few people would like to get their hands on The Cross book dont suppose youve got a lockup full of a last, forgotten batch? In the 1980s some clubs opened up in Earls Court, where the rent was cheaper. Hey Janine, I remember you well! Fact is we WERE around when these incredible bastions of modern culture were in their pomp negotiating a route through the tunnel room at Turnmills, walking up that incredibly long slope towards the cab rank at 5am after The Cross and getting hopelessly lost in those pokey rooms at the bottom of Bagleys. Great article. I also have a book given out on The Ends 10th birthday which is a coffee table book but still good. Despite a big campaign to save it, the club fell victim to a compulsory purchase order from Hackney council to build a new cinema. A producers first booking at the club was a serious rite of passage. Enjoyed the trip into nostalgia very much.. 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. Mike Nolan from Bucks Fizz appeared at the club in 1997, and boy band D.V.S and singing star Caprice also made memorable appearances. Reading this article has caused me new inspiration watch out London. In its 80s heyday, Limelight was one of London's top nightclubs and a hangout for the decade's biggest celebrities. And while theres nothing worse than the club bore going on about how the music and the parties were so much better back in the day, we should give these classic institutions more reverence. So goooood memories!!!! We forgive all this because nightclubs in our fair city also provide some of the most euphorically happy moments of collective felicity and joy that well experience in the course of our lives. RIP Turnmills, Im glad I was there to experience it. Special times in special places all round though. Turnmills, Clerkenwell1990-2008Another one of Londons fossilised superclubs, Turnmills was the first venue in the UK to get a 24-hour dance licence. Thanks Julian. 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.