Going on a night out in the ‘90s – 15 nostalgia hits to go with the body glitter

Amanda Wilkie. Updated July 4th, 2025

For those of us of an age who can still remember all the words to ‘What’s Up?’ by 4 Non Blondes, but can’t remember what we walked into a room for, then the ‘90s were very possibly a time spent doing a lot of drinking, clubbing and partying.

Nights out in the ‘90s were quite a bit different though to nights out these days. Here’s 15 things that you very probably experienced back then (that probably wouldn’t happen on a night out now).

1.
Alcopops were the drink of choice for many.

2.
Photos would usually only be taken if it was a special occasion, like someone’s birthday, and only if someone remembered to bring a disposable camera.

3.
One of your mates would need change so they could buy 16 Rothmans from the cigarette machine in the pub or club.

4.
Most of the girls would be covered in body glitter.

5.
Thursday and Sunday nights usually had special offers on alcoholic drinks. A coke would cost you £1 but half a pint of lager was only 50p.

6.
You’d end up in a nightclub called something like The Ritzy or Déjà vu.

7.
The club would smell of Joop!, alcopops, CK One, cigarette smoke, Fahrenheit, hair products, and Eternity.

8.
The drunker you got, the more song requests you’d write down and give to the DJ.

9.
A Foam Party was the epitome of a top night, even though your hair would get ruined, you’d lose a shoe, and there was a high chance of sustaining an injury.

10.
Your local nightclub would send you a voucher in the post on your birthday for a free bottle of ‘champagne’. It tasted disgusting but it was alcoholic so you’d obviously still drink it.

11.
Songs with actions were popular, like Saturday Night and The Macarena, and when the party tunes were underway, you’d think nothing of sitting on a floor covered in broken glass, cigarette butts, and sticky lager just so you could do Oops Upside Your Head.

12.
If you pulled someone and wanted to exchange phone numbers you’d have to do a convoluted routine to find a pen and something to write on in order to complete the task.

13.
If you lost your mates then you’d just have to hope they’d be in the kebab shop, as you generally had no other way of finding them.

14.
You’d inevitably come with a cigarette burn in your clothes or on your skin from someone who was smoking whilst exuberantly dancing. You’d also reek of cigarette smoke.

15.
You’d typically use cash rather than a card to pay for drinks. Then wake up in the morning with loads of change as you’d used a note to pay each time rather than trying to count out coins whilst hammered.

Image Screengrab

Going on a night out in the ‘90s – 15 nostalgia hits to go with the body glitter

1. Alcopops were the drink of choice for many.

2. Photos would usually only be taken if it was a special occasion, like someone’s birthday, and only if someone remembered to bring a disposable camera.

3. One of your mates would need change so they could buy 16 Rothmans from the cigarette machine in the pub or club.

4. Most of the girls would be covered in body glitter.

5. Thursday and Sunday nights usually had special offers on alcoholic drinks. A coke would cost you £1 but half a pint of lager was only 50p.

6. You’d end up in a nightclub called something like The Ritzy or Déjà vu.

7. The club would smell of Joop!, alcopops, CK One, cigarette smoke, Fahrenheit, hair products, and Eternity.

8. The drunker you got, the more song requests you’d write down and give to the DJ.

9. A Foam Party was the epitome of a top night, even though your hair would get ruined, you’d lose a shoe, and there was a high chance of sustaining an injury.

10. Your local nightclub would send you a voucher in the post on your birthday for a free bottle of ‘champagne’. It tasted disgusting but it was alcoholic so you’d obviously still drink it.

11. Songs with actions were popular, like Saturday Night and The Macarena, and when the party tunes were underway, you’d think nothing of sitting on a floor covered in broken glass, cigarette butts, and sticky lager just so you could do Oops Upside Your Head.

12. If you pulled someone and wanted to exchange phone numbers you’d have to do a convoluted routine to find a pen and something to write on in order to complete the task.

13. If you lost your mates then you’d just have to hope they’d be in the kebab shop, as you generally had no other way of finding them.

14. You’d inevitably come with a cigarette burn in your clothes or on your skin from someone who was smoking whilst exuberantly dancing. You’d also reek of cigarette smoke.

15. You’d typically use cash rather than a card to pay for drinks. Then wake up in the morning with loads of change as you’d used a note to pay each time rather than trying to count out coins whilst hammered.