People have been sharing their memories of small town nightclubs that were ‘simultaneously glorious and awful’ – 23 trips down memory lane

13.

‘Smokey Joe’s, Maidenhead. It was down a back alley, above a shop. It had been going strong from the 70’s until COVID killed it. It was regularly packed out until then.

‘It had a stripper pole beside the dance floor that you could watch an endless stream of guys get thrown off. With your entry ticket you got chicken and chips in a basket you could claim at the bar. It had a ‘roadhouse’ theme which originally included lots of racist decor imported from the US. Confederate flags etc, until they removed all that in the 2000’s after people started pointing it out on social media. I could go on and on…’
–UKRico

14.

‘Guildford had Bojangles, which was more commonly know as ‘Joe Mangle’s’ because Neighbours was huge at the time. The Thursday night punk /metal night was awesome, but the rest sucked.’
–CriticismTop

15.

‘The Coliseum in Coventry, Student Union reps used to try and catch as many freshers as they could, as early as they could to tell them not to go there. It was next to some very rough high rise flats but marketed to students, so the locals saw them as easy prey.

‘Also Mr G’s, a nightclub in the upstairs level of a shopping precinct, if you thought of the worst person you knew, that place was almost always their favourite night out.’
–D-Angle

16.

‘Swindon had ‘Destiny and Desire’ that became known as ‘Desperate and Divorced’.’
–vinny876

17.

‘Amadeus in Northallerton. The most glorious hell hole in North Yorkshire.’
–Nope_Ninja-451

18.

‘I grew up in Plymouth, we had a whole street of nightclubs, in a similar way to ‘the strip’ of such venues you get in places like Magaluf. Union Street had a bit of a reputation but many a good night was had there in the 90s. Some clubs fancier than others, but all with the sticky carpets, stench of cigarette smoke, too much drinking and the occasional fight.

‘Union Street is a mere shadow of its former self these days, is quite sad to drive down it now. It always looked a bit gritty in the day time, but where once there were 15-20 clubs and ‘fun pubs’ within about a half mile section of the road, most of them seem to be permanently closed now and the area looks more derelict than ‘best seen at night’.

‘So if a place like that can’t make it in modern times, there’s not much hope for the tiny clubs in random small town UK. Certainly the only one in the town I now live it is no longer there.’
–Unhappy_Clue701

19.

‘Not a small town but the Leeds equivalent back in the 90s was Planet Earth. Locally known as planet dirt. Used to do all you can drink Carlsberg and Hooch, finish your bottle and swap it at the bar for a fresh one. Think it was £6 on Wednesdays and £9 Fridays. Always entertaining.

‘Best part of the club was the rotating dance floor. Great for those on the pull, constantly getting a new person in front of them. You had about 10 seconds to impress them and hope they would come back around again. The floor used to “break down” throughout the night. The DJ of course asked all those on the outside to push it to get it going again.

‘Fun times as a late teenager.’
–TheShakyHandsMan

20.

‘Chez Moi in Tunbridge Wells with its fake silver bamboo walls! Right lads, we’re going “up the Mooey”.’
–theMooey23

21.

‘Celebrities, it had carpet on the walls as well as the floors. The stools were covered in the same fabric. No celebrity has ever been in there.’
–Gisschace

22.

‘”The Fanny”, full name Fantasia Video Disco. The beer was obviously watered down but no-one seemed to care. Barry.’
–CrimsonCrinkle

23.

‘The Agincourt, been around so long my grandmother went there and several generations since.’
–apple_kicks

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