Once home to a number of iconic Liverpool nightclubs, Wolstenholme Square has seen a lot of change over the last few decades.
At the heart of the city's nightlife many through the generations will remember heading to the square to visit institutions like Snobs, Nation, Kazimier Club and more for a night out. But, in more recent years, we said goodbye to the area as we knew it.
Today, Wolstenholme Square is home to more than 400 residential apartments and a number of commercial units. After closing in early 2016, both The Kazimier and Nation, the original home of Cream, were levelled to make way for the blocks developed by the Elliot Group.
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Here, we take a look back at a number of loved and lost nightclubs from Wolstenholme Square. From Tuxedo Junction and The Conti in the 80s to 90s nights at Cream/Nation and the Pleasure Rooms in the 00s, they attracted thousands of clubbers to Wolstenholme Square.
This list isn't intended to be comprehensive. But, if you have any memories of Wolstenholme Square, let us know in the comments section below.
The Continental
Known as "the Conti" for short, nightclub Continental first opened its doors in 1982. It soon became a popular place for soul and RnB fans who would spend hours on the mirror-panelled dance floor, attracted clubbers across the city.
The venue which was next door to the renowned Tuxedo Junction, even offered guests their own private car parking service. Tuesday nights were the best nights at the Conti, but the site later became the Kazimier club.
The Kazimier club
The Kazimier opened in 2008 and went on to host some of the world’s biggest and most respected live bands. It closed its doors in 2016 after seven years in business as the square underwent a £40m redevelopment with new residential, commercial, leisure and retail buildings.
Many of us thought that would be the last we’d see of the place, but The Kazimier Gardens stayed. Tucked away off Seel Street, the outside bar venue frequently has live bands and club nights too.
Pleasure Rooms
The Pleasure Rooms first opened more than two decades ago and was renowned for its dance music and live MCs performing over Scouse House. Spread out over three floors and open four days a week. music at the club proved so popular that CDs were regularly given out at events, such as Scouse Nation at the Olympia, and sold in local record shops.
Other big names to perform the Pleasure Rooms included DJs Rob Cain, Lee M, Ian Redman and Chris Henry (of Ultrabeat), Ste Cocky, DJ Carlos, legendary Australian Alex K, and, of course, MCs JMFC and MC B. The club had its final night back in 2016 and was demolished to make way for a luxury apartment complex, but a reunion event is set to take place on New Years Eve.
Tuxedo Junction/The Pavilion
It's been decades since clubbers headed to Wolstenholme Square for a night at Tuxedo Junction. Located next door to the Continental club, it was open in the 70s and 80s.
By 1984, the ECHO reported how the former night spot was reopening under a new name. In April that year, it was announced that Merseyside club entrepreneur Norman Baker would be opening the business as The Pavilion.
Russell's
The Nation nightclub site had many lives before it became the home of Cream. Back in 1969, Norman Baker opened Russell's, which quickly became known as one of the North West’s premium cabaret clubs.
In its ten year reign, famous faces were known to regularly frequent the club, from Bruce Forsyth and Lulu to Bob Monkhouse, Tony Christie and more. But rising overheads and spiralling artists’ fees led to its closure in 1979.
Snobs/Snobs 2
Later on in 1979, Norman reopened the club, alongside his wife Maureen, after an extensive refurbishment and it was renamed Snobs. In its time, it was one of the areas "in places" for clubbers, breaking new ground in providing one of the best and brightest discotheques in the city at the time.
Many will remember dressing up and heading there for a night out on the town, being a member or the stand-out staff uniforms, with the likes of barmaids wearing leotards with bow ties. By the summer of 1986, the city centre club reopened after a £500,000 facelift, now known as Snobs Take 2.
Harvey's
In June 1989, an £150,000 refurbishment saw the former Snobs’ Club in Wolstenholme Square become Harvey's. Harvey's was the first venue in Liverpool to be equipped with a CD digital musical mixer and also boasted a multi-screen video, which showed pop up videos and classic comedies.
The ECHO at the time reported how new seating and house lighting, as well as marble tables especially made for Harvey's, now decorated the site. The upstairs cocktails bar also got a new look, giving customers a birds eye view of the dancefloor.
Cream/Nation
But by the 90s, the site had transformed again. It was the Academy Annexe before becoming known as Nation. At the cutting edge of dance and electronic music in the 1990s and through to the early 2000s, superstar DJs travelled from around the world to get to play sold-out sets at the Cream club night in Nation .
The weekly house music night first launched in October 1992 and later went on to be known for offshoot events and festivals around the world. Sadly, the iconic Nation club closed its doors in 2007, and the venue was demolished in 2016 as part of the regeneration of Wolstenholme Square.
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