Nostalgia, and heaps of great memories for me. We worked and lived in Wellington until 1992 when we moved to the Wairarapa Region and celebratedour 54th wedding anniversary this year! Patrons of different classes were often segregated by temporal and spatial means. then Mapperley Hall Drive, finally Tudor Court, Watson Avenue, where she died, a lovely lady we got on so very well as I did with Freddie, she was close friends of Dorothy Hinton who resided adj, also in the music trade, ran the Eight Bells. Palais De Danse , Lower Parliament Street , Nottingham 1969. 69 Architect and Building News, 19 July 1961, pp. 45 Dancing Times (September 1929), p. 551. It was originally designed as a dance hall The History of the British Holiday Camp, A Broken Wave: The Rebuilding of England 19401980, Coventry: The Making of a Modern City 193973, Workers at Play: A Social and Economic History of Leisure 19181939, The Measurement of Consumers Expenditure and Behaviour in the United Kingdom, 19201938: Volume II, into another kind of life in which anything might happen Popular Music and Late Modernity, 19101930, CLH says The Collected Observations, Instructions and Philosophies of C.L. In a music career spanning more than 54 years, Adrian has worked with many of the best known names and musicians in showbusiness. My lass went a few times late seventies early eighties. The origins of public dancing may be traced to the Victorian era and to the proliferation of new municipal halls, assembly rooms and church halls symbols of the spirit of philanthropy and of civic pride given legislative power by the Local Government Act of 1888. Learnt to jive there! Happy days. 5. In its first nine months, it hosted the Original Dixieland Jazz Band on tour from the United States and, subsequently, other visiting American bands, notably Sidney Bechet in 1920.Footnote 38 It also attracted many of the best dance bands in Britain. The Palais de Danse, built by Midland Palais de Danse Limited, opened on the corner of King Edward Street, John Street and Convent Street (now Upper Parliament Street) on 24 April 1925. 7. Fig. Building began in the city's Frogmore Street in 1963 and was completed in 1966. met my girlfriend of the time Sue Elliott daughter of Gerry Elliott ex sheriff of Nottingham and overman down Gedling pit, nearly crapped myself when I started working there and saw him. In later years it was Yates wine lodge for a couple of so called "Australian white wines" you could chat anyone up with a few of them inside you :-)). We would always aim to get in the queue early and watch it build as worshipers from all over arrived. With a revolving bandstand, a second band could set up in the background while the first was still performing and be brought to the audience at the press of a switch. 96 See Nott, J., Contesting Popular Dancing and Dance Music During the 1920s, Cultural and Social History, 10.3 (2013), pp. Why was I at the Palais in 1971? I spent many happy hours at the Palais in my teens, late 1950s early 1960s . Later, in the 1950s, large numbers of redundant cinemas and theatres were converted into dance halls, as dancing outperformed both as a form of entertainment. Pasted as rich text. Now in those days doormen weren't the breed they are today. I played the Palais 7 times and here are the dates and the band, 29/04/1966 (Carl Pagan and the Heathens). In November 1929, the Stage Guild held its annual ball at the palais, with guests including Prince Paul of Greece.Footnote 61 A generation earlier, such events would have been held exclusively in country houses, private clubs, grand assembly rooms or private ballrooms. 15 See Godbolt, Jim, A History of Jazz in Britain, 191950 (London, 2005)Google Scholar. Each year from 1918 to 1965, between roughly 2000 and 3000 venues were licensed for regular dancing in Britain.Footnote 4 The number of venues in individual towns and cities could be correspondingly large. Dance Halls: Towards an Architectural and Spatial History, Going to the Palais: A Social and Cultural History of Dancing and Dance Halls in Britain, 19181960, Form Follows Fun: Modernism and Modernity in British Pleasure Architecture 19251940, Cinemas in Britain: One Hundred Years of Cinema Architecture, Glamorous Spaces: Public Ballrooms and Dance Halls, 18901950, A History of English Ballroom Dancing (19101945): The Story of the Development of the Modern English Style, The Re-making of a Popular Resort: Blackpool Tower and the Boom of the 1890s, Hammersmith and Fulham Historic Buildings Group Newsletter, Dancing Mad: An Autobiographical Dancing Diary, The Evolution of Jazz in Britain, 18801935, Always a Welcome: The Glove Compartment History of the Motorway Service Area, Space, Hope and Brutalism: English Architecture, 19451975, Directory of British Architects 18341914, Goodnight campers! Particularly common in the 1920s were conversions of former roller-skating rinks, which were ideal, given their large dimensions and height. 4. Accordingly, owners invested heavily in their dance floors and updated, renovated or replaced them at regular intervals. lol anyway attende every palias dayer and all the niters that followed d.jed ther in the bali hi saturday nie session i used to run in the early 80''s we used to do that then get a taxi to stafford's top of the world awesome times used to attend with mick .h ,dennis lambert , shaun turner, dave taylor ,tony garnett, the brit crowd of the day plus the colemans regulars. We still have lots of friends in the Mansfield area. The different colours combined with different dance moves, tempos and music to alter the mood of the dance floor. Used to love it. Nottingham Palais paid more than laying a new dance oor, and in October the Hammersmith Palais spent on a maple oor.19 The installation of dance oors required consideration of several crucial issues. In fact anything outdoors ! Any reccomends? 5). 79 Nottingham Evening Post, 11 April 1925, p. 3. 11 See Atwell, David, Cathedrals of the Movies (London, 1981)Google Scholar; Eyles, Allen, ABC: The First Name in Entertainment (London, 1993)Google Scholar; Gaumont British Cinemas (London, 1996)Google Scholar; The Granada Theatres (London, 1998)Google Scholar; Odeon Cinemas 1 (London, 2002)Google Scholar; Gray, Richard, Cinemas in Britain: One Hundred Years of Cinema Architecture (London, 2011)Google Scholar; Harwood, Elain, Picture Palaces (London, 1999)Google Scholar. Started in 78/9 I guess. Scarce as hens teeth to find anything relating to the Jaybirds and Jay Cats. From the mid-1920s until the mid-1960s, the dance hall occupied a pivotal place in the culture of working- and lower-middle-class communities in Britain. I'm looking for photos of "The Jay Cats" - "The Jay Birds" - Early photos of Alvin Lee, Leo Lyons, Ric Lee, Dave Quickmire - Ten Years After..this also includes any and all photos of these bands and people for use on our websites. Although dance halls were comparatively egalitarian spaces, this quality should not be overstated. I remember the Jbirds and also my late husband Johnny Gold playing there. Last heard Gee Baby at Warwick Soul Club;I'd asked the DJ if he'd got it, and he said "not here", but went home to get it between sets, Took my Johnny Ross to the Night Owl in Brum last weekend for their 1st Anniversary, and after MUCH nagging they finally played it at 3:15 in the morning. 1021Google Scholar. Ling, recognising that the removal of traffic might leave the precinct empty once the shops were closed, worked hard to keep the area alive by introducing new uses to the precinct. The swish of taffeta as couples progressed around the dance floor, the warm melodic sounds of a saxophone, the chatter of friends and partners, the sparkle of mirror balls, spotlights, multi-coloured lightbeams, and the faint whiff of Lily of the Valley or Midnight in Paris. We used to go to most of the Nottingham ballrooms,The Palais, The Queens , The Elizabethan Rooms, The Sherwood Rooms Etc. Dimmed lighting enhanced the power of the imagination, while coloured lights were used to create an ever-changing visual experience. your own Pins on Pinterest The largest entertainment venue in Europe at the time, it included an ABC cinema with over 800 seats, a Locarno ballroom, a Silver Blades ice-skating rink, a casino and several licensed bars, all served by a large multi-storey car park. and The site became vacant when Nottingham Prison was demolished. Nothing of the brutish thug looks which so typifies the modern day equivalent. No Sunday shopping throngs back then, just a feeling of having the city to ourselves. My name is real and feel free to contact me with any information. All three of them had great memories of their times with the band with Stuart telling me that as my cousin was only 14 when they invited him to join, they had to persuade my aunt and uncle to let him join up and that they as worldly-wise 18 year olds would look after him! You've brought even more memories flooding back with the CB thing. The power of live music played in a relatively intimate space was such that people could literally feel the sound move through their bodies as it reverberated across the dance hall. Anyone remember any of these bands? The designs also included a health centre, squash courts, gym and rooftop gardens. First, it offered a practical solution to the problem of providing non-stop music. 17).Footnote 83 The rococo-style mirrors had lights above with tasselled fabric lampshades, and sconces in between. Hi John, yes great days, wonderful memories of our younger days. Hi Bill and John. Mecca's Bali Hai cocktail bars, found in many of its dance halls at this time, were full-scale escapist fantasies. Facing the stairs is a lounge, with settees, wicker chairs, glass topped tables. anyway back to Colemans, we would meet at the pub round the corner, turned into a amusment arcade. My name may be published alongside the comment on the website, but my e-mail address will not be published. What a pair of real gents they were and full of interesting recollections of their time with the band. Hello Bill, Im not 100% sure but I think it very likely that the Mansfields did play the Palais at some stage or other. Last saw Pete and Chris about 8 years ago coming out from Forest. The precious metal is now periodically used in dental golds and other dental metals. in 1913 to 3 10s. Palais De Danse, Lower Parliament Street, Nottingham Rotating dance floor at the Palais! My late father Tug organised one event, it was through this that I knew Uncle Fred and Aunt Adela, I heard of this from Adela and others. Ladies Boudoir, Mayfair dance hall, Newcastle, 1961 (Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums). He remembered the bands female lead singer, Pandora, was married to the Palaiss manager. My first encounter with the Palais came about 1971. 30 The Rivoli, Brockley, and the Ritz, Manchester, are both recognised for their special interest as listed buildings. Then the Palais again, then Oceana, and currently Horse and Jockey, is it still there? Excellent he was too! Chief among them was J. Sedgewick from Derby, who had been responsible for opening the Derby Palais in 1921, a conversion of the town's Corn Exchange.Footnote 52 These businessmen had seen how lucrative dance halls had become and aimed to open one of the finest outside London. Populist Palatial, postcard view of the rich, colourful interior of the Palais de Danse, Derby, 1923 (author's private collection), Fig. 80 Marwick, Arthur, British Society Since 1945 (London, 1990), p. 114Google Scholar. Happy (but strange) days! The liberation of movement offered by the new social dances of the early twentieth century was central to their terrific popularity. Especially in new buildings, which were liable to Subsidiary facilities included a large restaurant located off the main space and a caf surrounding the dance floor, together with a separate ice cream soda bar.Footnote 46. Very special memories of the old place including the performers and of course themusic! Powered by Invision Community, Fly Fishing, Golf, Gardening, Reading, 1960s Music, Gilbert & Sullivan, Cricket, Notts County, Archery, Railways, Movies, Art, Travel. Two bandstands, one at either end of the dance floor, allowed multiple bands to play for the dancers. Best two sounds for me that will always be associated with that famous venueare Dena Barnes, If you ever walked out of my life and the brilliant dancer Chubby Checker, You just don't know. There was a small area called "The Bali Hi". View all Google Scholar citations The music rises to a final chord, the drummer crashes on the cymbal [] There is a steady din of conversation.Footnote 92. Paste as plain text instead, 9298. Between 1914 and 1938, the average working week fell from 54 to 48 hours. 34 Kimber, Jane, Danse to the Music of Time, Hammersmith and Fulham Historic Buildings Group Newsletter, 19 (Autumn 2008), p. 7Google Scholar. That was the famous and now legendary sign located above the entrance to the Nottingham Palais de Danse one of the many traditional dance hall venues owned by the Mecca Leisure group. Wright, Catherine 199204Google Scholar. Painting, woodwork, fishing, beer, food, Thinking outside the box, talking, some history, d.i.y., Amateur Dramatics; Writing; Reading; Music, Fishing; Art. The Palais de Danse, Nottingham. In the post-war period, following the shortages and restrictions of the so-called age of austerity, Britain emerged into a period of sustained and widespread prosperity. During the Second World War it was requisitioned 83 TWA, DT.Tur/4/AG1833/c, Mayfair Ballroom, Newcastle Powder Room (1961). Alternatively, two different stages had to be constructed, which took up valuable space in the hall. [1], It reopened as the Astoria Ballroom after the Second World War on 29 March 1948. 52 Nottingham Evening Post, 10 September 1924, p. 5. I often wondered if other people would put the same records to the same venue (they were obviously played elsewhere at the time). The Palais De Dance Nottingham, my big ( older ) Sis used to go there a lot in the mid 50s Hostname: page-component-75cd96bb89-t9pvx The Palais de Danse is Nottingham's most famous nightclub. He also remembered well-known drummer Harry Ovenall, who had flirted with fame with Leicester groups The Farinas and Family. We were privileged to meet and talk at length with Stuart Lane and Keith Williams (both guitar players in the group). www.ten-years-after.com and www.alvinlee.de. Blackpool Locarno, one of Mecca's new multi-purpose entertainment venues, 1965 (Simon Mallett/public domain). Mick Knight was the Manager of the Palais, whose Mum used to be my Dinner Lady at Daybrook Junior School and they lived together on Edwin Street in Daybrook if I remember right. During the Second World War it was requisitioned by the Army as a dining area for the troops stationed in the town. Met my late wife there in 1963. 56 The Builder, 14 November 1924, pp. A combination of changing musical and dance styles (recorded music replaced live, solo dances replaced couples), altered social mores (women no longer waited to be asked to dance as in the dance-hall days) and a greater range of alternative things on which to spend money (cars, holidays and housing) led to the end of the dance hall as a distinct social, cultural and architectural space.Footnote 98. Nottstalgia Nottingham Forums Dance halls are also distinct from ballrooms, which were dance floors within buildings with other purposes and often not open to the general public for example, ballrooms in country houses. 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