Description of the Nightingale 1981
1981
“The Nightingale moved to Thorp Street in 1981, the opening night they had an evening with Quentin Crisp which was quite dramatic. It was very ambitious to move from a small two roomed club in Witton Lane in Aston, with water running down the wall of the disco, to a building that was quite substantial and themed throughout. It was a large establishment, and the idea was to create an image of a gay village so you walked in on a cobbled street and on one side, was the Derek Pemberton Arms, named after the first Chairman of the club, and on the other side you had the Arthur Tuckery Restaurant, another Chairman; then you went through into a village square which was the disco, lined with Georgian bay-fronted display windows, (Munchkin Tudor) and a bar fitted into it. It was one of the first attempts at a concept club and looked very dated within a few years. The Georgian dance floor went with the first refurb and it came very high tech, then the Derek Pemberton Arms with its tudor beams and half beer barrels as seats became an upmarket Mykonos type bar with white washed walls and lots of UV light. However the Arthur Tuckery Restaurant remained for many years.”
Contributed by: Lyn David Thomas, 47