macca

The address for memberships given in the poster is Wooton Avenue in Fletton. This was where the Mindum (?) brothers Pete & Dave lived, right? My mum knew the family well 'cos that's where she lived before she got married. So was the Phoenix a joint venture then? PK & Biffo were their jocking names. You don't see names like that on flyers these days, do you?

Me too!! I missed the exciters nite though, which I always regretted. I'd like to see the photo of danny & co. he had to have protection that night, I was told.

Chubby Checker transports me back to the pitch black oldies room there, as does Major lance 'You Don't Want Me No More'. Were I three or four years older they would transport me to the Torch, no doubt, but you have to live your own time and you only get one crack of the whip. Cod philosopher now...

Never a truer word good sir...

tastes are like colours, there's lot of them. who gives feck anyway?

euros accepted on the underground when I passed through t'other week, but I'd already used the cashpoint.

The way I look at it is that there are critics of the film (before and after they've seen it/read drafts, scripts etc) who feel that it 's just another exploitative turd in a long line of exploitative turds going back to the mid 70s. These people feel overtly passionate about 'this scene' and will nail their colours to the mast and condemn it, often in eloquent terms. Fair play indeed. Then there are others who will see themselves mirrored in the plot and get a kick from hearing the sounds, the nudge-nudge wink-wink references, and be temporarily transported to the 'Eden' they so fondly remember, irrespective of whether the film is 'good' or 'bad' in cinematic terms. Fair play to them too. Then there are people like Dave Moore who has given his opinion, an opinion probably shared by a significant number of people on this site, amongst whom I include myself, and which can be summed up in one word - indifference. Fair play again I say. So I'll watch it out of curiosity, like I watched This England, TSWONS etc, but it's not going put me on any kind of war footing, after all, it'll be off most people's radars within a few months and northern/rare soul life, and time, will march on. Better get stocking up Pete!

No, I didn't mean JC went out with Lynne, but that he'd got photos. JC was prolific with the kodak instamatic, remember? :-)

Yes, that's right. Don't think they were actually an item, just very close friends...

Christ, that was a good read. I always liked Dirtty Hearts and the Cox's Pippin was also spat at in the cloakroom by Tony Dellar I believe, so John Vincent wasn't the only DJ that wanted to drop him. I didn't witness the Dellar incident, so it's probably just another piece of Northern Soul lore. I was told that TD had arrived late from his milkround (?) and Cox had given him his marching orders. Was the mystery shagger's identity ever revealed?

true dave! how could we have forgotten herbert hunter!? vincent used to hammer lorraine silver. when was that held ? I see gary rushbrooke and keb darge are on the menu.

maud liked to think she had her pulse on the yoof back then. I wonder if cox tried to choose 'sensible', 'responsible' types to talk to their excellencies. you can imagine the state of some of the candidates...

They did, as martyn kindly pointed out. I'd forgotten about those early 78 jobbies with the curtain dividing the hall. grim. we even had a visit from the mayor charles swift at those. ken cox must have been on some kind of PR crusade to convince the authorities what a respectable, law-abiding, clean living lot we were. his sister maud took a real shine to the more atlhletic ones amongst us...

Come again Martin!

hey up mick. johnny cockerill has photos of lynne (el) eskritte on his facebook page. she charmed quite a few of us mate!

I have it from a reliable source that the supermodels are still quite super. Frances Parrette, it seems, has vanished. Shame...

The 'knothole' at the back of the venue. London brick company pit number one, known affectionately to locals as LB1. Had many a pike out of there...

we didn't get to the lap dancing stage, unfortunately. I was officially spoken for at the time. mind you, that didn't stop me exchanging saliva with lynne escritte from hitchin down by the waterside at the fleet.. oh' to be 18 again...

Apart from the odd corridor mooch and and ten minute wait to pass water, I very much never left the place. Webby: yes, Frances was a redhead. Lovely lass and staunchly anti drugs. Good spinner.

Women from Norwich? I used to get on very well with the lovely Frances. She cooked me steak, chips and peas at her house after the samson & delilah all-nighter, much to the disgust of my still blocked friends. I had puritanical phases back then, you see. We went to People's nitespot before the nighter, if I remember well.

Spot on. Yes I did enjoy myself, but spent a lot of time in the lounge area rather than in the dancehall, driven there by the aforementioned stuff. I realise they were the big sounds of the day, but they just weren't to my taste.

the closure must have been late in the year 'cos in january 78 we went to norwich samson & delilah lamenting the fact that st.ives was no more. ken cox started the fleet all-nighters shortly after, literally 10 mins walk from my then home. :-) the fleet had its moments, but it didn't come near to st.ives, either for music or atmosphere. I remember the fleet most for all that british crap then in vogue, peggy march, helen shapiro, barry benson, and other dreadful tunes like charlie gracey and bobby goldsboro, well, dreadful for me that is. :-)

I have to say that I clapped, have clapped and will continue to clap, voluntarily or involuntarily. Isn't it strange that opponents of clapping haven't had the courage to nail their colours to the mast? There used to be a guy from Peterborough, Alan Livett, that not only clapped fervorously, but would also implore, arms and hands outstretched to the heavens, face wracked with anguish, singing very, very loudly along with the music. I used to find it distracting, off-putting even, but at the same time oddly fascinating. I'd have fought for his right to do it, naturally...

SMBJ, good lord. we must have been cool, 'cos at ours it was rod stewart reason to believe. nick g can vouch for that!!