NORWICH LADS CLUB, THE

John Dain the Chief Constable of Norwich founded The Lads Club in 1918, with the idea of keeping young men on the straight and narrow by providing them with activities such as wrestling, boxing and football.

 

 The club moved from its original St Georges location to its King Street premises in 1924, the former site of Boulton and Paul’s foundry. This building was destroyed by fire in 1943 but rebuilt and re-opened in 1951. It was used for a variety of events but put on bands from the fifties through to the eighties; visiting acts included Chris Barbers Jazz Band, Judy Collins, Pink Floyd, Traffic and The Who. The Club flourished during these years and even hosted bands such as Ultravox in the eighties but dwindling interest in the club’s main activities and the lack of funding finally forced manager Ronnie Brookes to announce its closure in July 1996.

 

 The building is now The King’s Centre and since refurbishment has a completely different façade to the original club.

 

SCENES: ‘60s Jazz, Folk, R&B, Beat / ‘70s Rock / ‘80s Pop