The Wigan Casino was a nightclub in Wigan, England. Operating between 1973 and 1981, it became known as a primary venue for northern soul music. It carried forward the legacy created by clubs such as the Twisted Wheel in Manchester, the Chateau Impney (Droitwich), the Catacombs (Wolverhampton.
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The Wigan Casino was a nightclub in Wigan, England. Operating between 1973 and 1981,[1] it became known as a primary venue for Northern soul music. It carried forward the legacy created by clubs such as the Twisted Wheel in Manchester, the Chateau Impney (Droitwich), the Catacombs (Wolverhampton) and the Golden Torch (Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent). It remains one of the most famous clubs in Northern England.[2] In 1978, the American music magazine Billboard voted Wigan Casino 'The Best Disco in the World', ahead of New York's Studio 54.[3]
This England, a TV documentary about the Wigan Casino, was filmed in 1977. Russ Winstanley and Dave Nowell wrote a history of the club, Soul Survivors, The Wigan Casino Story, which was published in 1996. A stage play by Mick Martin about the Wigan Casino years, Once upon a time in Wigan, debuted in February 2003 at the Contact Theatre in Manchester and has since toured nationally.
History[edit]
Wigan Casino was the name of the last incarnation of a Wigan ballroom called the Empress. Local DJ Russ Winstanley and Wigan Casino manager Mike Walker approached lease owner Gerry Marshall to run all-nighters. Walker brought Winstanley, who had a DJ set at the local rugby club, to the Casino Club. At 2 am on Sunday 23 September 1973, Wigan Casino started its first-ever Northern soul all-nighter, with Winstanley as the DJ. After Winstanley and his helper Ian Fishwick, Kev Roberts was the third DJ at Casino all-nighters, who was quickly joined by Richard Searling[4] Soul performers that performed there include Jackie Wilson, Edwin Starr and Junior Walker.
Young people from all over the UK regularly attended Wigan Casino to hear the latest northern soul artists and to dance. There were long queues to get in. The second dance floor, Mr M's, stayed open until 6 am and played oldies songs from a variety of DJs including Dave Evison and Steve Whittle. All-nighters generally ended with three songs that became known as the '3 before 8': 'Time Will Pass You By' by Tobi Legend, 'Long After Tonight Is All Over' by Jimmy Radcliffe, and 'I'm on My Way' by Dean Parrish.[5] Parrish is still active on the Northern soul circuit.
Wigan Casino's 500th all-nighter was held on Saturday 16 May 1981, from midnight to 8 am. Over the eight years it was open, it had over four million people through its doors.[6]
Wigan Council owned the building and wanted to extend the nearby Civic Centre, but short of funding, it never went ahead.[6] The club closed on 6 December 1981; that final night of Wigan Casino in its Northern soul state was DJ'd by Winstanley, and the '3 before 8' were played three times consecutively at the end of the night. The crowd refused to leave; according to Winstanley, to 'break this spell of hysteria', he picked a 7' at random from his box and played that. This final Wigan Casino song became one of the most famous Northern soul songs of all time, Frank Wilson's 'Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)'.[citation needed] Annual reunions are held in Wigan hosted by the original DJs.
The Casino is commemorated with a Blue plaque, which was installed in 2014, marking the place where the doors to the club once stood.[7]
The site is now occupied by the Grand Arcade shopping centre, which pays homage to the club with its Casino Café.[5]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on 22 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2019.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- ^'BBC Manchester - Clubbing - Wigan Casino'. BBC.co.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^'Wigan Casino voted greatest disco in the world'. The Guardian. 15 June 2011.
- ^'Chris Hunt | Wigan Casino'. Chrishunt.biz. 23 September 1973. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
- ^ ab'Casino'. www.grand-arcade.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 May 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
- ^ ab'Another spin for the Casino'. BBC Local. 9 August 2007.
- ^'What Does A Blue Plaque For Wigan Casino Mean, Anyway?'. Clash. 9 September 2014.
Further reading[edit]
- Shaw, Dave. Casino. Bee Cool Publishing, ISBN0-9536626-2-4.
External links[edit]
- For Dancers Only The story of Wigan Casino by Chris Hunt, published in Mojo Collections magazine, Spring 2002
Coordinates: 53°33′N2°38′W / 53.55°N 2.63°W
| A soul revival is taking off in the Midlands |
It all started in 1960s Hitsville, USA - the birthplace of Motown. The soul explosion took off around the world, but then everything went quiet and it seemed as though it had dropped off the radar. Inside Out meets the fans who are keeping the music alive.
Cast your minds back to the 1970s, when music lovers everywhere worshipped at the altar of the famous Wigan Casino and when the northern soul scene was born.
Inside Out's Ashley Blake meets the northern soul kings, for whom it's not just music - it's a way of life.
Soul brother
| Merv Parnell at a local soul night |
Meet Merv Parnell, a hairdresser from Ledbury. He's been a fan of the northern soul scene since he was 11-years-old, when he heard his first ever soul tune.
And at 16 he began hitching rides from Gloucester to visit the famous Wigan Casino and meet up with hundreds of other soul lovers from across the country.
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Now, as he approaches the big 5-0, he's enjoying the latest soul revival.
'I go to work every morning and put a tune on - it's the first thing I do! It sets a course for the rest of the day.
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'Every Friday, every Saturday, I go to a soul night somewhere, it doesn't matter where.
'It goes beyond the music - it plays a major role in your life.'
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According to Merv, it's all about the dancing, something which he loves as much as the music itself.
| 'You hear a tune you love and in the first few beats you're 18 again.' |
| Merv Parnell |
In fact, he loves it so much he's entered a competition at a local soul club, but narrowly misses out on first prize. Still, it's not the winning, but the music that really counts.
'It doesn't matter whether you're by yourself or in a room with a thousand people, when you're listening to the tunes you love it's heaven.'
A fan for life
From the fanatics to the collectors, northern soul is spreading.
Dave Evison owns 15,000 records at his home near Stoke-on-Trent.
They're worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, but to Dave, they're priceless.
| Dave spends hours in his record library |
He's been a northern soul DJ since the 1960s, and has played at famous clubs like the legendary Wigan Casino, where he enjoyed his greatest claim to fame.
'The honour was bestowed upon me to play the last ever record at Wigan Casino.
'It was called 'I'm On My Way' by Dean Parrish. I said I'd never play it again and I didn't.
'That is probably my most famous moment ever on the northern soul scene.'
It's a real accolade - the Wigan Casino has gone down in history as one of the most famous soul clubs of all time.
It's a soul thing
Having begun life as a Victorian theatre, the club once boasted a membership of over 10,000 people before it was closed in December 1981, and later burnt to the ground in a freak accident.
But its legacy remains, and Dave is adamant that the northern soul scene is still going strong.
| 'Some people collect stamps, for me it's always been records. I'm a vinyl junkie.' |
| Dave Evison |
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'The format has never changed in 35 years - fashion changes, but the northern soul scene is just as exciting every week.'
'I love 7 inch singles with all their crackles and hisses, it's a collector's dream. It's been my entire life really.'
Getting into the scene
And for the sceptics among you, Dave's sure that northern soul has something to offer everyone, even the new wave of music lovers who are starting to realise the allure of the golden oldies.
'If you're prepared to come on to the scene and say 'hey, I'm not here to take the mick, I'm here to enjoy the music' you'll be welcomed with open arms.'
| Lee Worthington loves the northern soul lifestyle |
One such newcomer is Lee Worthington, a self-confessed mod who got into northern soul six years ago and has since embraced it as part of his lifestyle.
'If younger people knew about it and started going it'd take off, otherwise it'll die off with the older crowd.
'I love it, it's the only music for me.'
And with ambassadors like the ones we've just met, it seems as though the scene will live on in the hearts and 'soles' of music-lovers everywhere.