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[title]‘It’s one of those clubs where it’s so shit, it’s good,’ says Connie Logie-Inions, a 22-year-old student in Southampton. ‘But in the most positive and wholesome way possible. Its nickname is ‘‘The Palace of Dreams’’ and it certainly lives up to that. Sometimes you come out thinking you’ve just had a fever dream.’
Logie-Inions is talking about Jesters, a Bevois Valley Road nightspot that has been a go-to for debauchery since the late 1980s. It’s a venue that (arguably through necessity) plays up to the idea of being the most disgusting nightclub in the UK. This is a place that people have written online survival guides for, and where rumours about games involving depositing various bodily fluids in each corner of the room exist. It’s also home to the ‘Jesticle’: a lethal cocktail unique to the club that is so legendary it even has its own entry on Urban Dictionary.
From chains like Pop World, Zinc and Fever, to Klute in Durham and Club International in Falmouth, most major towns and cities across the UK have their own version of Jesters. They usually tick all the same boxes: cheesy tunes, grimy walls, sticky floors, neon drinks and alcohol served at prices not seen since the 1980s. ‘I think on Mondays it’s like £1 pints, doubles and shots,’ says Logie-Inions. ‘Which obviously makes it appealing.’
However, these kinds of clubs – typically favoured by students and young people, or just those wanting an unpretentious and cheap night out – have been struggling in recent years.
On Mondays it’s £1 pints, doubles and shots
In 2024, Rekom UK – the UK’s biggest nightclub operator and owner of club chains Pryzm and Atik – closed 17 of its clubs across the country with immediate effect. Meanwhile, a recent Night Time Economy Market Monitor Report by the Night Time Industries Association makes for some stark reading.
‘The night-time landscape is changing, and many of consumers’ traditional high-tempo and high-spend activities are in decline,’ it states, reflecting cultural and societal shifts we’ve seen take place including people becoming more health conscious, being skint, or simply moving away from typical nights out that are now seen as outdated by younger people. It also reported it had seen ‘a year-on-year drop in trade from things like bar crawls (62 percent), hen and stag dos (54 percent) and student trade (56 percent).’ Footfall, number of drinks bought, and average spend per visit were also reported to be in decline, all signalling that the traditional British high-street nightclub could be becoming a thing of the past.
That said, these venues are clearly still proving a role for many young people. ‘This place is really important,’ says Amy Pemberton, a 19 year-old studying in Sheffield, about local club Corporation: an alternative nightclub that offers multi-genre disco between hosting metal bands. ‘We’ve literally just lost the Leadmill [due to an eviction notice] and the majority of the students in the city go there, so if Corp wasn’t here it doesn’t leave much at all for us.’
While trends may be shifting towards slicker places and experience-based nights out (think bottomless brunches, daytime discos and boozy crazy golf), Pemberton relishes the kind of old-school night that Corp offers.
‘A lot of my friends don’t like Corp because it stinks and it’s really sticky but I love it because it’s cheap and cheerful,’ she says. ‘The cost of living nowadays is something you have to consider in your budget. I don’t fancy waking up and looking at my bank and seeing what I’ve spent on drinks could have done me an entire food shop.’
Lydia Murrãy, who lives in Halifax, is an ardent supporter of the Acapulco club in town, often fondly referred to as ‘Acca’. ‘I am the biggest fan, I would argue, at 32 years young,’ she says. ‘I’m Halifax born and bred and the Acca has been my go-to since I was 20. It’s got a bit of a bad rep, but I absolutely adore it’. Having been around since 1961, it claims to be the oldest nightclub in the UK and is known for its 75p drinks.
As a result, its history stretches back far. ‘My grandma’s sister had her wedding party there,’ recalls Murrãy. ‘Love it or hate it, it’s an absolute staple of the town centre. People are, like, oh I don’t like it because the floors are sticky and it’s tacky. That’s its charm and beauty. My argument is: those sticky floors help keep you standing when you’ve had too many 75p drinks.’ Murrãy even keeps some of the carpet from the club at home from when they sold the old one off at £5 a segment. ‘There’s a square of it in my living room,’ she says. ‘And I’m very proud to have it.’
For Millie Smedley, a 20-year-old living in Birmingham, the kind of night that these clubs offer are reliable. ‘You know exactly what you’re going to get, but that’s the joy of it,’ she says of Snobs, a club that has welcomed millions of people through its doors since opening back in 1972. ‘For me it’s a guaranteed good night out, so I’m always going to go down. I go every week.’
Some of these clubs also play a role that can go beyond just guilty-pleasure pop, wild abandon and drinks that will forever stain your clothes. At the stroke of midnight at Jesters you may hear the dramatic opening drum thuds of the Baywatch theme tune as a sea of lads take off their tops, but Logie-Inions also points out the indie night there is a key example of how important such places can be. ‘There’s a genuine community there,’ she says. ‘You can see people making friends and it feels really integral for those who go.’
My grandma’s sister had her wedding party there – it’s an absolute staple of the town centre
Similarly, Corporation in Sheffield, which caters to everyone from metal and emo kids to pop and R&B fans, plays a crucial role in providing a home for those with alternative interests who also want a no-frills cheap night out. ‘Corp is definitely more inclusive than most clubs,’ says Pemberton. ‘And they also have welfare in the smoking area, whereas other places don’t really offer that, which is really good for young people and students.’
For many, these kinds of clubs can be a shared experience that goes beyond the dance floor. ‘Snobs carries a lot of nostalgia for people,’ says Smedley. ‘My cousin went to the same uni as me, but 15 years ago, and she talks about her time going to Snobs and we connect over that. The club is a real rite of passage for people in Birmingham. It’s iconic.’
And so when the wider landscape sees these kinds of clubs closing, the fear of losing them can often feel significant locally. ‘If the Acca wasn’t here anymore, I’d query where young people would actually go,’ says Murrãy. ‘Halifax is quite up and coming and drinks are expensive. It’s a bit more cocktails and wine bars and that’s wonderful, but not everyone can afford that. Everyone should be entitled to a night out, no matter where you’re from or your budget.’
Read more: The 23 best club nights in the UK in 2025.