Legendary London club promoters Andrew Czezowski and Susan Carrington announced they’re selling the lease to London clubbing institution the Fridge this week, almost 30 years after they launched the club.
Taking over Brixton’s the Ace theatre on Brixton Road in 1985, the hugely influential former punk promoters transformed the venue into one of London’s key underground nightspots, pioneering psy-trance in the UK and later the hard house that dominated much of London’s gay scene during the 90s. In recent years however, the venue became a victim of Brixton’s increasingly violent gun and gang culture with a number of shootings and stabbings taking place on the pavement outside the club.
The Fridge’s problems were further compounded in 2006 when 200 police stormed a Polysexual party at the club, arresting 11 people for drugs offences (mostly for minor possession offences).
Speaking after the raid local council police liaison officer John Roberts vowed to close the club.
"Brixton is saying `enough is enough',” he declared, “People come to Brixton to have fun and enjoy the nightlife - they do not want to come to clubs where they are being peddled drugs."
At the time, Andrew Czezowski and Susan Carrington had stepped back from running the club, and the venue stayed open though when they took control again in 2008 they struggled to revive the 1,700 capacity club’s fortunes. Property consultant Barry Fitzgerald from Christie + Co’s London bars and restaurants team hinted at the possibility of the venue remaining a club.
“We expect the opportunity to acquire this iconic venue, one of the capital’s most successful nightclubs, to generate a significant amount of interest,” he predicted.
Jonty Skrufff (http://skrufff.com): Follow Jonty on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/jontyskrufff
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