These photos take you back to the 90s and noughties, showing 16 of the most popular nightclubs of the time across the North West.
The much-missed nightspots featured range from vast venues, including one said to be the UK’s biggest at the time, to quirky indie clubs.
Among them is a beloved venue once named the world’s best nightclub, and another club where Take That famously made their TV debut on an iconic 90s show.
Some of these venues are still drawing in the punters, albeit under a different name, while others have been destroyed by fire or flattened to make way for flats and offices.
They may be gone but they are not forgotten, with former regulars remembering them as the ‘place to be’ and telling how they have ‘never danced the same way since’.
These retro photos will take you back to these much-loved clubs during their heyday, when the floors were sticky with spilt alcopops, and the smell of sweat and smoke machines mingled in the air with the aroma of CK One and Joop!
How many of these nightclubs do you remember, and what do you think was the best nightclub of the 90s or noughties?
If these nostalgic images have left you pining for the past, you might enjoy this photo gallery looking back at popular shopping centres in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
9. The Palace
Blackpool's Palace nightclub opened in what was the Golden Wheels roller disco in 1986, at a cost of £2.2 million, which was a huge amount at the time. With a capacity of 3,000, it claimed to be the largest club in the North West, and famously hosted cult TV show The Hitman and Her. One person called it the 'best nightclub ever', adding 'that lighting rig was ace and the sound system was brill'. Another person recalled the 'jaw-dropping' light show, and a third called it an 'awesome' nightclub. People have shared their memories of great gigs there by acts ranging from Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan to The Prodigy. | National World Photo: Martin Bostock
10. Tokyo Jo's
Tokyo Jo's was Preston's premier nightclub during the 90s and early noughties, when it was affectionately nicknamed 'Tokes'. The building was sadly destroyed in a huge fire in 2022 and had to be demolished, with the site becoming a car park. | National World
11. Wigan Pier
The Wigan Pier nightclub opened in the 80s and was one of the North West's best-loved venues for house and trance during its heyday. It closed in 2011 but will never be forgotten, with one person remembering it as 'the best club in the world', and another recalling: "Had some of the best nights of my life in that place. Nothing will ever come close." Pictured outside the Wigan Pier in 2009 are former regular Kirsty Green and some of her fellow clubbers. | National World Photo: Paul Greenwood
12. Krazyhouse
The Krazyhouse nightclub on Wood Street, Liverpool, was a hugely popular rock and alternative music venue from the late 90s to its closure in 2018. Located over three floors of a converted Victorian warehouse, one former regular said it was 'so much fun', while another recalled 'many messy nights'. The venue is now home to the Electrik Warehouse. | Google Photo: Google