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clubs + bars : our favourites
DJ Lord Ant B's Gimme 5 Party Animal Venues
If you are generally the first name on an invite list;
wish there were eight nights in the week; go out regularly, not returning
home until a few days later, having forgotten your name and where you
live; or turn up at work wearing the same outfit three days running, you
can be classified as a Party Animal!
Purple Turtle / 61 Crowndale Road, NW1
/ Mon to Fri, 8pm - 12am and Sat, 8pm - 2am / £3-£5
Back in the late ‘80s a cult kids' cartoon called Teenage Ninja
Turtles began. The gang of Turtle brothers were each named after their
master's favourite Renaissance artists – Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo
and Donatello. They were four wise cracking, teenaged, pizza scoffing
turtles who fought the forces of evil from their neighbourhood sewer hangout.
It went on to spawn a really bad movie of the same name. Now you might
be thinking I’m a pepperoni or two short of a full pizza, but it
strikes me as very odd to call an old pub the Purple Turtle but hey ho
- different strokes for different folks. According to its website it boasts
being “the fabbest coolest grooviest bar ever”. Not quite
sure about that one, but it does generally attract a ‘Party Animal’
crowd. Expect to find wall to wall deep purple with a slightly scuzzy
Cyber Goth look about the place. Metal walk ways lead up to balconies
which provide a perfect stage diving launch pad for the various band nights
held here.
Animal magic: Cowabunga!
Party picks: Vendetta on Saturdays with a hectic mix of alternative, metal,
rock, punk and ska, and Spine Shaker on Mondays - a brilliant band showcase
night which unearths hidden talent from the underground
Salmon & Compass / 58 Penton Street,
N1 / Mon to Sat, 5pm - 2am and Sun 5pm - 12am / £3 after 9pm and
£5 after 11pm
This friendly, slightly shabby pub uses little more than red paint and
fairy lights for its ambience, relying instead on a solid and varied music
policy to pull in the punters. Working closely with labels and artists
including the legendary Sal Soul, Breakin’ Bread (South London hip-hop
collective with B-boy break dancers bustin all sorts of crazy leg moves),
Keb Darge and Booker T, as well as local record shop Disque. The Salmon
& Compass has really put Islington on the map with its heady mix of
ever so slightly rough round the edges party nights
Animal magic: Worth swimming upstream for!
Party picks: Hot, Funky and Sweaty this Thursday and Shake and Bake
Dog Star / 389 Coldharbour Lane, SW9
/ Mon to Thu and Sun, 12pm - 2.30 am, Fri and Sat, 12pm - 4am / Free until
9pm and £5 after depending on the night.
The original club-bar in Brixton, Dogstar has enjoyed unwavering success
since its conversion from a very dubious Brixton pub almost a decade ago.
In fact I can remember going there the following night after it had it
had been torched on its inaugural launch night, and witnessing the’flame
grilled’ bar. I also observed some interesting black, shiny, dripping
art pieces suspended from the ceiling. These turned out to be the video
projectors that had melted under the intense heat! Nowadays the ground
floor offers a smattering of wooden tables (perfect for all you ‘Party
Animals’ to dance on!), a vast array of flavoured Vodkas to choose
from including all your favourite ‘across the counter’ choice
bars including Bounty bar etc, brilliant Bloody Mary’s (for when
you need a desperate ‘hair of the dog’ pick me up) superb
eye candy with multimedia visuals and an excellent music programme.
Animal magic: Top Dog for entertainment!
Party picks: Dirty South on Saturdays (watch out for the mind and music
bending Sean McClusky) and Slack Sabbath on Sundays
Cirque / 10-14 Cranbourn Street, WC2
/ Thu, Fri and Sat, 8pm - 4am / £12
Arguably one of London’s most famous nightspots, although not always
the hippest this 2,000 capacity venue in Leicester Square was originally
designed for Circuses in 1900. It was then converted for theatrical revues
before being turned into a dance hall in the fifties called ‘The
Talk Of The Town’. Most people know it as a truly ‘cheesy’
club full of tourists – that is best avoided. Not totally true.
After a big budget blowing re launch by its owners China Whites, it’s
up to its old tricks again with a restored interior, circus performers,
live acts and a new music policy. The original opulent feel has returned.
You can stand on the balcony, casting a hungry eye over the crowd for
the latest ‘hottie’, or simply marvel at all the astonishing
aerial stunts from the resident trapeze artists to a well chosen commercial
house and R&B soundtrack.
Animal magic: Wallow in the lap of luxury!
Party picks: Gold on Fridays nights with '80s and '90s pop hits and the
annual Alternative Miss World Contest
Tiger, Tiger / 26 Haymarket, SW1 / Mon
to Sat, 12pm - 3am / Free except £10 after 10pm on Saturdays
As Tony the Tiger would say: a "Grrrrrrrreat" hunting ground
for huge packs of hen parties. A multi layered cattle market / restaurant
come club that holds five separate bars. These include the Oriental Cocktail
bar, the geometrically themed Lounge, the art deco Blue Bar with its exclusive
snogging boudoirs, and finally the Party Down Club with its ‘no
extra charge’ to get in. This tends to act as a female magnet and
is home to ‘The Bacardi Breezer Brigade’ .
Animal magic: Get your classy claws stuck in!
Party picks: The same scene every night!
Other ‘Party Animal’ venues worthy of a mention
include:
White Horse - 94 Brixton Hill, SW2
Bar Fly - 49 Chalk Farm Road, NW1
Buffalo Bar - 259 Upper Street, N1
Make Mine a Pint of: Horse's Neck
Strictly speaking, this is a teetotaler’s drink, but you can add
whisky to the mix in order to ‘giddy up’ the party proceedings
Ingredients:
Lemon rind
Ice cubes
Ginger Ale
Whisky
Method:
Peel the whole rind of lemon – place it in the pint glass, spiraling
up from the bottom and hooking over the edge. Add six cubes of ice. Pour
in 3-6 jiggers of Whisky. Fill up to the top with cold ginger ale. Then
‘neck it!’
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