M.E.N readers have been sharing their memories of legendary Stockport nightclub Quaffers.
Opened in a former golf club in 1978, the iconic Stockport variety club welcomed huge names over two decades, from Shirley Bassey and the Drifters to Take That and George Best.
With a capacity of 2,600, the Hollingworth Road club boasted a lavish interior, as well as a rising stage, serving hot beef barms from its downstairs kitchen that many punters still remember today.
Read More: Rise and fall of the legendary Stockport nightclub 'well ahead of its time'
The final curtain came down on the club in December 1998, with the site bulldozed in 2004 to make way for a Homebase superstore.
The Manchester Evening News recently took a look back at at the rise and fall of Quaffers and why it was loved - and these are just a few memories that readers have shared.
On The Manchester Evening News website, UnicornSparkle said: "I worked for Bredbury Hall for half a decade. I loved how elegant it was when I worked there. I’ve not been since 2018. I worked there in the noughties. The staff was all definitely well looked after. I’m gutted the Floods sold up."
Did you go to Quaffers? Share your memories of the club in the comments section below.
On Facebook, Vicki Gorman commented: "Went on a hen here, Bride's Mum, Aunties and even her grandma went too, I noticed a lot of men there that night and when the stage started to rise with a motorbike on it and a banner which read "MISS REAR OF THE YEAR " with ladies parading round with not a lot on. Put it this way, a few embarrassing faces from the older members of our party, ah the memories, so funny."
Barrie Schofield Snr wrote: "Cracking night in there back in the day."
Barbara Slack said: "Bredbury Hall was fabulous. Danced the night away every Monday and Thurs with my friend Cath x Bar3. We still talk about our great nights here. Memories ....."
John Bardsley said: "Some great nights in here."
Ian Willis commented: "I still have a brick from the building when they knocked it down I also had one of the red lamp shades, but it got squashed in a house move a few years back."
Gail Duff commented: "The first club I ever went to with my sister, had many a good night in there."
Sarah Louise Jones wrote: "Had many good nights in here."
Angela Castle said: "Loved it…. So many brill memories and fabulous NYE’s! Wish it hadn’t closed."
Paula Stonehewer wrote: "Many a good night at Quaffers."
And Andy Harding said: "I don't remember it being well known for beef barms, however I do remember it well for lots of tasty crumpet."
The site had previously been a golf driving range called the Warren Country Club before it was gutted and rebuilt to create Quaffers.
Owned by multi-millionaire hotelier Douglas 'Dougie' Flood, who bought the venue in 1978, Quaffers played host to a string of top entertainment acts.
In its later years, the club hosted a performance from a newly-formed boy band known as Take That, with member Gary Barlow already known by the Quaffers team, after playing piano at neighbouring Bredbury Hall, as the MEN has previously reported.
The venue was a place for dancing and laughter, but was renowned for its strict rules on attire. If punters didn't dress smartly, they wouldn't make it past the door.
Many will remember fashion shows, football presentations, competitions and parties, as well as clubbing at the venue.
However, by the late 1990s, Stockport was forced to bid goodbye to one of its most famous entertainment venues.
Months before the site was levelled, the Manchester Evening News reported: "The old Quaffers Hotel and Country Club in Bredbury will be demolished early next year, six years after it closed its doors to the public for the last time.
"Cannon and Ball and the late Tommy Cooper were just some of the comic talents that appeared there, Quaffers was the setting for the TV programme Return of the Comedians and it also hosted amateur and charity boxing bouts.
"The club, with its capacity of 2,600, operated a strict door policy: no men wearing earrings, no visible tattoos or facial jewellery and no shaven heads. The policy worked and every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday the venue was packed.
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"But fashions changed and variety entertainment dwindled in popularity. The club closed in December 1998 and the building is to make way for a Homebase superstore."
Special thanks to former Quaffers DJs David Jarratt, Gary Price and the members of Stockport Memories Facebook group.
