It's 3pm and the bar at The Great Float Sports and Social Club is underscored by the muted soundtrack of cawing seagulls and the amicable chatter of staff as they roll up the shutters ahead of another evening’s work.
It’s a routine that’s been enacted countless times over the years, as the club has become almost as intrinsically woven into the tapestry of Seacombe as the ferries that have been docking here for centuries. But as working men's clubs - for so long a bastion of the British entertainment scene - seem to be edging ever-closer to the precipice of obscurity, places like The Great Float have to find new ways to ensure they’re not simply consigned to the history books.
Marc Griffiths told the ECHO: “In this environment, if you stand still, you start to fade away."
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Marc has been coming here for as long as he can remember, and spent much of his childhood in this rabbit-warren of a building alongside his best friend and his dad, who was a captain on the Mersey Ferries.
Marc is now on the club’s committee, and is responsible for orchestrating most of the entertainment at the venue, as well as occasionally moonlighting as a DJ.
He said: “There’s a fella who comes in here who’s in his 80s who was drinking here when he was in his late teens so that tells you how long it’s been going, but we have got new chairs since then.
“You’re here as a youngster, then as someone who’s married, then you’re bringing your kids and your grandkids and then you're suddenly here for your funeral. It’s a full circle kind of thing.”
The archetypal caricature of the working men’s club was, of course, fondly parodied by comedian Peter Kay in the series Phoenix Nights, and Marc’s passing mention of regulars like “two-pint Ronnie” indicates that The Great Float, much like The Phoenix Club, has its own roster of colourful characters to call upon.
But as well as retaining this core of loyal regulars who’ve been integral to the club’s enduring success, Marc is keen to bring in a new demographic to keep custom flowing.
He said: “When I first started looking after the entertainment, the committee would say you’ve got to book this person and this person, because that’s who’s always played here. But I’m trying to open up to a younger crowd by bringing younger artists in. We’re looking for that next generation.”
Whilst attracting a younger crowd is key to survival of clubs like The Great Float, bar steward, Stacy Bartlett, labels one of the venue’s biggest draws as its sense of community, fostered by the people who unfalteringly frequent it.
She said: “It’s more like a family than going and sitting in Wetherspoons where you don’t know anyone. I could walk in here on any day of the week and sit with anyone. You can walk in and not be sat on your own. You couldn’t do that in a lot of places.
“I’ve been here for five years and I think I’ve seen two fights, which weren’t anything really. And the bar staff don’t even have to come out from behind the bar. The locals, regardless of what age they are, they’ll jump in and sort it out.”
Seacombe is an area that is no stranger to hardship. It is one of Wirral’s most deprived communities, according to the government’s Index of Multiple Deprivation, which takes into account the state of issues like housing, education, environment and crime.
In 2019, the district was dealt a blow when plummeting visitor numbers forced the once-popular Spaceport museum to close its doors, although the impending opening of the Eureka! Science and Discovery Centre, could provide a welcome boost to the local economy. A need to regenerate the area and maintain some semblance of an entertainment scene is one of the factors which makes The Great Float’s survival so crucial.
Marc told the ECHO: “There used to be a pub where Tesco is over the road.
“Whereas 10 or 20 years ago you could have one drink here and another there and have a decent night out, there’s only ourselves and The Sandbank keeping things up in Seacombe now.
“And the closest place people can go is about another mile and a half up the road into Liscard, or they have to jump on a bus into Liverpool. So for people in the community, this is really important.
“We’re not always busy. Sometimes we just have to tick along but we’re all very passionate and invested in the place.”
One of the fundamental sources of income which helps the club to “tick along” is the function room, which has recently undergone a pretty extensive refurbishment.
Although the room is free to hire, the trade that events like weddings and christenings draws in is invaluable in ensuring that The Great Float doesn’t sink.
Marc said: “We’re working really hard at the moment. When we came back after covid, we weren’t really sure if it was going to be worth opening but we have a few younger members on the committee who are helping us look to the future.
“We’re quite excited about the function room. We’ve spent money getting it refurbished and we’re massively passionate about keeping the prices affordable.
“Our functions allow us to plough some finances back into the place”
Another of the club’s biggest assets is its sport’s teams, with the venue a hub for local football, darts and snooker.
Committee member, Carl Murphy, said: We’re trying to make it more of a venue because it’s in a hotspot for Wallasey.
“It might not be the most glamorous looking place but we want it to be a happy place. We pride ourselves on our charity events and our sports teams because it’s Great Float Sports and Social so we really want to bring that out.”
Marc and Carl have also turned their attention to transforming a derelict patch of land at the back of the club into a mini-beer garden. So whilst working men’s clubs might harken back to an era that's largely been left behind, The Great Float has no intention of being stuck in the past.
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