59 Club - History

History

It was started by Curate John Oates, who went on to become the Canon of St. Brides in Fleet Street. Leadership duties at different times were later taken over by Father Graham Hullett, William Shergold and Mike Cook. The club became well known, and attracted luminaries such as Sir Cliff Richard, Dame Elizabeth Taylor, Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon to its opening night, and later many motorcycling sportsmen and musicians. Its trustees included Bishop Trevor Huddleston, the famous anti-apartheid campaigner. For British motorcyclists, it was famous for being one of the first places in the UK to preview the previously banned biker movie The Wild One, in 1968.

From 1962 to the early 1970s, the club enjoyed fame as the top hang-out spot for British rockers and motorcyclists, and overall it created a positive archetype for the young members to follow, in the bad boys made good vein. At the time, the rockers were considered folk devils, due to their clashes with scooter-riding mods (see Mods and Rockers). The club had to split in two to keep both sides apart; the mods staying in Hackney Wick, and the rockers moving to a church property in Paddington in the West End of London. During its 1960s heyday, the club may have been the largest motorcycle club in the world, with over 20,000 members, who had to sign up in person. Members came from all over the UK, and even Europe.

By the late 80s, the 'Rocker Reunion Movement had started and a number of enthusiasts, young and old, started a 'Classic Section' with the club, a sub-group of members dedicated to upholding the 1960s rockers subculture (fashion, music and motorcycles).

The 59 Club attracted both male and female members and, according to Father Graham Hullett, its success was based on its almost entire lack of rules. Besides motorcycles and 1950s rock and roll, the club involved activities such as football and sub-aqua diving — which gave the youths, mainly from underprivileged backgrounds, an outlet for their energy. Each year, the club organised ride-outs to famous winter motorcycle rallies such as The Dragon Rally in Wales, The Elephant Rally at the Nürburgring in Germany, and to the Isle of Man TT races. The 59 BBQ event still occurs every year at TT in Laxey.

Towards the end of its heyday, the club witnessed the birth of a very different type of motorcycle club; American-style outlaw motorcycle clubs such as the London-based Road Rats and the California-originated Hells Angels. The rise of these groups, which tended to cater to an older, tougher, and sometimes criminal crowd, was in complete contrast to the 59 Club way of life, and it marked the death of the 1960s Rocker sub-culture. The subculture would not see a resurgence for almost a decade, but the legend of the 59 Club carried on with original members that were determined to keep the spirit of the 1950s alive with the aging Ton-Up/Rocker scene.