Current Developments
In 1988, the Wardour Street site was sold for redevelopment (it is now Meza and Floridita with a cigar retail shop Spanish restaurant and Cuban restaurant and some flats) and the Marquee Club was forced to move again, this time to a larger venue at 105 Charing Cross Road. During this period, American progressive metal band Dream Theater recorded their first live album, Live at the Marquee, at the venue. This site was also subsequently bought for redevelopment and the club closed in 1996. A pub now occupies the building.
In 2001, the Marquee name was bought by entrepreneurs (including Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics who owned the brand rights) and affixed to a brand new club, located in a purpose-built space in Islington, now the Islington Academy. However, this hit financial difficulties and closed in 2003, less than a year after it had opened.
Under new owner Nathan Lowry, The Marquee reopened in 2004 in the heart of London's West End at 1 Leicester Square. The opening night was called the Breakthrough Weekender. The club successfully featured new and established bands during its time here, including Razorlight, The Feeling, The Magic Numbers and held events for Ozzy Osbourne, Snow Patrol, Billy Idol, Green Day, the BPI, Evening Standard, Metal Hammer, London Fashion Week, Kerrrang!, Capital Radio, Jimmy Carr’s Friday Night Special, BBC Radio 1, XFM, Sony, Fox Film and many more. During 2007, the club moved to smaller premises on Upper Saint Martins Lane in Covent Garden on a short-term lease before deciding to close as a venue on 10 February 2008.
The Marquee may have seemed dormant but it has remained ever popular with fans around the world, with record companies continuing to release live albums recorded there, with the BBC and TV companies worldwide who feature classic footage filmed during the 60's, 70's and 80's in their music documentaries and with the many artists that have played there who credit the venue as having helped launch their careers. Most recently, Phil Collin's no.1 album, 'Going Back' was partly influenced by the songs the young Collins saw performed at the Marquee, not least the sets by The Action.
In the background, the Marquee has been far from dormant. Since 2008, Lowry has been patiently rebuilding the Marquee archive, most of which was "lost" during the Wardour Street redevelopment. A cache of previously unseen and rare film footage recorded at the Marquee over a 30 year period was returned and has formed the basis of a documentary, currently in production featuring new interviews with many of the artists that played there, including a revealing and in-depth interview with Marquee founder Harold Pendleton.
While the opening of a new London venue is still to be announced, an exciting new chapter in the story of the Marquee is about to be written as the pilot for a new music TV series entitled 'Live From The Marquee' goes into development during Spring 2012. More details will soon be posted to the official Marquee website: www.themarqueeclub.co.uk
Read more about this topic: Marquee Club
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