100 Club – London

The 100 Club is another venue with a history to make you cry. Originally a restaurant called Macks it came into being as a music venue in 1942.

Its history goes from all those jazz legends including Ella Fitzgerald to secret Rolling Stones gigs to the first real stirrings of a Punk scene with the classic 1976 Punk Rock Festival. This was organised by Ron Watts and included the Sex Pistols, Clash, Buzzcocks, Siouxsie, Subway Sect, The Damned and Vibrators.

It was the 100 Club Festival that first took Punk into the media albeit for the wrong reasons- violence – as a girl was partially blinded by Sid Vicious throwing a glass at The Damned that shattered on a pillar. Eventually the 100 Club banned Punk gigs with ATV in 1978 being the last. Ironically it was for continued violence.

The 100 Cub is still in business and in the eighties again started to put on punk gigs which it has continued to do so. As of 2024 the venue is still putting on gigs right in the middle of one of London’s busiest streets. Who knows how long that will last but long may it do so.

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