 On May 21 2007 The Hacienda Nightclub in Manchester would have been 25 Years Old.
Without the club there would have been no ‘Cream’ in Liverpool, and perhaps no Ministry of Sound.
The thing about the hacienda was the design..... it was like a cathedral. Theres never been a club before or since with such a striking layout.
Yes the sound was at times rubbish, yes it was a nightmare queuing to get into the basement 5th man, and yes the door staff were an experience... but dancing on the stage in a full hacienda is an experience anyone would be proud to tell the grandkids.
"It just looked utterly fantastic when full." |
In 1986, it became one of the first clubs outside the US to start playing house music, hosting the Nude night on Fridays. This night quickly became legendary, and helped to turn around the reputation and fortunes of the Haçienda, which went from making a consistent loss to being full every night of the week by early 1987.
"We could play whatever we wanted to play. It was Manchester's first scally night. " - Mike Pickering
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Although peaking in popularity during the rise of the rave era with the like of Fantazia holding events there, by the time the Hacienda had closed in 1997, the term "superclub" had been coined for its well marketed and managed successors such as Cream, Ministry of Sound and Gatecrasher.
We salute Fac 51 Haçienda, an inspiration to Ministry and indeed the entire club scene as it is today. Thanks for the good times.
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