100 Club faces closure

Following the news that Cardiff Barfly closed earlier this month, it has been revealed that London’s legendary 100 Club venue could close its doors by the end of the year due to rising rents in the Capital.

The 350-capacity venue, based in Oxford Street in Central London was an important staple of the original punk scene in the UK during the late 1970’s and is famous for staging early intimate shows by the likes of the Sex Pistols, The Buzzcocks, The Clash, David Bowie and Oasis. The venue has played live music since 1942 when it was a jazz club.

However, in recent years, the rent of the building has reportedly seen a rise of more than £13,800 per month in addition to £4000 per month in business rates.

In an interview with the Evening Standard, Venue owner Jeff Horton said: "In the US, the rents are frozen at certain venues that have a bit of heritage. Here it's a total free-for-all. It makes me so angry”.

Horton continued: “The Government, Westminster council and even some of the commercial landlords say they want to help small businesses, they say they want to preserve London's uniqueness, they want to help multi-cultural venues”. The venue is apparently hoping for the intervention of a buyer or a major sponsor before the end of this year.