Pieces of a Famous British Nightclub

Fifteen years ago, Chris Hughes was among those who paid for a keepsake of The Haçienda, a nightclub that was THE place to hear live music in Manchester in the 1980s and early 1990s. Although some opted for a souvenir urinal (!), Hughes chose instead to pay five pounds for a plank from the dance floor.

On Saturday, August 15th at the Royal Northern College of Music, Hughes will premiere his new documentary about the world-famous joint. For the film, he tracked down some of the others who, like him, participated in that 2000 auction benefiting youth charities. At the time, the venue was about to be demolished to make way for apartment housing.



From a report by Andrew Bardsley in The Bolton News:

Hughes originally enlisted the help of a neighbor, who agreed to film the interviews for the documentary, and eventually he brought together a team of about 15 people who helped to bring the story to screen. The team all donated their time for free, as profits from the project will go towards cancer charities Cancer Research and Kidneys for Life.

By day an IT man, Hughes had never before made a documentary. For this debut, he was able to wrangle New Order bassist Peter Hook (who MC-ed the 2000 auction) as well as Oasis' Liam Gallagher. He came up with a pretty great title too, complete with properly marked "C": Do You Own the Dançefloor.

One-time Haçienda DJ David Haslam will be doing a Q&A at the premiere event. In the film, fellow former venue DJs Graeme Park and Mike Piercing are also featured.

[Do You Own the Dançefloor]