Good Fun?

- What is the difference between a club and a club night/club event?

In general there is a distinction between the management of a club and the management of the events which occur there. Management of the club refers to management of the actual place (often called "the venue"), the alcohol licence, and management of the bar staff and security staff. The important point to understand is that you generally would want to find out what specific "event" or "night" is happening at a club if you want to know what kind of music is going to be played because the club's management will often arrange to have different types of music on different nights.


- What are the main nightclubs in London?

In terms of size the biggest clubs in London are Fabric, Ministry of Sound (often called "Ministry" or "MoS" for short), Matter (which is owned and operated by the owners of Fabric), SE One, Egg, Koko, Pacha, The Fridge, Heaven and Fire. All are in central London except Matter which is at the O2 centre in Docklands. All these clubs have different types of music on different nights.


- What are all the different types of music?

There are so many different types ("genres") of music being played at clubs that at first it seems very confusing! TimeOut divides clubs into 4 categories:
House, electro and techno
Hip hop, D&B, R&B and funk
Indie, rock, retro and pop
Freestyle and global beats
The first two categories are types of Electronic Dance Music


- How much does it cost to go to a club? How do I buy tickets? When are the busy times/days?

The cost of entry to a club can vary from nothing (free admission) to as much as £15-£20 depending on the venue, the night of the week. Most club nights will sell advance tickets through a ticketing website such as Ticketmaster or Ticketweb, or through local specialist record shops. Some of the specialist dance music websites such as ResidentAdvisor and Skiddle also sell tickets. Buying advance tickets has the advantage of usually being cheaper and quicker than queuing up and paying when you arrive at the club ... but the disadvantage is that you will have to get yourself and your friends organised in advance. Depending on what night of the week it is and how popular the event is, queuing to pay at the door may take no time, 10 minutes, or even an hour or longer.



How do guestlists operate? What is the advantage of being on one?

There are usually 2 types of guestlist at an event - free entry, and concessions. Concession guestlist usually means paying a reduced price rather than free entry. The advantages of guestlist - apart from free or reduced entry price - are usually things like access to the VIP area and the ability to enter later than when booking advanced tickets. Some "West End" clubs require all their customers to have made an arrangement to be on a guestlist. If you don't know people who are connected to "the scene" (dj's, promoters, club staff or their friends) that will put you on their guest list, you can find out more about getting onto a commercially organised guestlist from websites like clubplanet or londonparties.

- What can I wear?

Dress codes vary. Most "music-oriented" clubs don't care too much what you wear. Casual clothes - for example, nice jeans, trainers & a t-shirt - are fine for guys and girls, although girls will often "dress up" in their best clothes anyway. Occasionally events have a "fancy dress theme" - at Halloween, for example. If that is the case then you may not get in if you have not made any effort to dress appropriately. Some of the "West End clubs" we referred to above have stricter rules (no trainers or no t-shirts, for example) - refer to the websites listed in the "West End clubs" section for advice about dress codes for the different clubs in this category.




- Are there any rules about how to socialise in a nightclub?

The only real rule that applies in nightclubs is that you should not annoy others - just relax, have a dance, meet new people and enjoy yourself.


- What can I do to reduce the risk of losing money or valuables?

Almost all clubs will have a cloakroom or coatcheck facility where you can put your coat or or bags for the evening, although we would advise you not to leave anything too valuable in the cloakroom. Keep the ticket somewhere where you won't lose it, and remember to collect your stuff before you leave.





- How can I get home safely afterwards?

Most clubs will have have an arrangement with an "official" local minicab company who will have minicabs for hire waiting outside. These should be safe, although they often try to charge more than the usual price. For safety reasons definitely avoid unlicensed minicabs which often also wait around outside clubs.

In London you can use the Transport For London Cabwise scheme by texting HOME to 60835* (cost is 35p plus standard text message rate). You will be texted back the numbers of one taxi and two licensed minicab firms who are operating in the area you are texting from. You can use Yell.com (online Yellow Pages) to find local minicab companies in other areas.

In London and other cities where metered cabs (including black cabs) operate it is cheaper to take one of these if the journey is not too far, providing you can find one.
The third option is to use regular public transport which usually starts around 5am. Remember that the last Underground trains are usually a little after midnight in London. Between these times you can use the night bus system although this is often quite slow and you may have to wait a while for the bus that you want.