"It was the place to go" - memories as Chasers nightclub prepares for its last tune

-Credit: (Image: James Beck/Freelance)
-Credit: (Image: James Beck/Freelance)


It is the venue whose fame and renown went much further than Kingswood and Hanham thanks to internationally-renowned comedians and a reputation for always providing an interesting and entertaining night out.

But now, Chasers Nightclub is preparing to put on the last track and turn on the bright lights at the end of the night for the final time on Christmas Eve, and close the venue for good.

Like many clubs, things are what they used to be in the days back in the 1980s and 90s when Chasers became famous across the south west.

Back then, when Chasers opened in 1983, there were four channels on the telly, a computer game took 20 minutes to load onto a small TV screen and pubs called last orders just before 11pm. Places like Chasers were the only place for the young - and young at heart - to go for a late drink, dance and meet potential life partners, or maybe just partners for the foreseeable hours ahead.

The world is a very different place - the new generation of young people are drinking less, socialising, meeting and dating more online with a growing number of people under 30 now never contemplating that a night out would end up in a dark and loud nightclub.

Covid had a marked effect in changing the culture too, and the return from the pandemic has been stop-start for Chasers. The venue has been closed more than it’s been open since 2020, and the final knockings of the 41-year history of the club will see only Saturday night openings in December, ahead of the Christmas Eve farewell.

It’s a sad end to a venue that was an important part in people’s lives over four decades. People would drive from across Bristol, as well as the hinterland of South Gloucestershire, Bath, Somerset and Wiltshire to get to Chasers on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday nights. The under-age nights in midweek were also hugely popular for a time, and there are few people of a certain age in this region who haven’t been there at least once.

When Bristol Live posted a photo of the club on its Facebook page and asked what people remember about it, we were inundated with more than 200 responses in a matter of hours, many of which wouldn’t be suitable to share now. Many involved the club’s reputation as somewhere that liaisons could be obtained fairly easily, although to be fair to Chasers that was probably true of most clubs in Bristol in the 1980s. Others remembered the sticky carpets, the price of the drinks and way the club adapted to the changes in music tastes.

READ MORE:

Jane Glastonbury recalled that the club had such a good reputation in the early days that British Aerospace (now BAE Systems) had its annual staff Christmas do there. Gary Chapple remembered Chasers wasn’t just a nightclub with DJs, it was a live music venue, championing local bands too.

“I remember when it opened,” he said. “I also played there many times in the 1980s with The Influence”.

Pinky Malinky has fond memories. “Some of my best nights were spent at Chasers back in the 80s,” she said. “It used to be the place to go,” while Sharon Cleary is mourning the loss of the club. “My cousin and I used to go up there on a Saturday night,” she recalled. “We had some great times, made some fabulous memories.”

One familiar face to Chasers regulars was John Wheatley, who was a doorman at the club when it opened in 1983, and then for 12 years, four nights at week at least, between 1989 and 2001. “We certainly did have some fab times,” he said.