‘Nobody’s going out!’ Why is Britain’s nightlife in such decline – and can anything save it?

‘I’m asking everyone where to go – but they don’t know’ … Kyrie (left), visiting Birmingham from the Isle of Wight, with a friend. Photograph: Stephen Burke/The Guardian

The £5 entry is a good start. So is the loud, lively music booming down the nightclub’s stairway. But when I finally reach the dancefloor, hidden behind a curtain, my hopes for a wild night out in Birmingham are dashed. Despite the roving disco lights and blaring pop bangers, it is entirely empty, aside from a few bartenders milling around, tending to no one.

This isn’t 9pm on a random Tuesday. I am hitting the town on Saturday night, when the city’s bars and clubs should be in full swing, but Birmingham is looking like a bust.