A "cheesy as hell" night club with cheap drinks and sticky floors was the place where many Mancunians loved to party in the 1990s.
If you were young in '90s Manchester, you were spoilt for choice when it came to night clubs. Some of the city's best remembered clubs such as Sankeys, the Hacienda and Jilly's Rockworld were at their peak during that decade.
One place that perhaps didn't exude the same '90s "cool" as the big name clubs but was loved just as much by its own crowd was Fridays night club in Didsbury. Based on Palatine Road, the club originally opened in the 1970s as The Riverside.
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Sometime the 1980s, the venue became Fridays which went on to be a staple of Manchester's nightlife throughout the '90s. The club was made up of three different rooms playing different music for revellers to choose from.
Many who went there during that era remember the club's strict dress code which meant those not deemed suitably attired were regularly turned away by the bouncers. Looking back at an archived version of the club's old website, the details of the strict door policy can still be found.
The door policy on the archived site states: "Ladies and Gentlemen are expected to be of a smart appearance. We request the gentlemen wear a smart shirt, smart jeans are acceptable for ladies and gents, no training shoes, hooded tops, tracksuit tops or baseball caps will be allowed entry into the nightclub.
Adding: "No coats are to be worn within the nightclub and must be deposited into the cloakroom on entry."
Despite the strict rules, many people recall having some of their best nights out at the club. Recently, a photograph of Fridays was posted on the popular We Grew Up In Manchester Facebook group, which attracted over 500 comments and thousands of likes.
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One of the memories of Fridays that was repeatedly mentioned was the club's sticky carpets.
Louise France said: "Yep, sticky floors and wee on the floor in the toilets with a massive queue. Fantastic times had all round."
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Donald McGeorge commented: "I remember being stood at the bar one night, went to step away and my shoes stuck to the carpet." But the main sentiment shared was just how much fun people had at the lost venue.
Vivien Haslam said: "It was cheesy as hell but also compulsory after the Didsbury pub crawl when you couldn't be ar**d going to town." While Lynne Smethurst said she "used to travel from north Manchester many a Friday night to go there."
Jenny Dempsey remembered: "Thursday's '80s night, all drinks 80p till midnight - excellent times. Miss the good old days."
But Jo Foster's enduring memories of Fridays were: "Ben Sherman shirts, Rockports, Lynx Africa, (and) cig burns." While Wayne Hallows simply said: "best nights of my life!"
Jody McNabb said: "Loved it there - great music and drinks were cheap. Wish it opened up again."
While Debbie Voss-Hamnett posted: "It should be reopened. If I’m fortunate enough to win the big one I would love to buy the place and open it up again."
Fridays continued into the 2000s and even launched a Polish party night in 2010 to welcome people in Manchester who were originally from Eastern European communities. However the club closed for good around 2016 before the venue reopened as Bar Rogue.
Does Fridays awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below.
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