For six years during the Swinging '60s, the Club a'Gogo lit up Newcastle's vibrant after-dark scene and earned a legendary reputation.
Now, nearly 60 years on from its hey day, the famous nightspot is the subject of a new book - Club a'Gogo and the Mod scene of 1960s Newcastle - outlining its rise, fall and lasting legacy. It is written by the husband and wife team, Paul and Jools Donnelly from Gateshead, who have done much in recent years to keep the name of the Club a'Gogo alive - from successfully campaigning for a blue heritage plaque to be installed at the venue's former site, to publishing a number of well-received magazine titles - and from hosting live music, social and retail events, to establishing a dedicated Facebook page.
Opening upstairs from the Handyside Arcade on Newcastle's Percy Street in July 1962, the Club a'Gogo offered “dancing in the Latin Quarter” and was a place where you could “listen to England’s prime jazz groups in the luxurious jazz lounge”. The club’s owner Mike Jeffery (who would go on to make quite a name for himself as ‘Mr Newcastle’ and a man with ‘connections’) told a Chronicle reporter how a “record hostess would play discs” in one room, while the other was “strictly for jazz devotees”.
