Mecca Leisure Group

This article is about the former parent company. For its social and bingo club leisure subsidiary (now owned by Rank), see Mecca Bingo.

Mecca Leisure Group
Company typePrivate
Industry
Founded1933 (as Mecca Agency Limited)
Founder
  • Carl L. Heimann
  • Byron Davies
HeadquartersLondon, England, UK
Key people
Michael Guthrie, Chairman

Mecca Leisure Group (also known as Mecca Leisure Ltd, Mecca Ltd, and Mecca Dance Ltd) was a British business that ran nightclubs, hotels, theme parks, bingo parlours and Hard Rock Cafes.[1] During the 1960s, Mecca was a centre of entertainment with numerous nightclubs throughout major United Kingdom towns and cities. Mecca ballrooms were used for the BBC TV show Come Dancing.[2] Eric Morley was a general manager of dancing at Mecca Leisure Group and was involved in the Miss World competitions.

Notable DJs performing at Mecca nightclubs include Jimmy Savile[3][4] from 1960[5] and Pete Waterman.

The Coventry Locarno is the subject of the Specials song "Friday Night, Saturday Morning", B-side to Ghost Town.[6] Chuck Berry's live version of "My Ding-a-Ling" was also recorded there.

History

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The Mecca Leisure Group has its origins in the Mecca Agency Limited, a company co-founded by Carl L. Heimann and Byron Davies in 1933 to operate the recently created dance hall chain Mecca Dancing.[7]

In 1989, the company acquired Pleasurama plc.[8]

In 1990, the Rank Organisation made an offer of £512m to acquire Mecca Leisure Group, which was initially rejected, and then accepted two months later.[1][9]

Venues

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Venue Location Opening Later names Closure
Locarno Ballroom[10] Basildon 1961
Blackpool Mecca Blackpool 1965
Locarno Ballroom Burnley[11] 1962 Cat's Whiskers, Ritzy 1996
Mecca Locarno[12] Coventry
Ilford Palais[13] London
Locarno Ballroom[14] Glasgow 1926
Mecca Locarno Ballroom[5] Leeds 1938 1969
Locarno Liverpool 1948
Lyceum Theatre London 1834
Southampton Royal Pier[15] Southampton 1963 1979
Stockport Plaza[16] Stockport 1965
Locarno Ballroom [17] Swindon 1952 1969
Mecca Dance Hall Tottenham London 1910 2004
Hammersmith Palais London 1919 2007
Sherwood Rooms Nottingham 1957 1984
Locarno Bristol 1966 1991[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b "The Rank Group plc - Company Profile, Information, Business Description, History, Background Information on The Rank Group plc". www.referenceforbusiness.com. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  2. ^ "Come Dancing - UKGameshows". www.ukgameshows.com. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  3. ^ "A Study in Branding Popular Entertainment". meccadancing.com. Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  4. ^ "Jimmy Savile". DJHistory.com. Archived from the original on 22 September 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  5. ^ a b "Leodis - a photographic archive of Leeds - Display". www.leodis.net. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  6. ^ "The Specials - Music / Lyrics". Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  7. ^ Nott, James (2015). Going to the Palais: A Social and Cultural History of Dancing and Dance Halls in Britain, 1918-1960. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199605194. pp. 26-27.
  8. ^ Ball, Aimee Lee (July 1991). "Mr Universe". New York Magazine. 24 (27): 38.
  9. ^ "Rank Group Plc - About us - History". www.rank.com. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  10. ^ "Basildon - A Chronological History 1960 - 1969". www.basildon.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  11. ^ "Locarno Ballroom, Burnley, England Concert Setlists | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm.
  12. ^ "The Coventry kid who made good". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  13. ^ "When the local palais was the place to be dancing". www.echo-news.co.uk. Archived from the original on 14 August 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  14. ^ Evening Times (March 30, 2015). "Memories: it was strictly for dancing at the Locarno Ballroom in 1962". Evening Times. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
  15. ^ "English Seaside Piers - Royal Pier, Southampton". www.theheritagetrail.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 April 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  16. ^ "BBC - In pictures: Stockport Plaza". www.bbc.co.uk. 11 December 2009. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  17. ^ "Locarno Ballroom, Swindon, England Concert Setlists | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm.
  18. ^ Frogmore Street, Bristol, 1999, 7 February 1999, retrieved 29 February 2024
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