XX CLOSED RG9 2AA Diamonds & Pearls, Henley-on-Thames

[Moonraker]

There are plans to open a new adult entertainment venue with "strippers" in Henley-on-Thames.

click here

My first reaction was yippee: I can spend some time at the nearby day-centre for over-60s, then nip down the street for some "adult entertainment". But I suspect that there will be many hours between the one closing and the other opening.

The Mayor has a point about the demand. The population immediately around Henley is not huge, and there are established venues at Reading, High Wycombe and Maidenhead, all ten miles or so away.

The Henley Standard website has a simple on-line poll about the proposal. Just go to http://www.henleystandard.co.uk and it's in the middle of the page.

When I checked, opinions were equally divided.

I'm surprised at the number of clubs etc that have been opening or expanding at a time of acute economic downturn and with a feared tightening of legislation. Are they anticipating the latter, in the hope it will affect only new venues seeking to open after it has been introduced?

[Moonraker]

The second link above now leads to an update of the story. The state of the poll isn't immediately evident, but if one votes one sees an interim result of 80 for, 73 against.

For the original application, see here

I'm not sure why the licensing authority is shown as the Royal Borough of Maidenhead and Windsor (in which the applicant lives and which wants any new legislation to be retrospective), when the premises are in South Oxfordshire District Council.

Thursday, January 15: Being a newspaper, the Henley Standard's website obviously changes rapidly, though today there's still a link on it to the second story. The poll is now over.

[Moonraker]

The venue has now opened as Diamonds & Pearls amidst continuing protests from local residents. The story has been taken up by several national papers, one asking "What would Boris say", Boris Johnson having been the local MP before he became Mayor of London.

See here also.

[Moonraker]

This club will NOT now open:

read here

On Radio Four's The News Quiz today, there was a reference to a newspaper report of the councillor leading the protests saying that he was no prude, had been to strip clubs and had enjoyed them but "didn't want it rubbed in his face"!

[Moonraker]

It has opened after all, under new management.

see here

The club must be rubbing its hands with glee with all this publicity - on the front page of the local paper one week after another, on local radio and in several national papers.

[Moonraker]

I've just seen a printed copy of the latest issue of the Henley Standard, which has a longer feature than that in the link above.

Hours are from 8pm to 2am, entry is £10 and PDs are £20. The girls come from "all over the place".

The antis are still banging on about getting the local authority to reverse its decision, though it's explained that it can't, and are quoting the usual "research" into the social ills of lap-dancing clubs.

Updated, February 15: the disquiet over Diamonds & Pearls continues and is covered in the latest issue of the Henley Standard. Rather than going on posting links, I'll leave it to anyone interested to follow the saga by accessing

the Henley Standard

The antis appear to have realised that they can do nothing in the short term but are monitoring any antisocial activity that can be linked to the club. There were such problems with the former nightclub on the premises.

Updated, February 23: Passing through Henley one morning, I checked out the premises, which face on to a car park. There's a discreet sign for Diamonds & Pearls and a warning that "security" will deal with any argy-bargy in the queues for entrance - though this almost certainly dates to the previous business on these premises and/or the current nightclub that shares them.

[Moonraker]

Diamonds & Pearls wants to extend dancing up to 5am, re-igniting the fuss that attended its opening:

click here

With Henley Regatta taking place in a month's time, perhaps the club wants to capitalise on all the extra visitors that the town will get.

A dancer tells me that the venue is quite small.

[The Great Smell Of Brute]

Address:

Greys Road Car Park
Market Place
HENLEY-ON-THAMES
RG9 2AA

[Victor23]

Last I heard was that the police wanted it closed down and the council didn't want to give it a licence but the club is appealing against the decision - which at least enabled it to benefit from the crowds that go to the regatta in July.

Vic

[Victor23]

A cousin of mine lives nearby and says that Diamonds & Pearls appeal will be heard in December, so at least it's gained an extra 8 months of business, during which it may have cleaned up its act as far as the authorities are concerned.

Henley may have a reputation for gentility (hence the initial opposition to the club) but my cousin says he avoids it at night because of riff-raff from outside. Now the police are trying to have the licences of two pubs in the town withdrawn.

Vic

Latest news is that the owners want to revert to being a conventional night-club.

[Victor23]

My cousin has been quick to bring to my attention that Diamonds & Pearls has closed:

http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/news/ne ... id=1024546

Can't help feeling that it was asking for trouble opening in a small town like Henley and it seems to have caused more problems than most venues.

Not good times for the local dancing scene, with short-lived entertainment at the Golden Farmer in Bracknell and the De Burgh at West Drayton, the Honey Pot in Maidenhead in administration if still open, the Wellington dump in Reading (do wonder how often there's dancing there) and the White Horse at Wycombe having lost a little of its lustre.

Vic

[zante]

Mooney will be spitting feathers!

[Victor23]

This may be one of my most inconsequential postings yet, but I was in Henley today to watch the start of a stage of the Women’s Tour of Britain cycle race.

The team vehicles assembled in Greys Road Car Park, right next to where Diamonds & Pearls had its short-lived existence. I never bothered to visit the venue, but today there were more than 90 young female cyclists getting ready for four hours of racing.

Each team went up on to a stage to be introduced to the public, and the presenter remarked that the women looked far more cheerful than their counterparts on the men’s Tour of Britain. Indeed, nearly all were smiling and waving at the crowd. The proportion of nice-looking girls was higher than at a SEV and last year’s winner, Coryn Rivera, is a sponsor’s dream: world-class athlete and highly articulate, with a great TV presence.

I’d mentioned to a Polish dancer that her compatriot Kasia Niewiadomawas a top rider, and she offered to teach me a few words of Polish to call out to her. I declined: it’s a challenging language and I still have trouble pronouncing and spelling the dancer’s real name, and I recalled years ago Mel of the Axe tellling me some Portuguese to say to another Brazilian dancer, but I saw the mischievous look on her face and didn’t risk it – just as well, as she later told me what the words meant …

After leaving Henley, the race passed through a village where another Brazilian dancer (now retired), Esther, lives. I wonder if she was out watching it with her children ..

EDIT By coincidence, I've come across this old article about the club's woes - possibly one of the dead links earlier in this thread had originally led to it.

(Note the lady passing by the door - a dancer taking away her scanties after her last shift? )

No evidence of a jazz club - or anything else - when I was there today.


Two Polish riders "busting a move" in the team coach with rather more verve than some dancers.

[Victor23]

Summary of the saga here

Sounds like it deserved to have closed down.