When Take That came to The Maestro in Bradford

Tim Baxter recalls it well - but he's yet to meet anyone else who does. Says Tim: "My friends and I would head to Manningham Lane over the years, first to Dollars and Dimes and later to The Maestro, which was pretty state-of-the-art for nightclubs at the time. Sometime in the early 90s I was having a night out there and a gang of young lads were suddenly introduced on stage as Take That. We'd never heard of them. Their whole act revolved around dancing, a new phenomenon for boy bands in the UK. No guitars or instruments - they just sang and danced. Within weeks, these complete unknowns were on Tops of the Pops, we couldn't believe it.

"I have never found any reference to their Bradford appearance anywhere, nor have I ever spoken to anyone other than my mate who was there. I wonder if any of your readers remember it..."

The Maestro on Manningham Lane was previously the Mecca, Tiffany's and Dollars and Dimes

Our recent call-out for readers' memories of Bradford nightclubs prompted a lively response:

lan Outlaw: "My first ever club was The Hole in the Wall, beneath The Continental Coffee, early 70s. It was mainly reggae music. Annabella's was upstairs in the ice skating rink, it had two dance floors, the upstairs floor was the first Northern Soul dance floor, this was around 1976/77. At the bottom of Thornton Road was 42nd Street. Near the Alhambra was Cavernes and the Tropicana part of La Ronde restarant. Gatsby's, off a side street on Manor Row was also a favourite. Blue Lace had a gold card membership scheme, the height of sophistication at the time! Time and Place was Bradford's first wine bar and was for over-21s - if you could get in you had the bragging rights for weeks!"

Subterranean vibe in Cavernes, pictured in 1977

Time and Place, pictured in the 1980s

Justin Brett says: "I worked at Millionaires for many years, which was what Blue Lace turned into. I used to do the food bar on the ground floor, it was an amazing place to work growing up and I'm still friends with many people who worked there.

"That job, as an 18-year-old, made me fall in love with nightclubs and the vibe, going on to work at ONeills on Kirkgate where I became assistant manager, then Big Fellas in Bingley and Pontefract for a few more years before taking a break from the industry then opening my own bar. I'm now manager at the Acca (Acapulco) in Halifax. So those days of working as a kid at Millionaires changed my life and pushed my career to where it is today."

A new palatial nightclub for Bradford - Blue Lace - opened in 1985

A hot ticket for Blue Lace in the 1980s

Other readers recall Bradford venues such as Joker, Scamps, Lingards, Rios and more...

Joan Myers says: "Who remembers the Penny Farthing? I think it was above or by C &A."

Philip Mitchell: "Pentagon, Penny Farthing, Scamps.El Gatto Bianco, and a few more! Good days!!

Gilly Plant: "Mecca, Mecca, Mecca...the best...met my first husband there."

Serena Noble: "Teen in the 90s so mine were Maestro (under-18s night), Cloud Nine, the Beehive, Tumblers (my favourite!) and Rios. Such amazing memories!"

Cloud Nine on Manor Row in 1984

Lesley Widdop: "I am 67 so Heartbeat, Mecca, Hole in Wall."

Frank Joan Lee: "Enjoyed many a night in Penny Farthing."

Jayne Fearnley: "I went to Gatsby's, had many a good time dancing the night away."

Sheila Ognissanti: "Passed many fun nights in Penny Farthing, Heartbeat and Mecca's Tamla Motown Monday nights."

Margaret Foley: "Mecca and Majestic & Lakean's in Shipley."

Karen Hunt: "My friend and I went to Cavernes by the Alhambra most Fridays."

Susan Holt: "Tropicana, which I think became Cavernes."

Stephen Dalton: "I was fortunate to deejay at The Mecca, Heartbeat and Penny Farthing. All different but all fabulous places!"

Who remembers going to Dollars and Dimes?

The Maestro on Manningham Lane

Karen Payne: "Time and Place..I was a permanent fixture! Loved it there. Also Oakwood Hall a few times. Also I think it was called Matrix, somewhere outside Heckmondwike. Did a few stints as one of the dancers on the balcony."

Gail Watson: "Talk of Yorkshire (Lyceum) on Bradford Road."

Stephen Mclaughlin: "Palm Cove, Nightfever, Sugar and and Italian Club."

Yasmin Ruby Rashid: "I use go to Maestros and worked there in the 90s."

Debbie James: "Ely Mcflys, Manor Bar, VIPs, JB’s, Dukes & Silks, Upstage & Backstage, Queens Hall, so many amazing memories."

Liz Haynes: "We used to start off at one or two pubs in town then walk up Manningham Lane to Dollars & Dimes. My sister remembers it as Tiffanys. Big dance floor and a balcony all the way round. We danced till it was chucking out time! Good times."

Robert Chamley: "Spiders Web at Odsal Top in 70s."

Janet Perrin: "Greedy Pig, Sackville Street."

Robert Owen: "I met my future wife in Braidy's wine bar on Hall Ings, below Blue Lace, in 1986."

Stephen Dalton: "Bradford has had some great clubs/venues over the years. They hold wonderful memories for so many people."

Popular Bradford club Lingard, pictured in 1991