Out in the City Issue 15 March 08

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One of London’s most groundbreaking, stretched bar staff busy all night. Sin is and over-stressed bar staff aside, the
important and legendary gay club smaller than The Scala, but it’s a West End relaunch was a huge success.
nights, Popstarz has a large and loyal location that’s perfectly suited to hosting “It was a great night and it was
following. Launched back in the 1995, Popstarz. The glamorous ‘Indie Ballroom’ a great seeing people’s reaction
it has survived both the Britpop scene that is all blood red, with gold and gilt-edged to a venue they have walked
gave birth to it, and the tragic death of its mirrors lending a feel of bohemian past a thousand times but
founder, Simon Hobart. It’s move from the grandeur. There are more gold drapes and have never been inside,” Tommy
Scala in King’s Cross (its home for the last pop art pictures adoring the adjoining Turntables told us afterwards.
half a dozen years) to Sin on Charing Cross ‘Pop Room’, while up a narrow staircase “It’s a forgotten gem right in
Road begins another momentous chapter you’ll fi nd the new ‘Rave Room’, which the middle of town. The main
in its history… and the relaunch party is decked out in fl uorescent psychedelic teething problem was the 1,700
was always guaranteed to be a busy aff air. murals and UV lights. With its soundtrack people outside that didn’t get in,
That said, even seasoned launch attendees of old skool rave, we’re sure we weren’t so it looks like we may have to
were stunned by the length of the queue the only ones to have a few fl ashbacks open up some of the other rooms
that greeted them when the new residency up there! at Sin but we’ll wait and see how
kicked off on Friday 8 February. Indie and rock tunes rule on the main it goes in a few weeks after the
“We had a queue stretching round to fl oor, and the club attracts a very mixed initial madness has died down.”
Denmark Street by 9.30pm”, confi ded crowd of studenty boys and girls, emo Get along each and every Friday
promoter Tommy Turntables, when we kids, scene glitterati and Hoxton/ night, and check the press or
caught up with him soon after the doors Shoreditch-style trendies, with the odd website for details of guest PAs and
were opened. “We’re regretfully gonna have celeb mingling with the homo hoi polloi special parties.
to turn quite a few away tonight – we won’t (we spotted Dan Gillespie Sells from The
be able to squeeze everyone in!” Feeling at the launch bash). If anything, Popstarz, every Friday at Sin, Charing Cross
Needless to say, the venue’s three rooms the move to Sin re-affi rms its position Road, WC2 (opposite the Astoria). www.
quickly fi lled to capacity, keeping the over- at the heart of the weekend scene, popstarz.org
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