The Cross (nightclub)
The Cross was a nightclub in York Way Goods Yard, King's Cross, London, England between 1993 and 2007,[1] closing on New Year's Day 2008.[2]
The club was started[3][4] by Billy Reilly and Keith Reilly (the subsequent founder of Fabric), who had originally wanted to open a pre-club drinks bar next to Bagleys nightclub. Camden Council however granted the Reilly brothers a full dance licence and they started hosting club events at the Cross, immediately attracting a well-dressed crowd and a cult-like following.[5][6]
Image
The Cross was known for long-running promoter residencies, such as Glitterati, the Italian-themed Vertigo and progressive house superclub Renaissance. DJs such as Danny Rampling, Dave Seaman, Ian Ossia, Nigel Dawson and Judge Jules became established residents and names such as Paul van Dyk and BT (musician) appeared before they became major stars in their own right.
The club's bar-counters were made of steel and frosted glass and the outside terrace area had cobble-stones, couches and day-beds covered in velvet. Club-goers were equally well-dressed, representing a significant break from the cheesier clubs common in London in the early 1990s.
Impact
The Cross was revered as a step-change in the London nightclub scene, which had previously been dominated by unglamorous and at times dangerous venues.
Looking back over the club's history in 2008, Billy Reilly commented:
- In the early days in particular we had the most beautiful people coming to the Cross,’ he says, recalling nights like Glitterati and Cheeky People, L’Amour and Milk ’n’ 2 Sugars. ‘I'd be surrounded by gorgeous girls who’d laugh at my bad jokes and tell me how wonderful I was and I'd look at them and think I'd died and gone to heaven. You've got to remember, one Saturday I had a garage and no one wanted to talk to me, the following week I had a club and everybody wanted to be my friend. You could make a film about it: from oily fingers and overalls, suddenly it was Patrick Cox and furry trousers.[7]
References
- ^ "The Cross Nightclub: past, present & future". Kentish Towner. 2015-07-03.
- ^ "Top 5 Lost London Nightclubs of the 90s". Kentish Towner. March 2013.
- ^ "From Bagley's to Spiritland - Over 10,000 clubbers used to flock to their Kings Cross mecca every weekend".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Britain's Railways Created the Country's Biggest Clubs and Gentrification Shut Them Down".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Debby Lee & Billy Reilly / Bagleys & The Cross / 1987-2000". Camden 50. 2015-10-19.
- ^ "Britain's Railways Created the Country's Biggest Clubs and Gentrification Shut Them Down". Vice. 2014-11-06.
- ^ "The end of clubbing in King's Cross". 2008-01-02.