Blast from the past!

ARE you one of the gang? Good times at the Smokies final party, 2007

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BACK in the day it was the club to be in; glitter balls dazzled and eyes met across a crowded dance floor.

Over the years thousands of Oldhamers danced the night away at Smokies nightclub. For many, a chance meeting blossomed into marriage, for others the union was... not quite so long-term.

Whatever crazy, hazy memories people have of Smokies in Ashton Road, Bardsley, whose last dance came in 2007 when the club finally closed its doors, they all feature the sounds of the 80s and 90s.

Which is why the venue is having a final fling, to bring together old acquaintances and give those bubble perms, shoulder pads and Spice Girl moves an airing.

Organisers are staging the last Smokies nightclub reunion on Friday for all their much-appreciated previous party-goers. Even original DJs Alan Lewis, Chris Sharp and Chris Nally will be spinning the discs, taking clubbers back to the days of Madonna, electro-pop and Madchester.

“Smokies really was the place to be,” said reception manager Wendy Williams, who has worked at the hotel and conference centre for 28 years, right through the peak of the club’s popularity.

“It was a nightclub for nearly 30 years. Many people met their partners here and they still come back to the hotel now. We’ve even had their weddings and christenings here - in fact a lot of people think the nightclub is still open.

“This is the last opportunity for people to come back and experience those heady nightclub days, a real trip down memory lane.”

The venue fell victim to a decline in the nightclub industry in the mid-noughties and new owners decided to convert the space into a wedding and conference centre.

Smokies started out as a cafe, the Smoke Pole Grill - named after equipment used on the former mining site. It later became a restaurant and hosted popular dinner dances, which eventually evolved into a nightclub. In 1989 it also opened as an hotel

Tickets for the reunion are £10 or £65 including bed, breakfast and two tickets.

See www.smokies.co.uk/events for details.

And let us know about your Smokies memories - pictures to pictures@oldham-chronicle.co.uk and stories to news@oldham-chronicle.co.uk