Dublin Castle, Camden
| Dublin Castle | |
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.jpg)
View of the pub from Parkway
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 Location within London
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| General information | |
| Type | Public house |
| Location | Camden Town, London, England |
| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
| Opened | c. 1856[1] |
| Website | |
| www |
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The Dublin Castle is a pub and live music venue in Camden Town, London. It was built for Irish navvies working on railways in London, but gained prominence as a venue in the late 1970s after the band Madness established a live reputation there. Subsequently, it was an important venue in the early stages of several bands' careers and contributed to the Britpop musical genre. Amy Winehouse was a regular visitor to the pub.
History
The pub was built to serve workmen on the nearby railway, as part of a newly constructed group of buildings. It catered for Irish immigrants to London, in order to segregate them away from other nationalities and avoid racial-related assaults.[2] Music was originally restricted to occasional traditional Irish sessions.[3] The emergence of other venues around Camden Town, including the Roundhouse, Dingwalls and the Electric Ballroom brought an increased interest in live music to the area, including the Dublin Castle.[4] The pub can now accommodate an audience up to 200 people.[5]
Madness first attempted to secure a gig at the venue in late 1978, when they were still known as the Camden Invaders. They first performed at the venue on 16 January 1979.[6] According to singer Suggs, the group had to pretend they were a jazz band to get a booking.[7] Landlord Alo Conlon invited the group back for a residency at the venue, and helped to establish their reputation.[8]
Conlon hand picked bands to play in the pub that he thought would attract an audience, and word of mouth spread so that A&R scouts would visit the pub to see what up and coming acts were available.[8] The pub was an important venue for Britpop acts in the 1990s, as it was often the first major London gig for bands that later found commercial success, including Blur.[5] Amy Winehouse performed regularly at the venue and occasionally helped to serve drinks to customers.[9]
In 2008, Conlon received a lifetime achievement award for his services to the pub industry in Camden. He died in January 2009 aged 73. A street party was held on Parkway, with Suggs in attendance.[8]
References
Citations
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Reed 2011, p. 80.
- ↑ Reed 2011, pp. 11–12.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Reed 2011, p. 81.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Sources
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
