I'll be honest. I had mixed feelings about this night and I was a bit nervous about the whole event. I don't really go clubbing much these days, but I knew I'd love the music.

When the news about Turnmills closing first hit my Inbox I was surprised and in some ways relieved. I've felt for a long time that Turnmills has had it's time for a good six years at least. To me, it had become a large, unspectacular pit of a club with wasted space and years of wear and tear with no decent attempts to overhaul it inside. The toilets were always in a state of disrepair, the hot uncomfortable rooms linked by congestion corridors and a layout designed to frustrate you after two hours inside. Fortunately, the promotions had swayed more towards the trance / hard dance side of things so I had been left with very few reasons to go. Maybe I've just become old and boring, but that's ok because I've had my time. And besides, I had to let go and let other people have an amazing time clubbing every weekend. Everybody wins.

However, after reading the interview with Danny Newman I had the urge to begin pulling out my Live at the Social and Fatboy mixes (CD and tape) from the early and mid-90s. For the next few weeks I was auto-reversing my walkman on the tube everyday and my journeys to work became pure nostalgia. I knew I had to return one last time. I was guessing he would be trying to get the Chemicals to return and when I saw the line-up I smiled a big smile. And remembering Fatboys' punching arms at his Big Beat nights, well, there was no decision here. I was going to go.

As ever with the big nights people were arriving at different times so I agreed to pick up the four tickets at 9pm and we'd try and meet in a pub. However, upon arrival I saw a bouncer yelling at some guy before sending me to the wrong queue. He was clearly not in a good mood so who was I to argue with him. After queuing up twice (the bouncer wasn't great with the alphabet) we get to the door. I'm about to ask about the ticket collection and manage to say, 'Hi there. I'd like to pick the tickets...' before a barrage of abuse and yelling at me occurs. He rants on about not standing there all night telling us stupid people that we can't pick up tickets, etc. He was rude, offensive, and extremely aggressive. We decide to back off. With bouncers like that I'm happy Turnmills is closing. I hope they never find work again as they epitomise everything you hate about nasty bouncers. I wasn't the only one as well - I saw them abusing many punters. I nearly went home I was so angry. The door staff (carrying the lists) seemed too scared to argue with them as well. I still went in rather begrudgingly.

Inside, things were as expected. The toilets were a mess and people queuing up and down the corridor and to the stairs. The dancefloor was rammed (no change there) and if you stood in the wrong spot you were shoved aggressively and to the point you could imagine fights breaking out. However, bar the usual small percentage of chavs, wannabe gangstars, wide boys, etc, the crowd was really good. The bar staff were friendly and it wasn't difficult to get drinks. You had a find your space and stick to it. So we did. We made some friends and we danced all night.

The music was why I was there so I'll get to the point. The Chemical Brothers had clearly changed their style over the years so it was less breaks and more techno tempo'd tracks mixed in with some of their own classic productions. I half expected this having seen many of the gigs over the years and owning all their albums. It was still good with some very dirty basslines and samples. There were a few moments where the sound stopped or the mixing dropped and it sounded like there were technical hitches, but I couldn't see them to see if they were wasted or not. I guess I wanted something like I remembered from '96, but hey, I haven't heard them DJ for over eight years so I can't really complain. As for Fatboy, well, he was as he always has been. Jumping around like a lunatic in the DJ booth, messing up the odd mix and similarly to the Chemicals the sound dropped occasionally. He really did supply the party vibe again. Loved it. For a good four hours I was jumping around, pumping my arms in the air drinking water, diet coke, and vodka and diet coke. I didn't care for fools that still stand around the edges of the dancefloor slightly swaying and looking at people. They weren't there for the music clearly like me.

I really enjoyed it and haven't danced like that for a long time. But, I'm still glad Turnmills is closing. I wouldn't have gone back there again. If the bouncers hadn't put me off, then the club, the building, and the mess it still is would have. For me, Turnmills had it's time in the 90s. For others, they were still enjoying it and that's fine. We live for our moments and mine has passed and I want to leave it at that.

Farewell...

I hope they never find work again as they epitomise everything you hate about nasty bouncers.

Amen to that!I was playing there last Feb for Kinky Malinki,after my 2 hr set went to ladies room and got chucked out on the street as i didnt have a stamp on my hand!!!!Cue frantic phone call to be re admitted!Nightmare!

the hot uncomfortable rooms linked by congestion corridors and a layout designed to frustrate you after two hours inside.

The layout was one of the things I loved about Turnmills - you never got bored in there cause there was always a new little spot you could find that you didn't know existed before!

Very different story to my evening. I arrived, a polite bouncer asked for the letter of my surname, pointed me to a queue with one other person in it, gave my details to the girl with the list, got a ticket, went in and was inside the venue within thirty seconds. Cloakroom - no queue. Bar - no queue.

When I came to leave, the taxi guy got me a taxi in 10 seconds and I was on my way home.

I agree the layout of the venue is dreadful and the main room was unsurprisingly pushy since everyone wanted to see the Chemical Brothers.

In my opinion, a lot of London venues could take a few lessons in staffing from Turnmills - sorry your experience wasn't the same.

Obviously, I had the same experience as Dave, but I'd just like to add that the loos near the entrance were fine all night - short(ish) queues and reasonable (though not perfect) state. The smaller set in the middle of the club did have horrendous queues though.

I found it difficult to fault the staff tbh, I really felt for the poor guys who where walking around trying to collect bottles in the crowd, proper job.

You can't really complain about the crowding considering there where only 2 headliners and not a lot else, so everyone was trying to get into the main room at the same time, maybe 2 parallel 4 hour sets would have been more fun!!

What I wasn't keen on is the crowd, I felt like it wasn't the usuall turnmills croud I'd got used to over the last few years, moreover it was whoever was lucky enough to get a ticket or paid £110 on ebay. I thought that this was evident as it became half empty for Justin Robertson's (pretty amazing) set at 4 am. The turnmill croud i knew would have had it till 6am no trouble!
Another sign of this was the amound of bloke's queing for the cubicals, sure that many people don't need a shit! You know what I'm sayying! Normally the place is full of people off their box I appreciate but all the Charlie boys im not so sure?


Still the music was pretty dam good, the organsiation of the night I thought was seemless, right amount of people,opening up Annexo made a nice addition as it offered somewhere to chillout,

The Chem's where wikkid, dunno about fatboy slim, he kinda wound it down at the end, could have done with a fatboy production to finish it off, considering there was another 4 hours of the night left!!

As an old trade baby more than anything else every saturday pretty much 91 - 96 i too was tempted out of 'retirement' for the final weekend on the sunday night. the club was definitely past its best appearance wise - tatty, too many 'connecting' rooms etc but the atmosphere on the main dancefloor remained superb and not bettered. a superb night and still the friendliest crowd to be found once you 'got amongst it'. Shitty bouncers exist everywhere - but its what happens inside that really counts. mixed feelings indeed - but where else were you going to be on this weekend?

What I wasn't keen on is the crowd, I felt like it wasn't the usuall turnmills croud I'd got used to over the last few years, moreover it was whoever was lucky enough to get a ticket or paid £110 on ebay. I thought that this was evident as it became half empty for Justin Robertson's (pretty amazing) set at 4 am. The turnmill croud i knew would have had it till 6am no trouble!

I got that feeling myself (and I admit I'm not a Turnmills regular) and was a bit surprised how many people started leaving after 4am. At least Turnmills have all those weird spaces they can block off so that the place doesn't look too empty when they do.

Shame Yao didnt enjoy the night as much as he expected.

I didnt make it on staturday. I can certainly say friday and sunday nights were nights i'll NEVER forget, perfect in every way

yeah kinda of wish I had of gone to either of the other nights, fell into the headliner trap,
some of the best nights I've had have been people I've never heard of, trouble with headliners, is as much as you want to see them, everyone else does as well! Still it was a proper send off I have to say,

i hadn't been for years and it almost brought a tear to my eyes cos I forgot how cool the place was there is no where quite like it a proper clubbers club, true to its values throughout its time (i can only comment on the last 5 years). When the turnmills was first a club I was probably still at primart schoool! You couldn't wish to meet a better croud, which is what disapointed me about the saturday night, didn't feel like the 'true croud' still perfect organisation, really felt valued to be a part of something so great.

Just leave's me to ask who will fill its shoe's? For me it has to be the EGG for its cool layout and itimate atmoshpere and a cool croud that always make me feel welcome; although at the end of the day they are just clubs and its really what you make of them.

Turnmill you'll be a hard act to follow, you have left a big gap in Londons after hours scene, looking forward to seeing who will step up their game to take on the corporate superclubs such as fabric and the ministry

Glad to have been a part of something great xxx

In my opinion, choosing the Saturday night to go out of the three was always going to be the wrong choice. With such massive headliners of course it's going to attract more people, less "proper" clubbers" and more aggro!

I went on Friday and can honestly say I've never been anywhere so well organised. Yes there were queues for the toilet, yes the dancefloor was busy in the peak periods, yes the drinks were as expensive as ever!! But it's a nightclub not someone's house party.... what do you expect?

I heard only good reports about Sunday too. It shows a club CAN be run with decent standards!

and more aggro!

I'm not aware of anyone suggesting there was any. I certainly didn't see any.

I'm not aware of anyone suggesting there was any. I certainly didn't see any.

The original post?

" Inside, things were as expected. The toilets were a mess and people queuing up and down the corridor and to the stairs. The dancefloor was rammed (no change there) and if you stood in the wrong spot you were shoved aggressively and to the point you could imagine fights breaking out. "

The original post?

Ah, OK, though I think it's overstating it a bit:

if you stood in the wrong spot you were shoved aggressively

There was one point at the back of the main room where I actually annoyed lots of people by pushing through them - in fact, I was actually carried across by a wave of people and couldn't actually stop myself from moving! However, it didn't seem to be aggression, but just the sheer weight of people.

you could imagine fights breaking out

"You could imagine"? Well, maybe the original poster could, but I think that's over-dramatising slightly! :-)

Sorry.... what point are you actually trying to make here?

Weren't tickets sold out before the headliners were announced anyway? Friday's crowd and staff were superb - no hassle or aggro - everyone was knowledgeable about the music and there to enjoy it.

what point are you actually trying to make here?

That a place that was jampacked (the main room) was unavoidably pushy but that the original poster seems to have had a worse time than either me or anyone else I saw there. I really don't see where the idea of "you could imagine fights breaking out" came from at all.

I really don't see where the idea of "you could imagine fights breaking out" came from at all.

and the fact that he says "imagine" means that he didn't actually see any. My Saturday night was pretty much
can honestly say I've never been anywhere so well organised. Yes there were queues for the toilet, (but not if you went to the ones by the entrance) yes the dancefloor was (very) busy in the peak periods, yes the drinks were as expensive as ever!! But it's a nightclub not someone's house party.... what do you expect?

I think you're right that Saturday was going to be the night out of the three which attracted more irregular clubbers, but that said, it was an absolutely blinding night.

Weren't tickets sold out before the headliners were announced anyway?

no they werent...but they sold out 48 hours after they were announced.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I think I made it clear the perspective I was coming from.

As a review I need to state all the pros and cons from the night, which is what I did. As a former clubber I guess I've grown tired and less tolerant of certain things, but likewise many of the clubs that did as well as Turnmills improved their facilities and refurbished many times over the years.

Maybe it's just my friends and I that felt this, but we still felt it.

I think the comments are beginning to make me look like I hated the night. Far from it, I had a thoroughly good time and don't regret it at all. My feelings about Turnmills really are summarised by my last three sentences.

Turnmills gave me many happy years and that is why I went back. I still came away with a smile on my face.