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The Stokie clubbers creating mural of our musical past

When The Place, Shelley's, or The Golden Torch were the place to be

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Phillip Johnson, left, and pal Bob Leigh with one of the blue plaques commemorating old nighclubs in Stoke-on-Trent(Image: Stoke Sentinel)

Two childhood friends have joined together with 460 former clubbers to create a mural of Stoke-on-Trent's musical past.

Phillip Johnson and Bob Leigh have been friends since they were teens, revelling in the music and clubs many Stokies will remember. Whether it was dancing in The Place, Shelley's, or The Golden Torch, the two were united in their love for dance music - and they weren't the only ones.

In the years that followed, the pair set up a Facebook group to honour Stoke's clubbing history, and now 460 people have joined their mission. 'Mural 60 years of dance music - Stoke' are fundraising together to create a 100 metre square image, commemorating the city's best clubs.

Designed by acclaimed artist Tom Edwards, the piece will include The Torch, The Place, Top Rank, Heavy Steam Machine, Strikes, Jollees and Shelleys - just to name a few. Eager for the planning permission to be granted, the two have announced the mural will likely be on the side of Victoria Lounge in Hanley, providing maximum exposure for the art.

The latest plan started with a collection of blue plaques.

Phillip, 67, said: "Over the last year or two, my friend Bob Leigh and myself have put up a series of blue plaques to commemorate old nightclubs. We currently have six up in Hanley, one in Newcastle-under-Lyme and one in Stoke.

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A blue placque for Tiffany's

"A lot of people showed interest in them so we did guided tours and then we thought why not put a mural up, a bit like a Manhattan skyline, with 12,13,14 clubs painted on."

For Phillip, from Newcastle-under-Lyme, his teenage years were defined by some of the clubs included in the project. He added: "Orginally someone put one up at the Torch in Tunstall, that gave us the idea. People like to reminisce and they get all nostalgic about these things.

"Because we are in that age bracket, people are starting to exit this life so we grab on and hold on to our teenage lives.

"I would go to most of these clubs, a lot of people start when they're 16 and you borrow your brothers birth certificate then when you get into your 20s you start to drop off.

"Some people have stayed on the scene, they've lived the whole period so I guess it's a bit for them as well."

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A blue placque for The Antelope

For Phillip and Bob, the next step of the plan is acquiring planning permission. Once that is done, the mural is all systems go.

He added: "We are in the process of acquiring planning permission from Stoke-on-Trent City Council as some people have said we need it then others say get on with the artwork and sort it retrospectively.

"Tom Edwards, the artist, is very in demand so we are looking to get going in the next few weeks. Hopefully we can get going in September."

The mural is estimated to cost a total of 12,000 for the artist and the essential items, with a GoFundMe page being set up for the project. Due to the support, most of the money has now been raised.

Phil added: "Fundraiser wise, we have the money for the artist, scaffolding and some money for the planning application. I'd say we are about 4/5 the way there."

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