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THE TOTTENHAM ROYAL |
The building opened in 1910 and was initially a roller skating rink. However, within a year, they decided to convert it to an Ice Skating venue and it was renamed as the Canadian Rink. We have also been informed that at the outbreak of the WW1 the building was used for a time as an Army Recruitment Centre. | |
In the
years following the First World War attendances as an Ice Rink declined and in so 1925 it
was converted to what most people will now recall as a dance hall and it was renamed as
the Tottenham Palais where it also became known as a popular Jazz venue. The building was later acquired by Mecca and renamed again to the more familiar Tottenham Royal. Mecca had a number of other Dance venues in London including The Lyceum in Central London and The Locarno in Streatham to name just a few. |
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In the early post
war years it was the big Dance Bands that played at the venue such as Ted Heath, Joe Loss,
Victor Sylvester, Geraldo, Edmundo Ros and Ambrose but things really took a change during
the Rock N Roll era in the 1950s and 1960s. Some of
the regular bands at this time were The Johnny Howard Band and the Jeff
Rowena Group.
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At the
commencement of their huge world-wide success local band The Dave Clark
Five also performed there stomping out many of their biggest hits like. Glad
All Over and Bits & Pieces etc. Throughout
the 1960s there were a succession of other top groups who performed there including The
Migil Five , The Troggs, The
Who and The Animals. It has also been
suggested that during this period the notorious Kray Twins were among some of the regular
visitors. The venue had also become a modern style disco playing R & B music from America and Ska from Jamaica as well as the latest pop hits. The 1980s saw a transformation into a string of new identities including the Mayfair Suite, the Temple, the United Nations Club, and the Zone, but its best days had passed and the garish and cavernous dance hall was finally demolished in 2004 to make way for much-needed local housing |
MISCELLANEOUS PHOTOGRAPHS OF TOTTENHAM ROYAL |
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![]() THE TOTTENHAM ROYAL - SPURS DOUBLE WINNING CUP PARADE 1961 Photograph courtesy of Ken Haynes |
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THE FOLLOWING ARE A FEW PROFILES OF THE TOP BANDS THAT PERFORMED THERE
TOTTENHAM ROYAL - JEFF ROWENA GROUP |
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1960-1964 Jeff Rowena Five appeared at the Tottenham Mayfair/Royal Dance Hall Tony Bushell - drummer for the Jeff Rowena 5 -
became a stockbroker. Gordon Mailer - pianist with the Jeff Rowena 5 - left to form his
own 'Gordon Mailer Trio' with Bobby Smith and Pat Osborne. Resident at the Tottenham Royal. Namely Jeff Rowena Five. They were there around 1960 thru 1964. and their bass player George Boarg. |
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Jeff Rowena Group : UK Instrumentalists |
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Pye 7N15328 1961 Peanut Vendor / Bullfight | |||||
Pye 7N153265 1961 Ambush / John Peel | |||||
Pye 7N15423 1962 La Cucaracha / Ten Ton Caroline | |||||
Oriole CB1787 1963 Dance Baby Dance / Diddle De Dum | |||||
Oriole CB1797 1963 Dance Baby Dance / Love Me Once Again | |||||
Oriole CB1810 1963 Diddle De Dum / LovelyWater Melon | |||||
CBS 202460 1967 Eleanor / Short Skirts | |||||
JEFF ROWENA & TONY BUSHELL |
JEFF ROWENA AT THE TOTTENHAM ROYAL |
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To see Tony Bushell perform his version of the Sandy Nelson classic Let There be Drums at the Tottenham Royal was an electrifying experience as the whole dance floor were captivated by his performance. | |||||
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TOTTENHAM ROYAL - THE JOHNNY HOWARD BAND |
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APOLOGIES FOR FUZZY PHOTOGRAPH OF THE JOHNNY HOWARD BAND |
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The
Johnny Howard Band was the resident band at the Tottenham Royal during the heady days of
the 1960s and were supported by the Jeff Rowena Group. The Band had a number of
talented resident singers which included Tony Steven, Danny Street and the beautiful Laura
Lee The Johnny Howard Band often featured on the popular BBC Radio programme Saturday Club and Easy Beat with the singers covering the hits of the day. Sadly we understand that both Danny Street and Laura Lee have now passed away. |
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TOTTENHAM ROYAL - THE DAVE CLARK FIVE | ||||||
DAVE CLARK FIVE - PERFORMING AT THE TOTTENHAM ROYAL |
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Perhaps
one of the most famous bands that performed at the Tottenham Royal with local lad Dave
Clark (From Philip Lane) fronting the group on drums. The other members of the group were
also local having come from Edmonton and Walthamstow. To further emphasise their Tottenham
connections many of their top hits were published by Spurs Music Co. The group had a string of hits in the 1960s and were very popular in the USA. The band were inducted into the USA Rock N Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. |
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![]() MIKE SMITH |
![]() RICK HUXLEY |
![]() DAVE CLARK |
![]() DENNIS PAYTON |
![]() LENNY DAVIDSON |
TOTTENHAM ROYAL - THE MIGIL FIVE |
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At the
time of their hit singles' release (MockinBird Hill) the group were
resident at the Tottenham Royal Ballroom, having succeeded the Dave Clark Five in the gig,
when they came to the attention of Kenny Ball. On his advice, they added a saxophonist to
the line-up - Alan Watson who had formerly been with Georgie Fame's Blue Flames. "Mockin Bird Hill" scraped into the top ten in the summer of 1964, but, apart from a minor hit with the follow-up, "Near You", further success eluded them. |
MEMORIES OF TOTTENHAM ROYAL If you have fond memories of the Tottenham Royal - Why not include them here ? |
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Tottenham Royal Memories - David Clinch |
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SPARE |
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SPARE |
Article prepared _ February 2014
Background Picture - Royal Members Club card 1962/3
We acknowledge information on Jeff Rowena from: Paulernonchester.com website,
Webpage article updated February 2022