A friend took me up to this club in North Street called the Regina. When I went in I was extremely impressed because it had a very grand entrance up a magnificent flight of stairs. The proverbial flight of stairs you see in pantomimes, with Dames coming down. And when we got there I must admit it was breathtaking. It was a beautiful carpet, the whole length of the room was a bar, completely mirrored at the back, with the most beautiful crystal chandeliers you’ve ever seen in your life. A very nice grand piano in the window. Seats all round the wall, it was so unusual, all the seats were black velvet. The bar was white plastic on top, but cushioned black velvet, the front of it. Everything else was gold, it was very ornate. The owner made us very welcome, he’d got some canned music on. My friend said, ‘You’ve got a nice big piano, haven’t you got a pianist? My friend here plays the piano, he’ll play for you.’ And that’s how it started. The music had to be cover for conversation. It wasn’t to be listened to. Although if someone wanted to convey something to someone else without going up and saying it, they would ask me to play whatever it was. 

Well, it was quite flagrant in the end. He used to be open till two and three in the morning on Bank Holidays and on Saturdays. He got warned — the publicans didn’t like him, the publicans went to the police and said, ‘It’s not right that he’s serving booze till two or three in the morning, getting away with it, he must be shut.’ And of course, eventually, he got what we used to know as being done. And of course he shut it, it never re-opened as a club.’

Take the crossing and head down Ship Street, turn right into Duke’s Street and then first left down Middle Street. The next place of interest is a little past the Hippodrome and Synagogue on your left.