Dagenham Roundhouse is a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and music venue located in Dagenham, London, England. It was established in 1969 as the "Village Blues Club", and from then until 1975 it was considered east London's premier rock music venue. In 2007, filmmakers Ken Gascoigne and "H" Curran produced a documentary about the club in which they interviewed some of the artists who appeared there in its heyday, including

Mick Box Michael Frederick Box (born 9 June 1947) is an English musician who is the lead guitarist of rock group Uriah Heep, having previously been a member of The Stalkers and Spice, both with original Uriah Heep vocalist David Byron.Larkin, Colin (20 ...

of Uriah Heep,

Brian May Brian Harold May (born 19 July 1947) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and astrophysicist, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen. May was a co-founder of Queen with lead singer Freddie Mercury and ...

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, the Roundhouse Promoter Andy Townsend, and various local residents, who recalled memories of the club. Behind the pub, in the location of the old car park, is a road called Bragg Close. This is named after the singer and poet Billy Bragg, whose family has lived in the area for over a century. Bragg opened the street on 24 August 1999, dedicating it to his own brother, and paying tribute to Ben Tillett, the founder of the dockworkers union. It consists of 12 housing association homes.

Location

It is located in the triangular segment formed by the junction of Porters Avenue (the A1153) and Lodge Avenue, and is adjacent to a boating lake and Mayesbrook park, the home of Barking & East Ham United F.C. The main circular building is approximately in diameter, but the function room, which was used for concerts and bingo, is a long, low ceilinged, rectangular wing, extending along Lodge Avenue. It lies roughly halfway between

Upney Upney is a London Underground station located on Upney Lane in Barking, east London. It is on the District line between station to the west and station to the east. It is along the line from the eastern terminus at and to in central London ...

and

Becontree Becontree or Both pronunciations are given as Received Pronunciation in the Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, but the form is prioritised (). The dialectologist Peter Wright wrote in 1981 that is the traditional pronunciation in the cockney ...

stations on the

District line The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited serv ...

in zone 5. The Roundhouse is a stop on

London Buses route 368 This is a list of Transport for London (TfL) contracted bus routes in London, England, as well as commercial services that enter the Greater London area (except coaches). Bus services in London are operated by Abellio London, Arriva London, G ...

Acts

Acts that have appeared there include

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or som ...

Rory Gallagher William Rory Gallagher ( ; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995) was an Irish guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. Due to his virtuosic playing, but relative lack of fame compared to some others, he has been referred to as "the greatest ...

, Pink Floyd Killing floor dagenham roundhouse 3

Reunion

A Facebook nostalgia group was started for the Village Blues Club in 2008. It now has some 100+ members, and a private reunion was held in May 2012, back in the Roundhouse where it all started. The band who played there the most in its heyday, a total of 13 times, Stray, headlined the gig. A second reunion was held in May 2013, headlined by The Big Blues Jam (Jon Amor/ Pete Gage/Mark Barrett/Dave Doherty & Friends), with support by Jon Amor. (Reunion II). A third reunion was held in September 2013, with The Pink Torpedoes (Pete Gage/Paul Hartshorn/Pete Lowrey/Dave Raeburn). (Reunion III). The fourth reunion took place in May 2014, once again starring Stray (Reunion IV). Reunion V was in September 2014, again providing a link back to the original Roundhouse in that it starred Son of Man, which included George Jones, son of the original Man's Micky Jones, on guitar. Reunion VI in May 2015 starred

Martin Turner Martin Robert Turner (born 1 October 1947) is an English musician best known for his time as the bass guitarist, lead vocalist and a founding member of the rock band, Wishbone Ash. Career Turner was with Wishbone Ash, known for their twin le ...

, playing the music of

Wishbone Ash Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included '' Wishbone Ash'' (1970), ''Pilgrimage'' (1971), '' Argus'' (1972), '' Wishbone Four'' (1973), ''There's the Rub'' (1974), and ...

Public house

The Campaign For Real Ale (Camra) has included The Roundhouse in its database of heritage pubs in recognition of its historic interior. The entry reads: In 2005, the pub was called a "serious cause for concern". The

licensee A licensee can mean the holder of a license or, in U.S. tort law, a licensee is a person who is on the property of another, despite the fact that the property is not open to the general public, because the owner of the property has allowed the li ...

in 2008 was Kim Sullivan. Kim was still the licensee in 2014.

References

External links

{{Commons and category, Dagenham Roundhouse
Documentary footage
"

recalls

Hawkwind Hawkwind are an English rock band known as one of the earliest space rock groups. Since their formation in November 1969, Hawkwind have gone through many incarnations and have incorporated many different styles into their music, including hard ...

and 10cc at the Village Blues Club Dagenham", and other interviews
Slideshow
of 4 pictures of

at the Roundhouse, 1975 Alfred W. Blomfield buildings Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Music venues in London Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Dagenham Pubs in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham