Private members' clubs are

organisation An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...

s which provide social and other facilities to members who typically pay a membership fee for access and use. Some were originally elitist gentlemen's clubs to which members first had to be elected; others are more modern commercial establishments with no class or gender bar, typically offering food, drink, comfortable surroundings, venue hire and business facilities, in return for members paying subscription or membership fees.

History

The first gentlemen's clubs, mostly established in the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

from the late 17th century onwards, were highly exclusive, offering aristocratic and wealthy men a refuge from work and family. The eligibility of potential members depended on their class and gender, with women banned from joining any of them. Early clubs also provided an environment for gambling, illegal outside of members-only establishments. Individuals needed to be formally proposed for membership, and candidates were subject to election by committees which scrutinised individuals' character and suitability. Several private members' clubs for women were established in the late 19th century; among them the

Alexandra Club The Alexandra Club was a private members club for women in Edwardian London. It was based at 12 Lower Grosvenor Street, Grosvenor Street, at the east end of the street on the north side, in London's Mayfair district. The club was founded in 1884, ...

, the Ladies' Institute, the Ladies' Athenaeum and the

University Women's Club The University Women's Club, originally the University Club for Ladies, is a British private members club founded in 1883. As the popular gentlemen's clubs did not accept any women as members, its creation was intended to provide an equivalent c ...

. Many of the traditional gentlemen's clubs now allow women as members, though a few, including the

Garrick Club The Garrick Club is a gentlemen's club in the heart of London founded in 1831. It is one of the oldest members' clubs in the world and, since its inception, has catered to members such as Charles Kean, Henry Irving, Herbert Beerbohm Tree, Ar ...

in London's

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, still refuse women membership. More modern but otherwise similar private members' clubs have since been established. London examples include the

Groucho Club The Groucho Club is a private members' club formed in 1985 located on Dean Street in London's Soho. Its members are mostly drawn from the publishing, media, entertainment and arts industries. The club has rooms on several floors, including th ...

(established in 1985),

Soho House Soho House is a museum run by Birmingham Museums Trust, celebrating Matthew Boulton's life, his partnership with James Watt, his membership of the Lunar Society of Birmingham and his contribution to the Midlands Enlightenment and the Ind ...

(1995) and

Home House Home House is a Georgian town house at 20 Portman Square, London. James Wyatt was appointed to design it by Elizabeth, Countess of Home in 1776, but by 1777 he had been dismissed and replaced by Robert Adam. Elizabeth left the completed hou ...

(1998);"About us"
homehouse.co.uk. Accessed 21 January 2019 similar clubs operate in other cities and countries: for example, the

CORE Club The CORE Club (styled Core:) is a private members' club in New York City. It was founded in 2005 by Jennie Enterprise with funding from the property developer Aby Rosen. From 2005 to 2022 the CORE Club was based at 66 East 55th Street in Manhattan ...

was established in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 2005. These typically offer memberships by subscription and are owned and run as commercial concerns. They offer similar facilities such as food, drink, comfortable surroundings, venue hire and in many cases accommodation. Mobile working (using phone and email) had put pressure on traditional London clubs, some of which discouraged use of mobiles and laptops, or discussion of business matters. By contrast, business-oriented private members' clubs combine the style, food and drink of a contemporary private members' club with the business facilities of a

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coworking Coworking is an arrangement in which workers for different companies share an office space. It allows cost savings and convenience through the use of common infrastructures, such as equipment, utilities and receptionist and custodial services, a ...

space.

Examples

Notable examples of private members' clubs include: *the

, New York City *the

, London *

, London

References

Clubs and societies {{Org-stub