Give us yer Phono stories!

[nodubmanshouts]

That wouldn't be Doug that was into piercings would it?

It would indeed

Guess we were around at the same time!

[boudicca]

My only time there was Black Oktober, 2005. That night alone was one of the most memorable dates of my life for a number of reasons -

*The first day I met the lovely Heartlanders.

* The first time I had gone out to a pub or club anywhere (yes, you heard right, and it only gets more embarrassing...)

* As a natural consequence, first time I had ever shaken my funky thang out on a dancefloor - I believe it was Kraftwerk's "The Model" that got me up to boogie, and I never sat back down.

* As a natural consequence of that, shortly after leaving that night, I had my first kiss Aye, you can all work out how old I was.

* The first (and actually only) time I have ever witnessed girl-on-girl action, in the (rather manky) toilets.

* Mrs RicheyJames also showed me her arse tattoo, which impressed me greatly.

[Francis]

I wondered why you kept coming back to Leeds Claire. You can never recapture that first magical night though, eh?

@T'others: did the twins still own/ run the Phono in the late 80s?

[psichonaut]

* Mrs RicheyJames also showed me her arse tattoo, which impressed me greatly.

let me understand correctly...her arse or her tattoo?

[boudicca]

* Mrs RicheyJames also showed me her arse tattoo, which impressed me greatly.

let me understand correctly...her arse or her tattoo?

Well... both! One was on the other, if you get me

@Francis - admittedly that weekend will stand out forever in my memory like very few others... and that includes the guided tour you took us on ... but every other HL meet since has been magic as well

[Francis]

Sometime after that we ventured even further afield, to the Phono. I’d been past it a few times on my way to HMV, but to the uninitiated it was just a door to nowhere worth going. To the semi-curious it was the entrance to Sodom and Gomorrah. To the baptised, it was a stairway to somewhere between heaven and hell. A steep, narrow, dark stairway, at the bottom of which you paid your money, dumped your coat and entered, more or less straight onto the tiny dancefloor in the middle of which stood a mirrored pillar. The DJ to your right and the bar over the other side to your left. The toilets were straight ahead, but you tried to avoid them at all costs. At least whilst still sober enough to be offended by the smell of urine and vomit. In fact, the whole place seemed no bigger than a good sized public convenience. Perhaps it was, once.

As I stood at the bar wondering how the Noel Edmonds look-alike who had just taken my money at the door was now pouring me a pint, the by-now-vaguely-familiar sound of The Cramps filled the dancefloor. Over the next 18 months, I was to tread those boards in answer to the call of the anthems of the underground. Iggy Pop – The Passenger. B52s – Rock Lobster. Bauhaus – Kick In The Eye. Billy Idol – White Wedding. Pete Shelley – Homosapien. Joy Division – Novelty. Cabaret Voltaire – Just Fascination. The Human League – Empire State Human. Theatre Of Hate – Original Sin. Spear Of Destiny – Liberator. Siouxsie And The Banshees – Happy House. But that first night, I just stood and watched. The clientele was mainly white, attire predominantly black, hair generally punk’d. Clearly, I needed to review my wardrobe if I was going to make this my regular haunt. But even though I didn’t exactly look the part, no-one seemed to notice, let alone care. I liked that. It felt very comfortable. Relaxed. No hassle. Afterwards, we went to Terry’s all-night café, where I had my first communion of chip butty and strong tea.

[markfiend]

Guess we were around at the same time!

I arrived in Leeds in 1990 (to go to the Uni) and somehow I've never left.

Big Doug did a couple of my piercings for me. I'm not sure I'd have let him if I'd known he'd been shagging in the Phono bogs...

Francis mentioning how small the place was reminds me of one night I was off my face (what, Mark? you? really? ) on acid and the Phono seemed the size of Albania.

When it shut in '92 ( ? ) I remember it stayed open from noon till 2am, I brought some sandwiches with me to keep me going

I remember one night when some mad girl was in there that had somehow tagged along with some friends. Some of her exploits included trying to nick Mik's jacket (yes, our Mik); when someone kicked over her glass of coke, trying to persuade that person to buy her a double vodka and coke to replace it; and when she stayed the night at the house of the aforementioned friends, they came downstairs in the morning to find that she'd gone, and so had their TV.

* Remember Claire announcing the first Iraq war had started over the mic. I remember the shock and holding of hands over our faces.... a quite profound bonding moment.

I remember that. IIRC she followed it with 'Killing an Arab'...

[Quiff Boy]

strangely, mik gave me that jacket at his 40th birthday bash a few months ago, but then he got all wistful in the run up to that phono bash last week, and wanted it back...

sadly the trip over to manc to collect it from me earned him a 90 quid parking ticket

ahh, yes - 'the lovely doug' not seen him and his other half (helen) for a few years now - AFAIK they were last seen living in huddersfield, having babies and running a web dev company

bizarrely, doug was very nearly working with si denbigh on a musical venture at one point (he's a very good bass player) but as far as i'm aware nothing came of it other than a proposed band name - evil baby

[Carrie]

I ran into Doug a couple of years ago at an antenatal class! Our paths occasionally cross at the local soft play centre.

My late partner, Andy (he used to manage the Duchess & went out with Claire for a bit), once had a memorable one night stand with a young lady with vinyl sheets & an interesting fetish he'd met in the Phono.

You'll have to listen to 'Follow Through Lover' by Rhombus for the grisly details. Not whilst you're eating though