Candlelight (Oldham)
The Candlelight Club was in Church Street, Oldham, Lancashire and opened in 1965.
The legendary Candlelight Club was formerly called The Savoy Ballroom.
The club was part owned by Ken Naylor (b. Kenneth Naylor, 1927 d. Friday, October 10, 2014) who took a half share in the club in 1965, shortly after it moved into the-then Savoy Ballroom. This was six-years after he his first attempt at a club, The Ritz Theatre Bar in Rock Street, Oldham (opened in 1959) which he took over in 1959. It seems before that The Candlelight Club was somewhere else as Naylor had taken over the legendary club in 1963.
Naylor also owned The Empire Cabaret Club, Dale Street, Milnrow, Lancashire; The Club Monaco, Church Street, Farnworth near Bolton, Lancashire and The Ritz Theatre, Brighouse, West Yorkshire.
The Candlelight Club closed on Boxing Day, Friday, December 26, 2008.
John H. Warburg. May 2023
Candlelight (Oldham)
The Candlelight Club was in Albion Street, Oldham, Lancashire.
The Candlelight Club was over the Army and Navy store.
When it first opened, it was a gambling club. For the first few weeks, the licensing authorities would not grant a drinks license. To get around this, the club give the drinks away and relied on the income from the gambling tables to subsidise the cost of the drinks.
In 1963 (b. Kenneth Naylor, 1927 d. Friday, October 10, 2014) took over the legendary club.
The Candlelight Club moved to The Savoy Ballroom which was in Church Street, Oldham, Lancashire and was owned by Dance Band leader Tommy Smith (b. Thomas Smith).
This club was part owned by Ken Naylor who took a half share in the club in 1965, shortly after it moved into the-then Savoy Ballroom. This was six-years after his first attempt at a club, The Ritz Theatre Bar in Rock Street, Oldham (opened in 1959) which he took over in 1959. The Savoy Ballroom thus became the new Candlelight Club which opened in 1965. The ballroom had closed cos they didn't pay the electric bill. The Candlelight Club closed on Boxing Day, Friday, December 26, 2008.
Naylor also owned The Empire Cabaret Club, Dale Street, Milnrow, Lancashire; The Club Monaco, Church Street, Farnworth near Bolton, Lancashire and The Ritz Theatre, 73 Bradford Road, Brighouse, West Yorkshire which had opened on Monday, March 15, 1937, operated by Union Cinemas. Union Cinemas were taken over by The ABC chain in October 1937. They closed the Ritz Cinema on Saturday, June 24, 1961. It closed as a cinema and – for 6 months – opened for bingo. The cinema closed in 1963. In 1965, The Casino and Theatre Club opened for gaming and stage shows. This closed in 1970.
In 1970, it re-emerged as The Tropicana Night Club.
Info courtesy: John H. Warburg November 2024
Some info came from:
https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/local-news/candle-has-burnt-out-906581
https://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/19795/candlelight-that-once-burned-brightly
https://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/8/news-headlines/88448/ken-burned-brighter-than-candlelight
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