Tup Tup Palace is a nightclub in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. It was created in 2007 by entrepreneur James Jukes and club promoters Nigel Holliday and Matthew Smyth at a cost of £2M.[1] The major investors were Nicholas Woodhead and Scottish & Newcastle PLC. The club is located opposite Newcastle Cathedral in the city centre. The venue has a capacity of 600 people and focuses largely on table service. It has become known[2] primarily for its celebrity customers.[3]
 Tup Tup Palace Exterior | |
 | |
| Location | Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Owner | Aaron Mellor, Matt Smyth, Nigel Holiday and Nicholas Woodhead |
| Type | Nightclub |
| Capacity | 630 |
| Opened | 2007 |
| Website | |
| tuptuppalace | |
History edit
The building at 7 Saint Nicholas Street formerly housed a pub known as Bar M,[4] then a feature of Newcastle's Bigg Market nightlife circuit. Founder James Jukes purchased the site from Premium Bars & Restaurants PLC in 2007[5] for an undisclosed sum. The building was refurbished and extended, before being opened in December 2007 by Beverley Knight MBE.
On 15 November 2008 the venue caused a public row over projecting a logo onto Newcastle Cathedral to create a large billboard advertisement. The Dean of Newcastle at the time, the Very Reverend Christopher Dalliston, publicly called on Newcastle City Council to ban the publicity stunt, saying “These actions not only disregard the Christian faith but also the heritage of Newcastle. The lights have come into our Sunday evening worship and we are taking action.”[6] The Council subsequently found that no laws had been broken and were unable to enforce a ban. In 2010, Jukes apologised for the stunt and donated the proceeds from a celebrity fashion show to the Cathedral to pay for decorative floodlighting.[7]
On 31 December 2010 The X Factor winner Matt Cardle reportedly ran up an £8,000 bar tab at the venue celebrating New Year’s Eve and the success of his number one single When We Collide in the UK Singles Chart.[8]
On 21 March 2011 Newcastle United F.C players Leon Best and Stephen Ireland issued a public apology to the football club and its supporters after being photographed at the venue with their shirts removed on the eve of a fixture against Stoke City F.C. The incident led to the then Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew banning the entire team from the venue.[9]
On 14 May 2011 the club hosted the launch party of Newcastle Fashion Week, broadcast live on FashionTV[10][11] to approximately 400 million viewers worldwide.[12] will.i.am and fellow band members from The Black Eyed Peas attended the event.[13] On 29 August 2011 a woman who had travelled from Manchester to celebrate her birthday at the club was attacked on the dancefloor.[14] Northumbria Police released CCTV images of three women they wished to speak to in connection with the attack, though the perpetrators were never found.
On Thursday 19 September 2013, Channel 4 broadcast its documentary Bouncers, focusing on the club's 47 year old security guard Mark Tully.[15] On 6 June 2015 a member of security staff was shot and injured in a drive-by shooting[16] while standing at the entrance of the venue.[17][18] Witnesses described seeing a black-clad motorcycle rider pull up outside the club at around 22:45 and open fire. A 26-year-old man was arrested in connection with the attack[19] but was later released without charge. Police publicly linked the shooting to members of a well known crime family, although this was denied by a family spokesman and no arrests were made.[20] In the wake of the shooting MP Chi Onwurah publicly raised concerns about inadequate police CCTV coverage in Newcastle and called for change.[21]
The venue has had numerous celebrity visitors.[22] Noted customers have included Kanye West,[23] Cheryl Fernandez-Versini,[24][25] Snoop Dogg[26] and others. The club is regularly used as a location for MTV reality TV show Geordie Shore.[27]
Tup Tup Palace has received mixed reviews over the years with some publications reporting that it is overpriced[28] and attracts pretentious people.[29]
Ownership edit
The business and the leasehold of the building is owned by the operating company Tup Tup Palace Limited, registered in the United Kingdom as company number 06656176. The listed shareholders and Directors of the company are James Jukes, Nigel Holliday, Matthew Smyth, Aaron Mellor and Nicholas Woodhead.[30]
References edit
- ^ "All About Tup Tup Palace". Chronicle Live. Trinity Mirror North East.
- ^ Gutteridge, Tom (27 June 2013). "Tup Tup Palace ain't a patch on Jesmond and all that jazz". Trinity Mirror North East. The Journal. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
- ^ Davies, Katie. "The Newcastle Club's star-studded History". Chronicle Live. Trinity Mirror North East. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
- ^ "Closed Newcastle Bars/ Pubs".
- ^ "Bar Bosses to Up Sticks". Trinity Mirror North East. The Journal. 26 June 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ^ Craig, Alistair (17 November 2008). "Newcastle nightspot shines ad on to cathedral". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ^ Craig, Alistair (21 August 2010). "Tup Tup to raise money to light up Cathedral". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ^ "X Factor's Matt Cardle falls for North dancer". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. 9 January 2011. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
- ^ "Alan Pardew imposes strict drinking ban on Toon players". MGN Ltd. Daily Mirror. 10 April 2011. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ "Industry News March 2012". newcastlegateshead.net. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ Spottiswood, Georgia. "Newcastle Fashion Week set to be even bigger this year". etcnortheast.co.uk. Etc North East. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ Tucker, Nati (29 January 2014). "Top Israeli at Fashion TV Avoids Politics While Heading the Runways". Haaretz Daily Newspaper Ltd. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ "Hip hop stars Black Eyed Peas enjoy night out in Newcastle". Trinity Mirror North East. The Journal. 17 May 2011. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ Doughty, Sophie (17 October 2011). "Clubber left scarred after attack in Newcastle's Tup Tup Palace". Trinity Mirror North East. The Chronicle. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ "Programme Information". channel4.com. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ "Man arrested over drive-by shooting of doorman at Newcastle nightclub". Johnston Publishing Ltd. Shields Gazette. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
- ^ Ward, Alexander (7 June 2015). "Police searching for 'drive-by' shooter who injured Newcastle nightclub doorman". Independent Print Ltd. The Independent. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
- ^ "Tup Tup Palace nightclub bouncer in drive-by shooting". BBC News. 7 June 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ "Tup Tup Palace shooting: Man arrested after bouncer injured". BBC News. 8 June 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ Davies, Katie (7 June 2015). "Tup Tup Palace shooting: Stephen Sayers hits out at police for linking his sons to Newcastle drive-by shooting". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ Davies, Katie (7 June 2015). "Tup Tup Palace shooting: MP Chi Onwurah raises concerns about city centre CCTV". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
- ^ Duke, Simon (10 November 2015). "Watch rap megastar 50 Cent 'in da club' at Tup Tup Palace Newcastle". Chronicle Live. Trinity Mirror North East. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
- ^ "Rapper West Criticises Paparazzi". BBC. 16 November 2008. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
- ^ Hudson-Nec, Gemma (9 June 2015). "Celebrities at Tup Tup Palace Over the Years". Trinity Mirror North East. Chronicle. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ^ "Cheryl Cole & mum Joan at Tup Tup Palace Newcastle NYE 2007/2008". Twitter.com. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
- ^ "Snoop Dogg plays Teesside and Tyneside in one night". ITV PLC. ITV News. 10 June 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
- ^ Holly Hagan (2 April 2015). Holly Hagan – Not Quite A Geordie. John Blake Publishing, Limited. p. 84. ISBN 978-1-78418-401-8.
- ^ "Tup Tup Palace – Not a Palace Fit For a King". Newcastle VIP. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ Gibson, Danny. "Top 10 Nightclubs in Newcastle". Nightlife Newcastle. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
- ^ "Tup Tup Palace Limited". Duedil.com. Retrieved 18 November 2015.