ROYAL HOTEL (Teazers etc) - 70's & 80'S

The old Royal Hotel building in Union Street was quite a busy place if you go back 2 or 3 decades.
Here's the lowdown on the mid 70's to mid 80's period.
Well "Teazers" was the name of the night club they ran upstairs. The disco in the main lounge was quite roomy, and being a typical city centre club, it was always chock-a-block at weekends.
However, more interesting things were going on in the other rooms in the hotel...
In one of the smaller lounges they put on occasional jazz acts. I remember attending a few back then. Jazz-funksters Morrissey Mullen, and jazz-rockers Soft Heap, are 2 that spring to mind.
In another area of the hotel there was a larger hall that also had a stage. Dundee's alternative music promoters "Dance Factory" used this venue to put on gigs. Although these were usually advertised as being at Teazers, it wasn't the main disco room.
Needless to say, I went to lots of those too. Some of the acts who performed were, Big Country - Aztec Camera - The Fall - Durutti Column - Death Cult - Fischer Z, and on it goes.
This hall was also the place where they had a go at running a regular reggae disco. It was a bit hit & miss attendance-wise, even if the music was great, so unfortunately it only lasted a few months. Shame because it was the only place in Dundee where you were likely to hear Junior Murvin's classic "Police & Thieves" - so it got my thumbs up at the time!
When the Dance Factory moved to their permanent home in Fat Sams in 1984, Teazers started up a new club night called the Rock Machine, and this showcased both the alternative scene and rock music.
The top picture is the main Royal Hotel building's location on the corner of Union Street.
The photo under it shows the entrance area to Teazers Nite Club (the black & white doorway structure behind the pole) which was roughly halfway down Union Street.
Underneath that is the main lounge bar in Teazers disco.

The Teazers advert is a typical example of the kind published in the local press - this one here dating from December 1978.
And below, is a clip of the Royal Hotel entrance which was a separate area to Teazers doorway, and captured on film in 1985.
Although the building itself is till there today, it's no longer in use as a hotel.

THEATRE ROYAL - NETHERGATE - 1960'S

There were 3 "Theatre Royal's" in Dundee.

The first 2 being 19th century affairs in the main, means they won't get a mention on Retro.

The 3rd one being active in the 60's, means it will get a mention.

The building itself (located in the Nethergate) was originally called the People's Palace and had gone through quite a few changes over the decades. However, in 1965, Scottish entertainer, Calum Kennedy, became the new owner and it was he who gave it the Theatre Royal name.

It was rather short-lived under this name mind you, the theatre closing down around 1970. Then in 1977 the building was destroyed by fire and so was eventually demolished.

The first ad above was published in the local press in November 1965 and is for well known entertainer, Norman Vaughan.

Remember he had the short "ooh!" catchphrase.

Second is dated February 1966 and is for a show by famous comedian, Tony Hancock.

It snowed when Tony was in Dundee and he said it was so cold he had to run from the dressing room to the stage to get some heat from the lights..!!

April 1966 is the date of the third ad and on that occasion, crooner, Frankie Vaughan, was the entertainment on offer.

The fourth ad was published in November 1969 when Billy Fury was the main attraction.