The Salford Lads Club – the site of the most famous The Smiths photo – faces closure

The Salford Lads Club, which is the location of the most famous photo taken of The Smiths, is currently facing closure.

The youth centre – which was opened in 1904 by Robert Baden-Powell in Ordsall as a club for boys but is now open to all young people – is under threat of closure due to rising costs and a drop in grant funding.

Salford Lads Club became immortalised by The Smiths after a photo of Morrissey and co in front of the establishment was used on the sleeve of their third album, 1986’s ‘The Queen Is Dead’.

Andy Rourke, bassist for The Smiths, died yesterday at the age of 59. In 2004 he returned to Salford Lads Club, scene of an iconic image of the band, and spoke to one of the club’s stalwarts – Archie Swift. pic.twitter.com/7xYi5w9t75

— BBC Archive (@BBCArchive) May 19, 2023

The image – which has arguably become the most famous photo of the band –  has helped the centre gain global recognition and a source of funding from fans of the group. The establishment serves as a destination for superfans of The Smiths to visit.

The centre continues to provide a safe space for young people from some of Greater Manchester’s deprived communities, offering activities such as sports six days a week. In order for the establishment to remain open, it must raise £250,000 by next month.

According to The Guardian, the club’s annual income for 2023 was about £160,000, with its outings adding up to £394,700. The club also faces annual bills of a whopping £43,000 combined (including utilised, insurance and building maintenance).

A fundraiser has been launched by the Manchester Evening News as a way to raise the quarter of a million pounds needed by the end of November to keep the Salford Lads Club from shuttering its doors.

“They’ve changed countless lives, nurtured talent, and been a bedrock of friendship and learning. But now this great institution needs our help. The club is facing a financial crisis and needs to raise £250,000 by the end of November to survive. Join the Manchester Evening News in helping the charity which has done so much for young people in our region,” read the Gofundme created by the Manchester Evening News. You can visit here to donate to the fund.

the smiths outside the salford lads’ club in 1987, photographed by lawrence watson. pic.twitter.com/Fz1WaBs8sE

— morrissey pics every day (@mozpicsdaily) August 24, 2024

The legendary building has been featured in TV series and films such as Peaky Blinders, Last Tango In Halifax, Mrs Biggs, Cold Feet, Blue Murder, and more. Last year luxury fashion brand Chanel booked out the landmark to host a star-studded event ahead of its show in Manchester’s Northern Quarter.

The announcement of the Salford Lads Club potentially shutting down comes after Mark Davyd, the Music Venue Trust CEO, told NME back in December that 2023 had been the worst year for venue closures. He said: “It’s been the worst year ever for venue closures. The rise of costs and energy is extraordinary and nobody seems to care, the rise in rents is just astonishing with landlords trying to make money back they might have lost during COVID by rapidly increasing rents beyond the possibility of what can be paid.”

A MVT report from January echoed his comments, finding that grassroots venues are facing a “disaster”. This is despite, as the Trust’s COO, Beverley Whitrick, telling the House of Commons, “23.6million people visited a grassroots music venue in the UK in 2023, which is an increase on the previous year. Sometimes people say to us when they ask about closures, ‘Is it that people are not interested in going anymore?’ Of course, that’s not the case at all.

“The wish to see artists, to connect with them in small spaces in local venues is as high as it’s ever been.”

In other news, The Smiths‘ drummer Mike Joyce recently spoke to NME about ending his decades-long feud with Johnny Marr, as well as the recent reunion row and plans for a mural in memory of late bassist Andy Rourke.