This latest round-up again includes a free sample item - but the wider press coverage of Clubland is reserved for paying members. It remains the best way to keep informed about clubs making the news worldwide.
Fire at the Roof Gardens, Kensington. (Photo credit: London Fire Brigade, c/o The Sun.)
The Roof Gardens in Kensington, the 88-year-old private gardens and party venue, reopened in 2024 as a proprietary private members’ club.
The Club has already had a difficult opening 18 months, reporting a £26 million loss in its latest accounts - only to be struck by an improbable fire on Monday night.
The Daily Mail, whose offices are in the office block below the Club, reported:
“Eighty firefighters with 12 fire engines battled the blaze over several hours at Kensington Roof Gardens, a private members’ club beloved by A-listers and royalty. It is less than two years since the club’s multi-million-pound refurbishment and re-opening.”
The fire broke out just before 1am, in a rooftop plant room, which was completely burned down. The building below was evacuated of some 40 people, until the Fire Brigade brought the blaze under control, by 3:36am. One receptionist in the building commented that they had been evacuated around 1am, and were not allowed to return until 6am.
A spokesperson for the London Fire Brigade confirmed: “The cause of the fire is under investigation.”
The blaze was also covered in the Evening Standard, GB News, MyLondon and The Sun.
The venerable PopBitch newsletter - which is always essential reading - provides further details:
“This was not the club’s first setback. When the owners converted the old club atop this listed building into a chic new space a couple of years back they neglected to apply for listed planning consent, leading Kensington & Chelsea Council to get angry and order them to undo a bunch of works.
“Plus various denizens of the Daily Mail Group in the floors below, many of whom were evacuated on Monday, have since emailed in to complain that since KRG opened, a smell of weed often percolated down and that the fire alarm in the club was forever going off. So, perhaps it would be useful for club bosses to pay a little more attention to detail.”
Despite the scale of the blaze, the damage appears to have been relatively light, and the Club aimed to reopen within “days.”
A spokesperson for The Roof Gardens told the Standard:
“In the early hours of this morning there was a fire at the Roof Gardens in an external area on the sixth floor. Nobody was hurt and there is no fire damage inside the building. As a precaution, we are carrying out safety checks and hope to reopen in the next few days. We would like to thank the Kensington & Chelsea fire teams for their swift response.”
The rest of the press round-up below continues to be a feature for paying subscribers only.
This fortnight’s edition contains 15 more stories drawn from 21 outlets worldwide.
If you are enjoying the Clubland Substack, do consider supporting my work as a paying subscriber - it means I can justify setting aside more of my time to bring you more material. And because of extra features like the below, my paying subscribers are some of the most informed people in Clubland.
