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Kentish Town pub Bull & Gate is to stop operating as a live music venue from 4 May, it has been revealed.
The pub has been around since 1980, and saw early concerts from now legendary bands such as Coldplay, Blur and Nirvana - and was also a hangout for A&R music execs and music journalists in the '80s.
The building was put up for sale by its owners late last year for £2.7m, and has been bought by the chain Youngs. It will be closed for refurbishment and is likely to open as a 'gastropub' in the summer.
Promoters Club Fandango, who took over the Bull & Gate in June 2010, said in a statement, "Since 1980 a small, slightly smelly, part of the Kentish Town Road has been a home-from-home for hundreds of young hopefuls seeking to make their way in the musical world.
"For the past 11,680-ish nights the Bull & Gate has put its balls on the line and the good, the bad and the most maddening of bands on its stage, aided by a perfectly aligned live room and a frankly excellent PA. It may not always have been pretty. But it was always pretty bloody interesting.
"[When Club Fandango arrived] they brought with them the wholesome likes of mybandsbetterthanyourband, BBH, Steve Lamacq’s Going Deaf For A Living, PRS, Amazing Radio, Killing Moon, Best Of Myspace, fierce panda’s Bamboooozled and AIM-endorsed Labelled With Love shows with record companies such as Xtra Mile, Too Pure, Idle Fret and Alcopop! Records. They have, frankly, been having fun, and had every intention of having much more fun until the news broke.
Live music venue Bull & Gate is sadly going to be turned into a gastropub
The statement continues, "The irony is that having weathered the storm of free gigs and hipster swinging out of East London, having battled through five years of recession and having fought against the tide of depression rolling over the guitar-gripping side of the music industry throughout this decade the venue is going to be taken down by a gastropub.
"In the true tradition of modern communications we have set up a Facebook of condolence: please wend your weary way to www.facebook.com/clubfandango to leave your memories of good nights before we say goodnight to the old dear."
