Over the years the blog has gone back to that club on Barlow Moor Road, which has had a collection of names, attracted stories from a range of people and stood on the site of the McDonald’s.
And today I am back with a picture from 1963 sent over by Cath Brownhill who added,
“Hi Andrew, just having a lockdown sort out of bookshelves. I have come across a Manchester United souvenir booklet with this ‘Good Luck’ advert from the Ponderosa club, interesting that it says adjacent to the Princess Theatre Club., commenting,
I thought the Ponderosa came after the Princess Theatre Club, but I was only 8 in 1963. There is no date on the front of the booklet, but reference to 1963 on a Raleigh advert on the back”.
Now the “Ponderosa” is one I never knew, although Tony Golding referred to it in one of his Princess stories “Ponderosa” is given as one of the clubs formerly owned by Bill Kerfoot in an article in ‘The Stage’ on 23rd April, 1964 describing his new venture into theatrical agency".
So, I shall sit back and await the memories.
And, no sooner had I posted the story, and Margaret Lee responded with "My father was the manager of both the Ponderosa and the Princess Theatre Club.
The Ponderosa came about, as I understood it at the time, Bill Kerfoot had a room that was being used as storage and someone pointed out that it was big enough for a small bar, and so the idea was put to him that it was a western themed bar and so the Ponderosa was born.
Both clubs had their own enterance and you could not get from one club into the other without going outside and entering the other club via the front door.
The Ponderosa didn't have the same opening hours as the Princess".
Adding, "This is the story as I remember it being told at the time, I also remember being on school holidays on the day it was opening and having to go in to wash
ALL the glasses that were to be used on the opening night!!!
Thankfully I didn't go in on the night or the next day. Reading the poster the Ponderosa did have the same opening hours as the Princess, but it was not designed as a place to stay in all night so a lot of people would go in the Ponderosa for a drink and wait until the entertainment came on in the Princess then change clubs.
As I understand it Bill Kerfoot sold both clubs to the Moss group a few years later and went on to pastures new".
Location; Chorlton
Pictures, Manchester United souvenir booklet, 1963, from the collection of Cath Brownhill
*The Princess Ballroom; https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=Princess+Ballroom&max-results=20&by-date=true
And today I am back with a picture from 1963 sent over by Cath Brownhill who added,
I thought the Ponderosa came after the Princess Theatre Club, but I was only 8 in 1963. There is no date on the front of the booklet, but reference to 1963 on a Raleigh advert on the back”.
Now the “Ponderosa” is one I never knew, although Tony Golding referred to it in one of his Princess stories “Ponderosa” is given as one of the clubs formerly owned by Bill Kerfoot in an article in ‘The Stage’ on 23rd April, 1964 describing his new venture into theatrical agency".
So, I shall sit back and await the memories.
And, no sooner had I posted the story, and Margaret Lee responded with "My father was the manager of both the Ponderosa and the Princess Theatre Club.
The Ponderosa came about, as I understood it at the time, Bill Kerfoot had a room that was being used as storage and someone pointed out that it was big enough for a small bar, and so the idea was put to him that it was a western themed bar and so the Ponderosa was born.
Both clubs had their own enterance and you could not get from one club into the other without going outside and entering the other club via the front door.
The Ponderosa didn't have the same opening hours as the Princess".
ALL the glasses that were to be used on the opening night!!!
Thankfully I didn't go in on the night or the next day. Reading the poster the Ponderosa did have the same opening hours as the Princess, but it was not designed as a place to stay in all night so a lot of people would go in the Ponderosa for a drink and wait until the entertainment came on in the Princess then change clubs.
As I understand it Bill Kerfoot sold both clubs to the Moss group a few years later and went on to pastures new".
Location; Chorlton
Pictures, Manchester United souvenir booklet, 1963, from the collection of Cath Brownhill
*The Princess Ballroom; https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search?q=Princess+Ballroom&max-results=20&by-date=true
Nice to see a visual confirmation of my childhood memory. It probably stuck in my memory as "The Pondorosa" was also the name of the ranch in "Bonanza" the popular T.V. western of that time.
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