Durban – It was the summer of 1987, and as usual, it was scorching hot in Durban. Segregation laws were still firmly intact, but the world was slowly seeing the apartheid government for what it truly was.
While the world and country debated over political matters, one Durban businessman had an idea to open a nightclub. But not just any nightclub, it had to be the best the city had ever seen.
It had to ooze with eccentricities and hypnotise you as you walked in the door.
The music, lighting, drinks and people had to come together in the vibe of the 1980’s and 90’s – the era people are trying so desperately to bring back.
And by the sound of things, Pat Pather, owner of the Palladium nightclub, achieved just that.
“Pat had vision and style like nobody else, and he proved it with Palladium,” said former resident DJ, Ricky Singh.
For Durban residents, the Palladium nightclub in Ernest Clokie Drive at Isipingo Beach was the go-to party venue on a Friday or Saturday night.
According to Singh, the club was the first of its kind when it opened up in December 1987.
“It had a hydraulic lighting system which could move down from the ceiling. It is a stage that was built in and part of that stage could go down below stage level,” Singh added.
He said Pather made the DJs wear tuxedos on the opening night.
“When I opened that night, we played Rick Astley, ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’,” he said.
DJ Manick Thor, 59, of Durban, who also worked at the club, said he played the likes of Lionel Richie, Steven Dante, Michael Jackson and Kylie Minogue. Thor played at the club for around 10 years.
“The people never experienced anything like that, I don’t think they were ready for it. It was a destination. From the sound, lighting to the professionalism shown by management,” Thor said.
Palladium was a “strict and classy” affair – the management only allowed you in if you were dressed to the nines, which typically meant a collared shirt, pants and shoes.
Sneakers and jeans were a no-no back then.
You also had to be 25 and over to enter, unlike today, when you can get into almost any club during your teenage years.
By 9pm on a Friday and Saturday night, the line of cars waiting outside the club stretched for metres.
Who knows how many millennials running around the city today were conceived in the back seat of a Cortina or whatever other Ford V6 roamed the streets during those days. This the golden era of motoring. The BMW Gusheshe and German spec M3s, which we call classics today, were fresh out of the factory then.
It was the Durban fast life at its best.
But it wasn’t all fast cars, drinks and tunes. On Sundays the Palladium turned into a supper club for the entire family.
Both Singh and Thor used to serve a dual role at times, playing DJ and “fun facilitators”.
But the good times had to come to an end and around a decade in business, Palladium closed its doors. The country was changing and so were the geographics of South African residents.
The building that was once Palladium is now at the heart of an informal settlement on the edge of Isipingo Beach.
While it is unfortunate to see a memorable landmark torn down, a lack of proper housing in the city, among other things, could be the reason the Palladium building has been overtaken by shack dwellers.
IOL