Perth’s oldest nightclub is up for sale – but you might be surprised to find out exactly how old it is.
Of all the nightclubs in the city currently still operating as an evening entertainment venue, the top-10 oldest venues range between 44 and 63 years old.
City of Perth councillor and nightclub owner Chris Patton took this masthead on a walk through history of some of the most iconic places – including the longest running nightclub in the city.
10: 174 James Street
Currently known as Voodoo Lounge, Patton says this venue has operated under a nightclub licence for 44 years.
“So it was originally an illegal gambling den in the late 70s, and then it changed, becoming a nightclub in 1982 called the Il Trovatore Club,” he said.
“Then it ran for quite a few years after that as a function centre before becoming an adult entertainment venue, which it’s been for quite some time.”
9: 78 James Street
Just down the road and only two years older is Rapture Nightclub, but this venue was once a cabaret lounge which is what nightclubs used to be known as.
“This one as well I didn’t realise was actually such an old venue. Originally starting in 1980, it launched as Senorita Cabaret,” Patton said.
“I think the other important thing to note is before nightclubs were known as nightclubs, they were actually known as cabaret lounges. Even the original liquor licenses were cabaret licenses.
“It wasn’t until the mid-90s when they actually changed the phrase cabaret to nightclub, and that became kind of the norm.”
A host of nightclubs have operated out of the space under the names Reactor, DV8 and Element.
8: 139 James street
Most nightclub fans would have been to this venue when it was called Rise in 1999 to 2010 or at its most recent namesake Air Nightclub, but it started out as Eagle One in 1979.
Simon Barwood was the owner of both Rise and Air but announced this week that he has sold the business and retired from the nightclub scene.
“My decision to retire was a lifestyle choice. My wife and I are both 60 and we want to do things together while we are still relatively young and healthy without the commitments and distractions of running a business,” Barwood said.
“There have been so many amazing nights, personal highlights were hosting, and sharing the decks with, some of my favourite artists including Ferry Corsten and Paul van Dyk.
“One of the most joyful parts of owning a nightclub was bringing people together, many marriages and lifelong friendships have been formed and the music was always the main catalyst.”
As for how the nightclub scene has changed over the years, Barwood said social media has had the strongest impact.
“Smart phones and social media have had the biggest disrupting influences on nightclubs, once it wasn’t necessary to be physically present in the same space to meet and interact with others,” he said.
While he will no longer be in the industry, he told his long-time patrons that the new owners will continue to run the venue as a nightclub but for the Irish community they are a part of.
“I’m very grateful to have been able to make a career doing something that I love. It’s been a great ride, one I have been privileged to share with many great people.”
7: 104 Murray Street Perth
Patton says both 7 and 6 on the list surprised him with their ages. Opening in 1976 as Tramps Nightclub, the venue would later become home to Ambar Nightclub in 2001 and run as a nighttime institution throughout the mid-2000s. It is now known as Lucy’s Love Shack.
6: 232 William street
Once known as the River Cruise Club in 1971, the venue underwent several name changes before turning into Alabama Song.
“It was one of Perth’s most popular in the late 80s and early 90s as Limbos, and then turned into Aqua. And apparently, this building or this venue is really credited to where Perth first discovered house music,” he said.
5: 81 James street
A night out on the town is not complete without a visit to Connections – Perth’s longest running nightclub.
“This one’s a cool story. The venue opened in 1969 as Top Hat Cabaret before turning into Connections in 1975. It’s been Connections for 51 years, whereas everything else has had name changes,” Patton said.
“In this day and age, it’s not very common for a nightclub to last more than five to 10 years maximum.”
4: 393 Murray street
Built in 1936 as an industrial showroom for a British electric company, the venue turned into a nightclub in 1967 under the name of Pinocchio’s. It ran for 30 years before turning into The Globe, Capital and now Magnet House after the original British company.
3: 69 Lake street
Kicking off the trend of churches becoming nightclubs is West End Nightclub which reimagined the building into an entertainment venue in 1966.
“It’s actually one of the oldest buildings in the city. It was built in 1898 as a church, and then became decommissioned as a church in 1966, where it was then labelled the West End nightclub,” Patton said.
“There’s very limited information on this, but it wasn’t until it became Hannibal’s that it kind of really got put on the map.”
On Hannibal’s opening night the owners managed to get Elle McPherson to stop by which caused a line-up around the block of patrons keen to boogie with the famous model.
The venue was then called Havana, The Church and now it is known as Library Nightclub.
2: 230 William street
Opening in 1965 as Zanzibar, this 60-year-old venue has operated as a number of nightclubs such as The Jackal and The Freezer before becoming an adult entertainment venue in the late 90s called Xotica and now Penthouse.
1: 187 Stirling street
Introducing Perth’s oldest running nightclub venue.
Originally built as a church, the space became a nightclub in 1963 called Romanos. Started by Alberto Ferrante, the nightclub ran until 1990 before it became Escapade, Exit Heat and now Villa Nightclub.
“Number one definitely surprised me. I always knew it was a bit of a peculiar location to have a nightclub that’s in technically North Perth and not Northbridge next to apartments and Reese Plumbing, but it was built there before Northbridge was an entertainment venue,” Patton said.
This week it was announced that Villa is up for sale, so prospective buyers have the opportunity to buy a piece of Perth’s entertainment history.
“This is the home of Villa, Perth’s longest continuously running nightclub. The property is a two-storey building of approx. 800sqm set up as a nightclub and live music venue. It comes with full fit-out and an existing nightclub liquor licence for 698 patrons,” reads the Cygnet West listing for the business.
“Vacant possession is available from December 1, 2026, making it a genuine walk-in walk-out opportunity. An operator can repurpose it as a licensed venue or reposition it for another use, such as a gym, tavern, wellness centre or function space.”
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