Newport's looking good on this BBC article

Attachment 5857

must have been doing some beautification projects recently

Looks like Commercial Street has gone downhill since I worked there in the 70's.

The area of Newport near the old entrance to the railway station is pretty decent these days. The indoor market has 20 odd food outlets plus a bar. Then there's Tiny Rebel and the Murenger. Le Pub has probably overtaken the Globe and Clwb as my favourite music venue. They had a couple of mini festivals there and in the street outside this year. Very cool place. The rest of Newport, not so much.

The demolishing of the Newport Centre and TJs closing is really bad for Newport

Is that Friars Walk doing much ? Newports problem is its position in the middle of two far bigger places

Lots of places nearby and some good fishing on the lakes and the canal for the likes of me

Never been to Caerleon though

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robin Friday's Ghost

The area of Newport near the old entrance to the railway station is pretty decent these days. The indoor market has 20 odd food outlets plus a bar. Then there's Tiny Rebel and the Murenger. Le Pub has probably overtaken the Globe and Clwb as my favourite music venue. They had a couple of mini festivals there and in the street outside this year. Very cool place. The rest of Newport, not so much.

---

The owner of le pub has been on tv a few times , very switched on she is

Incredible that Cardiff doesn't have more than The Tramshed , Welsh Club and Globe

Could do with her opening another venue here

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SLUDGE FACTORY

The owner of le pub has been on tv a few times , very switched on she is

Incredible that Cardiff doesn't have more than The Tramshed , Welsh Club and Globe

Could do with her opening another venue here

---

The Moon Club is decent too. Plus the Gate in Roath is an interesting venue. To be honest I think it's a case of local demand. I've seen the same band play Cardiff and Bristol and the venue/audience is usually larger in Bristol. The next time I see a tour announced, Cardiff is often missing.

Mind you compared to Swansea, Cardiff is awash with small alternative venues. There's a place called the Bunkhouse on the Kingsway holding 120, and that's it. Sin City used to attract the likes of Pete Doherty a few years ago but nobody seems to play Swansea at all these days.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robin Friday's Ghost

The area of Newport near the old entrance to the railway station is pretty decent these days. The indoor market has 20 odd food outlets plus a bar. Then there's Tiny Rebel and the Murenger. Le Pub has probably overtaken the Globe and Clwb as my favourite music venue. They had a couple of mini festivals there and in the street outside this year. Very cool place. The rest of Newport, not so much.

---

The indoor market is spot on . Great choices for food and decent beer , sit at your table and order food traditionally from around the world .

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robin Friday's Ghost

The area of Newport near the old entrance to the railway station is pretty decent these days. The indoor market has 20 odd food outlets plus a bar. Then there's Tiny Rebel and the Murenger. Le Pub has probably overtaken the Globe and Clwb as my favourite music venue. They had a couple of mini festivals there and in the street outside this year. Very cool place. The rest of Newport, not so much.

---

Bloody' ell, the Murenger has been there for years!
Your shoes would literally stick to the carpet walking about within that pub, hopefully they have changed the flooring since.
They also had a lot of premium strength beers on tap in there (late 70s/80s).
I worked at Whiteheads steelworks site for many years. We'd often have our Christmas piss-up starting from the West Of England pub (by the transporter bridge) and work our way towards the centre, via Gilligan's Island.
From a personal point of view, I always found the Newport folk easy to get along with.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Harry Lime

The Moon Club is decent too. Plus the Gate in Roath is an interesting venue. To be honest I think it's a case of local demand. I've seen the same band play Cardiff and Bristol and the venue/audience is usually larger in Bristol. The next time I see a tour announced, Cardiff is often missing.

Mind you compared to Swansea, Cardiff is awash with small alternative venues. There's a place called the Bunkhouse on the Kingsway holding 120, and that's it. Sin City used to attract the likes of Pete Doherty a few years ago but nobody seems to play Swansea at all these days.

---

Monkey Cafe ?

Is Sin City still going ?

That Swansea Arena in Cardiff would be great for medium sized bands but I don't know that Swansea has the population to sustain it

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Harry Lime

The Moon Club is decent too. Plus the Gate in Roath is an interesting venue. To be honest I think it's a case of local demand. I've seen the same band play Cardiff and Bristol and the venue/audience is usually larger in Bristol. The next time I see a tour announced, Cardiff is often missing.

Mind you compared to Swansea, Cardiff is awash with small alternative venues. There's a place called the Bunkhouse on the Kingsway holding 120, and that's it. Sin City used to attract the likes of Pete Doherty a few years ago but nobody seems to play Swansea at all these days.

---

Fuel Rock And Metal Club

Le Pub in Newport is brilliant. I'd love them to open a Cardiff venue.

I've always argued Cardiff lacks much organic 'bottom up' cultural places. A lot of 'top-down' ones like the Millennium Stadium, St Davids Hall, WMC, CIA but a lot less at the grassroots.

Few mentioned in this thread and all credit to them but very little compared to Bristol unfortunately.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rock_Flock_of_Five

Bloody' ell, the Murenger has been there for years!
Your shoes would literally stick to the carpet walking about within that pub, hopefully they have changed the flooring since.
They also had a lot of premium strength beers on tap in there (late 70s/80s).
I worked at Whiteheads steelworks site for many years. We'd often have our Christmas piss-up starting from the West Of England pub (by the transporter bridge) and work our way towards the centre, via Gilligan's Island.
From a personal point of view, I always found the Newport folk easy to get along with.

---

The Murenger seems to be a Samuel Smith pub now. Keg beers but still very nice. I think it's the oldest pub in the city?

Cardiff has a fair number of smaller venues which have music of varying genres. Clwb, The Moon and Fuel in Womanby Street, the Globe and the Gate in Roath, the Earl Haig in Whitchurch. We're not too badly off for a city of our size.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SLUDGE FACTORY

Monkey Cafe ?

Is Sin City still going ?

That Swansea Arena in Cardiff would be great for medium sized bands but I don't know that Swansea has the population to sustain it

---

I think the Swansea Arena is about the same size as the CIA or whatever it's called this week, hard to tell. Both bland aircraft hangers imo.
Monkey is long gone, not sure about Sin City I never see anything advertised anymore. Last band I saw there was The Skids about 4 years ago. They did have PIL at the Patti Pavilion recently but that's about it for the alt crowd.
...If you can call John Lydon alt

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robin Friday's Ghost

The Murenger seems to be a Samuel Smith pub now. Keg beers but still very nice. I think it's the oldest pub in the city?

---

It's been a Samuel Smith pub for as long as I can remember. There used to be (perhaps stills is?) a really small/cozy bar almost directly opposite.
Newport really had some pubs with great atmosphere and characters back in the day.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jimmy the Jock

The indoor market is spot on . Great choices for food and decent beer , sit at your table and order food traditionally from around the world .

---

Isn’t cardiff market going this way? Heard it’s due for a big makeover too….just needs somewhere to sit and a bar probably to attract a lot more people. St Mary st side would be good as there’s nothing really there at all.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Robin Friday's Ghost

Cardiff has a fair number of smaller venues which have music of varying genres. Clwb, The Moon and Fuel in Womanby Street, the Globe and the Gate in Roath, the Earl Haig in Whitchurch. We're not too badly off for a city of our size.

---

Acapela in Pentyrch. Not easy to get to and from if you don't drive but a great little venue

Friday night, Le Pub or the Murrey, then the Cotton Club or TJs 👍

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Harry Lime

I think the Swansea Arena is about the same size as the CIA or whatever it's called this week, hard to tell. Both bland aircraft hangers imo.
Monkey is long gone, not sure about Sin City I never see anything advertised anymore. Last band I saw there was The Skids about 4 years ago. They did have PIL at the Patti Pavilion recently but that's about it for the alt crowd.
...If you can call John Lydon alt

---

Swansea Arena 3000

CIA 7000

Once a band is able to sell 2000 tickets on a regular basis they are not able to play the smaller venues

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Undercoverinwurzelland

Friday night, Le Pub or the Murrey, then the Cotton Club or TJs 👍

---

Probably bumped into you many a time then.
Riverside was also good before TJ’s.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wash DC Blue

Probably bumped into you many a time then.
Riverside was also good before TJ’s.

---

Didn't go to the Riverside so much for some reason, but was good when we did.
Still trying to get the smell of smoke from the Cotton Club out of my hair now!

What was the name of that club up in cheesy lighting you could see on the left hand side as you pulled into Newport Station ?

Sleazy disco sort of place

Late 80s

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SLUDGE FACTORY

What was the name of that club up in cheesy lighting you could see on the left hand side as you pulled into Newport Station ?

Sleazy disco sort of place

Late 80s

---

Rudis on Cambrian Road?
It was an epic club at the time.
Carl Cox, Mickey Finn, Fabio all played there 89-91.

Baring that I can only think of Brooklyn Heights/Stowaway on Stow Hill or maybe Ritzy’s/Zanzibar.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Undercoverinwurzelland

Didn't go to the Riverside so much for some reason, but was good when we did.
Still trying to get the smell of smoke from the Cotton Club out of my hair now!

---

They had great indie nights in there.
“Drop your pants” was the promotion, I think.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wash DC Blue

They had great indie nights in there.
“Drop your pants” was the promotion, I think.

---

Yeah, we went for the indie music. Not so much for the beer (cans of Red Stripe as I recall).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Undercoverinwurzelland

Yeah, we went for the indie music. Not so much for the beer (cans of Red Stripe as I recall).

---

:)

Red Stripe and Oranjeboom.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wash DC Blue

Rudis on Cambrian Road?
It was an epic club at the time.
Carl Cox, Mickey Finn, Fabio all played there 89-91.

Baring that I can only think of Brooklyn Heights/Stowaway on Stow Hill or maybe Ritzy’s/Zanzibar.

---

Feckin Zanzibars , the one and only

That was it 😂

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SLUDGE FACTORY

Feckin Zanzibars , the one and only

That was it 😂

---

I don’t think that I ever darkened it’s doors.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by RichardM

Acapela in Pentyrch. Not easy to get to and from if you don't drive but a great little venue

---

Forgotten that. We go there quite a lot. You can get a bus up there.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wash DC Blue

:)

Red Stripe and Oranjeboom.

---

I'd forgotten the Oranjeboom!