There are several Liquid nightclubs and this opinion is about the Basingstoke branch.




For some years Basingstoke has been sadly deprived of a decent nightclub. The previous one was demolished in the colossal rebuilding of the town. After three years of chaos and manic building the new ?Festival Place? finally opened in October 2002.

At last, Basingstoke had a new nightclub.

Liquid is conveniently situated on the very edge of the town centre. It is on the end of the bus station and a minute?s walk from the train station, so no need for drinking and driving!
If you are happy to drink lemonade, parking is plentiful and immediately above the club. There is a drop off point for disabled people and taxis just outside with a lowered kerb for wheelchair access.

The entrance to the club is inconspicuous but your attention is drawn by the clever lights which have the Liquid logo rotating over the floors and walls.
When you enter the club you may or may not be frisked by the burly bouncers- ooh!! And yes, there are lady bouncers too, but don?t get excited boys, the lady bouncers only search the girls! Being security and drugs conscious, Liquid also have the odd sniffer dog!

Immediately inside the entrance is the pay desk, fees vary from £2-£7, depending on the day and time. The later you come the more it will cost you. Prices are subject to change.
You may join the club as a member. Membership is free and brings the following benefits: £1 off your admission apart from Saturday when you can save a generous £2. Sometimes you may receive a special SMS which if shown at the door allows you free entry!
Members will also receive, on the Thursday closest to their birthday, a birthday pack which gets the member plus their friends in free before 10.30. They also get a free bottle of bubbly!!

It is compulsory to surrender your coat, unless you are sporting a small jacket. This is for fire and s
afety reasons. The cloakroom costs £1.50 per item and only one item per hanger, maximum compensation for damage or loss is £65. The company accepts no liability for damage or loss of items contained within pockets or bags deposited in the cloakroom. Do not lose your ticket, or you will have a very cold night! Articles without tickets will be handed back only at the end of the night, and at the manager?s discretion.

Now you have negotiated the perils of the cloakroom, you are ready to have fun!

OPENING DAY?S/TIME?S

Monday- Closed
Tuesday- Closed
Wednesday- 9.30-2.00
Thursday- 9.30-2.00
Friday- 9.00-2.00
Saturday- 9.00-2.00
Sunday- 9.30-12.30

Last admission is at 1am except on Sundays when it is 12am

THE HOLDING BAR:

This is the first bar you come to. Early in the evening this bar is shut off from the main bit of the club and the main part opens up when there is sufficient demand!

It is very comfortable in the holding bar. There are comfy seats and it is carpeted and is nice and warm! ( so you won?t miss your jacket!!) There is music, but it starts off at a reasonable volume so that you can chat without difficulty and enjoy a few drinks before the more frenetic part of the evening.

THE MAIN CLUB:

The shutters come up when the holding bar is full. This is done ceremoniously to the dramatic opening of Carmina Burana ( O Fortuna) by Carl Orff. This is the only time you will hear classical music in the club!

There are three bars in chrome. The walls are painted white, and believe it or not, the dirty patches are repainted every day! There is a pleasant blue carpet with a design to make it look like water and the dance floor is of white marble.

The club is not huge and has a capacity of 1010. It has high tech sound and lighting systems and Class A lasers. There are also podium dancers in skimpy costumes. These dancers are both male and
female, to suit all tastes!

There are loos on both sides of the club and these are regularly checked by the door staff, so no thoughts of funny business!!

THE VIP BAR:

Entrance to this more exclusive bar is at the managements? discretion. This is the only bar where you can buy Dom Perignon! ( at a price!) There are more comfy chairs and the bar is candlelit. It is quieter and a nice place to chill out in it?s relaxing atmosphere.

MUSIC:

The music varies and there are theme nights.
Wednesday - Funky Fish, music from the 70?s 80?s and 90?s
Thursday - Ice, chart, dance and party
Friday - Rhythm of a Nation, commercial dance and chart music
Saturday - Lavish, commercial dance and chart music, some R? n?B
Sunday - Slammin? , R?n?B and chart


DRINKS:

The club sells draught beers: Castlemaine xxxx ( which is a replacement for Heineken which is being discontinued nationally), Stella Artois and Boddingtons.

Bottled beers include: Stella, Castlemaine xxxx, Labatts Ice, Swan low alcohol.

Alcopops include: VK flavours, Smirnoff Ice, V Ice, Boru orange and lemon.
Non alcoholic: J20, pepsi, lemonade, bottled waters, red bull.

SPIRITS: full range

WINE and CHAMPAGNE: red and white wines, Moet et Chandon, Bollinger and Dom Perignon ( in the VIP!)

SPECIAL DRINKS OFFERS:
Wednesday- selected drinks £1 before midnight and £1.50 thereafter
Thursday - selected drinks BOGOF
Sunday - selected drinks £1

HOW TO PAY:
The club takes all cards except American Express, but it has to come to at least £5 on the door and £ 10 at the bar. Obviously they take cash, but no cheques and you can?t open a tab.

FOOD:
You might get a little bit peckish after all that jiving! Liquid sells Pizzas by the slice or a whole pizza. You may choose from Cheese and Tomato, Ham and Pineapple or Pepperoni. They use differe
nt spatulas etc for each pizza to avoid cross contamination.
A whole pizza will cost you £6 and a slice of pizza £1.50

DRESS CODE:
Wed/Thurs/Sun, casual dress, jeans and trainers are allowed. NO sportswear, nothing with a flag or number as this can be seen as sports wear!
Fri/Sat, smart casual, smart denim ok, NO trainers or sportswear
The doorman?s decision is final.

AGE/ID REQUIREMENTS:
Wed/Thurs/Sun, is for 18 and over
Fri/Sat, is for 19 and over

You may be asked to prove your age. Only driving licences and passports are accepted. They will not take Prove It cards, as these can be purchased on the internet blackmarket for a tenner!! I know, as my 15 year old daughter ? borrowed? my bank card and bought herself one! We have yet to find it to remove it from her!


BOOK IN ADVANCE AND JUMP THE QUEUES!

You can pre-book your tickets over the phone using your plastic. This is only available on Fridays and Saturdays. You can phone at any time during the day up until 4pm on the day you wish to book for. Saturday it is £5 per person. You can come straight to the front of the queue to collect your ticket and laugh at the others freezing their butts off in the snow!! Incidentally, even if you have pre-booked, you may still be asked to show ID. If you do not have it you will be turned away and then the queue will all laugh at you!!

PICK UP A FLYER:
Flyers offer different deals for different nights, it may be money off the entrance fee or a free drink! Not to be sneezed at! You can pick these up in the club or at selected shops in the town.

EXTRA FACILITIES:
The club has one pay phone situated opposite the cloakroom. There are also two cigarette machines, one next to the pay phone and the other on the far side of the dance floor. Cigarettes are £5 per packet.
There are two very addictive fruit machines, which now take notes (£5?s, £10?s, £20?s and £50?s!!) r>
For pre-booked tickets or private hire call 01256 334928

I highly recommend this club, it looks great, the lighting and music are fantastic, especially on a Wednesday, and it is a brilliant night out!