The Hammersmith Palais de Danse, later simply the Hammersmith Palais, was a ballroom

Ballroom

A ballroom is a large room inside a building, the designated purpose of which is holding formal dances called balls. Traditionally, most balls were held in private residences; many mansions contain one or more ballrooms...

 and entertainment venue in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 that operated from 1919 until 2007. In 2009, the Hammersmith Palais was named by the Brecon Jazz Festival

Brecon Jazz Festival

Brecon Jazz Festival is a music festival held on an annual basis in the rural surroundings of Brecon, in south Powys, Mid Wales. Normally staged in early August, it plays host to a range of jazz musicians who travel from across the world to take part and to many visiting tourists who are attracted...

 as one of 12 venues which had made the most important contributions to jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 music in the United Kingdom.

The Palais occupied a large site on the A219 at 242 Shepherd's Bush

Shepherd's Bush

-Commerce:Commercial activity in Shepherd's Bush is now focused on the Westfield shopping centre next to Shepherd's Bush Central line station and on the many small shops which run along the northern side of the Green....

 Road, London W6, near the circular system under the A4 Hammersmith flyover. The area, one of London's key communication nodes, has two London Underground

London Underground

The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...

 stations, a bus station, and the road network at Hammersmith Broadway

Hammersmith Broadway

Hammersmith Broadway is a street which serves as a major transport node and shopping centre located in west London. It is home to the Piccadilly and District lines' Hammersmith station, as well as Hammersmith bus station. It is located on Hammersmith Road, in the London Borough of Hammersmith &...

. This meant that the Palais had one of the best transport locations in London.

History

The Palais de Danse opened in 1919 to host ballroom dancing, and various kinds of dance bands, amongst which were the new jazz bands. It remained a popular dance venue from its start to the 1980s, but after that played host mostly to live pop music

Pop music

Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

. For a period in the 1930s, part of the Palais site was also used as an ice rink

Ice rink

An ice rink is a frozen body of water and/or hardened chemicals where people can skate or play winter sports. Besides recreational ice skating, some of its uses include ice hockey, figure skating and curling as well as exhibitions, contests and ice shows...

, with the original London Lions

London Lions

The London Lions based out of London, England was an independent professional ice hockey team that played 72 games during the 1973-74 season against the top European hockey teams. It was started by Detroit Red Wings owner Bruce Norris with a vision of building a league to be affiliated with the...

 ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 team using it as a base. On 21 January 2007, the Palais was condemned for demolition. The venue closed in April 2007.

The Palais also had a secret, once used to make tanks during the war, it was also used as a tram shed for London's trams. The rails for the trams were still under the floor along with the pipes for the ice rink. Parts of the very well sprung dance floor have removable sections where one could clearly see all the tracks and pipes. During the 1960s and 1970s, many of the house bands were: Joe Loss

Joe Loss

Joshua Alexander "Joe" Loss LVO OBE was a British musician and founder of the Joe Loss Orchestra.-Life:Loss was born in Spitalfields, London, the youngest of four children. His parents, Israel and Ada Loss, were Russian Jews and first cousins. His father was a cabinet-maker who had an office...

, Andy Ross (of Come Dancing Fame) Ken Mackintosh, Tony Evans, and Zodiac, a band which is still active as of 2010 with at least three original members. Many Saturday nights in excess of 2,000 people would visit the venue. One of the features was a huge revolving stage with a band on each side (this also caused a number of accidents when microphones and stands were left on the revolve).

The Palais was named in the The Clash

The Clash

The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...

 song "(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais

(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais

" In Hammersmith Palais" is a song by The Clash, self produced and first released as a 7" single, backed with the track "The Prisoner", in June 1978....

". Joe Strummer managed to get thrown out one Thursday afternoon for gaining entry without permission. It was also named in the Ian Dury and the Blockheads song "Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part 3". Bands such as PiL

PIL

PIL may refer to:* Private International Law* Carlos Miguel Jiménez Airport , in Pilar, Paraguay* Port Isabel-Cameron County Airport , in Port Isabel, Texas...

, The Cramps

The Cramps

The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...

, and Soft Cell

Soft Cell

Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. They consist of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The duo is most widely known for their 1981 worldwide hit version of "Tainted Love" and platinum debut Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret...

 (who played their "farewell" concerts there in January 1984) made the venue popular for London gig-goers. It hosted The Cure

The Cure

The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...

, Hanoi Rocks

Hanoi Rocks

Hanoi Rocks was a Finnish rock band formed in 1979, whose most successful period came in the early 1980s. The band broke up in 1985 after the death of their drummer, Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley...

, David Bowie

David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...

, Kylie Minogue

Kylie Minogue

Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...

, The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

, The Who

The Who

The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...

, The Police

The Police

The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...

, Robert Plant

Robert Plant

Robert Anthony Plant, CBE is an English singer and songwriter best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the iconic rock band Led Zeppelin. He has also had a successful solo career...

 & The Strange Sensation

Strange Sensation

The Strange Sensation is Robert Plant's backing band, formed during his nine year break from solo recording. After 1993's Fate of Nations, Plant teamed up with former Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page to form Page and Plant...

, U2

U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...

, and Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...

.

The Palais became the venue for the emerging Brit-Asian club scene during the 1980s; Onyx Promotions held all its major daytime events there. The major Brit-Asian bands and DJs have performed there since 1986, including Heera

Heera

Heera means diamond in Punjabi, Hindi and Urdu.It may also refer to:* Heera Rajgopal, an Indian actress* Heera Lal Shastri, the first chief minister of Rajasthan* Heera Group UK, a UK bhangra group...

, Xzecutive/San-j Sanj, DCS

DCS (band)

DCS are a British Asian live Bhangra band formed in 1983. They are seen as one of the first bands of the UK Bhangra scene along with other bands such as Alaap headed by the legendary Channi Singh, Apna Sangeet, Heera, Shava Shava led by Nirmal Kumar Nirmal and many more...

, Premi

Premi

Premi is a Bengali movie that released in 2004. Directed by Rabi Kinagi, the movie featured Jeet, Jishu Sengupta and Chandana Sharma. This was Chandana Sharma's debut movieThis movie is also the debut of music director Jeet Ganguly.-Plot:...

, Rishi Rich

Rishi Rich

Rishpal Singh Rekhi better known by his stage name Rishi Rich is a British Indian music producer born in Croydon, England and based in London...

, Bad Company

Bad Company

Bad Company were an English rock supergroup founded in 1973, consisting of two former Free band members — singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke — as well as Mott the Hoople guitarist Mick Ralphs and King Crimson bassist Boz Burrell. Peter Grant, who, in years prior, was a key component of...

, RDB

RDB (Rhythm Dhol Bass)

RDB are a Punjabi DJ production team consisting of three individuals, Kuly, Manj and Surj, who blend western genres with traditional Punjabi beats and vocals...

, Panjabi Hit Squad

Panjabi Hit Squad

Panjabi Hit Squad are a group of Asian artists signed to the UK imprint of Hip-Hop giant, Def Jam. The members all grew up in Southall, UK. As well as working with various high-profile acts such as Mariah Carey, Ashanti, and Sway, they also work with community projects such as youth project BBC...

, and Juggy D

Juggy D

Jagwinder Singh Dhaliwal, better known by his stage name, Juggy D, is a British Indian singer from Southall, London, England.-Music:...

.

More recently, the Palais staged a mix of live music gigs, dance nights, and private events. The Palais has formerly hosted the popular SchoolDisco

SchoolDisco

SchoolDisco is a club night in the UK. While in previous years it has been held in venues all over the UK and Ireland and worldwide, currently there is a single weekly night held in Hammersmith. On 17 February 2007 School Disco, moved to London Forum...

 club night, which has since moved to the London Forum

London Forum

The London Forum, or sometimes Kentish Town Forum is a well-known venue for concerts in Kentish Town, London, United Kingdom owned by the MAMA Group. The venue was built in 1934 and was originally used as an art deco cinema. After the closure of the cinema, The Town & Country Club was established...

 in Kentish Town

Kentish Town

Kentish Town is an area of north west London, England in the London Borough of Camden.-History:The most widely accepted explanation of the name of Kentish Town is that it derived from 'Ken-ditch' meaning the 'bed of a waterway'...

. In addition to this, the Palais was frequently used by the Students' Union at Imperial College School of Medicine as a venue for numerous student nights.

In its last years, the Palais was owned by Barclub Ltd, which also controls the Po Na Na chain of themed bars. The company briefly renamed the club Po Na Na Hammersmith in the early 2000s decade. In an acknowledgement of the venue's historic reputation, the original Hammersmith Palais name was reinstated. The Palais closed in April 2007, with Kasabian, Idlewild

Idlewild (band)

Idlewild are a Scottish rock band, formed in Edinburgh, in 1995, comprising Roddy Woomble , Rod Jones , Colin Newton , Allan Stewart and Gareth Russell...

, and Jamie T

Jamie T

Jamie Alexander Treays , known by his stage name Jamie T, is an English singer/songwriter from Wimbledon, South London.-Early life:Jamie Alexander Treays, was born in Wimbledon, South-West London...

 among artists playing the last ever gigs there. The final gig was a performance by The Fall on 1 April 2007, later to be released as the live album Last Night at The Palais

Last Night at The Palais

Last Night at The Palais is a live album by The Fall, released on 24 August 2009.The recording has historic interest as this was one of the last concerts to be put on at the venue Hammersmith Palais before it was closed....

.

BBC television

BBC Television

BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...

 made a documentary

Documentary

A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...

, Last Man at the Palais, on the history of the Hammersmith Palais. With a fellow professional, Lyndon Wainwright

Lyndon Wainwright

Lyndon Bentley Wainwright is a metrologist, ballroom dancer and author. He worked at the National Physical Laboratory during World War II, and is a former Chairman of the British Engineering Metrology Association...

 danced the Last Waltz at the Palais to conclude the presentation. It was first screened on BBCtv 4, on Christmas Eve 2007.

The site may be used for an office and restaurant complex or a students' hall of residence. The Hammersmith and Fulham Council had been expected to rule on the proposed demolition and development in November 2009;
however, on 27 October 2009, Hammersmith and Fulham council rejected plans to turn the Hammersmith Palais site into student flats.

In July 2010, the Planning Inspectorate held a week-long public enquiry and rejected an appeal by the developers against the council's decision to block their development. The developers in this case are London & Regional (Hammersmith) and may submit an amended application in future.