The trocadero

[mikejee]

According to this 1979 cutting from the S.Mercury, the Trocadero building used to be a fire station. At first i found that a little difficult to believe, but the 1867 directory confirms that it was the Norwich Union fire station.
Mike

 

[Peter Walker]

Mike, Many thanks for unearthing the piece about the old Trocadero.
I remember it from the 1950s when it was a lively fascinating place, but a bit camp. Pity I have no pics of the impressive interior. It has been extensively refurbished in the last few years, but the outside is still moreorless the same.
Peter

 

[JohnWish]

I'm sure you are right, I used to use the Troc fairly regularly at
lunchtime in the early 60s, - and a couple of times at night
accompanied by a male friend from work, so perhaps we didn't
stand out too much! Another pub which I haven't heard mentioned
was the Falstaff which I seem to remember had three floors, one
with a similar clientele, one with 'working girls' (or so I was told),
and one for the rest of us! It was close to Old Square, and not far
from the Kings Hall Market, but I can't remember which street it was in.

Kind regards

Dave

In the second half of the fifties I was at Central Tech, Suffolk Street and B'ham CAT (now Aston University). Sometimes both on the same day. The Troc was our oasis en route between the two. It became our usual meeting place. At lunch time, there were people from the Post and Mail. In the evening it had more of a homosexual tendency. At the time it was, possibly, the only Bass house in the centre.

The first homosexual pub I encountered was the lovely old Woodman in Easy Row.