Golden Torch

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The Golden Torch, more commonly known as The Torch was a mod nightclub in Stoke upon Trent, England.

It started life as a church and later became an ice skating rink, and in the 1940s, the Little Regent Cinema. The cinema was converted into a mod club by Christopher Burton a contemporary of Ivor Abadi (founder of the Twisted Wheel club) and Russ Winstanley of the Wigan Casino. The club opened on January 30, 1965 with the headline act of Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas.

Among the many DJs to have had residency was Peter Stringfellow. In 1967, after a performance by visiting soul music artists Inez and Charlie Fox, the Torch becoming a major northern soul venue with a similar clientele as the Twisted Wheel in Manchester. After the closure of the Twisted Wheel in 1971, the Torch became the new venue for Saturday northern soul all-nighters, holding its first on March 11, 1972.