One for hard-core Sheffielders, being a couple of miles from the city centre, the Arbourthorne Hotel was very much a local suburban venue. Opening on 10th February 1939 it was tucked away off the main roads in the middle of the large pre-War social housing estate. An imposing roadhouse style public house and hotel, it was the first to be built on a Sheffield estate.  As such it was a community focal point for decades, offering entertainment most nights of the week. On 8 March 1965 an instrumental group from Newcastle called The Kylastrons played there and the pub was an early Sheffield venue for Vance Arnold and the Avengers, Joe Cocker's group.

And during the Sixties and Seventies that often meant bingo ("£20 worth of prizes”), discos (see the advert from Jan 1970) or live music. Joe Cocker, O'Hara's Playboys, Crazy Daises, Bitter Sweet were all regulars along with touring acts like Georgie Fame and Vanity Fare, who played a few times, as one resident remembers: “It was snowing and we got in early to get a seat. By 8.30 the landlord came on stage and said Vanity Fare were stuck in snow, but would do their best to get there. They eventually turned up very late and walked in with sunglasses on, guitars in one hand, amps in other and went straight on.”

Amazingly even Marc Bolan appeared here, though not as a turn.   Marc had been booked to appear on Radio Hallam to do promo work in 1975 for his new single, New York City. Worried about fans swamping the radio station they decided to do this instead at the Arbourthorne Hotel.  The photo here shows him on the balcony at the back of the hotel!  One local recalls the event:

"There was so many kids wagging school that day the radio presenter got in trouble, he announced if you came down to the Arbourthorne Hotel at lunchtime you’d be able to see him, and people did in their hundreds!”

Some grainy 8mm film of the event survives.

The venue has jazz connections as well

• Sheffield Jazz mentions that Swift played at the Arbourthorne in the late 1970s, to an audience of just four.
• Wild Bill Davison — the American jazz trumpeter also played there during the Sheffield Jazz period.
• Stan Tracey's sextet — played there; famously, the landlady's extremely loud time bell interrupted a quiet Stan Tracey piano solo. Tracey subsequently incorporated a bell into the number.

If you saw bands there, or recall playing the venue do drop us a line.  We will try and find some more adverts to see who else appeared.  Spurred on by the story I decided to try and find the hotel (sometimes landlords keep old booking diaries!), but found I was ten years too late. It was bulldozed in 2016.

Location: 6 Errington Road, S2 2EG