One of London’s most famous music venues, which in its heyday in the 1960s played host to The Who, David Bowie and the Rolling Stones, is for sale, its administrators said Thursday.
The Marquee Club, which in the 1970s was the epicenter of the punk explosion, ran into financial difficulties after its high-profile relaunch last fall, said a spokeswoman for administrator BDO Stoy Hayward.
“We’re looking for someone in the music business who can capitalize on the Marquee brand and keep running it as a live venue,” she said.
The price tag is at least $200 million.
The club opened in London’s Soho district in 1958 and was so cramped and sweaty that, according to legend, Bob Geldof of the Boomtown Rats blacked out on stage.
The Sex Pistols were also guests in an era when audiences showed their appreciation by throwing bottles and spitting on the stage.
In 1988, it moved to a new location in nearby Charing Cross, but within eight years it had closed down.
A high-profile relaunch at a new venue in Islington, north London last September was headlined by the controversial electro-rockers Primal Scream, but according to the club’s administrators, huge start-up costs quickly led to its downfall.
