Danny La Rue’s Nightclub
A 15-minute detour into pre-Soho Mayfair
Danny La Rue (born Daniel Patrick Carroll, Cork, 1927; died 2009) was Britain’s most celebrated female impersonator and, for a decade, its most expensive nightclub act. His club at 17 Hanover Square opened in 1964 and ran until 1972, drawing audiences that included Princess Margaret, Judy Garland and Dame Edith Evans. It was the first London club built around a drag performer as its headline act, and had 13,000 members at its peak.
La Rue was openly camp in performance but careful never to confirm or deny his private life – clear to those who knew how to see him, while staying within what the law and public taste allowed. Every night a man in a dress ran the most glamorous club in London, and everyone applauded, and no one said the word. The site is now offices. (A short walk or cab west of Soho Square.)