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Picture source: Stephen Harris

The Gaiety was situated at 23 Mersea Road. This pub was first established by 1860 as the Sir Colin Campbell.  It was renamed the Gaiety in around 1896 and closed in 1963.  The latter name is associated with the theatre and, despite its diminutive appearance, this pub long had its own music hall or theatre.  It seems to have been a rather low-class establishment providing possibly rather dubious entertainment to army personnel barracked nearby.  It is now in private residential use.  It had been a Whitbread’s pub, passing to Truman’s by the time of its closure.

“….. a music hall at the Sir Colin Campbell public house on the Mersea Road. Not very much is known about it and what there is can be mostly gleaned from the police reports. It seems that some of the turns were provided by professional artistes who lived on the premises, and others by volunteers from the audience. Since it was near the barracks most of the clientele were soldiers. Altogether it seems to have been a sort of disreputable N.A.A.F.I. Yet even during these lean years there was live professional entertainment to be found in Colchester - of a kind. In April, 1921, the police unexpectedly visited the Sir Colin Campbell, now renamed the Gaiety Music Hall, where a revue of a rather tenuous nature was being performed. It stopped abruptly and the owner of The Gaiety later appeared in court charged with putting on a dramatic entertainment without a licence. His sad defence was that the proceedings were such perfect fooling they could hardly be called entertainment. The bench, of whom Mark Downe was one, disagreed and fined him £5. This public house, incidentally, has since closed and the premises are now The Colchester Trade Union Working Mens Club.”

Source: Butler, Nicholas. Theatre in Colchester

Colchester Borough Police Court 25 May 1897 A Lively Scene in a Public House James Gill, music hall artiste, Mersea Road, was summoned for threatening his wife, Kate Gill, and assaulting Rose Sydney, music hall artiste, on the 22nd inst. There were cross summonses against Kate Gill and Rose Sidney for assaulting James Gill. Mr F Gowen, for Mrs Gill and Miss Sydney, said Mr and Mrs Gill were married in 1882, but there were no children. About three years ago they took the Gaiety Music Hall, otherwise the Sir Colin Campbell public house, in Mersea Road. As Gill seemed much addicted to drink, the owners of the house prevailed on him to leave, and asked Mrs Gill, who had been obliged to separate from her husband, to conduct the house. The defendant persistently returned and stayed overnight, going away in the morning. On the night of the 21st inst. Mrs Gill, who was suffering from bronchitis, went to bed, and Rose Sidney, later on, went to bed in the same room. Shortly afterwards the defendant knocked violently on the front door, and on being admitted he came upstairs, saying if he could not find matches they had better look out. Gill then burst the bedroom door open, caught hold of the two women, who were in their nightdresses, and tried to pull them out of the room, and they had to defend themselves as best they could. Gill, who was very drunk, said he would “rip his wife up.” Mrs Gill sent the barman for the police, and PC Fisher arrived. Mr Asher Prior, for the defendant, contended that all the assaulting was on the part of the complainants. The bench having heard the evidence, dismissed all the summonses, ordering Mrs Gill to pay 5s costs and her husband 1s.

Source: Chelmsford Chronicle 28 May 1897

I read with interest the information on the Gaiety Pub, Mersea Road which closed in 1963 not because I ever remembered it as the Gaiety but I certainly do remember it as the “Labour Club” (Colchester Trade Union Working Men’s Club). From 1969 – 1977 I well remember my father ( Patrick Powell ) taking the Powell family to the Club over the years , that’s me , my mother and my two sisters. We met several characters over the years but one that stands our was the bar steward Jock Cunningham, his wife June (tragically killed years later when a tree hit their car in Lexden Road Colchester) and their daughter Margaret who married a local scrap merchant (Reg Carter). The Chairman of the Club at the time was Alf Angus and the social secretary was Alan Fitton. Over many years we were regulars at the club, my dad a committee member and dart team player. I liked the upstairs snooker room. As a family we regularly went to the Saturday night musical evenings and sometimes the Sunday evening Bingo nights. Not the same type of entertainment as highlighted in the days of the Gaiety pub but I now understand why the weekend nights of entertainment continued under the new owners but this time fun for the family! I never knew the history of this establishment but as a teenager and family I have happy memories of our times at the Labour Club, Mersea Road... but alas no photos although the outside of the Gaiety/ Working Men’s Club look no different .. I recognised the building immediately.

Chris Powell (July 2015)

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