[Stuart Hartley]

Joe Morts: sawdust on the male toilet floor, a hosepipe linking a leak from the ceiling out through one of the windows, fights on the dance floor that were so common we just danced round the bodies knocking hell out of each other. Mary Mort walking around the floor with her two German police dogs on chains wrapped around her wrists.The police used to parade outside in great force with their dogs because they were not allowed inside due to it being a private club ( the reason we had to become members was to keep the police out unless invited in) Apparently Joe's had the largest private membership for a club outside the USA. The front page of the Accrington Observer often had headlines about the trouble outside Joe's but this was often propaganda because the council wanted the place closed down. Does anyone remember the cartoons that were drawn and pinned to the window of the disc jockey's room? Downstairs was the cafe. The Ted's used to wobble their solo dance and occasionally brandished their knuckle dusters and bicycle chains that they never used but kept for show. Even now one can go upstairs and have a look at what was the dance floor and room known as Joe Mort's. It's a gym but they don't mind one having a look.