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Fire at former club used in Robbie Williams video

Jonny Humphries
BBC News, Lancashire
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service A firefighter in a cherry picker holds a hose above the smouldering roof of the club.Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service
Fire crews have urged people to avoid the area.

Firefighters have been dealing with a blaze at a former working men's club in Blackpool once used in a music video for singer Robbie Williams.

Pictures show smoke billowing from the Central Club on Kent Road, which had also been used by criminals to set up a £1m cannabis farm in 2021.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service said it believed the building was derelict.

A spokesman said the service did not believe there were any injuries but had not yet been able to fully access the building to be certain.

Large plumes of smoke obscure the view of the Central Club, although the blue sign can be made out. A fire engine is parked outside the building and a ladder is leaning against the wall.
Onlookers watched on a smoke billowed out of the former club in Blackpool

Eight fire engines attended the scene and used an aerial ladder platform and a water tower to bring the fire under control.

The service said a "large smoke plume" had spread in the area and urged people close by who could see or smell the smoke to stay inside and keep windows closed.

Lancashire Police also told people to avoid the area, particularly Seasiders Way, Kent Road and around South Shore.

The Central Club featured in Williams' 2005 song Advertising Space and was a popular fixture in the seaside resort's club scene.

However it has been closed for a number of years and was listed for sale at £300,000 in 2019.

In 2021, Lancashire Police found 1,500 cannabis plants and growing equipment in the building and a man from London was arrested.

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