It’s time to be honest about Antwerp Mansion, it’s just not cool anymore

For years Antwerp Mansion has stood as a pillar of nightlife amongst Manchester students. The 1840s industrial space, nestled amongst the hustle and bustle of the Curry Mile, was started as a renovation project with one main aim: to create the most original nightclub in the world, and has since solidified itself as the pride of many a Fallowfield resident.

After playing host to countless major musicians including Bondax and Ms. Dynamite, as well as holding some of the most infamous club nights in the North West, Antwerp has truly reached legendary status. Even Game of Thrones' Maisie Williams, AKA Arya Stark, paid a visit to the Mansion back in March.

But, above all, Antwerp Mansion has endlessly provided a sweaty haven for generations upon generations of students for whom 256 is too shit, Deansgate Locks too fancy and Hidden (or Sankeys, R.I.P), too damn far away.

But, as the tale is often told, this beautiful thing has come to an end.

Concerns began in September when it was announced via Facebook that they were introducing locks on the toilet doors in order to achieve "a more upmarket feel to the place". I'm sorry, but what? An integral part of the true Antwerp experience is the three-man cover job required to piss in peace. If we wanted an upmarket night out, we'd head to Northern Quarter, not through a smoking area full of freshers in our muddy 'Antwerp trainers'.

More recently, shit really hit the fan when the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service ordered the Mansion to reduce their capacity by 15 per cent, resulting in all Skiddle tickets for Saturday night's Regression Sessions being cancelled. Those who were able to attend queued for over an hour in order to enter the building, which was described as "empty" and "not worth the wait".

On top of this, people in attendance at Monday's Carnival Launch Party claimed that the night was forced to end early, hours before the venue's usual 3am close.

Lydia, a student at University of Salford, was at the event and said "everyone got kicked out at like half one. They turned the music off and we had to leave".

Rosie, third year at UoM said: "Honestly I just hate going there now, I think it's disgusting. It doesn't seem like they care about the quality of the nights at all, just making as much money as possible. I'm so over it."

Jess, Manchester Metropolitan third year, said: "They no longer respect any of their customers. The bouncers are aggressive and kicked me out the other week when I was sober. They made me stand in curry mile on my own and I wasn't allowed to stand "near the vicinity". It's a pile of shit now."

Antwerp, hun, what happened?

Why would we bother going there now, when there are so many better options? Hidden has been owning Manchester nightlife in the last year, putting on better nights with a better sound system? They even won an award for being the best small club in the UK. It's definitely worth the taxi ride to North Manchester. Plus there's Islington Mill, an iconic venue that not many students have been to, this needs to change. It's an untapped source and even hosted LEVELZ's boiler room a couple of years ago. For those who haven't yet heard, White Hotel in Salford is the new place to go for your grungy nights. It has the relaxed vibe of Antwerp Mansion, without being swarmed by freshers and covered in sweaty second-hand glitter.

So that's it. It's time to call it, Antwerp Mansion is dead. You've had your day. Now it's just a big empty house with loads of toilets and an average sound system. It's safe to say we're all over it.