On Thursday 10th July, a funeral was held outside Motion, to give the club “the send-off it deserves” after it was announced late last year that the venue was due to close. Crowds gathered to mourn, celebrate and pay tribute to one of the UK’s most renowned venues, with organisers stating that Bristol is “losing an icon”. Motion’s final day after 20 years in operation is on July 19th with ‘The Last Dance’, a “final rave for the ages” from Just Jack, due to last from 6pm until 6am.
Dressed in funeral attire, attendees tossed flowers on a coffin as it was borne around Motion, before a ‘priest’ in a dog collar performed a eulogy. He began by assuring the crowd that the funeral was held “not in sorrow but in celebration”, but his speech also highlighted the current trend in nightclub and evening venue closures not only in Bristol but nationwide:
“Today, we lay to rest not just four walls in a warehouse but an icon… But Motion’s death isn’t an isolated tragedy. It’s part of a bigger crisis…flats rising where dancefloors once stood”.
The ‘priest’ added: “Clubs aren’t dying from a lack of love. They are dying from being priced out and pushed out in a system that no longer values the spaces that bring us together.”. The congregation seemed to agree with this sentiment, with some holding up banners that read ‘Save UK nightlife’ and ‘not another one!?’
Previously, Motion’s owners have insisted that they have “done everything we could to change the outcome”, including submitting a bid to purchase the site. Sadly, their efforts have so far been unsuccessful:
“…despite doing everything right, it has become increasingly clear: we will not be open past July. This isn’t just the end of a lease. It’s the end of an era, not just for us but for the entire community who have collectively built something special here”.
An ambitious fundraising initiative has been launched with the goal of raising two hundred and fifty thousand pounds, in a last ditch effort to secure a permanent home for Motion and its sister venue, the Marble Factory.
