The Gallery was a club in the basement of the Marina Hotel, Rhyl, Wales run by Mike Peters, Eddie MacDonald and friends which started on 14th February 1981. The venue was also used by The Alarm for early rehearsals for the period before the band played their first gig in June 1981. Songs such as Unsafe Building, Third Light, What Kind OF Hell and For Freedom were practiced here.



With punk rock I decided there was nothing for me where I lived. The first place I ever tried to get anything going was in Liverpool at Eric’s Club. That’s where I met Pete Wylie. Everyone in Rhyl tended to head to Liverpool. Eddie, myself and Twist would go there – there was a scene. Dave would go when he was home from the navy. Then Eddie, myself, and my friend Red Eye tried to create the same scene in Rhyl which we called The Gallery but that was destroyed by violence. That was the spur that told us we’ve got to get out of this place, and so we moved to London.” – Mike Peters 1985

From an interview with Mick Mercer for ZigZag magazine in 1982
Eddie: I went to the Rumrunner in Birmingham and just happened to ask for a U2 record. – “Never heard of ‘em” – and just carried on playing ‘Love Action’ million-inch version. When we started our own disco back home (The Gallery) there was nowhere to go and it was all Gary Numan so we thought we’d start something of our own: punk and New Wave. Then Futurist came along, so we could incorporate a lot of things and the kids really enjoyed themselves.
Mike: We ploughed all the money back in to buying all the records. We had a policy of ‘No Bouncers’. The Gallery was run by the people for the people and they respected that. Then we put Discharge on. (Previously described to me as “A fight where a gig broke out in the middle”). The Oi mob came down. Gaz (their roadie) and Eddie got beaten up.
Eddie: They thought I was a Wembley trophy, kicking me round the floor!
Mike: We shut down after that. The whole place got wrecked. They couldn’t see that some people aren’t in it for the money.

“We didn’t have bouncers because we put all the money into buying records”, says Mike Peters. “We had a notice which said the club was run by kids for kids and for the love of music. If we had any trouble we’d close” The warning worked until punk band Discharge played and attracted an undesirable element who tore the place apart and the club ended. – Record Mirror 30th April 1983