List of gentlemen's clubs in London

The members' bar at the Savile Club, London W1

This is a list of gentlemen's clubs in London, United Kingdom, including those no longer in existence or merged, with an additional section on those which appear in fiction.

Current clubs

Name	Est.	Location	Located Since	Affiliation	Standards Relaxed on Female Members, Year	Website
Alpine Club	1857	8 St Martin's Place, near Trafalgar Square (19th century); 55-56 Charlotte Road, Shoreditch	1991	Mountaineering	1975	[1]
Army and Navy Club ("The Rag")	1837	36-39 Pall Mall	1963	Army and Navy officers	1995	[2]
Arts Club	1863	17 Hanover Square (19th century); 40 Dover Street	1896	The Arts, Literature, Science	1946	[3]
The Athenaeum	1824	107 Pall Mall	1830	The Arts, Literature, and the Church	2002	[4]
Authors' Club	1891	Whitehall Court, (1891-1966); 1 Whitehall Place, sharing the premises of the National Liberal Club (1966-1976); 40 Dover Street, sharing the premises of the Arts Club (1976-2011); 47 Dean Street, sharing the premises of Black's (2011-4); 1 Whitehall Place, sharing the current premises of the National Liberal Club	2014	Literature	?	[5]
Beefsteak Club	1876	9 Irving Street, near Leicester Square	1876	Social	No women members or visitors	-
Boodle's	1762	28 St James's Street	1782	Aristocratic; Tory	No women members	[6]
Brooks's	1764	60 St James's Street	1778	Aristocratic; Whig	No women members	[7]
Buck's Club	1919	18 Clifford Street, Mayfair	1919	Social	No women members	[8]
Caledonian Club	1891	Charles II Street, near St James's Square (1891–1917); 33 St James's Square (1917–1946); 9 Halkin Street, Belgravia (current)	1946	Scottish	2011	[9]
Canning Club (formerly the Argentine Club)	1911	4 St James's Square (sharing premises of the Naval and Military Club)	1999	Social; Latin America, Spain, Portugal	?	[10]
Carlton Club	1832	Carlton House Terrace, 94 Pall Mall (1835–1941); 69 St James's Street	1943	Political; Tory, latterly Conservative	2008	[11]
Cavalry and Guards Club (The merged Cavalry Club and Guards Club)	1810 (Guards' Club); 1890 (Cavalry Club); 1976 (merged club)	127 Piccadilly	1908	Cavalry and Guards, latterly officers of other British Army regiments	No women members	[12]
Chelsea Arts Club	1891	143 Old Church Street, Chelsea	1990	The Arts	1976	[13]
City Livery Club	1914	Victoria Embankment (1914–1923); Bow Lane, Cheapside, (1923–1927); The Chapter House, St Paul's Churchyard (1927–1940); Butchers' Hall, Bartholomew's Close (1941–1944); Sion House, Victoria Embankment (1944–1996); Insurance Hall, Aldermanbury (1996–2003); 38 St Mary Axe (2003–2010); Bell Wharf Lane, Upper Thames Street (current)	2010	The City	?	[14]
City of London Club	1832	19 Old Broad Street, London (now EC2) (since 1834)	1834	City professions	2011	[15]
City University Club	1895	50 Cornhill	1895	The City, Oxbridge graduates	1994?	[16]
Civil Service Club	1953	13-15 Great Scotland Yard	1964	Civil servants	1953?	[17]
East India Club (in full: The East India, Devonshire, Sports and Public Schools' Club)	1849	16 St James's Square	1866	Originally for East India Company, since 1972 merger with the Public Schools' Club primarily aligned with public schools	No women members	[18]
Eccentric Club	1781 (original Eccentric Club); refounded in 1858, 1890, and 2008	69 Brook Street (sharing premises with the Savile Club)	2009	Social; eccentricity and philanthropy	1984	[19]
Farmers Club	1842	3 Whitehall Court	1942	Agriculture and landowning	?	[20]
Flyfishers' Club	1884	69 Brook Street (sharing premises of the Savile Club)	1995	Flyfishing	No women members	[21]
Garrick Club	1831	35 King Street, Covent Garden (early in its history); 15 Garrick Street, Covent Garden	1864	The Arts and Theatre	No women members	[22]
Hurlingham Club	1869	Ranelagh Gardens, Fulham	1869	Sports; tennis and crocquet	?	[23]
Lansdowne Club	1935	9 Fitzmaurice Place, Berkeley Square	1935	Social	1935	[24]
London Sketch Club	1898	7 Dilke Street, Chelsea	1957	Sketch artists	No women members	[25]
Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)	1787	Lords Cricket Ground, St John's Wood	1814	Cricket and Real tennis; formerly headquarters of ICC (before relocation to Dubai for tax reasons in 2005)	1998	[26]
National Liberal Club	1882	Northumberland Avenue (1882–87, and 1916-19 while the clubhouse was requisitioned in World War I); 1 Whitehall Place (current)	1887	Political; Liberal	1976	[27]
Naval Club (formerly RNVR (Auxiliary Patrol) Club (1919–1946), RNVR Club (1946–1969))	1919	38 Hill Street, Mayfair	1946	Royal Navy reservists, and later all RN officers	?	[28]
The In & Out (Naval and Military Club)	1862	94 Piccadilly (1870s-1999; so-named from its prominent "In" and "Out" signs on the gateposts); 4 St James's Square (current)	1999	Originally officers in the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and the British Army	1966	[29]
Den Norske Klub	1887	4 St James's Square (sharing premises of the Naval and Military Club)	1999	Norway	?	[30]
Oriental Club	1824	18 Hanover Square (1824–1962); Stratford House, Stratford Place	1962	Founded for members of the East India Company; now social	2010	[31]
Oxford and Cambridge Club (called the United Oxford and Cambridge Club, 1971–2001)	1821 (United University Club); 1830 (Oxford and Cambridge Club); 1971 (merged club)	71-76 Pall Mall	1837	Members of Oxford and Cambridge Universities	1996	[32]
Portland Club (formerly the Stratford Club until 1825)	1815 (circa)	94 Piccadilly (sharing the premises of the Naval and Military Club between 1969 and the 1990s); 69 Brook Street (current, sharing premises of the Savile Club)	1990s	Cards	No women members	-
Pratt's	1857	14 Park Place, St James's	1857	Aristocratic	No women members	-
Queen's Club	1886	Palliser Road, West Kensington	1892	Sports	?	[33]
Reform Club	1836	104-105 Pall Mall	1841	Originally political (Liberal), now social. Members still sign a declaration agreeing to the principles of the 1832 Reform Act.	1981	[34]
Roehampton Club	1901	Roehampton Lane, Roehampton	1901 (site); 1960s (buildings)	Sports	?	[35]
Royal Air Force Club	1918	128 Piccadilly	1922	RAF officers	?	[36]
Royal Automobile Club	1897	89-91 Pall Mall	1911	Social and automobile enthusiasts	?	[37]
Royal Ocean Racing Club	1925	20 St James's Place, St James's Street	1942	Yachting enthusiasts	?	[38]
Royal Over-Seas League (formerly the Over-Seas Club)	1910	4 Park Place, St James's (and 100 Princes Street, Edinburgh)	1921	Commonwealth citizens, affiliate membership available for other nationalities; Music and the Arts; Travellers.	1910	[39]
Royal Thames Yacht Club	1775	7 Albemarle Street (19th century); 60 Knightsbridge	1952	Yachting enthusiasts	?	[40]
Savage Club	1857	Crown Tavern, Vinegar Yard, Drury Lane (1857–1858); Nell Gwynne Tavern, Bull Inn Court, Strand (1858); Catherine Street, Covent Garden (1858–1859); Lyceum Tavern, 354 Strand (1859–1862); Gordon Hotel, Covent Garden (1862–1866); Ashley's Hotel, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden (1866–1869); Gordon Hotel, Covent Garden (1869–1873); Evans's Hotel, Covent Garden (1873–1876); Haxell's Hotel, Strand (1876–1879); Caledonian Hotel, Robert Street, Adelphi (1879–1881); Lancaster House, Savoy (1881–1889); 6-7 Adelphi Terrace (1889–1936); 1 Carlton House Terrace (1936–1963); 1 Whitehall Place (1963–1965, sharing premises of the National Liberal Club); 37 King Street, Covent Garden (1965–1968); 86 St. James's Street (1968–1975, sharing premises of the Constitutional Club); 9 Fitzmaurice Place (1975–1990, sharing premises of the Lansdowne Club); 1 Whitehall Place (current, sharing premises of the National Liberal Club)	1990	The Arts, Science and The Law	No women members	[41]
Savile Club	1868	9 Spring Gardens (1868–1871); 12 Savile Row (1871–1882); 107 Piccadilly (1882–1927); 69 Brook Street (current)	1927	Conviviality, from the Arts to the Sciences	No women members	[42]
Special Forces Club	1945	Knightsbridge	1945	Members of Special Operations Executive, British intelligence and UK Special Forces; foreign special forces, intelligence agencies and senior military officers	1945	[43]
Travellers Club	1819	12 Waterloo Place, near Pall Mall (1819–1821); 49 Pall Mall (1821–1827); 106 Pall Mall (current)	1827	Social and business travellers - members must have travelled more than 500 miles distant from (the clubhouse in) London in a direct line	No women members	[44]
Turf Club	1861	Bennett Street, Piccadilly (1861–1965), 5 Carlton House Terrace (current)	1965	Aristocratic; social, equestrianism, sports & cards	-	-
University Women's Club (originally the University Club for Ladies)	1887	31 New Bond Street (1887–1909); 34 George Street, near Hanover Square; South Audley Street, Mayfair; 2 Audley Square, Mayfair (current)	1921	University graduates	No men members	[45]
Victory Services Club	1907	63-79 Seymour Street, Fitzrovia	1948	Army, Navy and Air Force personnel	?	[46]
The Walbrook Club	2000	37a Walbrook EC4N 8BS	2000	City Professions	2000	[47]
White's Club	1693	37 St James's Street	1778	Aristocratic; Tory	No women members or visitors	-

Defunct or merged clubs

Name	Established	Clubhouse location(s)	Affiliation	Status
1920 Club	1920	2 Whitehall Court	Political; Liberal	Closed in 1923
Albemarle Club (Ladies and Gentlemen)	1874	13 Albemarle Street (from 1874); 37 Dover Street (by the 1910s); 21 Curzon Street (by the 1940s)	Social	Closed in 1941
Almack's Club (Ladies and Gentlemen)	1765	King Street, St James's (1765–1867)	Social; especially card games	Closed in1867; a 'refounded' Almack's operated from 1908 to 1961
American Club	1919	95 Piccadilly	American	Closed in the 1980s
Argentine Club	1910	1 Hamilton Place, near Piccadilly	Social	Later became the present-day Canning Club
Arthur's	1827	69 St James's Street	Social; non-political	Closed in 1940. Building later taken over by the Carlton Club; ironic, given its avowedly non-political membership.
Bachelors' Club	c.1881	106 Piccadilly	Bachelors	Closed in late 1940s
Badminton Club	1875	100 Piccadilly	Sports; driving (horses and coaches were owned by the club)	Dissolved in 1938, as by then horse transport was becoming anachronistic; Clubhouse taken over by the Public Schools Club
Bath Club	1894	34 Dover Street (1894–1941); 74 St James's Street (1950–1959); 43 Brook Street (1959–1981)	Sports; the club offered a swimming pool	Original clubhouse bombed in the Blitz. Relocated club closed in 1981 - members dispersed to other Clubs including the Oriental Club
Beaconsfield Club	1880	66-68 Pall Mall (1880–1887)	Political; Conservative	Closed circa 1887/1888; Clubhouse taken over by the Unionist Club
Beefsteak Club	1705	Imperial Phiz public house, Old Jewry	Social; Whig	closed 1712; current premises near Leicester Square
Burlington Fine Arts Club	1866	177 Piccadilly (1866–1869); 17 Savile Row (1869–1952)	The Arts	Closed in 1952
Cavalry Club	1890	127 Piccadilly	Cavalry officers	Merged with the Guards' Club in 1976 to form the present Cavalry and Guards Club
Cobden Club	1866	?	Political; Free Trade doctrine	Closed in the 1970s
Commonwealth Club	1868	25 Northumberland Avenue	formerly headquarters of the Royal Commonwealth Society	Closed June 2013. The RCS still exists as a charity.
Conservative Club	1840	88 St James's Street (1841–1845); 74 St James's Street (1841–1950)	Political; Conservative	Merged with the Bath Club in 1950, taking on the name of the Bath Club, but moving to the Conservative Club's premises.
Constitutional Club	1883	28 Northumberland Avenue (1886–1959); 40 Pall Mall, sharing the premises of the Junior Carton Club (1962–1964); 116 Pall Mall, sharing the premises of the United Service Club (1964-late 1960s); St. James's Street (1970s)	Political; Conservative	Closed in 1979; membership merged with the St. Stephen's Club
Crockford's	1828	50 St James's Street	Social; especially card games	Closed in 1845; clubhouse taken over by the Military, Naval and County Service Club, and then the Devonshire Club. Re-founded in 1928, closed in 1970.
Devonshire Club	1874	50 St James's Street	Political; initially Liberal but later largely apolitical	Closed in 1976; membership merged with the present East India Club
Eccentric Society Club (1)	1781	Various addresses around Covent Garden	Social	Closed in 1846
Eccentric Society Club (2)	1858	Leicester Square	Social	Closed in 1881
Eccentric Club (3)	1890	9 Ryder Street, St James's	Social	Closed in 1984 for refurbishment, went into liquidation in 1986; in 1985 most members were elected to the present East India Club, and still meet there to this day. In 2008 a group started an endeavour to re-establish the Eccentric Club [48]
Eighty Club	1880	?	Political; Liberal	Closed in 1900s
Green Room Club	1877	10 Adelphi Terrace (1877–1883); 22 King Street, Covent Garden (1883); 20 Bedford Street, near Strand (1883–1903); 46 Leicester Square (1903–1940); Whitcomb Street, near Leicester Square (1940–1954); 8-9 Adam Street, near Strand (1955–2000)	The Arts and theatre	Closed in 2000 [49]
Gresham Club	1843	1 King William Street (1844-1910s); Gresham Place (early 1910s); 15 Abchurch Lane, near King William Street (1915–1991),	The City; Merchants and bankers	Closed in 1991; members accepted into the City University Club
Guards' Club	1810	70 Pall Mall	Officers of the Household Cavalry and Grenadier, Coldstream, Scots, Irish, and Welsh regiments of Foot Guards.	Closed in 1976, and merged with the Cavalry Club to form the present Cavalry and Guards Club
Gun Club	Late 19th century?	?	Pigeon hunters	Closed
Hogarth Club	1858	84 Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia	Artists	Closed in 1861
Irish Club	1952	Eaton Square, and latterly Blackfriars		Closed in 2012
Isthmian Club	1882	105, Piccadilly	Rowing, cricket
Jockey Club	1750	Pall Mall	Horse racing; primarily for racehorse owners	Still exists today, but has moved out of London to Newmarket
Junior Athenaeum	1864	116 Piccadilly	The Arts, science, or the clergy	Closed
Junior Carlton Club	1866	30 Pall Mall (1868–1968); 94 Pall Mall (1968–1977)	Political; Conservative	Closed in 1977; membership merged with the present Carlton Club
Junior Constitutional Club	1887	101 Piccadilly	Political; Conservative	Closed
Junior Naval and Military Club	1870	19 Dover Street (1870–1875); 66-68 Pall Mall (1875–1979)	Army and Navy officers	The cost of the club's elaborate, purpose-built Pall Mall clubhouse bankrupted the club, and it closed in 1879. The building was then acquired by the Beaconsfield Club.
Kennel Club	1873	29a Pall Mall	Dog lovers	Still exists today as a society, but no longer provides club facilities.
King of Clubs	1798- ?1830	Crown & Anchor; Freemasons' Tavern; Grillions; Clarendon Hotel	High Whig
Marlborough Club	1868- 1945	No. 52 Pall Mall	'a convenient and agreeable place of meeting for a Society of Gentlemen'	On 31 December 1945 the Windham, Orleans and Marlborough Clubs amalgamated to form the Marlborough-Windham Club. Rising costs and lack of candidates for admission compelled this club to close in December 1953.
Military, Naval and County Service Club	Nov. 1848	50 St James's Street	active & retired military officers, including East India Company, Militia and Yeomanry.	Founded as the Military and County Service Club, renamed St James's Club c.1850 and dissolved in July 1851. The club used the premises of the former Crockford's Club. Later on the premises were used by the Wellington Dining Rooms, the St George's Club and the Devonshire Club.
National Sporting Club	1891	43 King Street, Covent Garden	Sports; Boxing	Closed
National Union	1887	?	Political; Unionist	Closed in 1890s
New Cavendish Club	1920	44 Great Cumberland Place	Social	Closed in 2014
New University Club	1864	57 St James's Street; later 6 St James's Street	Graduates of Oxford and Cambridge	Merged with the United University Club in 1938, which itself merged with the Oxford and Cambridge Club in 1971.
Palace Club	1882	?	Political; Conservative	Closed in 1900s
Portland Club	c1815 as the Stratford Club; renamed 1825.	Originally, 1 Portland Place	Card-playing game club	Now co-located with the Savile Club
Press Club	1882	Wine Office Court, near Fleet Street	Journalism	Clubhouse closed in 1986. Press Club still exists today as a society, but no longer offers club facilities [50]
Primrose Club	1886	4&5 Park Place, St James's Street	Political; Conservative	Closed in 1910s
Prince's Club	1853	Hans Place (1853–1886); 197 Knightsbridge (1888–1940s)	Sports	Closed in 1940s
Public Schools Club	1909-1915; 1918-1972	134 Albermarle Street (1909–1913); 19 Berkeley Street (1913–1915); Curzon Street (1920–1938); 100 Piccadilly (1938–1972)	Alumni of the British public schools	Merged with the present East India Club on 1 May 1972, now providing the bulk of their membership
Raleigh Club	Late 19th century?	Regent Street	Members had to have served a year in the armed forces, or be an existing member of another club	Closed
Road Club	Late 19th century?	4 Park Place, St James's	Enthusiasts for the revival of coaching	Closed
Royal Aero Club, formerly the Aero Club (1901–1909)	1901	119 Piccadilly (1901–1961); 9 Fitzmaurice Place (inside the Lansdowne Club, 1961–1968); 94 Pall Mall (inside the Junior Carlton Club, 1968–1970); 116 Pall Mall (inside the United Service Club, 1970–1977)	"the encouragement of aero-automobilism and ballooning as a sport"	Merged into the British Gliding Association in 1977 - no longer provides club facilities.
Royal Anglo-Belgian Club	1942	6 Belgrave Square (1942–1978); 60 Knightsbridge (sharing premises of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, 1978–2010); 8 Northumberland Avenue (2010-2012)	Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands	Closed in 2012.
St James's Club (1)	c.1850	50 St James's Street	?	Closed in 1851, late the Military, Naval and County Service Club, formerly the Military and County Service Club.
St James's Club (2)	1857	106 Piccadilly	Members of the British diplomatic service, and foreign diplomats in Britain	Closed in 1978, and membership merged with Brooks' .
St Stephen's Club	1870	Bridge Street, Westminster (19th century); 34 Queen Anne's Gate, near St James's Park (1962-2013)	Political; Conservative	Closed 31 December 2012
Sports Club	1893	8 St James's Square	Sports	Merged with the present East India Club in 1938
Union Club	1800	Trafalgar Square	Social	Closed in 1949, was then at 86 St James's Street until 1960s merging with the United Service Club; clubhouse is now Canada House
Unionist Club	1886	66-68 Pall Mall	Political; Liberal Unionist	Closed in 1892; clubhouse acquired by the New Oxford and Cambridge Club
United Club	Late 19th century?	Charles Street, near Berkeley Square	Linked to the United Hotel, with additional facilities for members	Closed
United Empire Club	1904	101 Piccadilly	Global Reform;	Closed
United Service Club ("The Senior")	1815	116 Pall Mall	Senior officers (Major/Commander and above) in the army and navy	Closed in 1978; clubhouse is now the Institute of Directors
United University Club	1821	1 Suffolk Street, near Pall Mall (1826–1971)	Graduates of Oxford and Cambridge	Merged with the present Oxford and Cambridge Club in 1971. Clubhouse is now the London centre of the University of Notre Dame
Watier's	?	81 Piccadilly	?	Closed
Wellington Club	Early 20th century?	?	?	Closed
York Club	Mid/late 19th century	8 St James's Square (1886–88)	?	Closed. Building later acquired by the Junior Travellers' Club, then the Sports Club.

Fictional clubs

• Bagatelle Card Club - One of Colonel Sebastian Moran's clubs in the Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Empty House.
• Beargarden Club - A St James's club in Trollope's Palliser novels
• Bellona Club - Lord Peter Wimsey's club and location of a murder in Dorothy L. Sayers novel The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club
• Billiards Club - Setting for the improbably tall tales of Jorkens, by Lord Dunsany
• Black's Club - Jack Aubrey's, Stephen Maturin's, and Sir Joseph Blaine's club in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series. O'Brian also makes Prince William, Duke of Clarence a member.
• Blades Club - M's club in the James Bond series by Ian Fleming
• Bratt's Club - John Beaver's club in A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh
• Centaur Club - Francis Blake's club in Blake and Mortimer (comics) by Edgar P.Jacobs
• Diogenes Club – Mycroft Holmes's club in the Sherlock Holmes stories.
• Drones Club – Bertie Wooster's club in P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves stories; and is also the club of several other Wodehouse characters, including Bingo Little, Gussie Fink-Nottle, Psmith, and Freddie Threepwood.
• Etheric Explorers Club – a society featured in a series of short stories and novels by Paul Marlowe.
• Egotist's Club - Lord Peter Wimsey's club in the Dorothy L. Sayers novels and short stories.
• Ffeatherstonehaugh's Club – a corrupt and hedonistic establishment commemorating the libertine values of John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, featured in the crime novel Clubbed to Death by Ruth Dudley Edwards.
• Hotch Potch Club - featured in John Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga.
• Imperial Club - from the 1960s UK television comedy series Bootsie and Snudge, starring Alfie Bass and Bill Fraser.
• Iseeum Club - another featured in John Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga.
• Junior Ganymede Club – Jeeves's club (for gentlemen's gentlemen) in P G Wodehouse's Jeeves stories.
• Marine Commando Club, Paddington - frequented by Julian and Sandy from the BBC radio comedy Round the Horne. Note that Kenneth Horne's radio alter ego, a member of the Athenaeum, described it as "not my sort of club".
• Old Bohemian Club - "Bunny" and Raffles' club in E. W. Hornung's Raffles stories.
• Progress Club – a club which "intended to do great things for Liberal Party . . . and had in truth done little or nothing." in The Prime Minister by Anthony Trollope.
• Senior Conservative Club - features in P.G. Wodehouse's novel Psmith in the City. Although fictional, the description of a large, Conservative-aligned club in Northumberland Avenue tallies perfectly with the real-life Constitutional Club at No.28 and Nevill's Turkish Baths at No.25, "twenty yards from the club's front door" (which baths were also used by Sherlock Holmes and Raffles).
• The Seraphim Club - A private club featured in Gallows Thief by Bernard Cornwell.
• Stoics' Club - George Pendyce's club in The Country House by John Galsworthy.
• The Survivor's Club - featured in the novel The Somnambulist by Jonathan Barnes.
• The Tankerville Club - Featured in two Sherlock Holmes stories.
• Thackeray Club - club in the movie Top Hat from 1935 with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Gallery

• 

  The Athenæum Club

• 

  The Garrick Club

• 

  The Reform Club

See also

• Country clubs
• Dining clubs
• List of American gentlemen's clubs
• List of India's gentlemen's clubs

References

• The Gentlemen's Clubs of London by Anthony Lejeune, first published 1979, most recently in 2012 by Stacey International.
• http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=40581

External links

• Association of London Clubs (dead link)