The Smiths Room

“This room is more than just a tribute, it is an intimate love letter to The Smiths. A place where one becomes part of the affair by simply enjoying the air that it breathes. It is folk art of the most precious.”

Simon Wendt, Smiths fan, Milton Keynes (2023)

History of the room
The ground floor room off the main gym room was originally a fives (squash) court. This was altered in 1920 to create a changing room for gymnastics and football. By the 1970s, the room was used for weightlifting and body building. It had stopped being used by 1984, but retained all the pictures and equipment – some dating back to the 1950s and 1960s.

In 2003, a live BBC Radio 6 Music programme was held at the club to mark 25 years since the release of The Smiths debut single “Hand in Glove”, with a group of fans invited to the event. Leslie Holmes (our Project Manager) outlined his idea for the weightlifting room: create a space where fans could leave pictures or messages to mark their visit.

In 2004, as part of the club’s Heritage Lottery Fund “From Baden Powell To Morrissey” project, Leslie created The Smiths Room and included the first pictures and post it notes from fans. The room was officially opened by Smiths fan Hugh Clarke in June 2004.

Mosaic from Afflecks Palace, Manchester
In October 2012 Elaine Walsh, founder of Afflecks Palace donated the original mosaic from the building exterior, featuring Morrissey among other Manchester music icons.

The mosaic was created by Mark Kennedy and installed outside Afflecks Palace in 1995 – it was taken down in 2008 and replaced with new versions.

New digital screens added
On Saturday 1 July 2023, three newly installed electronic screens were officially switched on by Angie Cooke, a long time Smiths fan, supporter of the club and now one of our trustees. These will showcase more of the fantastic photos and the vast amount of often very touching and funny post-its that visitors write when they come to see the space.

Visiting the room
The Smiths Room is open for visitors throughout the year – our regular open days take place on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 11am to 2pm. Outside of these days, you can contact the club by email to arrange a visit. The room is also open as part of Heritage Open Weekends in early September, and visits are also arranged by Manchester Music tours.

Our visitors regularly share their pictures on social media (especially those posing outside the door!) If you share yours, please feel free tag us in your photo and we can reshare it on our social media.

Sending us a photo to include in The Smiths Room? You can email: smiths@salfordladsclub.org.uk

Leslie would like to thank the following people for their help and contributions to The Smiths Room:

– Damian Morgan
– Stephen Wright
– Mike Joyce
– Hugh Clarke
– Kevin Lloyd
– Anthony Ball
– Phil Gatenby
– All our staff and volunteer team at the club