Who says that there has to be an age limit on partying? Well, whoever did is full of it. The older you get, the harder you should party. And that’s exactly what the folks at The Posh Club do.
Posh Club is a disco for senior citizens that helps them to combat loneliness.
The dance club was started by siblings Simon Casson and Annie Bowden. Their mom constantly felt lonely so they decided to organize a vintage tea party and invited some of their mom’s friends who were also in their 80s and 90s.
They served up tea, sandwiches, scones, and played 1940s records on an old phonograph.
The party guests loved it so much that the siblings decided to throw another party at a local church and invite more seniors as about 2 millions seniors in the UK live alone, according to the club’s website.
It grew from there and The Posh Club was born. Now more than 10,000 partygoers attend parties in different locations around the U.K. The parties are funded by subsidized grants and run by volunteers.
“We’d like to open more,” club producer Dickie Eaton told Vice. “We get people coming here from other cities while visiting friends or relatives in Hackney, and they always say, ‘Why can’t we have something like this where we live?’ So that’s an ambition. But it would need to be quality, have the right atmosphere, and be done with love because if it doesn’t have those things it’s not The Posh Club.”
At any given party you’ll see people dressed to the nines in sparkly outfits or fancy hats. Most guests are working class people over the age of 60 but their eldest guest was 109.
They might even be role-playing and dressed up in wackier fare like dog collars.
Partygoers will often fill the dance floor to music that fits with the party’s theme like 50s rockability while sipping on cocktails or mocktails in flutes. Sometimes they’ll even feature specialized entertainment.
“When I first started performing here I thought, ‘OAPs [retired people], relaxed gig, no problem.’” says Elvis impersonator Conrad Hamilton said. “I could not have been more wrong. It’s the only place I’ve ever had underwear thrown at me. They were big granny’s panties.”
So, this isn’t your grandma’s tea party… even though it is. It’s like a real nightclub but most of the events are during the day.
And the costs are about $5 per person, so they are affordable for those on a fixed income.
“We’re probably the only club event in the world where someone was rushed to a hospital because they’d forgotten to take their drugs,” said Eaton.
Eaton says he couldn’t be prouder knowing that these events are allowing seniors to have fun while also combating loneliness.
“It’s probably the most rewarding thing I’ve ever been involved with,” said Eaton. “A lot of our guests maybe don’t get out as much as they once did and don’t see friends as often. Well, this provides a unique way to do both, while also being part of something that’s vibrant and exciting.”
He says the club also offers a good message to society that you’re never too old to have fun.
“Just because you reach a certain age, doesn’t mean you don’t want to have fun anymore. I think society has a habit of forgetting that. A lot of what we, as younger people, do to enjoy ourselves, these guys, they’ve not only seen it and done it all, they invented most of it,” Eaton says.
You can learn more about The Posh Club here.
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