| The Groucho Club | |
| Address: | 45 Dean Street |
| Location Town: | London |
| Location Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 51.5131°N -0.1341°W |
| Map Type: | Greater London#England |
The Groucho Club is a private members' club founded in 1985 and located on Dean Street in London's Soho. Its members are mainly drawn from the publishing, media, entertainment and arts industries.[1]
The club's facilities include three bars, two restaurants, a snooker room, an enclosed terrace, 20 bedrooms for members or their guests and four event rooms, which are available for hire.[2]
The club opened on 5 May 1985. Its name was in reference to Groucho Marx's saying he did not want to be a member of any club that would have him.[3] [4]
The club was owned by Graphite Capital from 2006 to 2015, when it was sold to a group of investors led by Isfield Investments and Alcuin Capital Partners.[5] In 2022, the Groucho Club was purchased through Manuela and Iwan Wirth's Art Farm, which owns a group of boutique hotels and restaurants, for £40 million ($48.9 million).[6]
In March 2024, the club announced that it would be opening its inaugural branch outside of London at Bretton Hall near Wakefield in Yorkshire.[7]
Anyone who is proposed by two existing members may apply for membership, but applications are favoured from those working in the creative side of media and the arts.[8]
Prominent members of the club have included Cara Delevingne, Nick Grimshaw, Harry Styles, Caroline Flack, Jarvis Cocker, Lily Allen, Melvyn Bragg, Stephen Fry, Noel Gallagher, Luke Pasqualino and Rachel Weisz.[9]
The club has a large collection of contemporary art, curated by Nicki Carter, a graduate of Goldsmiths, University of London during the YBA period, erstwhile waitress and now the longest serving employee.[10]
Launched in 2010 as 'the antidote to other awards', The Groucho Club Maverick Award celebrates people who have broken the mould in their field by challenging and making a significant contribution to culture and the arts in the previous 12 months, either in the UK or internationally.[11]