Opened in 1922 by Brigadier-General Scudamore, the Village Hall in Worplesdon was built to recognize the sacrifice of men in the First World War; sat 300, had a large stage, a cinema room and a billiards room.
In the mid 60’s it became an early venue for the Hayward / Mansfield duo, who ran the Ricky-Tick, Guildford club nights. There were at least eleven Ricky Tick (known as ‘R&B Guildford’ then) nights at Worplesdon Memorial Hall. John Mayall’s Blues Breakers rolled into the village on 9 August ’63, followed the next week, 16 August ’63, by The Cyril Davies All-stars with Long John Baldry. This gig is supposedly the one referenced in a Louder Sounds, May 2014 article ‘Boom Boom: The Untold Story of British R&B’ when Roland Kelly is quoted saying “We went to see them [Cyril Davies and Long John Baldry] over at Worplesdon Village Hall, which is near Guildford. He was absolutely stoned out of his brain with a suitcase of scotch, he could hardly stand but he still did the gig.”
The next gig scheduled for 23 August ’63 was a disaster: The Rolling Stones never showed up and neither Hayward (at the Windsor venue) or Mansfield (reportedly handing out Ricky Tick flyers at a concert in Guildford) were present. Guildford Ricky Tick managers David Woodrow, with help from Brenda Elsdon, did their best to pacify the crowd by telling stories, sing-a-longs, games and party tricks by the audience. The hall’s caretaker and his wife made cups of tea and orange squash for the fans, as there was no bar. Mansfield arrived around 9pm and diffused the situation with refunds and 1/2 priced admission to the Cyril Davies All-stars with Long John Baldry the next Friday, 30 August ’63. Admission ran from 2/6 to 7/6, pennies in today’s money. The Stones had gone to a London club to celebrate their appearance on ‘Ready, Steady, Go!’ instead.
On 6 September ’63, John Mayall’s Blues Breakers were back, a month after their first appearance, and again on 20 September ’63. Sandwiched in-between these two date was Jimmy Powell & The Dimensions, probably with Rod Stewart, on 13 September ’63. The first concert in October featured the Cyril Davies All-stars with Long John Baldry on 4 October ’63 and the next week on 11 October, it was Jimmy Powell & The Dimensions once again, while local band Hogsnort Rupert’s Soul Builders with Mel Turner took to the stage the week after that, the 18 October ’63. Jumping to November ’63, Cyril Davies All-Stars and Long John Baldry were back again on 2 November followed by the last Rick Tick at the hall which featured The Stormsville Shakers on 15 November ’63. The Ricky Tick moved to The Plaza, Guildford on 29 November ’63.
Leaping to the next decade, on 12 March ’78, Guildford based 3-piece Strange Cult played at the Memorial Village Hall, along with The Ellery Bops, with future members of The Vapors, Ed Bazalgette on guitar and Howard Smith on drums. The Absolute, with future Vapor Steve Smith on drums, were also billed to perform, but didn’t.
The light and spacious Walker Room in the Memorial Hall is still very active, with a raised stage at one end and hardwood floor used every week by the resident dance groups. The stage, which contains a grand piano, is just right for a band or other entertainment.
Gallery:
Our Soundscene 