Based in a Victorian school hall, Scholars attracts an overwhelmingly 'lad' (On the occasions that I have been there, at lest 75% of the punters seem to be males) local crowd, fuelled by a mixture of cheap alcohol and anthemic 'indie' music (Well, major label 'shout along' acts like Oasis, the Kaiser Chiefs and the Prodigy). The atmosphere is brash, loud and drunken, with groups of inebriated 'lads' adding a slightly intimidating edge to procedings. On the each occasion that I have attended Scholars (Always at the request of friends), I have witnessed at least outbreak of violence among the 'lads' on the dancefloor The saving grace to all of this is always the quick and professional response of the door staff in breaking up the fights and ejecting the protagonists.
The club itself becomes insanely crowded, making one question what would happen in the event of a fire breaking out. The toilets the gents at least have always been in a terrible state, urine pools on the floor and the guaranteed presence of vomit and at least one broken glass. The beer? The bitter isn't great, in my opinion, so Newcastle Brown becomes the sole option if you fancy a beer. Lots of lager is drunk and spilt over people by the 'lads' and, as stated in other reviews, the female minority tend to prefer Lambrini as their binge-drink of choice.
If a night of loud Oasis-type records in the presence of groups of binge drinking overwhelmingly male drunks is your thing, and you don't mind the slippery (As much alcohol is poured on the floor as into mouthsand over other people) and packed dancefloor, then go for it :-) read more