11 things we miss about going to nightclubs 💔

The countdown is on!

Author: Emma Dickson

Screaming along to music, the dancing so hard you feel like your feet are on fire, even the stressful hunt for a taxi home – we miss it all!

It’s been over a year and a half of Netflix and takeaways instead of pints and kebabs.

The things we love, and hate, about a night out seem like a distant memory.

Not to worry though, this afternoon the Stormont Executive confirmed a reopening date for nightclubs across Northern Ireland!

From October 31st dancing and standing the bar for the drink will be allowed 👏

In anticipation for the end of the month, we thought we'd take a trip down memory lane and think back on some of our favourite clubbing memories.

Roll on October 31st!

Pre’s

For some, this is the only part of the night they remember the next morning, but Pre's or 'pre-drinks' is the party before the party. With nowhere else to go right now, pre-drinks in the house…is just drinks really.

Queuing for the club

We're used to waiting half an hour to grab essentials in Tesco rather than Ollie's nowadays. Can you imagine the post-lockdown queues? It'll be all worth it when you're raving inside!

Making new friends in the toilet

You trust them with your deepest darkest secrets, they become your most loyal companion, both on the dance floor and the loo.

Eye contact with a stranger

Nothing beats that moment when you lock eyes with someone you find attractive across the crowd. It's game time, how do you play it – are you shy and 'not interested' or do you sprint in their direction pushing everyone else out of the way (Mean Girls style)?

Trying to become BFFs with the DJ

No matter how many times you beg the DJ to play ABBA or the Spice Girls, it ain't happening. There's no way they can hear you past the booming speakers, but you continue to wave and mouth song names in their face.

Crazy bar tabs

Our bank accounts used to be empty because of the random drinks and shots we'd buy the night before. Instead, there's considerable less £££ in there due to online shopping and Deliveroo.

A whole sound of music

After a year and a half of lockdown, there's hundreds of epic songs that haven't been played in a club yet.

The humble bar crawl

Hopping from one bar to the next is a casual weekend here in Belfast, especially in the Cathedral Quarter. We can't wait to get back to the cobbled streets.

Singing and dancing in the street

There might be curfews, but that doesn't matter. Once the lights are on and you're kicked to the curb, that's where the real party starts. Singing woefully at the top of your lungs with your new friend from the toilets on the way to the chipper.

Food, Food, Food

You just can't beat a greasy takeaway after a night on the town. From kebabs to chips, we'll take it all please!

The fight for the last taxi home

No matter how hard you try, you really can't sober up in a taxi on your way home. The poor driver has to put up with a lot - reeking of booze, half-finished sentences, tearful friends and sometimes the occasional stop for a pee/boke.

Read more:

‘Old skool’ tunes for the ultimate lockdown lock-in!

Northern Ireland’s most iconic bars and nightclubs

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