Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 29, 2026

The Buffalo Bar

The Buffalo Bar was a music and arts venue located at 259 Upper Street, Highbury Corner, Islington, from 2000 until 2014.

Last revised
Jul 29, 2026
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51°32′46″N 0°06′12″W / 51.546074°N 0.103393°W / 51.546074; -0.103393

The Buffalo Bar
Map
Interactive map of The Buffalo Bar
Location259 Upper Street,
Islington
London, N1
United Kingdom
Capacity300
Construction
OpenedApril 2000
ClosedDecember 2014

The Buffalo Bar was a music and arts venue located at 259 Upper Street, Highbury Corner, Islington, from 2000 until 2014.1

History

The venue was situated beneath The Famous Cock Tavern, adjacent to Highbury & Islington station. The basement at 259 Upper Street had previously been a branch of Po Na Na nightclub,2 and before that, Club Down Under.3 The Buffalo Bar opened in 2000 and hosted performances by a large number of notable alternative and indie rock artists.

Bis performing at the Buffalo Bar in 2012. source ↗

As well as live concerts the venue hosted a number of club nights, including The Cave Club,4 Great Big Kiss,5 Afro Cuban Lounge,6 How Does It Feel to Be Loved?,7 Twee As Fuck,8 Artrocker,9 Guided Missile10 and Indieoke.11

The Maccabees at Artrocker Festival, Buffalo Bar, 2006 source ↗

Promotional videos were also filmed at the venue including for Electric Eel Shock, Comet Gain and the Ethical Debating Society.

Notable artists to perform at The Buffalo Bar

Closure

In November 2014, the Buffalo Bar announced that its lease had been terminated and the club would therefore be forced to close at New Year. A petition to save the venue garnered over 5500 signatures,14 the support of bands such as The National,15 The Subways and Mclusky (who performed a fundraising gig for staff16), and the intervention of local politicians including local councillor Olly Parker and local M.P. Emily Thornberry. Parker said in a speech that the Buffalo Bar had "probably done more for cultural life in Islington than anyone"14 and Thornberry stated that the bar "makes a very important contribution to youth culture and.. the cultural significance of this part of London."14

The Buffalo Bar was one of a number of grassroots London music venues subject to closure during the same period, including Madame Jojo's,17 12 Bar Club,18 Power Lunches,19 The Grosvenor,20 Passing Clouds21 and The Silver Bullet22 – prompting questions over the future of venues faced with the threat of "soaring rents..noise pollution orders, and developers".23 The Mayoral Music Venues Taskforce reported in 2015 that 35% of small venues had closed since 2007.24 In 2016 incoming Mayor of London Sadiq Khan appointed a "Night Czar", Amy Lamé, with a remit of looking at this issue.25

References

References

  1. "NEWS: Buffalo Bar to Close its Doors". Faroutmagazine.co.uk. 13 November 2014.
  2. "UK Lodging – Clubs – Accommodation and Hostels in London". Uklodging.com.
  3. "The Famous Cock Tavern, 259 Upper Street, Islington, London, N1 1RU - London Public Houses & Inns - All in London". AllinLondon.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  4. "The Cave Club". Time Out. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  5. "Great Big Kiss in London". Soul-source.co.uk.
  6. "Afro-Cuban Lounge at Buffalo Bar – Freestyle and global beats". Time Out. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  7. "HOW DOES IT FEEL TO BE LOVED? returns to the Buffalo Bar". How Does It Feel To be Loved. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  8. "Twee As F*ck Finale". Clash Magazine. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  9. "A short history of Artrocker LIVE…". Artrockermagazine.com. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  10. "Guided Missile at Buffalo Bar – House, electro and techno". Timeout.com. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  11. "indieoke at Buffalo Bars, Buffalo Bars – Club & Bar Night". Allinlondon.co.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  12. Johnson, Andrew (22 November 2014). "5,000 sign petition to save Highbury Corner music bar that hosted The Libertines and Subways". Islington Tribune. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  13. "Buffalo Bar London Gigography, Concert History, Past Events". Songkick. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  14. "End of an era? Buffalo Bar staff touched by support". St John Street News. 6 December 2014. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  15. Flood, Alex (19 December 2014). "Buffalo Bar: A Farewell To Highbury Venue". The Quietus. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  16. "McLusky To Play The Buffalo Bar". Clash. 28 November 2014. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  17. Manning, James (18 December 2014). "Au revoir, Madame Jojo's". Time Out. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  18. Morris, Andy (12 December 2014). "London loses another great venue as 12 Bar Club set to close". Gigwise. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  19. Ravens, Chal (11 December 2015). "Dalston venue Power Lunches is closing down". Fact. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  20. Walden, Lisa (19 March 2015). "Property developers closed another London music venue". Dazed. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  21. "Hundreds join march to save Hackney music venue". Standard.co.uk. 17 September 2016.
  22. "Music venue could close after buyout by Burger & Lobster owners". Evening Standard. 11 June 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  23. "Fears for music's 'toilet circuit': Small venues at risk". Independent.co.uk. 30 November 2014.
  24. "London Grassroots Music Venues Rescue Plan". London.gov.uk. 20 January 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  25. Stolworthy, Jacob (4 November 2016). "Sadiq Khan appoints LGBT event runner Amy Lamé first London Night Czar". Independent.co.uk. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
External links