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Jason Allen 22/11/22


Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace

“It’s Studio 54 on wheels.”

That’s how the original Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace was described by one actress, and frankly, she nailed it. The place was only open in LA for less than three years (from ’79 to ’81) – there are pop ups that have lasted longer – but its candle burned so incandescently bright that even now, four decades later, its legend is still enough to see its revival mark a seismic event in the celebrity calendar.

Flipper’s was founded by an Englishman, Ian ‘Flipper’ Ross, who was so-named because his foot was mangled in a car wreck, meaning that his skating rink was rather ironically named after someone who was unable to skate. But the fully bipedal came there in droves. It became a magnet for celebrities like Cher, Robin Williams, Sting, and Jane Fonda. Elton John had his birthday there. Prince played a gig there (while wearing a silk bikni). And the hedonism eventually caught the eye of the LAPD, whose drug-sniffing dogs could smell the place from across town. They ordered it be shut down, and thus it was. After a small riot.

Flippers boogie palace

Now Flipper’s daughter, the supermodel Liberty Ross, has decided to re-kindle the old fire with her dad. They launched a pop up in the Rockefeller Centre in NYC last year, and it got the likes of Will.I.Am, Mary J Blige and Alicia Keys showing up. And thus we come to London, where they’ve partnered up with none other than Usher…

THE NEW VENUE

Boogie Palace

Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace is now open, for good, in West London. And not just anywhere in West London – they’ve found themselves a vast 34,000 square-feet beauty of a brick-built, Grade-II listed former power station first built back in 1899. Inside it’s every bit as big as you’d imagine, and it’s awash with bright neon, glittering mirrors, and walls plastered with black & white photos showing off Flipper’s erstwhile heyday. It’s an absolute palace, with ceilings so high the fronds of the towering palm trees peek into the lounge upstairs, which overlooks the pitch-sized roller-disco itself patrolled by a rainbow of vivid, colourful roving spotlights.

Flippers Boogie Palace

If you fancy a very literal whirl around the space, you can head in and rent yourself a pair of their handsome, custom-made, blue suede roller-skates. Drop into the rink, and you’ll be serenaded by the sound of utterly funkadelic live DJs and sets from the likes of Central Cee and General Levy. Hungry? They’ve even thrown parties with performances from superstars like 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes, Olivia Dean, and Chaka Khan. Drop into their restaurant, Hot Dogs & Caviar, for a Wagyu smash burger, a thick-crust Detroit style pizza, or a deep-fried peanut butter & jelly sandwich. And the decadence continues at the bar, where they’ll furnish you with half a dozen draft cocktails (Mojitos, Espresso Martinis, Gin Spritzes, etc.) as well as cans of beer and bottles of wine.

Now get your skates on.

 

NOTE: Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace is now open, Tuesday to Sunday. Entry plus adult skate hire is £20.50, and you can make a booking at their website right here.

Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace | Exhibition London, Ariel Way, W12 7SL


Wanna continue the boogie? Have a scan through our ultimate guide to clubs in London…


Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace


Exhibition London, Ariel Way, Shepherd's Bush, W12 7SL