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This page is intended as a helpful guide for those putting on gigs in Oxford.
Click here to see what gigs are on in Oxford at the moment. See also: Concert Venues Guide and Halls for Hire.Errors / omissions? Please tell us (venues@dailyinfo.co.uk / 01865 241133)!
| Name | Contact | Description | Equipment |
| A | |||
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A1 Pool Hall Cowley Road Area Capacity: 80 submit review Map |
10 Crown Street Cowley OX41QG Tel: 01865 244300 after 6.30pm |
Pool hall / bar, also available for private hire (£50 - £100, licence till midnight). Free pool on a Sunday afternoon 3-6pm. Available for private parties. Late licence till 12. | No music equipment atm. Awaiting entertainment licence from the Council, after which there are plans to get a PA system. |
| B | |||
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Baby Love Central see/submit review Map |
 3 King Edward Street, Oxford OX1 4HS Tel: 01865 200011 www.baby-bar.co.uk drumbabydrum@hotmail.co.uk |
Trendy central bar playing electronica, drum & bass, etc. Large cocktail selection. Sister bar on the Cowley Road.
Cocktails. Dress Code. Wheelchair friendly.
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Baby Simple Cowley Road Area Capacity: 220 see/submit review Map |
213 Cowley Rd OX4 1XF Tel: 01865 202506 / 794726 www.baby-bar.co.uk |
Baby simple launched in December 07, bringing together the ambience of Bar BABY and the the musical know-how of leading Oxford music promoter, SIMPLE. The venue has been recently redeveloped. The mezzanine now hosts works by local artists, and the completely refurbished ground floor area now incorporates a new lighting and sound system and cocktail bar. They would like to hear from party-goers, artists, DJs and promoters who would like to get involved: contact nick@simpleproductions.co.uk / 07803 078033. Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly.
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Basic essentials of a sound system. |
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The Old Bookbinder's Arms Jericho Capacity: 120 see/submit review Map |
17-18 Victor Street OX2 6BT Tel: 01865 553549 |
Friendly nook-and-cranny-filled pub known for its real ale. Quiz Tuesday, proceeds to charity, get there by 7pm. Free peanuts from large barrel. 30 capacity function room available for hire.
Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Wifi Access. Late licence till 12.
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In-house PA and preamp |
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The Bridge Central submit review Map |
6-9 Hythe Bridge Street Oxford 0X1 2EW Tel: 01865 242526 www.bridgeoxford.co.uk info@bridgeoxford.co.uk |
Classier alternative to Park End et al. Commercial dance, RnB, Old School, etc. Themed student nights (including International night, Weds) & live local radio broadcasts. See website for full info. Lounge Bar has waitress service & table reservations. Sister bar is Anuba on Park End St. Cocktails. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Late licence till 2. | |
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The Bullingdon Arms Cowley Road Area Capacity: 250-280 see/submit review |
162 Cowley Road Tel: 01865 244516 |
Gig & comedy venue with a small bar on the front.
Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Late licence till 2.
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Own equipment, do enquire. |
| C | |||
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Carling Academy Oxford Cowley Road Area Capacity: 1350 in total, with approx. 1000 of that downstairs. see/submit review Map |
190 Cowley Road Oxford OX4 1UE Tel: Box Office: 0844 477 2000 / Info: 0905 020 3999 (25p/min) www.oxford-academy.co.uk |
Oxford's biggest & best live venue (bar Brookes Student Union) and part of the national touring bands circuit. Live music every night during university term from 7.30-10ish, followed by a selection of regular and specialist club nights. Main venue is downstairs, with a street-front bar which can be closed off to become another small venue; upstairs is 'The Zodiac @ The Carling Academy', also with a back bar which is partitioned off at smaller gigs.
Cocktails. Cloakroom. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Late licence till 4.
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Full kit for playing through the in-house system; in-house engineers of varying quality; state-of-the-art lighting rigs. All new in autumn 2007. |
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The Cellar Central Capacity: 250 see/submit review |
Frewin Court, off Cornmarket St. Tel: 01865 244761 www.cellarmusic.co.uk |
DJs &/or live bands every night. One of Oxford's best venues for live music (and more recently, comedy), catering for a wide range of musical tastes, having an emphasis on hiphop, funk, D&B, Latin jazz & indie. Previously heavily DJ-orientated, recently moving more toward live gigs & flourishing with a tight new soundsystem.
Cocktails. Sofas. Available for private parties. Late licence till 2.
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Good PA, good monitoring, very good engineer. |
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Chester Arms Cowley Road Area Capacity: 100 see/submit review Map |
19 Chester Street OX4 1SN Tel: 01865 243203 www.chesterarmsoxford.co.uk |
Spacious, pleasant venue in quiet residential street near Iffley Fields nature reserve. Occasional pool table (!). Live music Weds, Fri, Sat; quiz Thu. Large grassy garden great in summer. Car park too.
Cocktails. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly.
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Own PA, generally just for vocals. Piano! |
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Clementines Cowley Road Area Capacity: 250 submit review Map |
15 St Clements Oxford OX4 1AB Tel: 01865 247214 |
Cosy, stylish venue with a continental bias, playing R&B and chart/cheese. Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Available for private parties. Late licence till 3. | Nightlub - not a live music venue. |
| E | |||
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The Exeter Hall Cowley Road Area Capacity: 80-100 see/submit review Map |
1 Oxford Road (between Cowley Rd & Cowley centre) Oxford OX4 2EN Tel: 01865 776431 exeterhall@hotmail.co.uk |
Large pub with two separate bars and outdoor seating (benches) on street-front patio. Extra info: disabled access is via a side ramp & there is a disabled loo. Children, if over 14 & accompanied by an adult, are welcome from 12-8pm. Dogs allowed 12-8pm.
Wheelchair friendly. Wifi Access. Late licence till 1.
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| F | |||
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Far From The Madding Crowd Central Capacity: 150 see/submit review |
Friars Entry (round the back of Borders). Tel: 01865 240900 www.maddingcrowd.co.uk |
Cocktails. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly.
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Generally open mics & acoustic bands provided by different promoters. Regulars Delicious Music have a nice setup. |
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Freud Jericho Capacity: 200 seated, 40 standing see/submit review Map |
119 Walton Street Oxford OX2 6AH Tel: 01865 311171 www.freudliving.co.uk/cgi-bin/shop/page.cgi?user_id=12265&file=bars.html |
The most aesthetically impressive drinking venue in Oxford, Freud's is a converted church in Jericho. Art installations, soaring classical architecture, occasional live music of a jazz/blues orientation or DJs on weekends. Good cocktails and snacky grub. Small sun terrace at front for summer posing. Cocktails. Occasional dress code. Available for private parties.
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| I | |||
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The Imperial Nightclub Central Capacity: 350 see/submit review Map |
27 Park End Street, Oxford OX1 1HU Tel: 01865 794900 www.imperial-club.co.uk |
Themed student nights (e.g. International Night, Tues) & live local radio broadcasts. VIP area with waitress service & table reservations. Dancers perform on selected nights.
Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Wifi Access. Late licence till 3.
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In-house PA with mixing desk, no resident engineer. |
| J | |||
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The Jericho Tavern Jericho Capacity: 150 see/submit review |
56 Walton Street Tel: 311775 |
Recently reopened after a refurbishment aimed at scrubbing away all memory of the horror that was The Jericho Scream Pub, The Jericho Tavern has a new sound system, an in-house engineer and a declared intention to return to being one of Oxford's best live music venues.
Cocktails. Sofas. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Wifi Access. Late licence till 12.
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In-house PA with monitors. Good engineer. |
| K | |||
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Kiss Bar Central see/submit review |
Park End Street, Oxford Tel: 01865 200555 |
Smartish themed bar with silver walls, giant lips and hundreds of different kinds of flavoured vodka.
Cocktails. Sofas. Dress Code. Wheelchair friendly. Late licence till 12.
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| M | |||
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Magdalen Arms Cowley Road Area Capacity: 215 see/submit review Map |
243 Iffley Rd (corner of Magdalen & Iffley) OX4 1SJ Tel: 01865 243159 |
Large, busy pub next to Pegasus Theatre. Few students. Poker nights on Mondays (2007), live music Fridays. Children welcome before 7pm.
Dress Code. Late licence till 12.
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None - bring your own! |
| P | |||
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Po Na Na Central Capacity: 195 see/submit review Map |
13-15 Magdalen Street Oxford OX1 3AE Tel: 249171 www.oxfordponana.com OxfordPNN@ponana.com |
Basement club/bar with glittery Arabic-style architecture. Cheesy yet impressive in a Casablanca-ish kind of way. Can get very hot and sticky in summer. Occasional live gigs.
Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Available for private parties.
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No in-house kit for live bands. |
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The Port Mahon Cowley Road Area Capacity: 60 see/submit review |
82 St Clements Tel: 01865 202067 |
Cosy venue known for the varied and - mostly - high quality gig nights held in its scuzzy little upstairs room. Two small bars on different levels. Developing a student slant in winter 2007, with rock music in the bars, Thurs a.m. Fuzzy Ducks recovery breakfast (!) and affordable roasts (inc. veggie) on Sun (£5.95).
Cocktails. Available for private parties.
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DIY venue with mixing desk, large speakers (in doubtful condition, winter 2007) and monitors. Bring your own leads, stands, mics, amps etc. as they only have limited amounts of these. Sound is good for such a tiny venue. |
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The Purple Turtle Central see/submit review |
Frewin Court, off Cornmarket Street Tel: 01865 247086 www.purpleturtlebar.com |
Part of the old Oxford Union cellars. Complicated rules about non-Union members/non students paying entrance at certain times (we can't work these out). New programme of free live music in 2007-8 provided by 3spiritmusic - check their myspace for listings. Drinks are pub prices, and gigs aside, the music is filtered throughout the series of caverns by the jukebox. There is a dance floor, table football and the walls can get sweaty.
Cocktails. Occasional dress code.
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| R | |||
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The Regal Cowley Road Area see/submit review Map |
300 Cowley Road Oxford OX4 1US Tel: 01865 241261 www.the-regal.com jason@the-regal.com |
Big phat nightclub based in art-deco, Grade II listed former cinema/bingo hall. Live music events, tea dances & community events also planned. Comprises Foyer Bar, Elite Room and the Great Room (opens April 29, 2008).
Cocktails. Cloakroom. Sofas. Occasional dress code. Available for private parties. Wheelchair friendly. Late licence till 4.
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'state-of-the-art' PA (from Martin Audio, London), in-house engineers, 3 mixing desks... please enquire for full specs. |
| T | |||
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Temple Bar Cowley Road Area Capacity: 120 plus overspill into garden see/submit review |
21 Temple Street, off Cowley Rd Tel: 01865 243251 templebaroxford@yahoo.co.uk |
One of the first East Oxford venues to be treated to the pine refurb treatment (it must come to us all in the end). Attractive red pool table. Covered heated smoking area at rear. Popular with students. Weds, open mic night; Fri, karaoke; Sat, live bands.
Sofas. Late licence till 1.
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Own PA system in house (no mixing desk) |
| W | |||
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The Wheatsheaf Central Capacity: 100 see/submit review Map |
120 High Street, Oxford, OX1 4DF Tel: 01865 721156 |
Smallish venue with emphasis on local rock & indie bands and top quality jazz. Stand Out Nights: The Spin Jazz Club (Thurs). One of the best live contemporary Jazz nights in the country, the club won the PRS Foundation Award for new music in 2002 & 2003. www.spinjazz.com Cocktails. Available for private parties. Late licence till 12.
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Monitors, mixing desk with good in-house engineer, stands, some leads, etc. |
