Possibly the ultimate showdown of the Oxford clubbing scene. Loyalties are divided, but can the winner be found? Our intrepid reporter Sam Harding takes on the task of finding out….
Thursdays @ The Bridge
I arrived at the Bridge with a friend who insisted that we go ridiculously early. Thankfully that meant that we only had to queue for twenty minutes. It was quick to get a drink, as there are multiple bar areas, and the staff are efficient. A good choice if you’re with friends is the £11 bottle of Cava, which is more fun than a standard shot of vodka & red bull. The regular drinks are generally reasonably priced, and there is a very wide range. The music is a good mix and keeps the crowd going, and dancing is not confined to the dancefloor.
As a Londoner however, I tend to assume that you can show up at any club, at any time, and not have to queue for more than a few minutes. But when I showed up at The Bridge a few weeks previously at 11pm, I queued for over an hour outside, before being shunted into Anuba, known as the ‘waiting room’ or ‘airport lounge’. I waited with my ticket for another hour until my number was called. It’s not uncommon, I hear, for the entire process to take well over two hours. And for anyone who thinks that they can avoid this by being on the guestlist, everyone tries that trick. It doesn’t work. The VIP lounge inside the club, whilst easily avoided, is a rather unnecessary addition. It is guaranteed to be compromised of a clientele of pretentious and generally unattractive male students paying £100 for a bottle of vodka in order to entice some naïve, inebriated, and far more attractive female students. Not a classy touch.
Fridays @ Filth
Traipsing through the back of the Westgate centre isn’t exactly the most glamorous way to arrive, but thankfully, even when the queue stretches down the stairs, you are unlikely to wait for more than half an hour. No sign of the Cava inside though, only £20 bottles of Prosecco, but there’s usually some sort of spirit-mixer promotion to keep you well-fuelled. The music alternates from drum and bass, to R&B, to chart, to cheese, and back again, which is good fun and keeps everyone in high spirits. The DJ fuels the fun by periodically announcing various Oxford colleges, met by the cheers and screams of their loyal party-goers. The atmosphere is far more laid back, mainly because it’s hard to be pretentious at Filth, and people are there to have a good time, rather than to pose and be admired. Filth is on a much smaller scale, but not necessarily more crowded, so it’s far easier to find your friends after a trip to the toilets or the bar.
Unfortunately, Filth can be somewhat grimy, in a ‘keepin’ it real’ way. The toilets leave much to be desired, or avoided, although their users are usually drunk enough not to notice, whilst the sobering queuing process at The Bridge makes one appreciate the cleanliness of their toilets. Filth also tends to have something of the town-gown problem, which has lead to some unpleasantness before, as people simply can’t help bumping into each other. The air-conditioning has been known to be temperamental and, thanks to the Westgate’s policy, it’s a long walk to go for a quick smoke in the two hour slot in which you are allowed to leave and come back. There is notorious queue jumping, which tends to happen far less at The Bridge. If you leave early, prepare to be hassled for the ubiquitous wristband, which is traded, bought, and sold with the same frenzy that gripped Pokemon.
The Verdict
If you’re willing to arrive unfeasibly early, or endure the tedious queuing process, then Bridge has a lot to offer, but for good old-fashioned, unpretentious fun, the way Oxford clubbing should be, then Filth is the way to go.
