Rebels nightclub Sheffield: The 'king of rock clubs' founded by ex-Limit bouncer on Dixon Street

Rebels was one of the most popular rock clubs in the north of England in the 1980s and 1990s, writes Neil Anderson.

But it might never have happened if the final Sheffield venture of one of the city’s most famous entrepreneurs had worked out.

It was he that opened the Penthouse in 1969 in the space destined became Rebels years later.

His love affair with the venue sited many floors above Dixon Lane didn’t last long. If it had, well, there might have never been a rock club at all.

Peter Stringfellow, and his brother Geoff, had already achieved massive success in Sheffield in the years preceding the Penthouse opening.

Their Burngreave-based King Mojo teenage club attracted stars spanning Jimi Hendix to Ike and Tina Turner. Their performances at the venue were some of their very earliest gigs on record. Not only that, Peter Stringfellow had already been working on the iconic Ready Steady Go! TV show and been a comperé for the Beatles.

The Penthouse was his first venue with an alcohol licence and it didn’t end well.

Peter Stringfellow ended up selling the Penthouse business within months of opening and moved his business interests to Leeds.

It was, in his eyes, a disaster. Fighting became a consistent problem.

Rebels was the brainchild of former Limit bouncer Steve Baxendale.

He said: "On opening night I thought no one had come. I came down the street and only saw four people stood outside. I was gutted.

"But then I opened bottom doors and over 1,000 people were on the stairs - all seven flights of ‘em."

Rebels provided a dedicated nightclub for the rockers after they’d finished at the likes of the Wapentake. These amazing photos were taken by celebrated photographer Bill Stephenson and appear in the Dirty Stop Out’s Guide to Sheffield – Rebels Edition’.

You can buy it here: https://dirtystopouts.com/products/copy-of-dirty-stop-outs-guide-to-sheffield-wapentake-edition-collectors-edition-last-couple-remaining