Eccentric Club Online - The Eccentric Club (UK)

Welcome to the Eccentric Club (UK), formerly known in its various incarnations as The Illustrious Society of Eccentrics, The Everlasting Society of Eccentrics, The Eccentric Society Club and, finally, The Eccentric Club.

The Eccentric Club once was one of the most important institutions of the British society. Its name is a long established and reputable brand, its members were amongst those who had shaped the British culture into what it is now, its history is inseparable with that of Britain itself...

Founded a number of times by completely unrelated and socially different groups of people, for centuries it served as a meeting point to many great and original minds, pioneers of thought in artistic, literary, theatrical, scientific, legal and political circles, providing an amicable environment for their recreational and creative pastime as well as a testing ground for the novel and controversial theories and approaches to the issues equally important to the British society and the entire mankind.

First records of The Eccentric Club began with its official opening in 1781. Run by the political and scientific luminaries of the time, the Club almost immediately gained considerable respect and support from many members of the Royalty and aristocracy. In 1799-1803, The Society of Eccentrics was the talk of the town and experienced an unprecedented growth. The industrial revolution opened wide the gates to technological advancements all over the Empire, and many members of the Club found their rightful parts to play in it. Others became prominent figures in Law, Politics, Literature and Arts.

The Club was famous for its charity, too: it supported many struggling writers and artists, raised funds for the poor in London and Ireland. Many of then famous members are now forgotten, but you may recognise the names of R.B.Sheridan, J.Sheridan Knowles, William Lamb, Theodore Hook, Lord Brougham, Lord Denman, Lord Campbell. William M. Thackeray was one of the last recruits of the Club, having joined it on the 30th of January 1846. The Club is believed to have extinguished that year, although, in less than two decades it was to be re-born like a mythological Phoenix...

In 1858-1860 a few records refer to a new Eccentric Club, this time founded by a group of aspiring writers, artists, gentlemen of the creative persuasion and businessmen interested in the arts. Like many other clubs of the time, The Eccentric Club was busy chasing muses in every department of the Art and delivering entertaining and amusing creations. Some of its fruits were not forgotten, some have inspired the others, leaving thus a lasting mark and a visible trace of the club’s presence in the British culture. By 1881, the club lost a few of its founding members and premises at which it met, the remaining members were irregularly meeting at other clubs’ premises...

On Friday night, 21st of November 1890, Jack Harrison, a theatrical costumier and future father of popular actresses Phyllis Monkman, Dorothy Monkman and Beryl Harrison, has started an Eccentric Club of his own, strongly tying the name of the club to the theatrical stage. Club’s first President was Sir Charles Wyndham, an outstanding actor and a theatrical manager, who, according to the legend, was first to suggest ‘The Eccentric Club’ as the name. Club’s first home was at the premises of old Pelican Club in Denman Street. In a few years time the club moved to 21 Shaftesbury Avenue, right into the heart of London Theatreland.

Actors and theatrical staff needed a place to go after the performance - to unwind, to take a break, to smoke a pipe, to have a chat, a glass of wine, a laugh, a game of billiards... And the Eccentrics were waiting for them at 21 Shaftesbury Avenue. As the Club was growing, many members were staying till late and were nicknamed by their fellows ‘the night owls’ which gave the Club its mascot and sacred symbol: at the Ryder Street premises there was an illuminated panorama of stuffed owls and a wooden owl upon the backwards going clock in the club's main bar known as The Owl's Roost. The most famous stuffed owl was, according to the legend, carried to Ryder Street from Shaftesbury Avenue - it was under the glass dome holding in its beak a watch showing the witching hour of four o'clock, or, as some had seen it, 12 and 4 o'clock - the busiest hours of the Club's nightlife.

As some members were eventually departing to perform on the great stage in the God’s Theatre of Eternity, the Club acquired its motto: “Nil Nisi Bonum” (“Nothing but good”) – a shortened version of the Latin phrase “de mortuis nil nisi bonum dicendum est” (“Say nothing of the dead, but good”). ‘Nothing but good’ became also a core principle of the members’ conduct.

Before the First World War, before moving to the fashionable Ryder Street premises, the Club was famous for its open doors, friendly attitude towards strangers and good food - both indoors and outdoors: whilst inside it was for the members and their guests, outdoors there were always queues of the poor awaiting the distribution of free food, particularly long - before Christmas, when the Club members were giving away their famous, 'best in London', free Christmas hampers.

During the First World War, members of the Eccentric were entertaining the troops on the frontline, raised over £25,000 for limbless soldiers, regularly visited wounded soldiers in the hospitals and distributed amongst them food, tobacco, cigarettes and pipes. About the same time, numerous hospitals, hostels and orphanages were built by the Club.

Shortly after the First World War, there was a memorable performance at the White City when over a thousand of war veterans were entertained and comforted by the members of the Club. On average, since the 1920s the Club was spending over £1,000 a year on various charitable needs.

During the Second World War, a further £50,000 were raised to support the victory and many of the Club's members were fighting on the frontline, while back at home, the Club premises in Ryder Street were seriously damaged by the enemy bombs, and a large part of the Club's original archive and library burnt down...

In the 1940s-1980s, the Club continued participating in many charitable projects, raising considerable funds for the good causes: restorating ruined buildings in the post-war London, helping the National Flood Distress Fund in 1947, promoting the amateur and professional sports...

In 1965 the Club donated a substantial amount to the Sail Training Association for the building of the schooner Sir Winston Churchill to participate in the Tall Ships Race. In 1970 it became a new home to 600 bridge players from Crockford’s gaming club which was then closed. In 1975 The Eccentric Club members, Joe Davis and Noel Miller-Cheevers, were amongst the founders of the International Snooker League. The Club’s Snooker Room, acknowledged by many as ‘the finest in London’, was later named after Joe Davis. The Eccentric Club Golfing Society was arranging competitions both in Britain and abroad. Members of the Lord’s Taverners Cricket Club had an associate membership of the Eccentric Club almost from their very formation in 1950.

For many years the Club has also housed the Headquarters of The Grand Order of Water Rats, an elite charitable institution for the show-business professionals, many of whom were members of the Eccentric Club. Members of the Lighthouse Club (organisation for civil engineering, construction and building industries) were also daily using the Eccentric Club’s quarters in Ryder Street.

But in the mid-1980s new fashionable business ideas and yuppie aspirations changed the face of London clubland forever. The Eccentric Club, with its centuries of traditions, customs and rituals, found itself old-fashioned, outdated, almost obsolete... It had to re-invent itself – change the membership profile, refurbish the premises, create a new development programme...

As a result, the Club was closed for long time for renovation, which many of its members found just too much to bear. A drop in the membership immediately hit the financial stability. A careless gamble with the property developers landed the Club in the Court and resulted in its eventual liquidation...

...Just over a year ago, our initiative started with an outcry of the soul – a website calling all the eccentrics, old and new, to come forth, and join our efforts in the Club’s restoration and rehabilitation of its name. The response was truly overwhelming and beyond any expectations – emails were coming literally daily. Although, a share of correspondence was from those doing genealogical research for their own families or some famous former members of the Club, a larger proportion was from those who were actually looking for The Eccentric Club to learn more about it, fascinated with its history and the remarkable input into the British culture. A number of people, for various reasons, wanted to join the Club...

To restore The Eccentric Club in the 21st century is an amazing challenge and we are most excited about the journey ahead of us. We think we are closer to its original founders than those who have inherited it from their fathers and lost it. We have to start from the very beginning – finding patrons, acquiring the right members, raising funds, organising events, establishing our own clubhouse. If we’ll manage all that, we most certainly will have every reason to be proud of ourselves, we will be enjoying running one of the most fascinating clubs in the British history, and, with time, it will only fascinate a greater number of people. If we fail... We cannot fail as any outcome of this enterprise almost certainly will be rather eccentric!..

But we will not be running the Club for ourselves. The new Eccentric Club will aim to honour the famous charitable traditions of its predecessors. We believe that today, in the times of common globalisation, it is essentially important to support our local, national and European charities which far too often remain undervalued and underfunded whilst the larger international organisations' needs seem to be more of a priority.

Finally, we believe that it is essentially important to highlight and celebrate the British kind of eccentricity – an innate ability to ignore the well-trotted routes of the others and invent own original ways, find surprisingly fresh approaches to the long decided issues, proudly demonstrating to the rest of the world the great mosaic of possible solutions and points of view. And, as we know from the history, the world has often followed the British eccentrics and acknowledged their genius...

On 29th of August 2008 The Eccentric Club (UK) was successfully re-launched in Bloomsbury, London, read more about that here [click].

Best wishes to the organisers' endeavours were received with thanks from HRH Prince Charles of Wales, Their Royal Highnesses Princes William and Henry of Wales, HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Lord Montagu, Lord Bath, Count Nikolai Tolstoy-Miloslavsky, Mayor of London Boris Johnson, actor David Prowse, performer Elton John, writer Peter Underwood, writer Nicholas John Storey of The Retrocentric Club.

Following the Re-Launch, the Club Secretary had private meetings with HRH Prince Michael of Kent at Kensington Palace who expressed his interest and support to the new club, and with Lord Montagu (the last Chairman of The Eccentric Club in Ryder Street) who had entrusted to the new club's Committee his archive of documents related to the old club.

HRH Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh and HRH Prince Charles for many years were the Club’s Patrons and Honorary Members. In total, 35 Lord Mayors of London were selected as Honorary Life Members of the Club.

FAMOUS MEMBERS OF THE CLUB: Charles James Fox, William Lamb (Lord Melbourne), Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Charles Stanhope (The Earl of Harrington), Henry Peter Brougham (Baron Brougham and Vaux), Theodore Hook, James Sheridan Knowles, Lord Denman, Lord Campbell, William M. Thackeray, Jack A. Harrison, Sir Charles Wyndham, Viscount Burnham, The Earl of Lonsdale, The Earl of Birkenhead, Lord Montagu, Lord Bristol, The Duke of Westminster, Sir Frederick Wells, Sir James Miller, Sir Herbert Tree, Sir George Alexander, Sir Walter de Frece, Sir Seymour Hicks, H. Montague-Bates, G. N. Barnes, George Milne, Walter J. W. Beard, Thomas Honey, Percy Leftwich, W. E. Garstin, A. J. East, Ernest Stuart, Dudley Hardy, Lionel Brough, John Hollingshead, M. De Paleologue, Henry Ainley, George Robey, Dan Leno, Little Tich, Sir Henry J. Wood, Sir Landon Ronald, Sir Gerald du Maurier, Fred Bishop, Bill Gavin, Dick Upex, Bud Flanagan, Tommy Trinder, Ben Warris, Joe Davis, Jack Trevor, James Moore, Louis Scott, George Graves and many many others.

Unconfirmed famous member: Julius M. Price (writer and artist, who was a frequent visitor to the club and gave there a number of lectures).

P.S.: In November 2008 we have managed to recover the complete register of the Eccentric Club members between 1890 and 1930 and are able now to help better their relatives and independent researchers with their enquiries. We also have substantial records related to the earlier incarnations of the Eccentric Club and some lists of their members (1780s-1880s).




Welcome to the Club Definition of Eccentricity About the Club Eccentric Hall of Fame Purpose and Objectives Charitable Institution Reciprocal Clubs Club News Recommended Read Registration Contact Letters to the Club Useful Links Members Only Members' Forum	Welcome to the Eccentric Club (UK), formerly known in its various incarnations as The Illustrious Society of Eccentrics, The Everlasting Society of Eccentrics, The Eccentric Society Club and, finally, The Eccentric Club. The Eccentric Club once was one of the most important institutions of the British society. Its name is a long established and reputable brand, its members were amongst those who had shaped the British culture into what it is now, its history is inseparable with that of Britain itself... Founded a number of times by completely unrelated and socially different groups of people, for centuries it served as a meeting point to many great and original minds, pioneers of thought in artistic, literary, theatrical, scientific, legal and political circles, providing an amicable environment for their recreational and creative pastime as well as a testing ground for the novel and controversial theories and approaches to the issues equally important to the British society and the entire mankind. First records of The Eccentric Club began with its official opening in 1781. Run by the political and scientific luminaries of the time, the Club almost immediately gained considerable respect and support from many members of the Royalty and aristocracy. In 1799-1803, The Society of Eccentrics was the talk of the town and experienced an unprecedented growth. The industrial revolution opened wide the gates to technological advancements all over the Empire, and many members of the Club found their rightful parts to play in it. Others became prominent figures in Law, Politics, Literature and Arts. The Club was famous for its charity, too: it supported many struggling writers and artists, raised funds for the poor in London and Ireland. Many of then famous members are now forgotten, but you may recognise the names of R.B.Sheridan, J.Sheridan Knowles, William Lamb, Theodore Hook, Lord Brougham, Lord Denman, Lord Campbell. William M. Thackeray was one of the last recruits of the Club, having joined it on the 30th of January 1846. The Club is believed to have extinguished that year, although, in less than two decades it was to be re-born like a mythological Phoenix... In 1858-1860 a few records refer to a new Eccentric Club, this time founded by a group of aspiring writers, artists, gentlemen of the creative persuasion and businessmen interested in the arts. Like many other clubs of the time, The Eccentric Club was busy chasing muses in every department of the Art and delivering entertaining and amusing creations. Some of its fruits were not forgotten, some have inspired the others, leaving thus a lasting mark and a visible trace of the club’s presence in the British culture. By 1881, the club lost a few of its founding members and premises at which it met, the remaining members were irregularly meeting at other clubs’ premises... On Friday night, 21st of November 1890, Jack Harrison, a theatrical costumier and future father of popular actresses Phyllis Monkman, Dorothy Monkman and Beryl Harrison, has started an Eccentric Club of his own, strongly tying the name of the club to the theatrical stage. Club’s first President was Sir Charles Wyndham, an outstanding actor and a theatrical manager, who, according to the legend, was first to suggest ‘The Eccentric Club’ as the name. Club’s first home was at the premises of old Pelican Club in Denman Street. In a few years time the club moved to 21 Shaftesbury Avenue, right into the heart of London Theatreland. Actors and theatrical staff needed a place to go after the performance - to unwind, to take a break, to smoke a pipe, to have a chat, a glass of wine, a laugh, a game of billiards... And the Eccentrics were waiting for them at 21 Shaftesbury Avenue. As the Club was growing, many members were staying till late and were nicknamed by their fellows ‘the night owls’ which gave the Club its mascot and sacred symbol: at the Ryder Street premises there was an illuminated panorama of stuffed owls and a wooden owl upon the backwards going clock in the club's main bar known as The Owl's Roost. The most famous stuffed owl was, according to the legend, carried to Ryder Street from Shaftesbury Avenue - it was under the glass dome holding in its beak a watch showing the witching hour of four o'clock, or, as some had seen it, 12 and 4 o'clock - the busiest hours of the Club's nightlife. As some members were eventually departing to perform on the great stage in the God’s Theatre of Eternity, the Club acquired its motto: “Nil Nisi Bonum” (“Nothing but good”) – a shortened version of the Latin phrase “de mortuis nil nisi bonum dicendum est” (“Say nothing of the dead, but good”). ‘Nothing but good’ became also a core principle of the members’ conduct. Before the First World War, before moving to the fashionable Ryder Street premises, the Club was famous for its open doors, friendly attitude towards strangers and good food - both indoors and outdoors: whilst inside it was for the members and their guests, outdoors there were always queues of the poor awaiting the distribution of free food, particularly long - before Christmas, when the Club members were giving away their famous, 'best in London', free Christmas hampers. During the First World War, members of the Eccentric were entertaining the troops on the frontline, raised over £25,000 for limbless soldiers, regularly visited wounded soldiers in the hospitals and distributed amongst them food, tobacco, cigarettes and pipes. About the same time, numerous hospitals, hostels and orphanages were built by the Club. Shortly after the First World War, there was a memorable performance at the White City when over a thousand of war veterans were entertained and comforted by the members of the Club. On average, since the 1920s the Club was spending over £1,000 a year on various charitable needs. During the Second World War, a further £50,000 were raised to support the victory and many of the Club's members were fighting on the frontline, while back at home, the Club premises in Ryder Street were seriously damaged by the enemy bombs, and a large part of the Club's original archive and library burnt down... In the 1940s-1980s, the Club continued participating in many charitable projects, raising considerable funds for the good causes: restorating ruined buildings in the post-war London, helping the National Flood Distress Fund in 1947, promoting the amateur and professional sports... In 1965 the Club donated a substantial amount to the Sail Training Association for the building of the schooner Sir Winston Churchill to participate in the Tall Ships Race. In 1970 it became a new home to 600 bridge players from Crockford’s gaming club which was then closed. In 1975 The Eccentric Club members, Joe Davis and Noel Miller-Cheevers, were amongst the founders of the International Snooker League. The Club’s Snooker Room, acknowledged by many as ‘the finest in London’, was later named after Joe Davis. The Eccentric Club Golfing Society was arranging competitions both in Britain and abroad. Members of the Lord’s Taverners Cricket Club had an associate membership of the Eccentric Club almost from their very formation in 1950. For many years the Club has also housed the Headquarters of The Grand Order of Water Rats, an elite charitable institution for the show-business professionals, many of whom were members of the Eccentric Club. Members of the Lighthouse Club (organisation for civil engineering, construction and building industries) were also daily using the Eccentric Club’s quarters in Ryder Street. But in the mid-1980s new fashionable business ideas and yuppie aspirations changed the face of London clubland forever. The Eccentric Club, with its centuries of traditions, customs and rituals, found itself old-fashioned, outdated, almost obsolete... It had to re-invent itself – change the membership profile, refurbish the premises, create a new development programme... As a result, the Club was closed for long time for renovation, which many of its members found just too much to bear. A drop in the membership immediately hit the financial stability. A careless gamble with the property developers landed the Club in the Court and resulted in its eventual liquidation... ...Just over a year ago, our initiative started with an outcry of the soul – a website calling all the eccentrics, old and new, to come forth, and join our efforts in the Club’s restoration and rehabilitation of its name. The response was truly overwhelming and beyond any expectations – emails were coming literally daily. Although, a share of correspondence was from those doing genealogical research for their own families or some famous former members of the Club, a larger proportion was from those who were actually looking for The Eccentric Club to learn more about it, fascinated with its history and the remarkable input into the British culture. A number of people, for various reasons, wanted to join the Club... To restore The Eccentric Club in the 21st century is an amazing challenge and we are most excited about the journey ahead of us. We think we are closer to its original founders than those who have inherited it from their fathers and lost it. We have to start from the very beginning – finding patrons, acquiring the right members, raising funds, organising events, establishing our own clubhouse. If we’ll manage all that, we most certainly will have every reason to be proud of ourselves, we will be enjoying running one of the most fascinating clubs in the British history, and, with time, it will only fascinate a greater number of people. If we fail... We cannot fail as any outcome of this enterprise almost certainly will be rather eccentric!.. But we will not be running the Club for ourselves. The new Eccentric Club will aim to honour the famous charitable traditions of its predecessors. We believe that today, in the times of common globalisation, it is essentially important to support our local, national and European charities which far too often remain undervalued and underfunded whilst the larger international organisations' needs seem to be more of a priority. Finally, we believe that it is essentially important to highlight and celebrate the British kind of eccentricity – an innate ability to ignore the well-trotted routes of the others and invent own original ways, find surprisingly fresh approaches to the long decided issues, proudly demonstrating to the rest of the world the great mosaic of possible solutions and points of view. And, as we know from the history, the world has often followed the British eccentrics and acknowledged their genius... On 29th of August 2008 The Eccentric Club (UK) was successfully re-launched in Bloomsbury, London, read more about that here [click]. Best wishes to the organisers' endeavours were received with thanks from HRH Prince Charles of Wales, Their Royal Highnesses Princes William and Henry of Wales, HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Lord Montagu, Lord Bath, Count Nikolai Tolstoy-Miloslavsky, Mayor of London Boris Johnson, actor David Prowse, performer Elton John, writer Peter Underwood, writer Nicholas John Storey of The Retrocentric Club. Following the Re-Launch, the Club Secretary had private meetings with HRH Prince Michael of Kent at Kensington Palace who expressed his interest and support to the new club, and with Lord Montagu (the last Chairman of The Eccentric Club in Ryder Street) who had entrusted to the new club's Committee his archive of documents related to the old club. HRH Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh and HRH Prince Charles for many years were the Club’s Patrons and Honorary Members. In total, 35 Lord Mayors of London were selected as Honorary Life Members of the Club. FAMOUS MEMBERS OF THE CLUB: Charles James Fox, William Lamb (Lord Melbourne), Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Charles Stanhope (The Earl of Harrington), Henry Peter Brougham (Baron Brougham and Vaux), Theodore Hook, James Sheridan Knowles, Lord Denman, Lord Campbell, William M. Thackeray, Jack A. Harrison, Sir Charles Wyndham, Viscount Burnham, The Earl of Lonsdale, The Earl of Birkenhead, Lord Montagu, Lord Bristol, The Duke of Westminster, Sir Frederick Wells, Sir James Miller, Sir Herbert Tree, Sir George Alexander, Sir Walter de Frece, Sir Seymour Hicks, H. Montague-Bates, G. N. Barnes, George Milne, Walter J. W. Beard, Thomas Honey, Percy Leftwich, W. E. Garstin, A. J. East, Ernest Stuart, Dudley Hardy, Lionel Brough, John Hollingshead, M. De Paleologue, Henry Ainley, George Robey, Dan Leno, Little Tich, Sir Henry J. Wood, Sir Landon Ronald, Sir Gerald du Maurier, Fred Bishop, Bill Gavin, Dick Upex, Bud Flanagan, Tommy Trinder, Ben Warris, Joe Davis, Jack Trevor, James Moore, Louis Scott, George Graves and many many others. Unconfirmed famous member: Julius M. Price (writer and artist, who was a frequent visitor to the club and gave there a number of lectures). P.S.: In November 2008 we have managed to recover the complete register of the Eccentric Club members between 1890 and 1930 and are able now to help better their relatives and independent researchers with their enquiries. We also have substantial records related to the earlier incarnations of the Eccentric Club and some lists of their members (1780s-1880s).


© The Eccentric Club (UK), 2007-2008.