Illegal raves double in London in a year as nightclubs close at alarming rate

The number of illegal raves in London has soared in the last year – and the closure of nightclubs in the English capital is cited as one reason.

According to Metropolitan Police, the number of unlicensed raves – usually held in warehouses or abandoned buildings, and in a sewer in Newcastle on one occasion – reached 133 in 2017.

In comparison, there were 70 the year before.

Police have been secretly monitoring illegal raves, using more sophisticated technology and intelligence to hunt them down.

They either stop these raves by warning promoters or setting up roadblocks, or make them unpopular by raiding them during the event.

In the last three years there have been pitched battles between police and ravers, with officers hurt or stabbed and ravers arrested.

The figures were obtained by a Freedom of Information request by the Sunday Telegraph.

More than half of London’s nightclubs shut down between 2005 and 2015, and a further 3% since then, according to the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR).

This is due to the gentrification of the inner city, in a scenario similar to many Australian cities.

Aside from noise complaints, rising rent and a 26% rise in business rates since April 2017 force nightclubs to charge higher door prices and drinks inside.

Hence younger people are looking for cheaper alternatives.

Consumer rights group CAMRA has said that the price of a pint of beer has hit an all-time high, and drinking in pubs was becoming an “unaffordable luxury” for many.

The rave in the Newcastle sewer meant clubbers had to slash through dirty water to go inside, and still drew 200 people.