Youths seen at Full Monty club before fire โ police
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South Yorkshire Police have updated their appeal, saying house-to-house inquiries indicate a group of youths entered Shiregreen Working Men's Club in Sheffield and left just seconds before a fire broke out there. The club, closed since 2019, is well known as the venue where the famous final scene of the 1997 hit film The Full Monty was filmed, giving the incident wider public interest beyond a routine derelict-building fire. Police continue to treat the blaze as deliberate and are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information.
The fire began just before 16:45 BST on Sunday 9 August on Shiregreen Lane, prompting a response from eight fire engines and a turntable ladder, with no injuries reported. The building has fallen into disrepair since closing and was also targeted in a deliberate fire last year; in 2020 Sheffield City Council rejected a demolition plan after more than 1,000 people petitioned to save it.
- Police say youths entered club seconds before fire started
- Sheffield's Full Monty club fire treated as arson
- Force appeals for witnesses following house-to-house inquiries
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Youths seen at Full Monty club before fire โ police
Shiregreen Working Men's Club, in Sheffield, closed its doors in 2019 and has stood empty since. It matters to more than just local residents because its function room was used to film the celebrated closing scene of the 1997 film The Full Monty, making it something of a landmark tied to a well-loved piece of British cinema. Even in its derelict state, there was enough public affection for the building that more than 1,000 people signed a petition against a proposed demolition, which the local council turned down in 2020.
On Sunday 9 August, a fire broke out at the club, drawing a large response from fire crews, though no one was hurt. It was not the first such incident, as the building had also suffered a deliberate fire the previous year, adding to concerns about the fate of a site that has sat unused and increasingly rundown for several years.
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Police in South Yorkshire are appealing for information after a group of youths was reportedly seen entering a derelict Sheffield working men's club shortly before a fire broke out there. Shiregreen Working Men's Club, on Shiregreen Lane, is best known as the venue where the famous closing scene of the 1997 film The Full Monty was shot. South Yorkshire Police said the blaze is believed to have been started deliberately.
The fire broke out just before 16:45 BST on Sunday 9 August. In an updated appeal, officers said house-to-house inquiries had established that a group of youths had gone into the building and left only seconds before the fire took hold. The force has asked anyone who witnessed the incident, or who has any relevant information, to come forward.
South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service sent eight fire engines and a turntable ladder to tackle the blaze, and confirmed there were no reports of anyone being injured. The club has stood empty and increasingly derelict since closing in 2019, and this is not the first such incident there: a fire was also started deliberately at the building last year. In 2020, Sheffield City Council rejected a proposal to demolish the club after more than 1,000 people signed a petition calling for it to be saved.
The Full Monty told the story of a group of redundant Sheffield steelworkers who turn to striptease to make ends meet, and starred Robert Carlyle and Mark Addy. The Oscar-winning comedy went on to become one of the best-loved and highest-grossing British films of the 1990s, and the club's enduring connection to its famous final scene has made the fire particularly poignant for local residents who have long campaigned to preserve the building.
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