Liverpool Entertainment

  1. Academy

    As you'd expect from a live music venue buried in a university, Academy books acts that appeal to indie and rock crowds. This is the best venue to see touring major bands.

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  2. Baa Bar

    One of the first and still the best of Liverpool's style bars, Baa is packed most nights and remains a favourite watering hole with anyone looking for a good night out; the patio is perfect during the longer summer evenings.

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  3. Baby Cream

    This supertrendy bar, run by the same crowd that created Liverpool's now-defunct-but-still-legendary Cream nightclub, is gorgeous and pretentious in almost equal measure. One pretty cool feature, though, is Creamselector - a set of touch screens where you can make your own compilation CD from a databank of more than 4000 tracks (for a price) - it's like taking a piece of the famous nightclub home with you.

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  4. Babystorm

    Many Liverpool clubs host gay nights, but Babystorm, a relatively new club and bar aimed primarily at the lesbian and bi community, has really taken off; it is a good rival to Superstar Boudoir as the best gay club in town.

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  5. Barfly

    This converted theatre is home to our favourite club in town. The fortnightly Saturday Chibuku Shake Shake (www.chibuku.com) is one of the best club nights in all of England, led by a mix of superb DJs including Yousef (formerly of Cream) and superstars such as Dmitri from Paris and Gilles Peterson. The music ranges from hip-hop to deep house - if you're in town, get in line. Other nights feature a superb mixed bag of music, from trash to techno.

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  6. Blue Bar

    You don't need a premiership contract to guarantee entry anymore, which means that mere mortals can finally enjoy the relaxed ambience of this elegant waterside lounge. So where have all the footballers gone? Downstairs, to the far more glam Baby Blue, a private members' bar.

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  7. Cavern Club

    'The world's most famous club' is not the original basement venue where the Fab Four began their careers, but it's a fairly faithful reconstruction. There's usually a good selection of local bands, and look out for all-day gigs.

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  8. Curzon

    The Curzon is what one might euphemistically term a man's bar, with lots of hairy, tough-looking guys getting to know each other.

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  9. Everyman Theatre

    Everyman Theatre is one of England's most famous repertory theatres and an avid supporter of local talent (which has included the likes of Alan Bleasdale.)

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  10. G-Bar

    There's no discernible gay quarter in Liverpool, with most of the gay-friendly clubs and bars spread about Dale St and Victoria St in Ropewalks. G-Bar, in a small lane off Dale St behind Metrolink, is the city's premier gay bar, even though it attracts a mixed crowd.

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  12. Garlands

    House in all sounds and guises rules the roost at this banging club, whose punters were extolled by Mixmag magazine as one of the best crowds in England.

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  13. Hannah's

    One of the top student bars in town. Try to land a table in the outdoor patio, which is covered in the event of rain. Late opening, a friendly, easygoing crowd and some pretty decent music make this one of the better places to get drunk in.

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  14. Magnet

    Red leather booths, plenty of velvet and a suitably seedy New York-dive atmosphere where Iggy Pop or Tom Waits would feel right at home. The upstairs bar is very cool but totally chilled out, while downstairs the dancefloor shakes to the best music in town, spun by up-and-comers and supported with guest slots by some of England's most established DJ names.

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  15. Masquerade Bar

    There's no discernible gay quarter in Liverpool, with most of the gay-friendly clubs and bars spread about Dale St and Victoria St in Ropewalks. The Masquerade Bar attracts a real mix of gays, lesbians and bi's looking for a few laughs and a sing-song.

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  16. Nation

    Nation looks like an air-raid shelter, but it's the big-name DJs dropping the bombs at the city's premier dance club, formerly the home of Cream. These days, it also hosts live bands as well as pumping techno nights.

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  17. Philharmonic

    This extraordinary bar, designed by the shipwrights who built the Lusitania , is one of the most beautiful bars in all of England. The interior is resplendent with etched and stained glass, wrought iron, mosaics and ceramic tiling - and if you think that's good, just wait until you see inside the marble men's toilets, the only heritage-listed lav in the country.

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  18. Philharmonic Hall

    One of Liverpool's most beautiful buildings, the Art Deco Phil is home to the city's main classical orchestra, but it also stages the work of avant-garde musicians such as John Cage and Nick Cave.

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  19. Unity Theatre

    Fringe theatre for those keen on the unusual and challenging. There's also a great bar on the premises.

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  20. Ye Cracke

    Discreet and dilapidated, this atmospheric boozer is a favourite with pensioners and bohemians from the nearby college of art; in the early '60s these included John and Cynthia Lennon.

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