| Once the Monica Cafe and Milk Bar in the 60s and 70s, BonDs became most famous as the location of The Rathole in the mid to late 1980s. Run by Clive Bartram the Rathole was in fact in the rooms above what was then Manhattans and was promoted by Ian Gibbons. Ian would book top indie bands and pair them with up and coming local bands. The venue most famously came to the rescue of the 1986 Tamworth Rock Festival when torrential rain put a stop to the performances in the Castle Grounds only for all bands, equipment and fans to move en masse to the cramped and sweaty Rathole - what a night! Later known as Lincolns, top name bands continued to perform at the venue into the late 80s early 90s. |
