B is for Blitz: the Club that shaped the 80s @ Design Museum

"We lived for the subculture and we were the subculture." – Boy George.

Join us at the Design Museum for a major exhibition on the legendary Blitz club night that transformed 1980s London style, and generated a creative scene that had an enormous impact on popular culture in the decade that followed – from fashion and music, to film, art and design.

Behind a door in a Covent Garden side street, the Blitz club was the place where 1980s style began. Inspired by everything from David Bowie, the punk and soul scenes, to continental cinema and cabaret culture, the brightest young talents of their generation came together to revolutionise fashion, music and design, turning a niche club night into a launchpad for global superstardom.

The scene launched the careers of many stars, including chart-topping performers Spandau Ballet, Visage, Boy George and Marilyn as well as a long list of designers, artists, filmmakers and writers — from couture milliner Stephen Jones and Game of Thrones costume designer Michele Clapton, to DJ and fashion writer Princess Julia and BBC broadcaster Robert Elms.

Forty years after its closure, visitors can revisit the trailblazing club's history and atmosphere with a sensory extravaganza of music, flamboyant fashions, and pioneering art, film, and graphic design.

Developed in close collaboration with some of the leading ‘Blitz Kids’ who were there, the exhibition features over 250 items, ranging from clothing and accessories, design sketches, musical instruments, flyers, magazines, furniture, artworks, photography, vinyl records and rare film footage.

Read more here: https://designmuseum.org/exhibitions/blitz-the-club-that-shaped-the-80s

And here: https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2025/sep/20/how-the-blitz-club-changed-the-1980s-and-fashion

MEET DETAILS:
FROM 2.15pm: MEET IN THE DESIGN MUSEUM CAFÉ (optional) Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, London W8 6AG

3.00pm: ENTER THE EXHIBITION
Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, London W8 6AG

4.30pm - Late: PUB SOCIAL (optional) We'll head to a nearby pub for a social chit chat over drinks.
Location tbc in Event Comments 24 hours before the event.

TICKETS:
Please book your ticket here, and select the 3.00pm time slot (or around that time).

• Adult: from £14.38
• National Art Pass holders: from £7.19
• Design Museum Members: Free - no need to book

GETTING THERE:
https://designmuseum.org/plan-your-visit
Tube: High Street Kensington, Notting Hill Gate, Holland Park
Buses: 9, 10, 27, 28, 49, 328, C1

EVENT WHATSAPP GROUP:
If you are on the 'going' list only please join the event WhatsApp group to help you find the group on the day. Link tbc in the Event Comments at least 48 hours before the event.
NB Joining this WhatsApp group will make your phone number visible to other members in the group.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

• LoMAZ events are run by volunteers. We have an attendee limit to help the host manage the event. We prefer a smaller, friendlier group.
• Once all the spaces are taken, Meetup adds you to the Waitlist. If someone drops out, waitlisted attendees are automatically moved to the 'Going' list by Meetup in order of priority.
• If you can no longer attend, please change your RSVP to 'Not Going' as soon as possible. Then someone on the waitlist can take your place.

We remove members from the LoMAZ Meetup group who:

• RSVP as 'Going' but then do not show up three times in a row.
• RSVP as 'Going' but then change their RSVP to 'No' five times in a row.
• Are on the Waitlist or who have not RSVPd, but turn up anyway.

Thank you for your interest in the group & being part of LoMAZ.

Image credit: Ardfern, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons