The demolition of a former town centre nightclub has begun.

What was most recently MooMoo, in Canterbury Street, Gillingham, is being knocked down to make way for a four-storey block of apartments.

Pictures taken from Theodore Place at the back of the building show the start of the demolition.

The back wall has been removed, exposing the building’s framework, and fencing has gone up.

The 250 sq m site is set to become 14 apartments, with a commercial unit on the ground floor.

Included in the plans, which were approved with conditions in October 2021 by Medway Council’s planning committee, are five one-bedroom apartments and nine two-bedroom apartments, all with balconies.

Before MooMoo announced it was closing down in 2019 it was famed for freshers’ events and UV parties with foam, paint and ball pits.

They were almost a rite of passage for fresher students from the University of Kent’s Medway campus.

There were three rooms, with DJs playing RnB, pop, plus a cheese-room for classic hits downstairs.

The club has gone under many guises over the years including Catch 22, Ritzy, Preach, Zone and Bliss before its latest incarnation as MooMoo.

Back in the late 1970s, clubgoers would be met with strobe lighting, pop and disco music when it was called Joanna’s.

Then in the 80s it was known as Catch 22, then The Ritzy and by the 90s it was called The Zone.

Glenn White, who took the photos, remembers the club as The Zone where he met his wife.

The now 49-year-old lived across the street from the venue for five years and told KentOnline that “it’s sad to see the building knocked down”.

He said: “I’ve met so many people in the club which I am still good friends with to this day.

“The social scene is just so different now with things like dating apps and social media.

“I knew the staff as they used to park on my drive so didn’t have to pay to get in and got free drinks. I am still in touch with some of them now.”

The Darland Avenue resident posted the pictures on social media.

One comment called it an “end of an era” while another said: “This makes me very sad.

“I have many happy memories partying, working and making friends for life.”

Another 90s’ clubber, Stefan Bennett, remembers The Zone when there was a cigarette machine and a green laser machine.

“After I stopped going there when it was renamed Preach, I got married and had kids,” he said.

“In 2012, when it was renamed again as Bliss, I went back there to work as a bouncer.”