The site of a demolished nightclub could become home to a new “architecturally outstanding statement building”.

Excalibur Nightclub at the King Charles Hotel in Gillingham was demolished in 2019 – having been left dormant for more than 20 years.

The clubbing hotspot, which shut in 1998 after nine years in business, had musical legends such as The Prodigy and Rick Astley perform there.

The discotheque formed part of the hotel’s 1.3 hectare grounds in Brompton Road, although has remained as an unused brownfield site since its demolition.

The existing three-storey, 97-room hotel has remained operational.

Bosses are now seeking planning permission from Medway Council to build a new, two-storey conference centre on the site of the demolished nightclub – which connects to the main hotel.

If approved, another floor and a further 24 en-suite rooms would also be added to the existing inn to increase the total number to 121.

The number of employees would also rise from 20 to 50, with 60 existing car parking spaces growing by a further 51.

Information, released by designers Hay Architects on the application’s planning statement, says: “The proposal essentially seeks planning permission for two elements.

"The King Charles Hotel is a three-storey flat roof building in need of significant investment to update and improve the facilities on offer, as well as enhance the external appearance of the hotel.

"The proposed hotel accommodation would be in the form of a sensitive new mansard-style roof extension, creating a four-storey building and an additional 24 en-suite bedrooms.

"It would constitute a modest and appropriate roof level addition to the building, which we believe would represent a visual enhancement compared to the flat roof design of the existing hotel.

"The hotel facilities would also be updated internally which would improve the level of accommodation on offer.

"[Meanwhile] the conference facility constitutes a contemporary high-quality architectural design which would add to the overall quality, and visually enhance the streetscape in Prince Arthur Road and Brompton Road.

"It would sit comfortably within the hotel grounds on the location the former nightclub.

"Our vision is for a niche, architecturally outstanding statement building - a landmark which creates a destination for visitors to this location."

The hotel opened in July 1948 and cost £150,000 to build.

It was originally used as a Naval, Army and Air Force (NAAFI) club for service personnel based in the nearby Brompton Barracks and Naval yard.

It closed its doors in July 1962 due to multiple servicemen being taken out of Medway.

After lying vacant, the property was eventually taken over in 1980 and named The King Charles Hotel, with the dance halls once used by NAAFI members being converted into a nightclub – it became The Regency in 1982 before its final incarnation as Excalibur in 1989.

Following its closure nine years later, an application was later submitted to Medway Council in 2019 to convert it into 57 flats across a four and five-storey block.

However, the plans were rejected due to their design being perceived as "bulky, dominant and prominent within the site”.

Pre-application advice received by the developers regarding the new proposal says: "Further input from the council at the pre-application stage has helped form the scale and design of the conference building, and the submitted scheme has been received positively.”

New electric charging points and pedestrian access points on the Prince Arthur and Brompton Road boundary are also on the cards, should the proposal be given the green light.

You can view the application here, searching for reference MC/23/2754.

A decision is expected by March 18 next year.