Mystery surrounds future of former Applejax nightclub building in Chorley

Mystery surrounds the future of Chorley's premier nightclub premises after forfeiture notices were placed on its front door.
Applejax in ChorleyApplejax in Chorley
Applejax in Chorley

Town nightclub Applejax had been set to reopen as Myst, with more than £200,000 set to be invested by Preston-based Switch, one of the North West’s leading nightclub brands.

A July opening was initially reported to be on the cards, but forfeiture notices dated December 1 have since been placed on the outside of the building.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The notices have been placed on the doors of the former club by Whittle-le-Woods-based company Parkinson Bailiff Services (PBS) Limited, which specialises in the collection of commercial rent arrears for landlords throughout England and Wales.

The forfeiture noticeThe forfeiture notice
The forfeiture notice

A PBS Ltd spokesman said: “Unfortunately there’s nothing that we can disclose.

"You would have to talk to the business concerned.”

A second spokesman added that they could also not comment on why they would issue such a notice

According to law firm Walker Morris, a forfeiture notice “enables a landlord to re-enter their property following a breach by the tenant, and by doing so, terminate the lease”.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They add: “Depending upon the reason for forfeiture, termination can take place with immediate effect, or following a period of notice.”

Applejax had been owned by Kurt Smith, from Charnock Richard, until his sudden death at the age of 58 in November 2016.

The club was opened in 1988, closing 30 years later in May 2018, where the Smith family thanked the AJ family past and present for making it such a success.

No one from Switch responded ahead of deadline.