Mapperley’s silent discos speaks volumes

This isn't just about the music; it’s a celebration of a hard-won victory. On 10 October 2017, over 300 residents gathered on this very grass to oppose Gedling Borough Council’s sale of the green space. Their passion eventually convinced the council to withdraw their plans, leading to a partnership that transformed a former bowling green into the vibrant community park and playground it is today. 

Now, that same bowling green serves as a dancefloor. With a licensed bar, live DJ sets, and a crowd of dedicated volunteers and supporters, it’s the highlight of the local calendar. 

Back by popular demand, tickets for this year’s event sold out in a record-breaking 27 minutes. We sat down with Paul Drury, Treasurer of the Haywood Road Community Centre & Garden, to discuss what the Silent Disco means for Mapperley (and the unique power of how a pair of headphones can truly help you lose your inhibitions.) 

Thank you for chatting to us at LeftLion Paul! Could you please tell us the origins of the silent discos?  

In 2016, as part of the 'Save The Green' campaign to stop the Gedling Burrough Council selling the bowling green for housing, we organised a 'Great Get-Together' which was in memory of Jo Cox, the murdered Labour MP. It was well attended, lots of local people came and recognised what a nice green space this could be. One of the stalls we had was ‘write down ideas for how you think this green space could be used’. As you expect, people wrote things like a playground, a community garden – and of course, some of those did actually come to pass – but someone wrote down a silent disco, their name (Martin Rockley) and phone number. I rang up to introduce myself and ask him: what’s a silent disco? Martin explained the concept that “you wear headphones; everyone can listen to a different DJ and dance around outside – it's great fun!” We met up and decided to organise one in 2017 for the community centre. 

I’ll be honest with you, only about twenty-odd people came to that first one! But all the people that came including me, my wife, some close friends and neighbours thought it was brilliant. Even though it wasn’t very well attended, we thought the idea was great! The following year we were running the community centre and organised it together - that had about a hundred tickets and we sold all of them after a few months. In 2019 we doubled it to 200, we sold that out within a week, and ever since then we’ve had about 250 people, and we’ve sold out tickets from the first day for the last six years. 

What kind of music is featured in the DJ setlists? 

We play everything from cheesy pop, rock, rap, disco, indie, funk, punk to a bit of reggae! The secret of a good silent disco is always having a nice big range of music. And I make sure I try and get DJs that are different ages, genders and a mix of musical tastes as well. The whole point is that if you’re listening to one channel and think I don’t really like this... you’ve got two other channels to choose from! 

How have the silent discos helped in fostering community engagement and bringing people together in Mapperley? 

A part of that first silent disco helped recognise what we could do with the space and it showed that the green was worth saving, which we eventually did in 2019. It’s also become our little Glastonbury! People talk about it beforehand, and it always sells out. You have to be there online to buy your tickets. Because we have it every year, it’s something that people go: “oh yeah, it’s the start of July, it’s like the start of summer!” I would say in terms of community spirit, I think we’ve got a lot of community spirit around here, but it’s a very vibrant way to show it, plus we raise usually about £2,500 for the community centre, which is a registered charity, so we do raise a lot of money. 

We still had a virtual silent disco during lockdown! We sent a playlist out as we still tried to keep it going then in 2020; people pressed play and danced in their own kitchens. In 2021, we held it after lockdown was over. After six months of being forced to be inside – just the relief and the joy of seeing other people. One of my favourite moments was a woman at the end who told us: “I’m a nurse, and I’ve been on COVID wards, and I was just so ready for a dance!” 

It’s not just a fundraising event and a fun night; it does have some significance at a time when there isn’t as many opportunities for people of different ages and different cultural backgrounds to always come together. And this is one of those. 

How do you ensure the silent discos are inclusive and accessible to everybody in the community? 

I think the biggest thing I’d say about it being inclusive, is that it’s not judgemental. Nightclubs can be quite segregated – as they’ve got student nights, or over-thirties nights, but there’s none of that with a silent disco! There’s something about putting headphones on that gets rid of your inhabitations. Let’s say if you were at a club or a wedding, you might have a drink before plucking up a bit of courage and then think is anyone else dancing, dare I be the first one on the dancefloor? 

Whereas with a silent disco (and I’ve seen it happen!) people walk up, completely sober, they put their headphones on and suddenly they’re in their own world and dance straight off! It’s this amazing bit of being very uninhabited, and a very sort of individual experience. Because you’re choosing which of the music you listen to and yet it’s such a shared experience, as everyone’s dancing, so you feel like I’m not being judged however old I am, however inept I am at dancing, you’ve got kids, you’ve got grandmas and granddads, you’ve got everyone there. Because it’s about the music, it’s not about judging.  

How have the silent discos contributed to the community centre’s sustainability and growth as an organisation? 

This will be our 9th year in 2026, and the silent discos have raised almost £20,000 in that time. But it’s also more that it’s made the community centre very visible - we couldn’t do the silent discos without it. All the people that organise the events are involved or volunteers to help run Haywood Road Community Centre. Especially in the early years when we only just saved it from being closed. I couldn’t do it without the support of the community! Particularly Val Holland, who is the caretaker who does a huge amount of work, my wife Nicky Drury who is Vice Chair, and then the organising committee of Ruth Gentle, Gemma Fenyn, Maria Narducci, Natasha Williams and Martin Rockley, who started it all off, is still very much part of the team. 

The community centre is also used for parties, wedding receptions, a pre-school, aerobics classes, but you’ve also got scrabble, an art group, a carer’s group, so I think it was a great way to showcase what the community centre has. It’s not just the money; it raises a profile. 

And finally, do you have a favourite memory or a treasured collective experience from a stand-out silent disco? 

Yes, I’m going to do two! It is outdoors, so we’ve been incredibly lucky with the weather, but 2023 will forever be known as The One Where It Rained! Around 9pm, right in the middle of it, the heavens opened! Because the DJ decks were under the gazebo, we carried on playing, and lots of people went into the community centre without missing a beat and just carried on dancing inside. We threw out ponchos, free of charge. And the hardcores just carried on dancing in ponchos! DJs Tom and Andy, who have a professional set-up, picked up their DJ set, quickly took it inside, carried on playing and then when it stopped raining, they brought it back out again. And I just thought not even the rain is going to stop us from dancing! 

2024’s coincided with when England were in the Euros semi-final. It started off with that penalty shoot-out, so with people listening in, you could just hear the cheers go up! And of course, we won so I did play Three Lions on that one. And at the end of every Silent Disco, we always finish with I’ve Had The Time of My Life, because that was the song that Martin finished on the very first one, (when there were only about six of us left!) But he finished his set with that, and I thought I like traditions! So we always finish with that one. And you can just see, when you look over, everyone’s headphones lit up - it forms an impromptu light show as the sun comes down.  

And I’ll also add that whilst it’s a silent disco, it’s actually not silent! Whilst there’s no music, it is hilarious to hear people bellowing out Don’t Look Back in Anger or Shake It Off which you can hear across Mapperley when you’re walking home. 

Find out more about the Haywood Road Community Centre via their website and Facebook page.