Old Churches in Torquay

This building opposite the Museum was St Andrews Presbyterian Church. The church was opened on April 5 1863.

It closed in 1951 and was sold to the Christian Scientists for £8,500. Later, it was a night club and finally apartments.
Ironically this Presbyterian Church – from a branch of Protestantism known for its severity – would become ‘The Monastery’, the only all-night dance venue in the South West at the time. Known as ‘The Mony’ , it “boasted a cracking sound system, and a state of the art lighting system… multi-level dance platforms, a huge stage area and a large full size balcony spanning round the entire venue… a good sized chill-out room.” As a club, it was unusual as it was open from midnight until 7am every Saturday night through to Sunday morning. It was unlicensed and sold only, “soft drinks, water, milk, teas & coffees, ice lollys, and glow sticks.”The club’s alcohol-free status also meant that the minimum age was 17.