e had been watching my YouTube videos. It turns out she was a real face back in the day at the Hacienda and has been helping me connect with people for my videos. Jacqui shares her incredible journey through the Manchester music scene, starting with taping Stu Allan’s soul music shows in school, discovering hip-hop and breakdancing, and then stepping into the world of clubs like the Gallery and the Hacienda. Growing up in Salford in the mid-’80s, life felt grey and monotonous, but the club scene gave her—and so many others—an escape, a sense of identity, and a world of opportunity. For Jacqui, the Hacienda wasn’t just a club—it was a melting pot where people from different backgrounds came together. She met private schoolgirls, art students, and music lovers from across the UK, forming lifelong friendships. The scene opened doors, leading her from nights out in Manchester to raves in Blackburn, clubbing in Leeds and Liverpool, and eventually, to Ibiza. In 1990, Ibiza became a game-changer for her. What started as a two-week holiday turned into an entire summer, dancing in clubs like Amnesia and meeting people from all over Europe. That experience led to more travel—Goa in 1991, then Thailand for a few years. These journeys shaped her, expanding her world beyond the grey streets of Salford. We discuss how the Acid House movement was a cultural explosion, on par with the ‘60s and punk. It transformed lives, created a lasting legacy, and changed music forever. Jacqui recalls how surreal the term “House Music” sounded at first, yet here we are decades later, still talking about it. She also reflects on the harsh reality of life in Salford at the time—living in Langworthy flats when houses were in negative equity, surrounded by crime. But the Hacienda provided an escape. We both agree that walking into the Hacienda was like stepping into another world—you could be anyone you wanted to be. At the end of the interview, I ask Jacqui to choose a track that takes her back to those days, and she picks Electribe 101 – “Talking with Myself”—a song that perfectly captures the emotions of that era. This conversation is a reminder that the beauty of the Manchester scene wasn’t just in the famous names but in the ordinary people who lived it, experienced it, and had their lives changed by it.
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