The History

The Forty Thieves Club was an upscale nightclub which opened on March 1st 1962 in Bermuda. Located on the second floor of the building between what is now Docksiders and the Courts, it consisted of a very large room filled with cocktail tables and seating, bar, dance floor and stage. Its perimeter walls were painted in beautiful Ali Baba-like murals that were exquisite. Terry Brannon, and many years later, Tony Brannon brought to Bermuda some of the worlds greatest singers, entertainers and groups. Everyone from Mel Torme to Matt Monro. Cilla Black to Dionne Warwick. The Shirelles, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Wilson Pickett to Ike & Tina Turner. Nils Lofgren to John Sebastian. Tom Jones to Chuck Jackson. King Curtis to Ramsey Lewis. Billy Preston to Orleans. So many great times. If you have any pictures from the 40 Thieves please post them on the Facebook Group or send them to Tony. Many Bermudians met their sweetheart to be at the 40 Thieves or Disco 40. Everyone from John Lennon to Bill Wyman & Keith Richards have spent an evening there. Michael Douglas spent College Weeks there every year as a teenager chasing girls like the rest of us! During the late 1960s and ’70s, the Bermuda Strollers entertained the crowd and were often the principal group during College Weeks. This coming March will be the 60th anniversary of the opening of the 40 Thieves Club. Mel Carter told us that the “buzz” in the American black music community was, there’s an amazing club in Bermuda, “that ya gotta go play”, and for many of the artists it was their first trip out of the United States.