Forty years ago, notorious nightclub Limelight transformed an abandoned 1880s Presbyterian church into what The Times hailed “Britain’s most famous nightspot”.

Opened in 1985, the club soon became the beating heart of London nightlife for 1980s pop culture and a magnet for its most influential figures. Musicians and actors of the moment, many on the cusp of superstardom, would rubshoulders with 80’s London’s most stylish and influential clubbers.

Limelight by David Koppel is available from 5th September 2025.

Photographer David Koppel became a titan of paparazzi photography with era-defining photographs that broke headlines around the world. But his journey started when he was Limelight’s house photographer, capturingregulars like Boy George, George Michael, Johnny Rotten, Leigh Bowery, Nile Rogers, Belinda Carlisle, Brian May, Kim Wilde, Iggy Pop, Jeff Beck,Bananarama, Malcolm Mclaren, Lemmy from Motorhead, Billy Idol and Shane MacGowan.

In new photobook Limelight, published September 2025, David Koppel captures the characters and the club that shaped 80s pop culture at its most candid, including many previously unseen images.