New Year’s Eve 2023: the best club nights in London

Sure, there’s a whole truckload’s worth of mince pies, dodgy festive jumpers and endless Christmas songs to plough through first, but the New Year is finally in sight.

Right before all of those well-meaning resolutions and dry Jans kick in, it’s time for wreaking glorious chaos, and waving farewell to the last 12 months. Ideally, accompanied by a first-rate soundtrack from some of the best DJs going.

So, as 2024 glimmers on the horizon, it’s time to get planning for the final night out of the year.

If you’re looking to ring in the new year by dancing yourself silly in one of London’s many clubs, there’s plenty on offer in the capital. Step this way…

Much loved South London community radio station Aaja is inviting Freedom 35 down to take over their Deptford snake pit for the biggest night of the year: expect drag performance galore, queer rodeo vibes, and tunes from the club night’s residents. Tickets available now.

Elsewhere the station has been working hard to open a brand new permanent venue; though it won’t properly open until next February, Aaja are throwing a one-off basement party for an early glimpse of things to come. Line-up TBC, tickets available now.

A regular fixture of Hackney-founded alternative radio station NTS ever since it first aired in 2011, Moxie’s tune selections are second to none, and her party at Brixton’s Phonox alongside Rinse FM resident Scarlet O’Malley should prove a NYE highlight. Tickets available now.

Not too keen on the idea of embracing another new year? Revisit an old one instead under the glittery gold ceilings of Hackney’s Moth Club, where the brief is all things Eighties. Expect Madonna, Bowie, and Bruce Springsteen, obviously. Tickets available now.

Once upon a time, in the grip of indie sleaze and back when Soho was still the epicentre of late night revelry, White Heat at Madame JoJos was the place to be; Adele and Lorde both played some of their earliest shows here. Now a weekly affair at The Lexington, the night is still going strong, and their NYE parties are always a winner. Tickets available now.

Never quite ready to head home when the club lights come up? A mammoth, 30 hour party at this industrial East London venue should sort you right out, with music from Dutch trance DJ Job Jobse, eclectic Londoner Midland, deep house producer Leon Vynehall, and Safe Trip Records co-founder Young Marco. Tickets available here.

Outernet’s HERE – an underground venue decked out with massive 8k video screens, four stories beneath the streets of London – is promising a multi-sensory “psychedelic carnival” with interactive characters, immersive decor, and tonnes of house music. Line-up news is coming soon. Tickets available here.

If the beloved Instagram account @loveofhuns singlehandedly got you through 2023, this cheap and cheerful Hackney night at shiny new venue Two Palms is surely the place to be – and it comes with a hun-filled Noughties pop soundtrack, no less. Live, laugh, love, and crank up the Samantha Mumba! Tickets available here.

This sprawling Docklands club has a first-rate line-up for their NYE bash New Dawn, with even more unannounced special guests still to be revealed. Highlights include Bristol-based Timedance label boss Batu playing back to back with a mystery name, US rave-house producer Octo Octa, and Stella Zekri, a regular face on Berlin’s queer dance scene. Tickets available now.

Every single Friday, Hackney’s Oslo lays on a Y2K-flavoured spread of Noughties hits, along with the genius addition of a free karaoke room for punters to screech their hearts out to the classics. If you’re not too bothered about heading into 2024 with any sort of voice left, we’d suggest practising your dramatic key changes ready for this one. Tickets available here.

This dance institution’s final party of the year looks to be a doozy; much-hyped Aussie name HAAi, Berlin techno duo FJAAK, high-energy DJ Elli Aculas and Dutch producer Estella Boersma are among those heading to Farringdon to keep the venue’s three dancefloors pumping into the early hours. Tickets available here.

Since forming back in 2003 at Vauxhall’s The Eagle, DJ collective Horse Meat Disco have become a staple of the city’s LGBTQ+ scene. On New Year’s Eve, they’ll host a huge party in KOKO’s theatre space, joined by a super secret, unannounced special guest. Tickets available here.

A trailblazer of the Nineties house scene, and the brains behind some of the finest crossover remixes in dance music, Todd Terry is about as legendary as it gets. His stint at the Greenwich club, along with Berlin duo The Ghost, dubstep pioneer Scuba, Bristol selector Dr Banana, and loads of other names, should be a riot. Tickets available here.

Though it was only ever supposed to be a one-off night at Deptford’s brilliantly scuzzy basement venue The Bunker, Will Foot and Lewis Henderson are still going strong seven years later with their love letter to all things Northern Soul – and their takeover of Highbury’s The Garage should be parp-a-licious. Tickets available here.

As usual, details are scant for this huge, 24-hour epic – in UNFOLD tradition, the mystery line-up stays under wraps until the night, and tickets are only available on the door. Intrigued? Dress to sweat, head to Canning Town, and find out what’s in store.

Tucked away in deepest industrial South Bermondsey, Venue MOT Unit 18 & 20 (the club is based in a former car safety test centre, thus the fairly specific name) is a bit of a hidden gem on London’s scene. Seeing in 2024, it’s a full bill of London-centric talent, including Elle Andrews, Flora Yin Wong, and two secret guests going b2b. Tickets available here.

French minimal house DJ Ivan Smagghe,  tech house veteran Craig Richard and Pleasure Club host Bobby. will spin the tunes at this massive Tottenham warehouse, alongside a live show from Chloé Raunet’s genre-blurring creative project C.A.R. Tickets available here. 

It’s nigh on impossible to have a dull night at this Dalston den of queer debauchery. Down in the basement, you’ll find the more heavyweight beats – think bassline, hard house, and pounding techno – while the upstairs bar is dedicated to all things pop, house, and disco, with go-go dancers to boot. Tickets available here.

It’s a Foundation FM takeover this year at Hackney’s Colour Factory, with rising star I. Jordan, the excellently monikered Chippy Nonstop, New York singer and producer Talia Goddess, and Pxssy Palace founder Nadine Noor, among many others. Tickets available here.