The Cat's Whisker

The Cat's Whisker was a coffee bar situated at 1 Kingly Street, Soho, London, during the mid-late 1950s. It offered London youngsters Spanish dancing, live rock 'n roll, and skiffle.

It saw the invention of a new style of 'dancing' known as hand-jive, dancing using hand gestures only as there was no space to maneuver in the crowded basement. The hand-jive (updated with feet movements) featured in the 1978 film Grease.

The Cat's Whisker coffee bar was started by entrepreneur Peter Evans, and was one of the first to have a juke box. It was centrally placed in the middle of Soho at the corner of Kingly Street and Beak Street, between Carnaby Street and Regent Street, around the corner from the toy store Hamleys. It attracted large crowds, including ice skating champions, international rugby players, journalists and students, for an espresso at a shilling a cup and music. The place was situated in the heart of theatreland and catered for diners before or after the theatre.

In 1956, Evans hired Hank Huffner to refurbish the bar's cellar as an exclusive 'live' venue. The L-shaped cellar had primitive paintings of cats chasing mice on the walls and six stone cats as light-sources round the walls. The basement was exclusive, there being no indication of its existence on the ground floor.

At first, the cellar had the feel of "Hernando's Hideaway," with regular performances from guitarist Jose Feller and dancer Carmen Ballisteras, formerly with the Ballet Espagnol de Pilar Lopez.

Together with The 2i's Coffee Bar, The Cat's Whisker later spearheaded the nascent pop scene, with appearances by 'before-they-were-famous' musicians like Cliff Richard, Lonnie Donegan, Terry Dene, Tommy Steele, guitarist Barry Warren, the Chas McDevitt Skiffle Group and other artists who dropped by to unwind after working the nearby nightspots Churchill's, the Bag O'Nails, Coconut Grove, Cabaret and Eve. Like Feller and Ballisteras, the musicians were generally "paid with coffee and Cokes." The place was reputed to be the largest seller of Coca-Cola in Britain at the time.

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Wikipedia