“I remember my parents taking me to Downtown at night for the first time, and walking down Hindley Street and seeing all the neon lights was amazing. Roller skating was great there. We had stuff to do, what do our kids have like this”?
Downtown, taken from the TV commercial. everyone “Great skating, great music, good food and fun….It’s the greatest skate in town”.
Most people seem to remember Downtown for the roller skating but in fact there were a number of games and activities, including dodgem cars, a shooting gallery, squash, side shows, a games arcade and a pretty good restaurant. It was a fun place that the whole family could enjoy, back when Hindley Street wasn’t quite as scary at night as it is today.
The first Downtown was built at 65 Hindley St in the late 70’s as a new multi-faceted complex as we remember it. In the mid 80’s though, it was relocated down the road towards King William Street in an old classic cinema building (formerly the State Theatre), which still has the old Downtown fin sign out the front (it’s now a grocery store).
The new facility was much smaller, and for a while, there was a Hungry Jacks on the ground floor which had replaced the restaurant. The old original Downtown building at 65 Hindley Street was demolished and replaced by a brand new hotel which we now know as the Holiday Inn.
“What great memories and fun times we had. Went every Friday & Saturday nights. Remember going to the midnight skate and being locked in then finishing at 7.00am and heading off to the good ole Pancake Kitchen for breakfast before heading home south of Adelaide on the old STA buses.”
Downtown, from You Tube. Most people remember the roller skating but in fact there were a number of games and activities.
Some people seem to think that Downtown started at the old Wests Theatre, which is now the ASO headquarters. This has been something well debated for years. Timezone in the 90’s was in the old Wests Theatre, which, in the late 70’s & early 80’s was also home to the famous city nightclub, Sinatras!”
Of course everyone remembers the Downtown TV commercial, with the opening bars of the Petula Clark hit song from the 60s “Downtown’” and the voice-over reminding everyone “Great skating, great music, good food and fun….It’s the greatest skate in town”.
Downtown, from You Tube. Everyone remembers the Downtown TV commercial; “It’s the greatest skate in town”.
“Whilst we are talking roller skating, who remembers Downtown’s arch rivals The Hindmarsh Rollodrome? In 1983 came Spinners, which was the newest and most modern rink ever to grace S.A. Spinners was located on the top floor of the old Cox-Foys building in Rundle Mall which was totally renovated and renamed the Renaissance Centre, complete with outside glass lifts!! A first for Adelaide. The lifts are still there but Spinners and of course, Downtown are sadly no more”.
Finally, long-time Adelaide Remember When poster Robert Verrall recalled “I remember going up to the Roller Skating rink which was on the top level if my memory is correct. The other vivid memory I have is how I smashed my head on the pole while riding the dodgems and fell rather awkwardly during one skating time. I also loved playing the pinball machines and the Space Invaders, Frogger, etc… Time Zone and others weren’t too bad but it’s Downtown which seems to hold the memories”!
And great memories they are too! What are your own memories of Downtown?
My brother was the manager at Hindmarsh skating rink before it became spinners. I used to work there as a Skate coach. I loved the place, we used to have so much fun, especially the midnight to dawn skates. All the staff were fantastic. I know we used to be so fit, I would skate Friday nights, Saturday and Saturday nights, then Sunday and Sunday nights. If I could I would work during the week for the schools that used to come and skate. It really was my dream job.
What was his name .
I worked at Downtown then at Hindmarsh Rollodrome
I use to go every Wed, Thurs, Fri and Sat night to go skating there. All my friends and I met up there and skated the 3 to 4 session each night. About every 3 months they had a all night skate. Everyone was locked in to Downtown until 6am. We then skated home, took us about 2 hours but we loved our skating. Thanks for the good times Downtown they are now good memories. Hi to Ian Traeger, Andrew Chenoweth, Jo Facey, Debbie Kerr and Stacey Fava.
Hi to Julie, from Ian
Julie..look up
Downtown leisure centre roller skating in the 80s .
I have created a fb page..
You’ve forgotten the Elizabeth skating rink you had to be brave to go there, then they opened Skateline at Modbury zone th for all the northeasterners back in day 1980
My Grandfather used to take me out to Elizabeth Skating Rink in my School Holiday’s, I used to go there on my own too, it wasn’t too bad from memory back then..
I CAN REMEMBER GOING TO ELIZ SKATE WHEN IT HAD A WOODEN FLOOR AND STANDS ON SIDES AND BACK WALL. IT GOT MODERNIZED WITH HARD PAINTED FLOOR AND CANTEEN MOVED TO BACK WALL .GOT MY BOEN SPEED SKATES THERE. MOVED TOSKATELINE MODBURY AS FLOOR GUARD WHEN IT OPENED. SO MUCH FUN SO LONG AGO
I loved Downtown and Elizabeth Roller Skating Rink. I remember at Primary school there was a thing going where you got a certain amount of downtown tokens for getting A’s. That was my best acedemic year of my schooling 🙂
Gawler had a roller drome as well…located next to the Holden Dealership. Spent all my weekends there!
It seems that Hindley Street is going through a period of gentrification these days (or at least what I noticed when I was last there). I have to admit that I was more of a Timezone guy, though I vaguely remember going to Downtown a couple of times. I still think it’s pretty cool that they still have the old sign out over the building. It does bring back memories.
Wasn’t the old Theatre complex further down Hindley Street one of the old Greater Union Cinemas? I thought Timezone was located in the building next to the Holiday Inn?
I remember TILT being next to Downtown I reckon, maybe 2 doors up was it? Or right next door?
Bring to back, it was Heaven
Some of the best years of my life spent as the artistic coach for so many young talented skaters. Veronica Gonzalez and ….. (forgot christian) name Totty were the tiny tots, juniors included Dianne Burrell & Theo Otterspoor and my daughter Nicole. Seniors, Jane & Simon Wilkinson, Anne Wilson, Ange & Will Saddler esquire Australian dance champions, Kevin Wilkinson an Esquire figure skating champion and Rosemary Wilkinson valued contributor the Hindmarsh Club & to the national Skating body So many great skaters and too many for this old brain to recall but we were all so dedicated, had a lot of fun and brought home many medals & titles to the Hindmarsh Rollerdrome.
My sincere apologies to those that I haven’t mentioned, you are in my thoughts but the names are a bit fuzzy.
Kind regards
Rick
Rick I remember my much loved trainer Brenton Wilkinson in the late 70s early 80s- was he related to this family? All I remember is that he was an English champion figure skater in his day, and he was in his late 50s/60s when he trained me. I ended up state champion in figures as a tiny tot under his wing, and know his daughter was a national champion in tramopline… my mum moved me to ice during the Torvel and Dean years which broke my heart as I’m sure it did my coach too. Love to hear if you knew of Brenton Wilkinson.
Port adelaide st ives was also big in the 80s
What ever happened to all the skates you could hire? I still have my wips fanjets huggers zingers turbos heaps of bearings and bearing press in the shed
Loved downtown with my friend Kathryn N……. i remember all tbe crew and Ian traeger would drop me hom e after all night skating. Those were the best years of my life seriously Sandy S.
i won a bike there in the eighties
I loved Downtown. I must’ve been about 12yrs old. The announcer called the rink for ‘speed skaters only’. I was having so much fun I didn’t want to get off the rink. For a while noone even noticed! I was feeling so elated as I was mostly keeping up with the speed skaters. ( something I always dreamed of becoming.). Finally someone noticed and caller me off the rink but I has so much fun. What a thrill to have been flying with the professional speed skaters. A MAGIC I will never forget!
I loved Downtown. I must’ve been about 12yrs old. The announcer called the rink for ‘speed skaters only’. I was having so much fun I didn’t want to get off the rink. For a while noone even noticed! I was feeling so elated as I was mostly keeping up with the speed skaters. ( something I always dreamed of becoming.). Finally someone noticed and caller me off the rink but I has so much fun. What a thrill to have been flying with the professional speed skaters. A MAGIC I will never forget!
Does anyone remember Break City Headquarters?
Breakdancing took place in the roller skating ring on Thursday nights in the 80s. The music played was electro / Hiphop, and Rodney-O was the MC. The club was a setting for dance battles, phenominal robot moves and the sounds of record scratching so raw that could get every one in the building gyrating or pulsating like an alien creature from the depth of space. Big power signature moves from the B-boys like “high Rise”, “Areal Backspin”, “CockRock” or “Suicide” gained respect from the crowd of dancing onlookers. The dancing gain so much momentum that some of the regular dancers got to competed in the National Countdown breakdance competition.
This was an increadable time that will never be recreated, will posably only be remembered by middle aged people that are still nursing injury from the time at Break City Headquarters, long before the days of Public risk liability insurance.
Hell yes i remember, i was the little kid winning the comps doing the cockrock and headspin variations, seems like forever ago, awesome days….
Shaolin John?
We had a crew back then ?
I remember Hendo, Claude, Wicky, Tim Alison, Guppy and few others… kept us out of trouble some of the time. Oh I was MR POP ?
I was a regular at downtown for years right up till it closed, I remember the last day. I really miss all the good mayes I made there, I would love to catch up with you all soon.
Hi Jason, Just wondering if you know what year down town closed. Thanks
I was a regular at downtown for years right up till it closed, I remember the last day. I really miss all the good mates I made there, I would love to catch up with you all soon.
I have some fond memories of downtown. Skeet ball was my favourite arcade as this was my best ticket earner. Good times for sure.
I skated at downtown when i was in high school, i went every weekend and all of the sessions and all of the lock in late slated, i had so many friends and it was the best time in my childhood life.
Spinners at Glenelg, the best !
I loved skating there . Great times . Tilt was next door . I mainly skated at the Hindmarsh rollerdrome . Sigh I want to be young again
I was at the opening of Spinners at the top of cox foys , I was one of the first ever roller coach’s , then later DJ for spinners , I then did the rounds working at Hindmarsh Spinners and then Glenelg Spinners , which my friend and his father bought when Spinners went bust , little known fact I named the venue at Glenelg “Bayskate” true story
I remember skating at Hindmarsh Rollerdrome with my good friend who lived at the back of my house, quite a few times. We were skating around and the spotlight came on me, with an announcement I’d won tickets to the Muppet Movie, was I excited or what! Loved Downtown also, the skating, games etc, not sure if my memory is correct but think there were mirrors around the joint? So wish we could do it all again.
U didn’t name the venue on jetty Rd Glenelg “BAYSKATE”,so much for your true story.It was in fact my mother and Brenton Tilbrook Senior that named it that when they owned it.My partents revamped it and Named it Bayskate and owned til its closing ,where now is Chaker’s Pool hall.
I do remember that mate lol remember alot of good times.
I still have a brand new, never had boots attached flyer 5 skates with zinger wheels. Purchased from the skate shop at DOWN TOWN in the late 80’s before it closed. Im guessing there worth as much now (if not more) than when purchased in the 80’s.
I started skating at Elizabeth roller rink 1979 was next to aquadrome then, then went to downtown and Gawler and even Barmera which was tiny. All great fun and kept you heaps fit. We’re the best years of my life.
do you still have them now….
My rollerskating days started at 10 years old at St Clair Woodville. By 14 with my skating bestmates the Hindmarsh Rollerdrome became our home away from home before its stubborn fight with the Hindmarsh council sadly bringing about its eventual demise.We moved on to make the Renaissance centre skate rink on the top floor our next regular haunt before moving on to the Bay Skate at Glenelg for a year or so before making Downtown our home to skate, hang and for me to land my dream job as a Downtown skate marshal through mid to late 80`s where i would meet my soulmate, wife, mother of our boys. I also doubled as a coinboy downstairs for all games machines and prizes booth. I joined the “Adelaide Speed Rollerskating club” based there, coached by Mike Stone (Australian speedskate team/champion)…I still am a speedskater at 55…I`d give anything for days, for REAL GOOD,HAPPY times like they were to live over and over again. I would also give anything to find an original white Downtown leisure centre staff t shirt.
Hi Darren I have one of the white leisure centre tshirts but sadly it’s a small female size
I have one
I believe it was 87 or 88
What was his name .
I worked at Downtown then at Hindmarsh Rollodrome
1982/3
Downtown was like walking into another world when I was young, I remember it being so bright as you walked in. There was a bit of a ramp you walked up past all the Arcade Games, everything was new, so I must have been in there not long after it opened… The skating was great, I went on to the Renaissance Centre, Modbury Skateline Centre, Elizabeth Skating Rink, Ingle Farm Recreation Centre, they were all nice and new back then… Very good memories indeed.