The pub classic has been given a new lease of life.
Flight Club has reinvented the game of darts – until recently mostly played by men called Big Les in dingy pubs – bringing its high-tech darts experience to Manchester’s Ship Canal House in King Street on October 26.
With patented dart-tracking technology, designed by Flight Club’s own astrophysicist, each board sits under the gaze of three precision cameras, that together can identify the location of each dart with sub-millimetre accuracy.
The same system also keeps score, tracks whose turn it is and which numbers each player needs to hit before proudly announcing the winner’s victory on a big screen. The ‘Stories’ system then sends everyone a colourful digital dossier full of highlights, replays, loopcams and footage from the action-replay cam.
The bar, which has venues in London and Chicago, has 14 oches available to book, each with their own seating area and table service, so food and drink, including pizzas, sharing platters, and cocktails, can be delivered directly to your board. The luxurious decor, which blends the heritage of darts, the pub and the fairground, and takes the pastime to a glamorous new level.
CEO Steve Moore said:
“Manchester is renowned for its outstanding heritage, unique culture, vibrant social life, and of course, competitive spirit so bringing a Flight Club to the city is a natural step for us, and we’re buzzing to be a part of the community.
“We will be working with the people of Manchester to make sure that there is a little bit of the Manchester personality in our new venue and can’t wait to show everyone around.”
Oches at Flight Club’s existing venues are regularly reserved up to three months in advance, to book your place, visit the Flight Club website.
When: From October 26.
Where: Ship Canal House, 98 King Street, M2 4WU. Find it on Google Maps. Nearest tram stop: St Peter’s Square.
Price: Peak times – Mon – Fri 4pm-close, all day Saturday – £30 per hour.
Off-peak times – Mon – Fri 12-4pm, Sunday all day £15 per hour.