An Andover nightclub has said it is “gutted” following the postponement of the final stage of lockdown relaxation.

Cameo, located on London Street, was preparing to reopen fully on June 21, having only been able to have a limited opening as a ‘nightpub’ since lockdown rules were first introduced in March 2020.

“We’re all gutted,” said Thomas Dodd, from the nightclub. “A lot of work has gone into getting ourselves prepared to reopen. These things don’t just happen over night, I think some people think we just turn a key in the door and open, but a lot of preparation goes on.”

Nightclubs, along with large festivals and events, would have been able to take place without limits according to the initial lockdown roadmap, with restrictions to end on June 21. However, on Monday (June 14), the Prime Minister announced that this would be postponed by four weeks until July 19.

“We’ve all heard the rumours over the weekend and we’d built ourselves up to the inevitability that It was going to happen,” Thomas said. “There’s always a little hope in the back of the head that there would be a magical statement that was going to come out and say otherwise, but it is what it is.

“They’re obviously doing it for people’s safety and we understand it, we’ve just got a new date to look forward to now and hopefully all our customers will too.”

He said the changes had impacted the business, particularly in staffing and stock levels.

“We’ve had to employ a lot of new staff to get the clubs open, which means they now all have to wait four weeks to start work,” he said. “Plus, we’ve had stock delivered which is money we didn’t have to spend. There’s a lot more that goes into it than people realise, but we’re trying to stay positive and look forward to four weeks time when it is hopefully the end of it all.

“We’ve moved all our bookings across and we’re hoping it can end there.”

While Cameo has managed to support itself through opening as a bar, as well as serving bottomless brunches, Thomas said that it was in a fortunate position compared to some venues.

“I think as a whole, the industry is hoping to pull through it but there are many others for whom this will be the end of it, and it’s heartbreaking to watch,” he said.

“I live in a village and I don’t think the pub will survive. People put their life and soul into these things, especially independents, but they might not come through, but fingers crossed they do.”