Popular Banbury bar and venue undergoes makeover ahead of relaunch party

The team at Also Known As (AKA) on Parson's Street are giving the bar a major refurbishment ahead of its relaunch weekend beginning on Friday February 23.

A popular venue for local and visiting acts since 2010, the bar will reopen with a new photo booth, merchandise stand, cloakroom, and pool table.

David Shakespeare, along with Mattie Cummings, Clive Coules and Andrew Cambell say the makeover aims to upgrade the bar without losing any of its identity.

They said: “AKA boasts a prestigious and iconic history of acts performing on our stage, and to honour that, we want to make it the venue the best it can be.

"We aim to maximise space and seating to create a welcoming, flowing interior. However, the unique style that AKA is known for will remain the same.”

The relaunch party, which has been named the Same Same But Different Party Weekend, will see Banbury pop trio Rosie and The Buds and Bristol alternative rock band Two Day Coma play on Friday.

Saturday’s (February 24) event will see AKA regulars DJ Kilbz and Luke Grady host a special Groove Therapy night of soul, hip-hop, and R&B music.

The AKA team said: “We want our Same Same But Different launch party weekend to set the tone for how we'd like to see things move forward for us and the town—a busy, fun, creative, and thriving night-time economy for Banbury.”

Ahead of that, the venue will host a soft opening event on Thursday February 15, with Thursdays Are Great Again with DJ DEE. This is followed by a live music night on Friday February 16, featuring Spooky Goose and The Intruders and DJ Beano Brown on Saturday 17.

AKA said: “Live music will be a regular feature every Friday with a brilliant lineup of bands already booked, in keeping with the ethos of providing original music from our stage.

"We're very excited to welcome customers new and old back into Banbury's longest-running independent bar for many great nights to remember.”