WHERE do international DJs go when they are jetting between Ibiza and Miami?

Thanks to a former St Gregory's pupil they are stopping off for club nights in Warrington.

James Glover has been running a house music night called 'Giraffe' since November and after an initial battle to be recognised by booking agents he has started to get some top talent at FC2 in Rylands Street.

The Great Sankey resident said: “At first I was having to explain to the agents where Warrington was and they were saying they weren’t interested.

“But I’ve built up a good relationship with them now and the DJs enjoy playing here.”

The first club night was at Rain in Academy Way with Oliver $ from Berlin.

That helped raise the profile of Giraffe as the DJ has gone on to be added to the Radio 1 playlist.

James added: “I think getting the word out on social media was the turning point. Seeing photos of everyone enjoying themselves and DJs saying how good it is has turned people’s heads.

“We have since then attracted other international DJs such as Patrick Topping and wAFF who are regulars in Ibiza and at huge festivals around the globe.

“More recently, Berlin-based DJ Santé’s Momentary tour included Warrington billed next to giants such as New York, Los Angeles and Miami.

“I pick most of the DJs up from the airport and they’ll say things like ‘I’m playing in Milan next’ or ‘I was in Prague last night’ so it is bizarre.

“It’s brilliant. When I’m looking at the DJs’ schedules I can’t believe I’ve booked them sometimes.

“I want to show you don’t have to go to a city to find an experience like this with like-minded people. We have clubbers coming from Manchester and Liverpool for it now.”

James, a BT Openreach engineer, is also a DJ himself and played at V festival last year in the VIP area.

The 29-year-old has residencies at the Wine Bar in Stockton Heath and the Quarter Bar in Springfield Street and performed at Creamfields in Daresbury for the fourth year on Saturday.

He said: “It’s great that my name is alongside acts like Pete Tong and Calvin Harris. It’s brilliant to be up there with them.”

James was inspired to become a DJ by his parents, Northern Soul fans Bernie and Graham.

He added: “They bought me my first set of decks when I was 15 and I used to go to Hot Wax in Warrington when that was going.

“My dad used to play me a lot of stuff. I was interested in his record player from a very young age.”

- The next Giraffe night is at FC2 on September 13 with Patrick Topping. Visit facebook.com/thegiraffehouse