Mark Goldinger tragically lost his battle with Glioblastoma last month. He was diagnosed with stage four of the condition in December last year, and is survived by wife Cathi, and his children Ben and Rebecca.
Throughout his career Mark shunned the spotlight, despite being the creative force behind many of Glasgow’s most successful clubs – including Bunker and Bamboo. Mark’s business partner and friend Brian McIlvaney says, “What I will miss most about him is his humour. He was a shy man until you got to know him, but once you did, you got to see how funny he was. He had a dry wit, and he was also incredibly sharp. In the twelve years that we worked together, we never had a cross word. He did prefer to work behind the scenes and wasn’t particularly showy. “
Despite the inoperable nature of his condition, it was able to be managed for a while with intensive radiotherapy, and Mark continued working throughout, and enjoyed a family holiday in Italy just six weeks before he passed away.
Mark began working with Peter Stringfellow in London after graduating from Leeds University. He then went on to work with Ron McCulloch, and together they opened Henry Afrikas in Glasgow in the 80s, before buying Fat Sam’s in Dundee. Then he and Ron McCulloch opened Club Cuba in Spain, which was managed by Colin Barr. A stint with Stefan King in the Queen Street club Archaos followed, where he met Brian McIlvaney, with whom he went on to open Trash, The Temple and The Shack, and latterly Bamboo and Bunker.
But, according to Brian, his first love was music. He explains, “He was a trained saxophonist and always had a musical influence in his life. He managed a house music band called the Nightcrawlers, as well as running two music labels. He can add two fantastic film scores to his tremendous legacy – Rain, with Neve Campbell, which is currently in production, and a film called Anuvahood.”
Mark Goldinger may have been the “quiet man of clubs”, but he will be remembered for his warmth, and genuine love for the industry.