This week on Hard House History, Paul Glazby finally sits down with one of the most requested guests the podcast has ever had, Fergie. A DJ whose story is inseparable from the rise of UK hard house, the conversation goes far beyond club nostalgia and into the raw reality of growing up inside the scene.

Fergie takes us back to early-90s Ireland, learning to mix on battered turntables as a kid and playing nightclub residencies at just 14. What follows is a journey that sounds almost impossible now, moving to England as a teenager under the mentorship of the legendary Tony De Vit. The episode explores the real relationship behind the myth, not just DJ and protégé, but family, trust and belief. You hear about long car rides to gigs, promo records spread across bedroom floors, and hours spent watching Tony craft sets and productions from scratch.

The discussion also opens up the era many only heard rumours about: chaotic club nights, the explosion of Gatecrasher and Trade, and the intensity of a culture-changing dance music forever. Most movingly, Fergie shares deeply personal memories of Tony's illness, his passing, and the moment he was asked to play Tony's scheduled set the very night after the funeral. It’s emotional, honest and gives listeners a perspective on the scene that no documentary ever fully captured.

The episode also explores the evolution of hard house itself. Was it really a genre, or something much broader? Fergie explains why tracks like The Dawn blurred boundaries and how that shaped his own decision years later to move away from the sound and search for his own musical identity.

This isn't just dance music history. It’s a coming-of-age story inside one of clubbing's most important eras.

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This week on Hard House History, Paul sits down with Irish hard house pioneer Mark Kavanagh, a name woven deep into the fabric of the late-90s scene. From pirate radio and underground raves in Dublin to chart positions, Trade club connections and releases that helped define the harder sound, this episode is less an interview and more a living archive of how hard house actually spread beyond the UK.

Mark explains how the early Irish rave scene evolved from tiny gatherings into packed venues like the Olympic Ballroom, where hundreds quickly became thousands, and where he eventually went from playing records to producing them. He recalls documenting the scene in magazines and fanzines because, at the time, nobody else was capturing what was happening.

The conversation dives into the real history of the genre, the pre-digital era of DAT tapes, mailing lists and white labels, and the moment Irish dance floors embraced the harder, faster sound years before UK media took it seriously. Mark also shares how his productions took off after pirate radio repeatedly played his records, turning a studio shed project into a national booking schedule.

Paul and Mark also unpack Trade’s influence, the origin of the term “hard house”, and how radio, clubs and DJs together created a movement rather than a marketing genre. It’s a fascinating reminder that scenes weren’t built by algorithms, they were built by people travelling, sharing music and handing records directly to each other.

If you want to understand how hard house actually grew internationally, this episode is essential listening.

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In this episode of Hard House History, Paul Glazby sits down with Nick Denton, a name that quietly but profoundly shaped the hard house movement from the mid-90s onward.

From sneaking into clubs at 16 with a fake ID to becoming a resident DJ, producer, label boss, and digital pioneer, Nick's story is one of timing, talent, and relentless curiosity. He talks candidly about cutting his teeth at Southampton's Magnum, early influences like rave tapes, Trade at Turnmills, and being taken under the wing of Paul King, a partnership that led to seminal projects like Overload and Trauma, and eventually to the launch of Toolbox Recordings.

Nick reflects on the white-label era, pressing vinyl by hand, selling records out of car boots, and the moment everything changed with the arrival of digital distribution. Long before it became standard practice, Toolbox became one of the earliest labels to embrace digital platforms, a move that helped future-proof the music while many others struggled to adapt.

The conversation also dives into the realities of burnout, financial risk, and why Nick often worked behind the scenes rather than chasing the spotlight. There's plenty of laughter too, Manchester after-party stories, broken cars, lost nights and the kind of chaos only the hard house scene could produce.

Now, with Toolbox celebrating its 25th anniversary and Nick marking 30 years in the scene, there's a renewed fire. New releases, events, collaborations and a genuine sense that hard house is bubbling again under the surface.

This is a proper deep dive into the history, the hustle and the heart of hard house.

30 Years of Hard House, One Story

• Toolbox is back, and so is the fire
• Revisit the sound, the stories and the spirit of hard house

Listen now and subscribe for more Hard House History wherever you get your podcasts

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