REMEMBER WHEN

GOLD COAST BULLETIN Thursday July 22, 2009

FORMER nightclub king Paul Allen was back.

The man who used to own Melbas – but who spent the previous year out of the limelight after receivers moved in on the landmark Surfers Paradise nightclub – took up residence 500m up the road. He was the new face of Billy’s Beach House.

Mr Allen – who famously spent more than $12 million doing up Melbas – oversaw a team which renovated the beachfront bar and nightclub.

The new-look venue was due to open in August 2009 and the Allens – Paul and his three sons David, Cameron and Luke – were asked to run it.

It was the family’s first foray into the glitter strip since Mr Allen was “wrongfully removed” from Melbas.

The Billy’s Beach House bar, nightclub, restaurant, function room and poolside area, part of the empty Iluka high-rise, were being restored to their former glory.

A long-term decision on the high-rise, owned by Jim Raptis, had yet to be finalised.

A silent partner funded the renovations.

The flamboyant Mr Allen said after a rough 12 months he looked forward to entertaining again.

‘‘This is what I really do. I don’t do anything else,’’ said Mr Allen, who operated Melbas for 27 years.

‘‘We all like to have a good time and if you can transfer that through to your customers, they will want to have a good time with you. Will I have a following? Only time will tell that.

‘‘We’ve always tried to give people a good time and we have spent quite a lot of time looking after people. We want to turn this around to a real success.’’