Gifts for Music Lovers UK: Personalised Venue Prints for Gig-Goers

Every music lover has one. The venue where it clicked. The sticky floor they stood on at 17, the room where they saw the band before everyone else did, the night they met someone across a rammed dancefloor and never looked back. Socks and a bottle of something won't come close. A print of that place, with that date on it, will.

This is a gift guide for the gig-goers, the ticket-stub hoarders and the people who still talk about a show from 1997 like it was last week. Every print in the Venue Prints collection celebrates a legendary UK music venue, and each one can be personalised with a line of text and a date. That's what turns a nice bit of wall art into the present they actually remember opening.

Why a venue print makes a cracking gift

Band merch dates. Vinyl gets lent out and never comes back. Venues, though, are where the memories live. Ask anyone about their best gig and they'll tell you where it was before they tell you who was playing.

• It's personal without being a gamble. No guessing sizes or second-guessing their taste in bands. If they've been to the venue, they love the venue.
• It's made for the wall. A proper piece of art for the hallway, the record room or the spot above the turntable, not something that ends up in a drawer.
• It gives something back. A share of every sale goes to Music Venue Trust, the charity fighting to keep grassroots venues open. Buy one and the scene gets a bit of love too.

Personalisation: make it theirs

Each print can carry a custom line of text and a custom date. A few ideas to get started:

• "Where it all started" with the date of a couple's first gig together. Anniversary sorted.
• "First gig, 14.03.1996" for the person who still has the ticket stub in their wallet.
• "Mr & Mrs Walsh, est. 2011" for a couple who met at the bar.
• "The night it all kicked off" with the date of a show they still won't shut up about.
• "Our first headline show" for a band who finally made it onto the poster.

A tip: if the exact date's lost to the mists of time, a year on its own works brilliantly. Nobody's checking.

Gifts for gig-goers in London

London's venues have more stories than most cities have gigs, and three of the capital's best are in the collection.

KOKO, Camden is pure Camden: a grand old theatre turned into one of London's best-loved rooms for gigs and club nights, with well over a century of history behind it. Perfect for anyone who's lost a night (or a weekend) in NW1. Get the full story of KOKO's 125-year music history.

The Forum, Kentish Town is a proper north London institution, known to older heads as the Town & Country Club. Ideal for the friend who's seen half their favourite bands there. Read more on the Forum's history.

The Water Rats, King's Cross is small, sweaty and steeped in history, the kind of back room where future headliners cut their teeth. A great pick for the mate who always says "I saw them in a pub first". Dig into the Water Rats story.

Gifts for gig-goers in Glasgow

Ask any band about their favourite UK crowd and Glasgow comes up again and again. Barrowlands is the heart of it: the neon sign, the bouncing floor and a crowd that sings every word back. Anyone who's done a night at the Barras will know exactly what this print means. A lovely gift for Glaswegians who've moved away, too.

Gifts for gig-goers in Brighton

Down on the seafront at 10 Marine Parade, one building has been three of Brighton's best-loved clubs. Audio and Patterns each have their own print, so there's one for whichever era they belong to. Made for the ex-Brighton student who still talks about those nights. The whole story is in our article the history of Audio, Escape and Patterns.

Gifts for gig-goers in Southampton

The Joiners is one of the UK's great small venues, a tiny room on St Mary's Road with a reputation far bigger than its capacity. Countless bands have played there on the way up. Spot-on for anyone from Southampton or anyone who studied there. Read the Joiners' history.

Gift ideas by who you're buying for

For dads who love music

Dads are famously hard to buy for, but most music-loving dads have a venue story they've told a hundred times. Pick the venue from his gig-going prime, add the year he saw his favourite band there and watch him launch into the story again. This time, though, he'll have the evidence on the wall. For more ideas, including how to find out his venue without giving the game away, see the full guide to gifts for dads who love music.

For your partner

If you met at a gig, or had your first date at one, this one's an easy win. Add "Where it all started" and the date. Proper romantic, without being soppy.

For musicians and bands

Every band remembers its first proper show and the first venue that took a chance on them. A print of that room, personalised with the date of the gig, makes a brilliant gift for a musician or a whole band. It also looks the part on a rehearsal room wall.

For the mate who moved away

Moved from Glasgow to London, or left Brighton for somewhere with fewer seagulls? A print of their old local venue is a little bit of home on the wall, and a reminder of the nights that made them.

For the music lover who has everything

They've got the box sets, the signed vinyl and the band tees. What they almost certainly haven't got is a piece of art celebrating the place where they first fell for live music.

Framing and finishing touches

A venue print looks its best in a simple black or natural wood frame, so it's worth picking one up if you'd like it ready to hang on Christmas Day. Check the product pages for the colourways and sizes available. A bigger print makes a statement over a sofa, while a smaller one suits a shelf or the wall by the record player.

Don't leave it too late

Christmas post gets busy fast, and personalised prints take a little time to make. Order in early December to stay well ahead of the Royal Mail rush and avoid that last-minute panic.

Find the right venue

Browse the full music venue art print collection to find the venue that means the most to them. Every print celebrates a room that's given people some of the best nights of their lives, and every sale helps keep grassroots venues going.

Find their venue, add their date and let the stories start flowing on Christmas morning.