An iconic nightclub building in Frodsham which has seen the likes of The Beatles and Showaddywaddy tread its boards may be demolished and replaced with 12 houses.

The owner of the Mersey View and Forest Hills Hotel says the Overton Hill club has become a ‘burden’ and releasing it from the fold will invest in the future of the hotel.

The hotel has applied to Cheshire West and Chester Council for outline planning permission for the club’s demolition and the erection of 12 houses.

Owner Brian Peck, who built the family-run hotel next to the Mersey View in 1988, told the Chronicle: “Mersey View has been an enormous part of my life and it will be very sad to see it go.

“However, the future stability of the hotel is paramount and as the nightclub is not used and would need substantial funding, it does not make it a viable proposition for redevelopment in its current form and is currently a burden on the hotel.

“It is only going to be an improvement in the end.”

The planning statement submitted by Goodwin Planning Services suggests that eight of the houses would be four or five bedroom units boasting double garages and parking for up to four cars, whilst the other four are three bedroom terraced houses offering a minimum of two car spaces per house.

Affectionately called the View by many, the building is some 120 years old.

The club enjoyed a resurgence following the Second World War, thanks to its promise of live music and Saturday evening dances for the princely sum of half a crown.

Brian took it under his wing in the 1960s, introducing a programme of cabaret entertainment which featured personalities like Bob Monkhouse and Tom O’Connor.

“There are a lot of happy memories of the View for a lot of people,” Brian added. “It’s where people met their husbands and wives.”

General manager Kieran McCabe stressed that the potential sale of the View - which has been renamed the Overton Suite - will not effect hotel staff, who have been kept informed throughout the process.

If planning permission is granted, the project will be put out to tender.

The determination deadline is December 11.