THE Rock-A-Hula Club is bringing a new lease of life to one of Swanage’s most unlikely venues, The Royal British Legion.

Swanage residents Dave Taylor and Jack Daniels are enticing acts from blues, jazz, folk and one-off comedy nights.

The pair is best known locally as the organisers of the Swanage Comedy Festival and resident Friday night DJ’s upstairs at the East Bar.

The new venue is an interesting choice, as Dave Taylor says: “We had fantastic feedback from comedians that appeared there during the Comedy Festivals.

“We have already had some sell-out shows there and plenty more in the coming year.”

Rock-A-Hula's aim is to book live entertainment, as well as a rehearsal space that should introduce more original music to the area. Music classes are also planned such as drum and ukulele workshops, with plans for The School of Rock-A-Hula launching at Easter.

The venue also began an indoor market, Bizarre Bazaar just before Christmas with more events planned for in 2012.

This has taken some investment but Dave says: “We would like to get our name on the national gig circuit and the only way to achieve this is to provide great facilities to entice touring acts. It will be a great benefit to the community and give something unique to our visitors.”

The venue officially opens with Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band on April 7.

Geno will be performing his own material plus lots of soul classics, a co-promotion with the new Swanage 5050 Club. Events for all up and coming shows can be booked at the Legion’s box office, open from midday till 11pm.

Tickets will also be available via the Swanage TIC plus online through ticketing agencies such as wegottickets.com and eventbrite.com.

For full details check out rockahulaclub.co.uk.