History

An introduction

Since it opened in 1984, Tilley's Devine Cafe Gallery has had a history of firsts. Tilley’s was the first licensed outdoor venue in Australia; the first bar to ban indoor smoking; the first venue to, for its first few years of opening, only allow men in if they had a woman among them. Now Tilley's is recognised as a Canberra instution.

Frequented by live music performers from local and international bands, Tilley's Devine Cafe Gallery is a place like no other in Canberra. Extended five times to take up... the entire block, Tilley’s prides itself on using quality, fresh local produce, and providing simple yet scrumptious meals. So whether it’s Tilley’s Big Breakfast, coffee, wine, lunch, dinner, sweets or music you’re after, Tilley's Devine Cafe Gallery is definitely a must visit venue.

Simply Devine

By Sally Pryor, from The Canberra Times, 16 January 2003.

Tilley's Devine Cafe Gallery should be a compulsory first port of call for people who are visiting Canberra for the first time. Central, yet out of the way, competely Canberra and yet so different to aything else on offer, the place seems guaranteed to imbue our fair city with a positive vibe that will hopefully linger with newcomers for the rest of their visit.

With elegant, dark wood fittings, a moody, deep red colour scheme, and soft jazz wafting between the old-fashioned booths lining the walls, there is some things essentially nostalgic and cinematic about Tilley's romantic atmosphere, reminiscent of a Hollywood film noir. Its timeless in a way that's hard to emulate in a youngish, fickle town like Canberra, where high turnover of night spots seem inevitably dictated by the relative hip-factor of the decor, the DJ and the cocktail menu.

It's ironic, really, that such a sense of timelessness should be associated with a place that has been a pioneer in so many different ways. And there are plenty of numbers and statistics associated with Tilley's, as I discovered when I spoke to owner and manager Paulie Higgisson. When Tilley's opened its doors for the first time in January, 1984 (which brings it to the ripe old age of 19 this month), it could only seat 60, and yet 420 people turned up.

Since then, each year at Tilley's has been bigger than the previous one. It has been extended five times, eventually taking over the entire block. It was the first licensed outdoor venue in Australia, as well as being the first bar to ban indoor smoking, which occurred eight years before there were any actual laws in the place.

"I just didn't want a roomful of blokes," she explains simply, and having woman around would inevitably "modify their behaviour". And of course, she adds, "Unintentionally it brought Tilley's the kind of advertising I couldn't buy."
And, as most people will know, for the first two years of Tilley's existence, groups of men were, famously, banned from drinking inside Tilley's unless they had at least one woman among their number. Predictably, this rule provoked the ire of many people (mostly men), but was keeping with Higgisson's objective, which was to create a generous environment that was both harmonious and safe for women.

Tilley's was not intended to be a live music venue in the very beginning. Higgisson opened the business initially "to feed my kids". However, Higgisson's skill and background as a music producer and sound engineer meant that the musical aspect grew almost inevitably. No great surprise then, that for the last 16 years, Higgisson has never had to call a musician to ask them to play. They've all come to her.

But it's the music-loving audiences at Tilley's which are its greatest asset, inspiring awe among the endless line-up of musical luminaries and internationally acclaimed acts who have performed there over the years. It appears that, even in the most well-known music clubs throughout the world, it's unusual to find people willing to shut up and listen in a place which is primarily a bar. But shut up and listen they do, which is what has so many artists beating down Tilley's door.

If you ever attend a concert at Tilley's, you might notice that the back of your ticket carries a printed warning: noisy people, and people with noisy children, will be asked to leave. This may seem like a touch of music fascism, but it is, of course the main ingredient in what has long been a very successful recipe.

And Audiences and performers alike just can't get enough of it. Many bands, when asked, will speak of Tilley's with a strange kind of reverence, despite having just played to a packed house. Too right: Tilley's is officially booked out for performers until June. Paulie Higgisson can now say, "quite shamelessly", that she has long had the luxury of being able to say yes to performers who will do justice to Tilley's legendary audiences.