Opening the Top End's first gay nightclub was the challenge Tim Palmer and Mark Marcelis set themselves when they moved from Sydney to Darwin more than 20 years ago. "Mark was determined from day one that we were going to have drag shows every night, and they were going to be bigger and better than the Sydney drag shows. They were and they have been and they continue to be," Tim Palmer says.
The business and personal partners drew on their backgrounds in hospitality and the creative industries as they searched for the right venue. "After two years, we were pulling our hair out at not having anywhere to go out that we felt comfortable," says Tim.
Eventually they found Throb's home. $8,000 of their savings got them a lick of paint, a rented sound system and one helicopter light. They made their money back within hours of opening the doors. "Because it was a new thing opening in Darwin, we were packed, absolutely jam packed," Mark Marcelis explains.
The next few years though were tough for Throb. "We were on pretty much skid row for two years after opening night," says Tim. The pair soon realised if the club was going to be successful, it would need to expand its client base beyond Darwin's relatively small gay community. So, they incorporated a female dance group, The Pussycats, into their trademark drag shows. "We went from 30 people on a Friday to 200 people, 100 on a Saturday to 400 overnight literally and after being told for 12 months to shut the doors," says Tim.
Since then, business has grown steadily. "We've gone through highs and lows over the last 15 years, but really our turnover has been just a nice steady upward rise."
Their success means they attract highly acclaimed performers like Jessica Mauboy. Mark and Tim met the young singer not long before she shot to fame on Australian Idol, interviewing her for Resident, a highly-successful lifestyle magazine that's the pair's second business venture. "And she said you want me to be in Resident magazine? And we said yes would you? And she said me, really? And she was so gorgeous and so humble and gracious and it was such a big thing for her," says Tim.
She returned years later as a seasoned performer, for a surprise appearance in the club's Mardi Gras show. "It was our Rolling Stones in a small pub in England moment, it was fantastic."
Since opening in 2000, the club has become a Darwin icon and a beacon for acceptance. "We herald ourselves as a gay club, because, I call it our gay force field, it keeps bigots and rednecks away from us by virtue of the marketing, but we're not defined as an exclusive gay club by any stretch, because it is a place for everyone," says Tim.
"It's opened the minds of so many people I think. It's allowed people to accept the gay community as people really," says Mark.
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