Who was Kate Meyrick? Single mother who inspired Dope Girls drug drama
KATE Meyrick embarked on building a nightclub empire as the Great War came to an end — earning a reputation as “The most dangerous woman in London.”
Here we take a look at the life and crimes of the entrepreneurial trailblazer, which have been dramatised in the BBC’s Dope girls.
Who was Kate Meyrick?
Kate Meyrick was born Kate Evelyn Nason in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland, on August 7, 1875.
She was an infamous club owner who became known as the “Queen of the Night” in 1920s London.
Her journey from a respectable doctor’s wife to a notorious nightclub proprietor began after her separation from her husband in 1918.
As the single mother of eight children, she found herself struggling financially with a weekly allowance of less than £1.
Determined to support her family, in 1919 she entered the nightclub business, opening her first venue — Dalton’s in Leicester Square.
Rise to prominence
Over the next decade, Kate became a central figure in London’s vibrant nightlife scene.
She operated several clubs, including the famous 43 Club on Gerrard Street, which attracted gangsters, call girls and IRA members.
It also welcomed showbiz stars such as Hollywood bigshots Rudolf Valentino and Talllulah Bankhead.
She scandalised society by creating safe spaces where, behind closed doors, women could also indulge in sex and booze, and gained a reputation as “The most dangerous woman in London”.
Kate’s illicit empire of nightspots were locations where hedonists could also access the booming recreational drugs market.
Prostitution was rife and girls inside her clubs were known as Meyricks Merrye Maids.
Novelist Evelyn Waugh even used Kate as the inspiration for the character of Ma Mayfield — who ran a club called the Old Hundredth — in his 1945 novel Brideshead Revisited.
‘Ma’ Meyrick’s establishment was often infiltrated by police in evening clothes, posing as the tipsy aftermath of regimental dinners or bachelor parties
David Niven
In his autobiography, actor David Niven opened up about losing his virginity at the age of 14 to Nessie — a 17-year old dancer from the 43 Club.
He wrote in 1971 memoir The Moon’s A Balloon: “She had to be on hand in evening dress as a ‘dancing partner’, making a fuss of the rather high-class clientele and persuading them to buy champagne at exorbitant prices.
“She was not allowed to solicit on the premises — a rule that was strictly enforced because ‘Ma’ Meyrick’s establishment was often infiltrated by police in evening clothes, posing as the tipsy aftermath of regimental dinners or bachelor parties.
“But contacts were easily enough made and Nessie soon built up the basis of an enthusiastic clientele.”
Kate is understood to have made as much as £500,000 during her impressive — equivalent to roughly £17million today.
Legal troubles
Kate’s career was marked by frequent run-ins with the law.
She served five prison sentences and faced numerous fines for violating licensing regulations and selling alcohol illegally.
Despite these setbacks, she continued to operate her clubs, often reopening them under different names shortly after being shut down.
She passed away on January 19, 1933, at the age of 57.
Her funeral took place in famed West End church St Martin-in-the-Fields, and theatres and clubs dimmed their lights out of respect.
Dope Girls
The BBC‘s drama series Dope Girls was partly inspired by Kate’s story.
While she herself was not involved in drug trafficking, the series draws on the broader context of female-led criminal enterprises in early 20th century London.
The show explores the story of a conservative, god-fearing 42-year-old single mother who builds a nightclub empire, mirroring aspects of Kate’s life.
The dark six-part series is based on Marek Kohn’s 1992 book Dope Girls: The Birth of the British Drug Underground, which follows the penniless women as they hit up the underground Soho club scene.
Despite its title, the book is not about drug gangs run by women.
However, in reality there are no records of female-led drugs gangs in London during this period — so there may not have been any at all.
The Forty Elephants was a notorious all-female gang that operated in London from the 1870s through the 1920s and beyond.
Led by Alice Diamond in the 1920s, they specialised in shoplifting luxury goods.
They broke away from the male-led Forty Theives gang, which operated from the London borough of Elephant & Castle.