Party Blasts Off to million mark

Emma Sharratt was the lucky 'Bloffer' who rang up the magic milestone at the Civic Hall on Saturday.

The startled 24-year-old from Wombourne was handed a golden ticket – free entry to any event of her choosing at the Civic or Wulfrun Halls this year - plus a bottle of Champagne, 50 cans of Red Stripe and an engraved trophy.

Emma, who has been a regular at Blast Off since she was 18, said: "I was so shocked because I never win anything. I was excited about going to Blast Off for another night but this has made the occasion even more special."

The attendance needed to reach 1,026 to hit the target but soared past that figure with a bumper turn out of 1,800 clubbers.

Promoter Dave Travis, who has staged the indie night throughout its18-year long run, declared: "It was a brilliant night and great for us to go out on a high.

"A million is an enormous number of people and a great tribute to the event. As far as we can work out it is the second most successful club night in the world."

He had kept track of entry numbers since the very first Blast Off on September 21, 1996 and the only other club night to pass the milestone is Manumission – the standard bearer for 90s rave culture in Ibiza.

After what was intended to be Blast Off's last ever night saw revellers pack out the Civic Hall last March, a Christmas reunion sold out in less than a day.

Mr Travis concluded: "We were then so close to the million mark that I thought it would be a shame to finish without having a last go at passing the magic milestone. Now that has been reached I have no plans to do another one."