Princess Diana club Noel Gallagher and Lily Allen are regulars - to open first venue in North

The Groucho Club, famed for its A-list celebrity members, is to open new premises in the grounds of Yorkshire Sculpture Park and will be based in the Grade II listed Bretton Hall near Wakefield

An exclusive private members’ club in London, which once barred Damien Hirst and refused Al Pacino entry, has announced plans to expand - to Yorkshire.

The Groucho Club, famed for its A-list celebrity members, is to open new premises in the grounds of Yorkshire Sculpture Park. The club and hotel will be based in the Grade II listed Bretton Hall near Wakefield.

Ewan Venters, chief executive of Groucho owners Artfarm, told the Guardian the move to Yorkshire made more sense than suggestions to go across the pond. “Why would we go to America first, why wouldn’t we want to go to the north of England?” he said. "I wanted to avoid the Cotswolds because that doesn’t represent our membership.”

The famous Groucho club opened in Soho in 1984 and legend has it that even the Spice Girls at the height of their fame were unsuccessful in their membership bid. Membership should not be so much of a problem in the new club, which will be known as ‘Groucho Bretton’ as it will be open to non-members.

And before he was barred, Damien Hirst famously put his £20,000 Turner Prize winnings behind the bar. The Groucho still has famous members including Noel Gallagher, Lord Melvyn Bragg, Rachel Weisz, Lily Allen and actor Anna Friel. Mr Venters added: “This is possibly the most exciting venture in the 39-year history of The Groucho.

“We have done pop-ups at literary and music festivals in the past, but this will be the first time we have set up a permanent home outside of Soho. Groucho Bretton will have a life of its own, separate from the original Groucho, but equally with a uniquely eclectic style and personality rooted in both people and place.”

The Grade II listed building, will be the first permanent location outside the capital in the club’s 39-year history and is expected to open in 2026. The original was established on Soho’s Dean Street and was so popular Wayne Sleep took Princess Diana to lunch there.

Formerly an art college for almost 60 years, Bretton Hall had a heritage that attracted the Groucho owners to the site. Wakefield Council leader Denise Jeffery praised the plans and said the hall would be entering “a dynamic new phase of its history”. The Groucho was founded in Soho by a group of mostly women publishers at a time when all the exclusive clubs were male-dominated.

Their official history states the club’s name came about “from an oft misquoted line by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers comedy group, that seems to be: ‘I sent the club a wire stating, “Please accept my resignation. I don’t want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member. The name Groucho Club seemed the right sort of antidote to all the stuffy gentleman’s and politically affiliated clubs down the road.”

According to the club’s official history they wanted to “welcome women as equals”. In the nineties it was said to become a bit more laddish with guests including Liam Gallager. The club was also noted for its collection of about 150 works of art, by artists including Francis Bacon, Tracey Emin and Gavin Turk.