That club wouldn't have been NTMC by any chance Folkiedave? I had heard such tales about the club long before I moved to Nottingham in 1978 and in all honesty they put me off going there. In the ensuing years I have been informed by the likes of Roy Harris, Sid Long, Andy Leith, Lawrence Platt that this was never the case. Since Traditions at the Tiger is called the successor to NTMC no doubt similar stories circulate about us. The Barleycorn Club in Newcastle run by Stefan Sobell and John Revie (Revie was an associate of MacColl's)had a policy of singing songs "from your own cultural media".
MacColl friend or foe? As a folk club organiser the resounding answer would be friend! A supreme professional, always on time, presentation immaculate and always a performance to linger in the memory.