Over these fifteen years, there were various trials and tribulations which saw Friars close to bankruptcy more than once but it survived and presented the best artists of its day and is acknowledged as being heavily responsible for the subsequent success of such artists as David Bowie, Genesis, Wishbone Ash, Mott the Hoople, Cockney Rebel, Sailor, Stackridge, Stiff Little Fingers, Marillion and more.
A committee was formed which aside from Pike and Stopps, featured also John Fowler (initially as he had made a financial investment) and local youngsters Adrian Roach, Jerry Slater and Terry Harms.
Roach and Slater were pupils of Pike and ran their own enterprise running the Bog Hog Folk Club at the now defunct Derby Arms pub in Aylesbury.
The first gig on Monday 2 June 1969 with blues guitarist Mike Cooper and progressive rock group Mandrake Paddle Steamer drew a crowd large enough to suggest that this might be a viable proposition.
This Phase ended prematurely when the committee overseeing the ex-Servicemen's club refused to allow Friars to continue running there after August 1970 due to complaints about the noise from local residents.
Having already tried the Borough Assembly Hall for a couple of bigger gigs in 1969 (Fat Mattress and The Third Ear Band were the gigs concerned and the Friars team cheekily referred to the Borough Assembly Hall at that time as the 'Friars Auditorium'), the decision was taken to restart Friars at this venue in Aylesbury's Market Square despite misgivings of the venue's acoustics and its poor reputation from when it had been previously called The Grosvenor (although as The Grosvenor, acts such as Jimi Hendrix played).
This was superseded in 1979 by Gary Numan's huge production and trumped in 1980 by Genesis coming back to one of their favourite early venues.
Although the quality of gigs in 1983 and 1984 was generally high, it was proving difficult in the advent of the video age to attract decent working bands as fewer were touring.
In 1984 there were some weaker concerts culminating in Friars 15th Birthday Party with the Scottish band Fiction Factory being attended by not much more than 100 people.
Another concert was held on 23 October 2009[6] with Friars legends Stiff Little Fingers, Penetration and The Disco Students selling out well in advance for SLF's return after 27 years.
The final anniversary concert, billed as the probably last Christmas party took place on 27 November and featured memorable performances from Kid Creole and the Coconuts and China Crisis.
The day the Pretty Things tickets went on sale for the first Friars gig in 25 years, a large crowd gathered at the Civic Centre box office along with journalists and BBC News.
Inspired by the Friars Aylesbury Cup awarded for many years by David Stopps to artists who had made sensational breakthroughs in different ways.
Awards have been made thus far to Sailor, The Jam, Stiff Little Fingers, Marillion/Fish, John Otway, Wild Willy Barrett, Howard Jones, The Pretty Things, The Groundhogs, David Stopps, Edgar Broughton Band, Mott The Hoople, Ian Hunter, Mike Cooper, Mandrake Paddle Steamer, Jonathan Kelly, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Stackridge, Steve Hackett, Penetration, Simon Cheetham/Disco Students, Kid Creole and the Coconuts, China Crisis, Paul Weller, Robin Pike and Kris Needs.