A venue where the likes of The Beatles and David Bowie once played is to stage a performance for the first time since closing five years ago.
Salisbury City Hall – which has capacity for 1,000 people and first opened in 1961 – was used during the pandemic for vaccinations but did not reopen afterwards for shows.
Wiltshire Council looked for an operator and chose Music Entertainment Culture and Arts (Meca), which runs a venue in Swindon.
The site’s been partly refurbished and was set to welcome people again for the Chuckles Comedy Club on 4 September, which venue director Justin Britchford described as a “warm up”.
There is new lighting, bars, PA system, updated foyer and refurbished downstairs toilets, as well as repaint.
Mr Britchford explained they had looked at old photographs to try and restore the “feel” of it.
“We’re glad to be getting it opened at long last. It is very exciting” he added.
The Beatles were at the height of their fame when they played Salisbury City Hall in 1963 [PA Media]
New acts have been hired and Mr Britchford said they were in talks with promoters to book more in.
Names like Jimmy Carr, Harry Redknapp, Rhod Gilbert, Jason Manford and Ben Fogle were already in the timetable.
There were also tribute acts, roller discos, bingo nights and even a psychic on the list too.
The Beatles played the venue in June 1963 and the site also hosted other big names such as David Bowie and Led Zeppelin.
While the City Hall is often cited for its musical past, Mr Britchford added that “it’s not just about the music anymore. Times have changed”.
The venue will be hosting a variety of acts and events, including bingo and rollerskating [BBC]
Local historian and resident Frogg Moody remembers the City Hall and going there from a very young age and said “it can only be good news”.
“In Edwardian and Victorian Salisbury, rollerskating was all the rage.
“I think that sort of thing is going to really work in Salisbury City Hall and what really pleased me is the night time economy is going to benefit from this.”
He added that many people in the city met at the venue – which then “made marriages”.
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