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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Wiltshire Council looked for an operator and chose Music Entertainment Culture and Arts (Meca), which runs a venue in Swindon.<\/p>\n
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”.<\/p>\n
There is new lighting, bars, PA system, updated foyer and refurbished downstairs toilets, as well as repaint.<\/p>\n
Mr Britchford explained they had looked at old photographs to try and restore the “feel” of it.<\/p>\n
“We’re glad to be getting it opened at long last. It is very exciting” he added.<\/p>\n
The Beatles were at the height of their fame when they played Salisbury City Hall in 1963 [PA Media]<\/p>\n
New acts have been hired and Mr Britchford said they were in talks with promoters to book more in.<\/p>\n
Names like Jimmy Carr, Harry Redknapp, Rhod Gilbert, Jason Manford and Ben Fogle were already in the timetable.<\/p>\n
There were also tribute acts, roller discos, bingo nights and even a psychic on the list too.<\/p>\n
The Beatles played the venue in June 1963 and the site also hosted other big names such as David Bowie and Led Zeppelin.<\/p>\n
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”.<\/p>\n
The venue will be hosting a variety of acts and events, including bingo and rollerskating [BBC]<\/p>\n
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”.<\/p>\n
“In Edwardian and Victorian Salisbury, rollerskating was all the rage.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
He added that many people in the city met at the venue – which then “made marriages”.<\/p>\n
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