Preston Guild Hall
The construction for the Guild Hall began in 1969 and was designed by Robert Matthew and Johnson Marshall and commissioned to replace the town's Public Hall. The new building was considered a “revolutionary feat of architecture” at the time, but many residents of Preston were not keen on the brutalist architecture employed that contrasted so heavily with the Georgian terraces that made up the city centre. The building was supposed to be ready in 1972, had it’s opening delayed due to builders’ strikes before finally opening in 1973. The complex consists of three performance venues, the Grand Hall which holds 2,034, the Charter Theatre which holds 780 people and the LiVe venue which holds 500 people. Some of the worlds biggest artists have performed at the venue such as: Martha Argerich, Morrissey, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, The Jackson 5, Thin Lizzy, Busted and Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel among others. It also hosted the UK Snooker Championship for the years 1978 to 1997. Interestingly, the Guild Hall is placed on top of a still active shopping centre is connected to an arcade. Despite the closure, these businesses remained open and still do to this day. Until July 2014, it was owned by Preston City Council, who were considering its demolition due to its high running costs. It was then sold to local businessman, Simon Rigby for £1 under a 999-year lease. Rigby promised to spend £1m to renovate the venue. Instead, Rigby lost £6 million over 5 years while enduring the project. It was this that resulted Rigby to close the venue in May 2019. In June 2019, he placed the business into administration. Preston City Council subsequently reclaimed possession of the building, citing the "unacceptable behaviour" of Rigby. The estate is still being resolved and so the site remains mothballed.
About time I put up my pictures from here.
Shopping centre.
Guild Hall
Heading higher up.
Dressing room entrance.
Bar.
Charter Theatre.
One final one.
Made a video recently on our exploration of the Guild Hall. Watch here if you'd like:
Thanks for reading
The construction for the Guild Hall began in 1969 and was designed by Robert Matthew and Johnson Marshall and commissioned to replace the town's Public Hall. The new building was considered a “revolutionary feat of architecture” at the time, but many residents of Preston were not keen on the brutalist architecture employed that contrasted so heavily with the Georgian terraces that made up the city centre. The building was supposed to be ready in 1972, had it’s opening delayed due to builders’ strikes before finally opening in 1973. The complex consists of three performance venues, the Grand Hall which holds 2,034, the Charter Theatre which holds 780 people and the LiVe venue which holds 500 people. Some of the worlds biggest artists have performed at the venue such as: Martha Argerich, Morrissey, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, The Jackson 5, Thin Lizzy, Busted and Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel among others. It also hosted the UK Snooker Championship for the years 1978 to 1997. Interestingly, the Guild Hall is placed on top of a still active shopping centre is connected to an arcade. Despite the closure, these businesses remained open and still do to this day. Until July 2014, it was owned by Preston City Council, who were considering its demolition due to its high running costs. It was then sold to local businessman, Simon Rigby for £1 under a 999-year lease. Rigby promised to spend £1m to renovate the venue. Instead, Rigby lost £6 million over 5 years while enduring the project. It was this that resulted Rigby to close the venue in May 2019. In June 2019, he placed the business into administration. Preston City Council subsequently reclaimed possession of the building, citing the "unacceptable behaviour" of Rigby. The estate is still being resolved and so the site remains mothballed.
About time I put up my pictures from here.
Shopping centre.
Guild Hall
Heading higher up.
Dressing room entrance.
Bar.
Charter Theatre.
One final one.
Made a video recently on our exploration of the Guild Hall. Watch here if you'd like:
Thanks for reading
