List of London venues
Encyclopedia
Theatres
The majority of London's commercial "theatre land" is situated around Shaftesbury AvenueShaftesbury Avenue
Shaftesbury Avenue is a major street in central London, England, named after Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, that runs in a north-easterly direction from Piccadilly Circus to New Oxford Street, crossing Charing Cross Road at Cambridge Circus....
, the Strand
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
and nearby streets in the West End
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...
. The theatres are receiving house
Receiving house
A receiving house is a theatre which does not produce its own repertoire but instead receives touring theatre companies, usually for a brief period such as three nights or a full week...
s, and often feature transfers of major productions from the Royal National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
and Royal Shakespeare Company
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
. (See the article "West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
", and see also the category Theatre companies in London).
The following list also includes the major non-commercial theatres in London, many of which are to be found beyond the West End.
West End theatres
Also see List of West End theatres for further specifications.Outside the West End
Many major important theatres and National venues are sited beyond the traditional West End theatre land. They include the Royal National TheatreRoyal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
on the South Bank
South Bank
South Bank is an area of London, England located immediately adjacent to the south side of the River Thames. It forms a long and narrow section of riverside development that is within the London Borough of Lambeth to the border with the London Borough of Southwark and was formerly simply known as...
; the nearby Young Vic, Old Vic
Old Vic
The Old Vic is a theatre located just south-east of Waterloo Station in London on the corner of The Cut and Waterloo Road. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, it was taken over by Emma Cons in 1880 when it was known formally as the Royal Victoria Hall. In 1898, a niece of Cons, Lilian...
and Globe Theatre
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613...
s; Sadler's Wells in Rosebery Avenue and Barbican Arts Centre to the east; and the Royal Court Theatre
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
in Chelsea
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
.
Former theatres
The List of English Renaissance theatres covers the period from the establishment of the first TudorTudor period
The Tudor period usually refers to the period between 1485 and 1603, specifically in relation to the history of England. This coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII...
theatres, through to their suppression by parliament
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
at the beginning of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
.
The List of Former theatres in London covers the period from the reopening of the playhouses after the English Restoration
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
through to the 21st century. It includes music halls.
Opera, ballet and dance
- Royal Opera HouseRoyal Opera HouseThe Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
- London Coliseum (the home of English National OperaEnglish National OperaEnglish National Opera is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St. Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with the Royal Opera, Covent Garden...
)
Both of the above also stage ballet. Holland Park Opera stages opera at an outdoor venue in the summer. Several of the theatres listed have staged opera in the past, including the following:
- Sadler's Wells - London's main dance theatre
- Barbican Theatre - regularly hosts leading touring dance companies
- Savoy TheatreSavoy TheatreThe Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
, the former home of the D'Oyly Carte Opera CompanyD'Oyly Carte Opera CompanyThe D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
(Gilbert and SullivanGilbert and SullivanGilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
- inactive)
Experimental, contemporary and fringe opera is occasionally programmed at Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios is a production studio, theatre and independent cinema on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. It plays host to contemporary and international dramatic and dance performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production.-History:In 1933, the...
, which also hosts the annual Tete-a-Tete The Opera Festival. The Arcola Theatre
Arcola Theatre
Arcola Theatre is a studio theatre in Dalston, in the London Borough of Hackney. The theatre's ambition is to create and present high-quality theatre with a social and political relevance to its multicultural local community as well as a wider audience....
also hosts a contemporary fringe opera festival called 'Grimeborn'.
Cinema
There are cinemas throughout Greater LondonGreater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
, particularly multi-screen venues, however the majority of first run and independent films are shown in cinemas around Leicester Square
Leicester Square
Leicester Square is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. The Square lies within an area bound by Lisle Street, to the north; Charing Cross Road, to the east; Orange Street, to the south; and Whitcomb Street, to the west...
.
- Odeon Leicester SquareOdeon Leicester SquareThe Odeon Leicester Square is a cinema which occupies the centre of the eastern side of Leicester Square, London, dominating the square with its huge black polished granite facade and high tower displaying its name. Blue neon outlines the exterior of the building at night. It was built to be the...
- Odeon West EndOdeon West EndThe Odeon West End is a cinema on the south side of Leicester Square, London. It contains two screens—screen 1 seats 500 and screen 2 seats 832 . Both house large screens in comfortable auditoria...
- Empire, Leicester Square
- Prince Charles CinemaPrince Charles CinemaThe Prince Charles Cinema is a repertory cinema located in Leicester Place, 40 metres north of Leicester Square in the West End of London. It shows a rotating program of cult, arthouse, and classic films alongside recent Hollywood releases - typically more than ten different films a week on two...
- Vue West End
- National Film Theatre
- London IMAXLondon IMAXThe London IMAX is an IMAX cinema in the South Bank district of London, England, just north of Waterloo Station. It is operated by the British Film Institute.The cinema is located in the centre of a roundabout on Waterloo Road...
- Apollo cinemasApollo CinemasApollo Cinemas is a locally focused, independently owned multiplex cinema operator in the United Kingdom. Its stated mission is to welcome, engage and delight local audiences with a variety of onscreen entertainment and well designed, comfortable cinemas...
Clubs
There are clubs throughout Greater London, with many performing on a temporary basis. The more permanent ones are listed, but there is also a group of clubs in the ShoreditchShoreditch
Shoreditch is an area of London within the London Borough of Hackney in England. It is a built-up part of the inner city immediately to the north of the City of London, located east-northeast of Charing Cross.-Etymology:...
and Hoxton
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regent's Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.Hoxton is also a...
areas.
- Chuckle Clubhttp://www.chuckleclub.com/, a comedy club begun in 1986 that has changed venues over time, located in the Three Tuns pub in the London School of EconomicsLondon School of EconomicsThe London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
- Electric BallroomElectric BallroomThe Electric Ballroom is a performance venue and indoor market located at 184 Camden High Street in Camden Town, London . The Electric Ballroom has been in operation for over seventy years, during which time it has been used in many different ways.The two storey building has two dance floors and...
, a performance venue located in Camden TownCamden Town-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
constructed in the 1930s - HippodromeHippodrome, LondonThe Hippodrome is a building on the corner of Charing Cross Road and Leicester Square in the City of Westminster, London. The name was used for many different theatres and music halls, of which the London Hippodrome is one of only a few survivors...
, built in 1900, this building was used for most of its lifetime as a venue for revues and musical comedy; it now functions as a private (for-hire) event venue - HeyJo Club, Mayfair based Private Members Club owned by Dave WestDave West (entrepreneur)Dave West is a British entrepreneur. He started off his working life as a market trader barrow boy in the East End of London. West built a family tobacco business in Belgium with his wife and children. In the 1980s Dave founded a wholesale business on a double decker bus in Calais selling cheap...
Conference Venues
- Altitude 360Altitude 360Altitude London is a collection of venues in the -high Millbank Tower, a skyscraper in Central London. Covering over , of event space. Altitude 360 London, along with The River Room London, The MillBank Cinema & Media Centre and The View Collection make up London's largest riverside venue as well...
- Hilton London MetropoleHilton London MetropoleThe Hilton London Metropole is a 4-star hotel and conference centre located on the Edgware Road in central London, England] It is bounded by the Marylebone Flyover of the Westway to the north, Praed Street to the south, and the Paddington Basin development to the west.-History:The tower is one of...
- Queen Elizabeth II Conference CentreQueen Elizabeth II Conference CentreThe Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre is a conference centre in the City of Westminster, London. It is located in the heart of the city, a minute's walk from the Palace of Westminster, seat of the United Kingdom's Parliament...
- Cavendish Conference Centre
- Mayfair Conference Centre
- ICO Conference Centre
- America Square Conference Centre
- Cavendish Venues
Former venues
- The 2i's Coffee Bar (1956–1970)
- Infinity Club (2003–2005) - best known for its association with Carl BarâtCarl BarâtCarl Ashley Raphael Barât is an English musician, actor and author. He was the frontman and lead guitarist of Dirty Pretty Things, and recently debuted a solo album, but is best known for being the co-frontman with Peter Doherty of the garage rock band The Libertines.-Early life:Carl Barât was...
and The LibertinesThe LibertinesThe Libertines were an English rock band, formed in London in 1997 by frontmen Carl Barât and Pete Doherty . The band, centred on the song-writing partnership of Barat and Doherty, also included John Hassall and Gary Powell for most of its recording career... - London AstoriaLondon AstoriaThe London Astoria was a music venue, located at 157 Charing Cross Road, in London, England. It had been leased and run by Festival Republic since 2000. It was closed on 15 January 2009 and has since been demolished...
(indie rock and pop) - Mean FiddlerMean FiddlerThe Astoria 2, subsequently known as the LA2 then the Mean Fiddler, was a nightclub at 165 Charing Cross Road in London, England.The venue was connected to the London Astoria such that the two venues could function as a single venue where needed...
(indie rock and pop) - TurnmillsTurnmillsTurnmills was a London nightclub on the corner of Turnmill Street and Clerkenwell Road in the London Borough of Islington. It closed on the morning of 24 March 2008....