Cheltenham Town Hall

Last updated

Cheltenham Town Hall
Cheltenham Town Hall - geograph.org.uk - 288675.jpg
Cheltenham Town Hall
Location Cheltenham
Coordinates 51°53′50″N2°04′40″W / 51.8972°N 2.0778°W / 51.8972; -2.0778
Built1903;120 years ago (1903)
ArchitectFrederick William Waller
Architectural style(s) Classical style
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated5 May 1972
Reference no.1104376
Gloucestershire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in Gloucestershire

Cheltenham Town Hall is an early-20th century assembly rooms in Cheltenham, England. Unlike most town halls, it is a public venue and not the seat of the borough council, which is housed in the nearby Municipal Offices. It is a Grade II listed building. [1]

Contents

History

In the 19th century the old Assembly Rooms in the High Street had been the main public venue for concerts in Cheltenham. [2] The old Assembly Rooms had been demolished to make way for a bank at the turn of the century. [2]

The foundation stone for the building was laid by Alderman Colonel Richard Rogers on 1 October 1902. [1] The building was designed by the Gloucester architect Frederick William Waller in the Classical style and built by the Cheltenham firm of Collins and Godfrey. [1] The total cost of the building, including internal decoration, fixtures and fittings, was around £45,000. [3] It was formally opened by Sir Michael Hicks Beach MP, a former Chancellor of the Exchequer whose family had long-standing connections with Cheltenham, on 5 December 1903. [3]

The design for the main frontage involved a large projecting arcaded Porte-cochère (i.e. gateway for horse-drawn coaches) at ground floor level. [1] It also involved a three-bay frontage with Corinthian order columns between each of the three windows at first floor level with a large pediment above containing an oculus. [1] Inside the building, the main hall, with Corinthian columns and coved ceiling, measures 92 by 52 feet (28 m × 16 m) and is 53 feet (16 m) high, with a capacity of 1,000 people. [3] The Pillar Room serves as a secondary performance area, with a capacity of 300 people; [4] to the left of the entrance hall, the Central Spa dispenses the waters from all the pump rooms of Cheltenham Spa. [3] The octagonal table and urns, which are of Doulton ware, are still in use. [3]

In 1916, two plaster-cast statues of King Edward VII and King George V in coronation robes, made by Messrs R. L. Boulton & Sons of Cheltenham, were placed in alcoves on either side of the main stage. [3] One was a gift from Mr. T. E. Whittaker and the other a gift from Messrs. Boulton themselves. [3] The town hall organ was also a gift, from Mr and Mrs Edward J. Burrow; it was made by Rushworth and Dreaper of Liverpool and was installed in 1928. [3] [5]

When resident with the Royal Corps of Signals at the Moray House Hotel (now the Hotel du Vin) from 1943, Sir Norman Wisdom performed at the hall in Army charity concerts, after one of which actor Rex Harrison came backstage and urged him to turn professional. [6]

One of the episodes from series 35 of the BBC television series the Antiques Roadshow was filmed at the town hall in 2013. [7] [8] It is now used for concerts, banquets, meetings, dances, balls, exhibitions, conferences and as one of the major homes of Cheltenham Festivals. [9] Plans were announced to refurbish the building in March 2017 [10] but they were the put on hold pending further consideration of the different options in July 2018. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheltenham</span> Place in England

Cheltenham, also known as Cheltenham Spa, and sometimes called "the Garden Town of England", is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the most complete Regency town in Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tewkesbury</span> Town in England

Tewkesbury is a medieval market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town grew following the construction of Tewkesbury Abbey in the twelfth century and played a significant role in the Wars of the Roses. It stands at the confluence of the River Severn and the River Avon, and thus became an important trading point, which continued as railways and, later, the M5 and M50 motorway connections were established. The town gives its name to the Borough of Tewkesbury, a local government district of Gloucestershire. The town lies on the border with Worcestershire, marked largely by the Carrant Brook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limehouse Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Limehouse Town Hall is a former town hall building on Commercial Road, in Limehouse, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool</span> Concert hall in Liverpool, England

Liverpool Philharmonic Hall is a concert hall in Hope Street, in Liverpool, England. It is the home of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society and is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It is not the original concert hall on the present site; its predecessor was destroyed by fire in 1933 and the present hall was opened in 1939.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheltenham Racecourse</span> National Hunt racecourse in England

Cheltenham Racecourse at Prestbury Park, near Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, hosts National Hunt horse racing. Racing at Cheltenham took place in 1815, but comprised only minor flat races on Nottingham Hill. The first racing on Cleeve Hill was on Tuesday 25 August 1818 when the opening race was won by Miss Tidmarsh, owned by Mr E Jones. It was a year later when the results were printed in the Racing Calendar when a programme of flat racing was watched by the Duke of Gloucester who donated 100 Guineas to the prize fund. By 1831 races were being staged at Prestbury, although not on the present day course. In 1834 the Grand Annual Steeplechase was run for the first time. In 1839 Lottery won the Grand Annual having previously won the first Aintree Grand National. In 1840 the meeting transferred to Andoversford for a brief period, only to return to Prestbury in 1847. 1902 was a notable year in that racing moved to the present course at Prestbury Park. The new stands were completed in 1914 and the present day Festival races, as we know them, began to take shape. The Cheltenham Gold Cup, over 3 ¼ miles, was run for the first time in 1924, with the Champion Hurdle following in 1927.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swindon railway station</span> Railway station in Wiltshire, England

Swindon railway station is on the Great Western Main Line in South West England, serving the town of Swindon, Wiltshire. It is 77 miles 23 chains down the line from the zero point at London Paddington and is situated between Didcot Parkway and Chippenham on the main line. It is managed by Great Western Railway, which also operates all the trains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradford Alhambra</span> Theatre in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England

The Alhambra Theatre is a theatre in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, named after the Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, which was the place of residence of the Emir of the Emirate of Granada. It was built in 1913 at a cost of £20,000 for theatre impresario Francis Laidler, and opened on Wednesday 18 March 1914. In 1964, Bradford City Council bought the Alhambra for £78,900 and in 1974, it was designated a Grade II listed building. It underwent extensive refurbishment in 1986. Today it is a receiving house for large-scale touring theatre of all types and the main house seats 1,456.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shoreditch Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Shoreditch Town Hall is a municipal building in Shoreditch, London. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chiswick Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Chiswick Town Hall stands on Heathfield Terrace, Chiswick, London, facing Turnham Green. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walsall Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Walsall, West Midlands, England

Walsall Town Hall is located at Leicester Street in Walsall, West Midlands, England. The building, which opened in 1903, is used for a variety of functions including wedding receptions and concerts. It was designated a grade II listed building in 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waltham Forest Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Waltham Forest Town Hall is a municipal building located in Walthamstow, East London. The town hall, which is the headquarters of Waltham Forest London Borough Council, is a Grade II Listed Building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Hall, Saltaire</span>

Victoria Hall, Saltaire is a Grade II* listed building in the village of Saltaire, near Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, built by architects Lockwood and Mawson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leamington Spa Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England

Leamington Spa Town Hall is a Grade II listed municipal building located in the town of Leamington Spa in Warwickshire, England. It is the meeting place of Royal Leamington Spa Town Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stratford Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Stratford Town Hall is a municipal building in Stratford, London. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lancaster Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Lancaster, Lancashire, England

Lancaster Town Hall is a municipal building in Dalton Square, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It is a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Helens Town Hall</span> Municipal building in St Helens, Merseyside, England

St Helens Town Hall is a municipal building in Bickerstaffe Street in St Helens, Merseyside, England. Although the town hall itself, which is the headquarters of St Helens Council, is not a listed building, there are two telephone kiosks flanking the entrance which are listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newark Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Newark, Nottinghamshire, England

Newark Town Hall is a municipal building consisting of a town hall, assembly rooms and a market hall in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, England. It is a Grade I listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eccles Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Eccles, Greater Manchester, England

Eccles Town Hall is a municipal building in Church Street, Eccles, Greater Manchester, England. The town hall was the headquarters of Eccles Borough Council until the council was abolished in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corn Exchange, Ipswich</span> Commercial building in Ipswich, Suffolk, England

The Corn Exchange is a commercial building in King Street in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. The structure, which is currently used as a public events venue, is Grade II listed building.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Historic England. "Town Hall, Cheltenham (1104376)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Past and Present". Cheltenham Town Hall. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "History Sheet" (PDF). Cheltenham Town Hall. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  4. ↑ "Cheltenham Town Hall Feasibility Study" (PDF). p. 4. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  5. ↑ "Local Organs". Gloucestershire Organists. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  6. ↑ "Plaque marks comic's time in forces". BBC News. 6 September 2003. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  7. ↑ "Cheltenham Town Hall 1: Antiques Roadshow Series 35 Episode 18 of 25". BBC. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "Mahatma Gandhi sculpture more than doubles Antiques Roadshow valuation at Salisbury auction". Antiques Trade Gazette. 5 June 2019. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  9. ↑ "Cheltenham Town Hall". Cheltenham Festivals. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  10. ↑ "Competition: Cheltenham Town Hall". Architects Journal. 14 March 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  11. ↑ "Council delays multi-million pound revamp of Cheltenham Town Hall and this is why". Gloucestershire Live. 16 July 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.