Douglas is the capital city and largest settlement of the Isle of Man, with a population of 26,677 (2021) and an area of 4.1 square miles (10.5 km2). It is located at the mouth of the River Douglas, and on a sweeping bay of two miles. The River Douglas forms part of the city's harbour and main commercial port.
The Douglas Bay Horse Tramway on the Isle of Man runs along the seafront promenade for approximately 1 mile (1.6 km), from the southern terminus at the Villa Marina, to Derby Castle station, the southern terminus of the Manx Electric Railway, where the workshops and sheds are located. It is a distinctive tourist attraction. However works have been underway to relay all of the track in 2019 and at present only a third is usable, with no published completion date for the works.
The Gaiety Theatre is a theatre on South King Street in Dublin, Ireland, off Grafton Street and close to St. Stephen's Green. It specialises in operatic and musical productions, with occasional dramatic shows.
The Theatre Royal is a historic theatre, a Grade I listed building situated on Grey Street in Newcastle upon Tyne.
The culture of the Isle of Man is influenced by its Celtic and, to a lesser extent, its Norse origins, though its close proximity to the United Kingdom, popularity as a UK tourist destination, and recent mass immigration by British migrant workers has meant that British influence has been dominant since the Revestment period. Recent revival campaigns have attempted to preserve the surviving vestiges of Manx culture after a long period of Anglicisation, and significant interest in the Manx language, history and musical tradition has been the result.
Buxton Opera House is in The Square, Buxton, Derbyshire, England. It is a 902-seat opera house that hosts the annual Buxton Festival and the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival, among others, as well as pantomime at Christmas, musicals and other entertainments year-round. Hosting live performances until 1927, the theatre then was used mostly as a cinema until 1976. In 1979, it was refurbished and reopened as a venue for live performance.
Francis Matcham was an English architect who specialised in the design of theatres and music halls. He worked extensively in London, predominantly under Moss Empires for whom he designed the Hippodrome in 1900, Hackney Empire (1901), Coliseum (1903), Shepherd's Bush Empire (1903) and Palladium (1910). His last major commission before retirement was the Victoria Palace Theatre (1911) for the variety magnate Alfred Butt. During his 40-year career, Matcham was responsible for the design and construction of over 90 theatres and the redesign and refurbishment of a further 80 throughout the United Kingdom.
The Woodstock Opera House is a historical venue for performing arts and receptions located in Woodstock, Illinois. It was built in 1889 and designed as a multi-use facility with space for city administration offices as well as police and fire departments. The building was planned by architect Smith Hoag and built by contractor Simon Brink for a cost of $25,000. Today, the City of Woodstock still owns the building, but the building is used exclusively as a performance space.
The Grand Opera House is a theatre in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by the most prolific theatre architect of the period, Frank Matcham. It opened on 23 December 1895. According to the Theatres Trust, the "magnificent auditorium is probably the best surviving example in the United Kingdom of the oriental style applied to theatre architecture". The auditorium was restored to its former glory, and the foyer spaces and bars were reimagined and developed as part of a £12.2 million project in 2020/2021, generously supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund. [1]
Blackpool Grand Theatre is a theatre in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. Since 2006, it has also been known as the National Theatre of Variety. It is a Grade II* Listed Building.
The Isle of Man Steam Railway Supporters' Association Ltd (IoMSRSA) is a railway preservationist group dedicated to ensuring the continued operation of the Isle of Man Railway on the Isle of Man. Since its inception in 1966 the group has provided volunteer workers, acted in a watchdog role and undertaken the restoration of the Groudle Glen Railway on the island, as well as supporting projects on the railway and producing the journal, Manx Steam Railway News.
Victoria Leeds is a shopping district and leisure area in central Leeds, comprising the 1990 Victoria Quarter, an arcaded complex of restored 19th century and contemporary shopping arcades, and the 2016 Victoria Gate development. Notable for its role in the regeneration of Leeds' city centre, and a programme of restoration and reuse which included commissiong the largest work of stained glass work in Europe, designed by artist Brian Clarke, to cover the newly-pedestrianised Queen Victoria Street, the 1990 scheme created a covered retail district of linked arcades. In 2016 ,the Victoria Quarter was merged with the newly built Victoria Gate complex to form the largest premium retail and leisure venue in Northern England. The district includes a casino and major stores such as Harvey Nichols and John Lewis and Partners.
Stage machinery, also known as stage mechanics, comprises the mechanical devices used to create special effects in theatrical productions, including scene changes, lowering actors through the stage floor (traps) and enabling actors to 'fly' over the stage.
Onchan, historically Kirk Conchan, is one of the seventeen historic parishes of the Isle of Man.
Groudle Glen station is the first mandatory stopping point and major station on the Manx Electric Railway which serves the village of Groudle Glen in the Isle of Man, and is situated between Groudle Lane and Eskadale on the route to Laxey and Ramsey.
The Southport Winter Gardens was a Victorian entertainment area located within the town of Southport, Merseyside. The original winter gardens comprised a theatre, opera house, aquarium, a small zoo, conservatory, promenades and halls situated under the grand glass domes.
The Villa Marina is an entertainment venue in Douglas, Isle of Man, which forms part of the wider Villa-Gaiety complex. It is located on Harris Promenade, looking out onto Douglas Bay, and comprises the Royal Hall, Broadway Cinema, Promenade Suite, Colonnade Suite,Dragon's Castle and the Villa Marina Gardens. The architect was Alban Jones, whose design was chosen in an open competition judged by Professor Stanley Adshead of Liverpool University.
Henry Bloom Noble JP was an English Cumbrian-born philanthropist and businessman who at the time of his death was the richest resident of the Isle of Man. Noble bequeathed a large amount of his vast fortune to the people of the Isle of Man, resulting in numerous civic amenities such as recreation grounds, swimming baths, a library and a hospital.
Buxton Pavilion Gardens is a Victorian landscaped public park in the spa town of Buxton in Derbyshire. The River Wye flows through the gardens, which are a Grade II* listed public park of Special Historic Interest.
Douglas East is a Ward in Douglas, Isle of Man whose boundaries are the same as the House of Keys constituency Douglas East. The ward was formed for the 2021 local authority elections following the abolition of Derby and Victoria Wards.
An illustration showing Douglas Arts & Culture Quarter
A map of the centre of Douglas for Douglas Development Partnership
