The Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot, Merseyside, in the north of England is a cultural and educational venue that opened in 2022. The development includes a 420-seat main auditorium, a modern studio space, outdoor performance garden, exhibition and visitor centre. The theatre opened on 15 July 2022.
The Shakespeare North Trust was founded by Richard Wilson and David Thacker. Its patron is Edward Stanley, 19th Earl of Derby. In 2007 it submitted a £20 million National Lottery bid to fund the complex, [1] but was unsuccessful. [2]
In April 2016, Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council granted planning permission for the playhouse. Funding is being provided by the council, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and a governmental contribution of £5 million was announced in the 2016 Budget, with other funding to be provided by private investors. [3] The widow of comedian Ken Dodd provided £700,000 in funding to the theatre to create an outdoor performance garden. [4]
The historical Prescot Playhouse, the inspiration behind the project, [1] existed between the mid-1590s and 1609, probably on Eccleston Street. [5] No architectural plans of that theatre survive, however. [1] The new theatre's layout is based on the 1629 design by Inigo Jones for the Cockpit-in-Court theatre in the Palace of Whitehall, London. [6] The architects are Helm Architecture [7] and Austin-Smith:Lord.The lead artist is Simon Watkinson.
Shakespeare North Playhouse will have an educational centre that will offer opportunities for life-long learning. [3]
The four-storey complex was built on the site of Mill Street car park, to the north of Prescot Parish Church. [2] Knowsley Council and the Earl of Derby provided land for the complex. [3]
Merseyside is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Welsh county of Flintshire across the Dee Estuary to the southwest, and the Irish Sea to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Liverpool.
Prescot is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, United Kingdom. It lies about eight miles (13 km) to the east of Liverpool city centre. At the 2001 Census, the civil parish population was 11,184. The population of the larger Prescot East and West wards at the 2011 census totalled 14,139. Prescot marks the beginning of the A58 road which runs through to Wetherby, near Leeds in West Yorkshire. The town is served by Prescot railway station and Eccleston Park railway station in neighbouring Eccleston.
Kirkby is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England. The town, historically in Lancashire, has a size of 4,070 acres (16.5 km2) is 5 miles (8 km) north of Huyton and 6 miles (10 km) north-east of Liverpool. The population in 2016 was 41,495 making it the largest in Knowsley and the 9th biggest settlement in Merseyside.
The Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley is a metropolitan borough in Merseyside, North West England. It covers several towns and villages, including Kirkby, Prescot, Huyton, Whiston, Halewood, Cronton and Stockbridge Village; Kirkby, Huyton, and Prescot being the major commercial centres. It takes its name from the village of Knowsley, though its headquarters are in Huyton. It forms part of the wider Liverpool City Region.
Huyton is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England. Part of the Liverpool Built-up Area, it borders the Liverpool suburbs of Dovecot, Knotty Ash and Netherley.
The Metropolitan Borough of Sefton is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England. It was formed on 1 April 1974, by the amalgamation of the county boroughs of Bootle and Southport, the municipal borough of Crosby, the urban districts of Formby and Litherland, and part of West Lancashire Rural District. It consists of a coastal strip of land on the Irish Sea which extends from Southport in the north to Bootle in the south, and an inland part to Maghull in the south-east, bounded by the city of Liverpool to the south, the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley to the south-east, and West Lancashire to the east.
Knotty Ash is an area of Liverpool, Merseyside, England, and a Liverpool City Council Ward. Historically in Lancashire, the population at the 2001 Census was 13,200, increasing to 13,312 at the 2011 Census. Knotty Ash is well known as the home of comedian Sir Ken Dodd, who often mentioned it in his act.
Old Swan is an eastern neighbourhood of Liverpool, Merseyside, England, bordered by Knotty Ash, Stoneycroft, Broadgreen, Fairfield and Wavertree. At the 2011 Census, the population was 16,461.
Whiston is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. Previously recorded within the historic county of Lancashire, it is located eight miles east of Liverpool. The population was 13,629 at the 2001 Census, increasing to 14,263 at the 2011 Census.
St Helens is a town in Merseyside, England, with a population of 102,629. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, which had a population of 183,200 at the 2021 Census.
Knowsley Safari is a safari park and tourist attraction near Prescot, England. It is a member of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA). It contributes to conservation and research through links with conservation projects and its links with universities in nearby Liverpool, as well as Chester and Manchester. The Channel 4 series Secret Life of the Safari Park was filmed here.
Knowsley is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since its 2010 creation, it has been represented by the Labour Party. It is currently represented by Anneliese Midgley.
Knowsley, commonly known as Knowsley Village, is a large village and civil parish located on the north-east outskirts of Liverpool, within the much larger Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England. It gave its name to the wider borough when it was formed in 1974.
Grade I, Grade II* and notable Grade IIlisted buildings in the metropolitan boroughs of Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral in Merseyside.
The Cockpit-in-Court was an early theatre in London, located at the Palace of Whitehall, next to St. James's Park, now the site of 70 Whitehall, in Westminster.
Knowsley Council, or Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority since 2014.
The Prescot Playhouse was an Elizabethan theatre in the town of Prescot, which was then in Lancashire. The playhouse was built before 1603, probably in the mid-1590s, and probably remained in theatrical use until 1609. It was one of the few free-standing theatres in England outside London, and probably hosted performances by the playing companies maintained by the Earls of Derby.
The Joseph Russell Stadium, traditionally known as Hope Street, is a stadium in Prescot, Merseyside. It is located on Eaton Street in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley. It is home to Prescot Cables of the Northern Premier League. A.F.C. Liverpool of the North West Counties Football League shared the ground from 2008 until 2014. Skelmersdale United shared the ground in the 2018/19 Northern Premier League season.
Flat Iron Building, also known as 72 Ecclestone Street, is a historic building in Prescot, Merseyside. It was built in 1890 to service Prescot's extensive watchmaking industry.
Prescot Town Hall is a municipal building in Warrington Road, Prescot, a town in Merseyside, England. The building is currently used as the offices and meeting place of Prescot Town Council.