The Oasis Leisure Centre (commonly called Swindon Oasis) was an entertainment and sports complex just outside the town centre of

Swindon, Wiltshire Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...

, England, with facilities including a lagoon swimming pool, gym, bar, and concert hall. It was in operation from 1976 to 2020.

History

The building was designed by Peter Sargent of Gillinson, Barnett and Partners for Thamesdown Borough Council, on part of the site of the former railway works. It was constructed in 1974–5 at a cost of around £3million and opened on 1 January 1976. Its diameter glazed dome, rising from a grass

berm A berm is a level space, shelf, or raised barrier (usually made of compacted soil) separating areas in a vertical way, especially partway up a long slope. It can serve as a terrace road, track, path, a fortification line, a border/ separation ...

, is described by Historic England as "a sophisticated and architecturally striking structure which provides a dramatic setting for the pool within". The leisure pool was designed to appeal to families, irregular in shape, overlooked by balconies and decorated with artificial rocks and planting troughs. There were waterslides and a wave machine. Alterations in 1987 added three enclosed waterslides, at the time the longest in the country, which were accessed from a tower outside the dome. In that year the Oasis was Wiltshire's most popular tourist attraction. The concert hall became a major venue for touring acts and held approximately 3,000 people standing, or 1,620 seated. In the 1990s, the rock band Oasis took their name from the leisure centre after lead singer

Liam Gallagher William John Paul Gallagher (born 21 September 1972) is an English singer and songwriter. He achieved fame as the lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis from 1991 to 2009, and later fronted the rock band Beady Eye from 2009 to 2014, before starti ...

suggested it, having seen it listed as a venue on an

Inspiral Carpets Inspiral Carpets are an English rock band, part of the late-1980s/early-1990s Madchester movement. Formed in Oldham in 1980, the band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassi ...

tour poster in the childhood bedroom he shared with his brother Noel. 20 years later, in 2011, Liam performed there for the first time with his new band

Beady Eye Beady Eye were an English rock band formed in London in 2009 by former Oasis members Liam Gallagher (vocals), Gem Archer (guitar), Andy Bell (guitar), and Chris Sharrock (drums). In 2013, former Kasabian guitarist Jay Mehler joined the band ...

Closure

It was announced on 18 November 2020 that the leisure centre was permanently closed and would not re-open after the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

restrictions ended. In May 2021 the

Twentieth Century Society The Twentieth Century Society (C20) is a British charity which campaigns for the preservation of architectural heritage from 1914 onwards. The society's interests embrace buildings and artefacts that characterise 20th-century Britain. It is for ...

placed the site on its 'Top 10 Buildings at Risk' list. In June 2021, the local campaign group Save Oasis Swindon staged a protest outside the front of the centre, and ran a social media campaign. The group conducted extensive research, finding the original plans to the centre, as well as evidence as to why the Oasis should be listed. In December 2021, part of the building was given Grade II listed status. The domed swimming pool and the earthen bank were included in the listing, while the waterslides, launch tower and splash pool, the linking entrance block and the service structures attached to the south side were not. Historic England stated that the leisure pool, the fourth of its type to be built in England, was the earliest one surviving.

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in Swindon Sports venues in Swindon Swimming venues in England Grade II listed buildings in Wiltshire