The Pavilion Theatre and Ballroom is a concert hall in Bournemouth. It opened in 1929 and has been redesigned several times since.

History

The area around

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was granted permission by the owners in 1859 to incorporate a public pleasure ground. Discussions for a fixed entertainment venue took place during the 1880s, and as part of the 1892 Bournemouth Improvement Act, the council were granted £20,000 for constructing a pavilion in the gardens, which could accommodate a municipal orchestra. These plans were continually blocked by local residents who felt that licensed premises for drinking were immoral. A fixed plan for a venue in the gardens was approved in 1908, but saw further delays and was consequently postponed until after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Pavilion Theatre, Bournemouth (South Face - 02)

By the 1920s, the orchestra felt that the Bournemouth Winter Gardens was no longer a suitable venue and requested a more accommodating hall be built. In 1923, a competition was held to design the concert room, chaired by Edwin Cooper. The winners were by G Wyville Home and Shirley Knight, whose design was consulted with Owen Williams. Construction began in September 1925 with the laying of the foundation stone.(FROM OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.). "Music Pavilion For Bournemouth." Times, 24 Sept. 1925, p. 10. The Times Digital Archive, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CS168892728/TTDA?u=kccl&sid=TTDA&xid=344faf91. Accessed 3 Mar. 2020. On 19 March 1929, the building was opened by

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. It had cost £250,000. In the early 1930s, the Pavilion was rebuilt to accommodate theatrical productions as well as orchestras. It re-opened with a production of ''

The White Horse Inn ''The White Horse Inn'' (or ''White Horse Inn'') (German title: ''Im weißen Rößl'' ) is an operetta or musical comedy by Ralph Benatzky and Robert Stolz in collaboration with a number of other composers and writers, set in the picturesque Salz ...

'' on 7 July 1934. Several alterations were undertaken in the 1950s, including the addition of two storeys to either side of the main entrance. In 1975, the Oasis Bar was added as a western extension of the hall. This proved to be unpopular, and was demolished in 2007 when the theatre underwent a £12 million restoration programme. The building was Grade II listed on 19 January 1998. It is currently owned by

Bournemouth Borough Council Bournemouth Borough Council was the local authority of Bournemouth in Dorset, England and ceased to exist on 1 April 2019. It was a unitary authority, although between 1974 and 1997 it was an administrative district council with Dorset. Previou ...

and managed by BH Live. The Pavilion operates alongside its sister venue, the Bournemouth International Centre. In 2019,

Lenny Henry Sir Lenworth George Henry (born 29 August 1958) is a British actor, comedian, singer, television presenter and writer. Henry gained success as a stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in '' The Le ...

complained that a historical photograph in the pavilion's dressing room, showing actors in blackface, was outdated, racist and offensive. A spokesman for the pavilion apologised.

References

Citations Sources *

External links

Bournemouth International Conference Bureau
{{Bournemouth Buildings and structures in Bournemouth Theatres in Dorset Tourist attractions in Bournemouth Arts University Bournemouth Grade II listed buildings in Dorset