The English architect Frank Matcham was responsible for the design and refurbishment of around 164 buildings, mostly theatres, throughout the United Kingdom.Wilmore, pp. 178–183. He entered the architectural profession when he was 21, in 1874, and joined the practice of

J. T. Robinson Jethro Thomas Robinson (1829 – 15 July 1878) was an English architect who specialised in theatres. Career Jethro Thomas Robinson was theatre architectural adviser to the lord chamberlain. He was responsible for the 1871 reconstruction of the ...

, his future father-in-law, a few years later. Matcham completed his first solo design, the Elephant and Castle theatre, in June 1879, having taken over Robinson's practice upon his death. He founded his own practice, Matcham & Co., in 1883 which experienced much prosperity."The Matcham Office at Work" by John Earl; Wilmore, p. 92. His most successful period was between 1892 and 1912, during which there was an increased demand for variety theatres which resulted in the closure and dismantlement of many music halls, which had become outdated. Although being more prolific in the provinces, Matcham is perhaps best known for his work in London under Moss Empires, for whom he designed the Hippodrome in 1900,Earl and Sell, pp. 117–118.

Hackney Empire Hackney Empire is a theatre on Mare Street, in the London Borough of Hackney. Originally designed by Frank Matcham it was built in 1901 as a music hall, and expanded in 2001. Described by ''The Guardian'' as ‘the most beautiful theatre in Lon ...

(1901),Earl and Sell, p. 114. London Coliseum (1903),Earl and Sell, p. 121. Shepherd's Bush Empire (1903),Earl and Sell, p. 141. London Palladium (1910),Earl and Sell, pp. 122–123. and the

Victoria Palace The Victoria Palace () is a government building on the large Victory Square () in Bucharest, housing the Prime Minister of Romania and his cabinet. The Victory Palace was designed in 1937 to house the Foreign Ministry, and nearly complete in 19 ...

in 1911.Earl and Sell, p. 145. He seldom ever strayed from theatrical design but on occasion, renovated public houses and, in 1898, designed a number of buildings for the redevelopment of

Briggate Briggate is a pedestrianised principal High Street, shopping street in Leeds city centre, England. Historically it was the main street, leading north from Leeds Bridge, and housed markets, merchant's houses and other business premises. It cont ...

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

, including the Cross and County Arcades.Mercer Walker, p. 18. Matcham retired to

Southend-on-sea Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, shortly before the First World War, and left his business, Matcham & Co., to his business partners, R.A. Briggs and

F. G. M. Chancellor Francis Graham Moon Chancellor (30 September 1869 – 20 September 1940), styled professionally as F. G. M. Chancellor, was a Tasmanian''Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911'', The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surr ...

. Matcham died in 1920."Mr Frank Matcham Dead", ''Western Daily Press'', 19 May 1920, p.10.''The Architects' Journal'', 26 May 1920, p. 682. Many of the 164 buildings that he either designed or rebuilt during his 40-year career, were demolished in the 1960s. There are currently around 52 known structures that survive, as of 2017. According to the dramatist, Alan Bennett, "there was scarcely a town in the United Kingdom that didn't boast one of Matcham's theatres and, though scores have been lost, enough remain to testify to the achievement of someone who was undoubtedly he U.K'sgreatest theatrical architect."

Key

Buildings

Surviving theatres

:Note: The source for Matcham's buildings, except as otherwise noted, is David Wilmore, ''Frank Matcham & Co'', pp. 178–183.

Other buildings

:Note: The source for Matcham's buildings, except as otherwise noted, is David Wilmore, ''Frank Matcham & Co'', pp. 178–183.

Demolished theatres

:Note: The source for Matcham's theatres, except as otherwise noted, is Brian Mercer Walker, ''Frank Matcham: Theatre Architect'', pp. 154–173.

Theatres demolished since Brian Mercer Walker publication (1980)

*1889 – Theatre Royal, St Helens – Although there is a theatre on the site, it bears little resemblance to its original Matcham design as it was reconstructed in 1964. There were two theatres previous to the current building; the first was also by Matcham and was originally opened by Wallace Revill as the Theatre Royal and Opera House on 4 August 1890."Theatres and Halls in St. Helens, Merseyside"
Arthur Lloyd, accessed 16 June 2019. Mercer Walker, p. 120 * 1892 – Empire Palace, Edinburgh – Mercer Walker, p. 179

References

Sources

* * * * * * {{Use British English, date=October 2020 Lists of theatres