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The Winter Gardens

Victoria Pavilion Theatre
The exterior of the Winter Gardens, taken from the promenade.
The Winter GardensLocation in Morecambe
Address	209 Marine Road Central Morecambe United Kingdom
Coordinates	54°04′20″N 2°52′16″W / 54.07211°N 2.87102°W / 54.07211; -2.87102
Owner	The Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust Ltd
Current use	Under restoration
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official name	The Winter Gardens
Designated	7 October 1977
Reference no.	1025280
Construction
Opened	1897
Closed	1977
Architect	Mangnall and Littlewood
Website
http://www.morecambewintergardens.co.uk/

The Winter Gardens is a Grade II* listed building in Morecambe, Lancashire, England. Designed by architects Mangnall and Littlewood, with Frank Matcham as a consulting architect, it was originally built as the Victoria Pavilion Theatre in 1897 (opened on Monday, 19 July 1897) and was an extension to the existing Winter Gardens complex, which has since been demolished. The theatre closed to the public in 1977 and was listed the same year. It is considered to be one of Morecambe's most significant features, and a campaign for its restoration has been ongoing since 1986.

History

The Victoria Pavilion Theatre was built in 1897 as part of an existing complex. Dating from 1878, the original complex included seawater baths, bars and a ballroom. In the 1950s, the Winter Gardens were taken over by Moss Empires, however declining profits in the following decades led to its closure in 1977. Although the theatre building that remains today was listed the same year, the ballroom building was demolished in 1982.

In 2008, as part of an appraisal of the Morecambe Conservation Area, the Winter Gardens were listed as one of the area's most significant features, as the main example of the remnants of the resort's nineteenth century entertainment buildings. In 2008, the Winter Gardens were featured on the tenth series of the ghost hunting show Most Haunted. They returned in October 2009, when the Winter Gardens was opened to the public as the live audience venue for the eight consecutive nights of the Most Haunted Live! broadcast.

Preservation and restoration

The Friends of the Winter Gardens were formed in 1986 to represent the interests of the building, and campaigned for its preservation and restoration. In 2006, the Friends formed a charitable trust company, The Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust (Ltd), to purchase the Winter Gardens. In 2009, Lancaster City Council applied for a grant from the government's Sea Change programme, which is intended to promote regeneration in coastal towns. The grant of £4m would have resulted in the trust receiving matching funding from the North West Development Agency (NSWDA), and allowed them to apply for a further £4.5m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). This would have brought them close to the total needed to complete the refurbishment, however in November 2009 it was announced that their bid was unsuccessful.

In October 2021, the building was one of 142 sites across England to receive part of a £35 million injection into the government's Culture Recovery Fund. In March 2023 it received a further £2.8 million from the Cultural Investment Fund.

The volunteers of the trust were collectively awarded the King's Award for Voluntary Service in November 2023.

See also

• Grade II* listed buildings in Lancashire
• Listed buildings in Morecambe

References

1. ^ "Morecambe Conservation Area". Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2009.
2. "Listed Buildings Online- Details". Retrieved 23 December 2009.
3. Historic England. "The Winter Gardens (1152901)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 23 December 2009.
4. "Victoria Pavilion- The Theatres Trust". Retrieved 23 December 2009.
5. "TV's Most Haunted crew hunt Gardens spooks". Retrieved 23 December 2009.
6. "Winter Gardens". Retrieved 23 December 2009.
7. "Council backs theatre restoration". BBC News. 30 April 2009. Retrieved 23 December 2009.
8. "Setback for theatre revamp scheme". BBC News. 17 November 2009. Retrieved 23 December 2009.
9. "Heritage and Craft Workers Across England Given a Helping Hand" – Historic England, 22 October 2021
10. "Morecambe Winter Gardens gets £2.8m government grant for restoration". BBC News. 20 March 2023. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
11. Rouncivell, Gayle (14 November 2023). "King's Award for Voluntary Service: Morecambe Winter Gardens team honoured". Lancaster Guardian. Retrieved 3 April 2024.

External links

• Detailed historical record about Morecambe Winter Gardens

v t e Buildings and structures in the City of Lancaster
Grade I	Ashton Hall Ashton Memorial Borwick Hall Burrow Hall Claughton Hall Cockersand Abbey Cockersand Abbey chapter house Hornby Castle Judges' Lodgings Lancaster Castle Lancaster Priory Lune Aqueduct Old Rectory St Oswald's Vicarage Thurnham Hall   Churches   Gressingham: St John the Evangelist Heysham: St Patrick St Peter Hornby: St Margaret Melling: St Wilfrid Tunstall: St John the Baptist
Grade II*	Capernwray Hall Custom House Lancaster City Museum Lancaster Moor Hospital Lancaster Town Hall Leighton Hall Loyn Bridge Midland Hotel Morecambe Winter Gardens Quernmore Park Royal Albert Hospital Skerton Bridge Thurland Castle Whittington Hall   Churches   Arkholme: St John the Baptist Bolton-le-Sands: Holy Trinity Brookhouse: St Paul Cockerham: St Michael Lancaster: Cathedral Ripley School St John the Evangelist Over Kellet: St Cuthbert Overton: St Helen Silverdale: St John Tatham: St James the Less Whittington: St Michael
Grade II	Abbeystead House Cockerham Vicarage Conder Bridge The Dukes Greaves Park Hotel Grand Theatre Grizedale Bridge Hornby Village Institute Lancaster Carriage and Wagon Works Lancaster (Greaves) railway station Lancaster Moor Hospital Lancaster railway station Lancaster Royal Grammar School Leck Hall Lindeth Tower Littledale Hall Morecambe and Heysham War Memorial Queen Victoria Memorial The Storey The Stork Wennington Hall Windermere House   Churches   Borwick: St Mary Capernwray: Chapel Claughton: St Chad Dolphinholme: St Mark Ellel: St John Glasson: Christ Halton-on-Lune: St Wilfrid Lancaster: Christ Cemetery St Paul, Scotforth St Thomas Leck: St Peter Morecambe: Holy Trinity St John the Divine St Laurence Over Wyresdale: Christ Quernmore: St Peter Slyne-with-Hest St Luke Tatham: Good Shepherd Warton: St Oswald Yealand Conyers: St John the Evangelist St Mary
Unlisted	Carlisle Bridge Carnforth MPD Carnforth War Memorial Escowbeck The Gregson Centre Greyhound Bridge HM Prison Lancaster Farms Hazelwood Hall Heysham nuclear power station Lancaster bus station Langthwaite Filter House Lune Millennium Bridge Phoenix Street drill hall Plover Scar Lighthouse Stone Jetty Three Brothers   Churches   Aughton: St Saviour Lancaster: St Michael, Lancaster Moor Hospital King's Community Morecambe: Clark Street Congregational St Barnabas St Christopher, Bare Wray: Holy Trinity
Demolished	Aldcliffe Hall Central Pier, Morecambe Cockerham Priory Hornby Priory Lancaster Friary Lancaster Roman Fort North Western Hotel Over Burrow Roman Fort Old Loyne Bridge West End Pier, Morecambe Wyresdale Abbey
Listed buildings in	Arkholme-with-Cawood Bolton-le-Sands Borwick Burrow-with-Burrow Cantsfield Carnforth Caton-with-Littledale Claughton Cockerham Ellel Gressingham Halton-with-Aughton Heaton-with-Oxcliffe Heysham Hornby-with-Farleton Ireby Lancaster Leck Melling-with-Wrayton Middleton Morecambe Nether Kellet Over Kellet Over Wyresdale Overton Priest Hutton Quernmore Roeburndale Scotforth Silverdale Slyne-with-Hest Tatham Thurnham Tunstall Warton Wennington Whittington Wray-with-Botton Yealand Conyers Yealand Redmayne

• Grade II* listed buildings in Lancashire
• Theatres in Lancashire
• Buildings and structures in Morecambe
• Grade II* listed theatres