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Colston Hall
Engraving of the exterior, from 1873.
Bristol Beacon is located in BristolBristol BeaconLocation within Bristol
General information
Town or cityBristol
CountryEngland
Completed1860s
ClientCorporation of Bristol

Colston Hall is a concert hall situated on Colston Street, Bristol, England. A popular venue catering for a variety of different entertainers, it seats approximately 2,075 and provides a licensed bar.

History

The site has been occupied by four buildings named as such since the 1860s. In the thirteenth century, the site was occupied by a Carmelite friary, known as Whitefriars. Subsequently, the location held a large Tudor-era mansion known as the Great House, used by Queen Elizabeth I in 1574 on a visit to the city. In 1707, Edward Colston established the Colston Boys' School in this building, which was acquired by the Colston Hall Company in 1861. Colston Hall opened as a concert venue on September 20, 1867. The architects were the prolific Bristol firm of Foster & Wood working in the Bristol Byzantine style. It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade II listed building.

Interior of Colston Hall in 1873, before the fire.

Most of the building was damaged during a fire on September 1, 1898; the auditorium suffered immense structural damage, and the interior was more or less destroyed. The second hall opened in 1901, and in 1919, the Corporation of Bristol purchased it from the Colston Hall Company. The City Council continues to manage the hall. The second hall was closed for remodelling in 1935.

In December 1936, the third hall was opened. This survived the Luftwaffe air raids of the Second World War, but was burned down in 1945 after a discarded cigarette started a fire. The hall was rebuilt once more, and the fourth reopened in 1951 to mark the Festival of Britain. The first computerised booking system was installed in February 1983, and a £500,000 modernisation programme was conducted at the start of the 1990s, which included extensive rewiring, and various backstage improvements. The installation of removable seating in the front half of the stalls in 2005 improved the hall as a venue for pop concerts, providing space for fans to move around and dance in front of the stage; it also increased the overall capacity of the auditorium.

Campaigners, many from the city’s Afro-Caribbean community, have called for the hall’s name to be changed because of Edward Colston’s link to the slave trade. The Bristol group Massive Attack vowed not to play at the venue while it retained its present name. The proposal sparked a heated controversy in the pages of the local press, although the majority of letters printed favoured retaining the Colston name.

The hall is currently undergoing extensive refurbishment in the form of a new foyer building alongside the present building.

  • The byzantine-style façade The byzantine-style façade
  • The new foyer The new foyer

Artists who have performed at Colston Hall

The venue has played host to many well-known acts over the years. These include:

References

  1. Colston Hall Technical Information, Official Web Site
  2. ^ History of Colston Hall (1200s-1800s), Official Web Site
  3. "The Colston Hall". Philharmonic Orchestra. Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  4. "The Colston Hall". Images of England. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
  5. ^ History of Colston Hall (1900s-1930s), Official Web Site
  6. History of Colston Hall (1940s), Official Web Site
  7. History of Colston Hall (1950s), Official Web Site
  8. ^ "History of Colston Hall 1960s". Colston Hall. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  9. ^ History of Colston Hall (1990s), Official Web Site
  10. Colston Hall – New Foyer Development
  11. http://www.colstonhall.org/aboutthehall/history/history8
  12. http://a-ha.com/tour/#1987
  13. ^ "Colston Hall 1960s". Colston Hall. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  14. "David Bowie Concerts 1958 to 1969". bowiewonderworld.com. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  15. "David Bowie Concerts 1972". bowiewonderworld.com. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  16. ^ "Colston Hall 1970s". Colston Hall. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  17. "Bob Dylan Colston Hall". Bob Dylan official website. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  18. "Concert timeline June 21, 1969". Led Zeppelin official website. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  19. "Concert timeline January 8, 1970". Led Zeppelin official website. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  20. "Seeing Stars - October 1980". Bristol Evening Post. 20 October 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
  21. http://home.flash.net/~ulknatme/tourdate.htm
  22. "1969 tour dates/concerts". Brain Damage. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  23. http://www.queenconcerts.com/detail/live/61/queen-live-29-11-1973-colston-hall-bristol-uk.html
  24. http://www.queenconcerts.com/detail/live/126/queen-live-12-11-1974-colston-hall-bristol-uk.html
  25. "Queen live on tour: A Night At The Opera". Queen Concertography. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  26. "Ticket stub: 18.11.1975". Queen Concertography. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  27. "RollingStones.com archive". The Rolling Stones. Retrieved 27 April 2010.
  28. http://www.colstonhall.org/aboutthehall/history/history8
  29. "The War Tour". U2 official website. Retrieved 29 May 2010.

External links

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