Colston Hall

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Building information
Colston Hall
Engraving of the exterior, from 1873.
Shown within Bristol
Town	Bristol
Country	England
Coordinates	51°27′17″N 2°35′53″W / 51.4546, -2.5981Coordinates: 51°27′17″N 2°35′53″W / 51.4546, -2.5981
Client	Corporation of Bristol
Completion date	1860s

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.^[1] An education programme, coupled with a local organisation, REMIX, has been established to promote music across Bristol.

[edit] History

The site has been occupied by four buildings named as such since the 1860s.^[2] Prior to this, 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.^[2] The architects were the prolific Bristol firm of Foster & Wood working in the Bristol Byzantine style.^[3] It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade II listed building.^[4]

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,^[5] 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.^[5] This survived the Luftwaffe air raids of the Second World War, but was burned down in 1945 after a discarded cigarette started a fire.^[6] The hall was rebuilt once more, and the fourth reopened in 1951 to mark the Festival of Britain.^[7] The first computerised booking system was installed in February 1983,^[8] and a £500,000 modernisation programme was conducted at the start of the 1990s, which included extensive rewiring, and various backstage improvements.^[9] The installation of removable seating in the front half of the stalls in 2005^[9] 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.