| The Beck Theatre | |
|---|---|
| Address | Grange Road |
| City | London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Owned by | HQ Theatres |
| Capacity | 600 |
| Type | Provincial |
| Opened | 1977 |
| www.becktheatre.org.uk | |
The Beck Theatre is a 600 seat theatre in Hayes, in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It was built in 1977 at a cost of £2.5 million.
It was one of 40 buildings considered for the Royal Institute of British Architects London region award in 1978, and won an Access Award from Hillingdon Council for its resources for disabled and elderly people.
A fund shortage threatened its future in 1984, when it was saved by a local petition and taken over in 1986 by impresario Charles Vance. The management contract later passed to Hetherington Seelig, followed by Apollo Leisure in 1992 (later bought out by Clear Channel Entertainment). In 2006 The Beck reverted back to Hetherington Seelig in a partnership with Qdos Entertainment called HQ Theatres.
The Beck continues to be run on behalf of the local council by HQ Theatres and is very much a community theatre, offering one night concerts, drama, comedy, dance, musicals, children's shows, films, opera, pantomime and a famous children's summer project.
In June 1991, the Beck Theatre was the scene of an attempted IRA bombing, before a performance by the Blues and Royals band.[1]
The popular singer Billy Fury gave his final ever concert at the venue in 1982. It has been used as the venue for several home videos, mainly by comedians such as Joe Pasquale, Jimmy Jones, Mike Reid and Jim Davidson.