It's been an exciting week for Bristol Arena - which held a top secret event on Monday (May 23) including a special set from Queen + Adam Lambert. The band have been practicing at the venue for their upcoming tour, and said they would have "loved" to play there had it been ready to welcome the public.
The Arena - which will be the "number one live destination for the South West" when it opens in 2024, is being constructed at the Brabazon Hangars in Filton. The venue will be made up of a 17,000 capacity arena, festival hall, and 'hub' for eating, drinking and leisure - celebrating all Bristol has to offer.
The Arena will sit alongside a brand new development called Brabazon - made up of thousands of new homes to be built at the old Concorde runway. There are also plans for a mass transit system, including a MetroBus link and rail routes to Parkway and Temple Meads, as well as schools, a GP surgery and a library.
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CGI images exactly what the Arena could look like once it's built. BristolLive was recently invited for a tour around the Hangars, which are yet to be transformed, but work is underway.
Developer YTL says the Arena will be arranged into three spaces. The first is the central hangar - a 17,080 capacity arena auditorium which will host live music, sporting events and comedy shows. Also on the ground floor there will be the Runway Bar, covering the entire width of the hangar with capacity for 3,000 people.
Secondly is the east hangar, where there will be a floor space for trade shows, exhibitions, conventions and other events. The west hangar is where visitors will be able to "eat, work and play." The 365-day a year venue will have room for leisure, food, drinks and workspace.
Behind the Arena is a loading bay with space for touring trucks. YTL has also stressed that it is maintaining the layout and foundation of the Airfield, with a huge emphasis on sustainability.
The Arena website reads: "Our goal is to be the most responsible and sustainable arena in Europe, and to be carbon neutral from day one." YTL says the Arena will be built without the use of fossil fuels.
It will be connected to Bristol city centre via a new train station as well as buses, and a dedicated Metrobus route linking the city centre to Cribbs Causeway. In January it was confirmed that YTL will pay for shuttle buses to get people to the Arena.
There are also job opportunities - with YTL looking to hire 580 staff members and 15 apprentices before it opens, who will be paid a living wage. YTL also pledges to source at least 75 percent of products and services locally, with lounges, bars and restaurants across the Arena showcasing "all that is great about Bristol."
Queen + Adam Lambert are the first band to play the Arena after they performed the finale of their Rhapsody Tour to a selected audience on Monday, including Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees. They have been using the Arena as a rehearsal space.
The band said: “We’ve been made to feel very welcome by YTL, and the Rhapsody Tour would have loved the opportunity to include a Bristol show if this fantastic venue was open. Hopefully we can come back and play here again, to a packed house, when YTL Arena Bristol is ready to welcome the public.”
It comes after Bristol legends Massive Attack performed at a custom-built arena on the neighbouring former Filton Airfield in 2019. Queen + Adam Lambert’s performance indoors at the site has been hailed "the latest major step forward to the Arena becoming reality."
CEO of YTL Arena Bristol, Andrew Billingham, said: “It has been a privilege to host Queen + Adam Lambert as they chose Bristol to complete full production rehearsals in a five-day residency at the Brabazon Hangars. We are honoured that Brian, Roger and Adam wanted to play their part in our story.
“Over the past week we have accommodated one of the largest touring productions with ease. With 40 artic lorries parking on site and more than 200 production crew in attendance, everybody has said what a fantastic venue the new Arena will be and predicts it will become one of the busiest.”
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