Bristol Beacon has confirmed the reopening date of the historic arts venue after five years of construction. The concert hall, which has racked up a bill of £132 million - almost three times the original amount - will be reopening on Thursday, November 30 this year.
The historic music venue, housed in a Grade II-listed Victorian building on Trenchard Street, has been subject to scrutiny in recent weeks after Bristol City Council announced it would have to spend another £25 million to finish the refurbishment. Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees previously defended the project's spiralling costs and acknowledged the situation was not ideal but said the project had to be completed because the alternatives were even worse.
Jason Hunt, Willmott Dixon’s operations manager and leading the project, told BristolLive in January that the first massive increase in costs had been down to the sheer scale of the project itself. He added that subsequent increases were due to the wider issues facing the construction industry, from Covid delays to the rising costs of materials and labour.
Read more: What it looks like inside the Bristol Beacon as cost to refurbish building soars
In its latest update timed for Valentine's Day, the concert hall has confirmed that the new performance spaces include the 2,000+ capacity Beacon Hall and the 500-capacity Lantern Hall as well as the brand-new 200-capacity Weston Cellar, a space that was previously unused. It promises to be Bristol's biggest indoor venue (until the arrival of the YTL Bristol Arena) as well as one of the best and most accessible venues in Europe.
Louise Mitchell, chief executive of Bristol Beacon, said: “We’re delighted to be able finally to confirm the reopening date. The team are busy putting the finishing touches to our opening season, where we will be showcasing a number of commissions and UK Premieres, and inviting all of our city’s communities into the Beacon to explore the new spaces, celebrating creativity and inclusivity in a way that only Bristol can."
Developers are promising a "cutting edge" venue with a huge programme of events to hear anything from the orchestral music, festivals and family shows, as well as being a flexible space for conferences and exhibitions. The 1867 concert hall has been fitted with "world-beating acoustics" as well as a brand new restaurant.
To mark the news, Bristol Beacon has announced the first events to be held after the full-scale refurbishment of the venue. This includes the return of Simple Things Festival for its tenth edition after a five-year hiatus. The multi-disciplinary festival will be revealing its line-up and ticketing details in the coming months.
Thomas Frost, Co-Founder of Simple Things Festival, said “The reopening of Bristol Beacon is one of the most significant moments for the city and it will be great to be back at our spiritual home for our tenth edition. The Beacon will be such an integral part of Bristol’s music scene, championing grassroots and local artists as well as supporting projects and events from every genre of music. We’re working with the team to really utilise every part of the building which will give us a great new dynamic for our tenth anniversary.”
A handful of tickets are set to go on sale this week including Jools Holland and Bootleg Beatles, as well as a December show from Sophie Ellis-Bextor, bringing her much-loved kitchen disco to Beacon Hall, and the acclaimed music collective Penguin Cafe. December will also see the return of comedy to the Beacon stage with performances from John Robins and Ross Noble.
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