ABOUT THE THEATRE
Welcoming thousands of people through its doors every year, Shoreditch Town Hall is a leading cultural, community and live events space housed in one of the grandest former civic buildings in the capital. Comprising over 48,000 square feet, the Grade II listed Town Hall is the largest multi-artform venue in Hackney and more widely used today than at any other point since being set up as a Charitable Trust in 1998.
When it opened in 1866, Shoreditch Town Hall was known as one of the grandest Vestry Halls of its time and its ambitious founders wanted the building to embody their progressive values. Until the 1960s, the Town Hall operated as the centre of local democracy and civic life in the borough of Shoreditch.
The building has a rich history. It played an important role in East End working class culture, first as a Music Hall in the late 19th and early 20th Century, and as a boxing venue from 1955 – 1975. In between, it survived a huge fire in 1904, and two World Wars, before neglect in the 1980s and 1990s led its inclusion on English Heritage’s Buildings at Risk register.
A campaign to save the building was founded shortly afterwards and Shoreditch Town Hall Trust took over the lease in 2002, upgrading the space and forming an events hire business. In 2012, the Trust adopted a more dynamic vision to recognise the building’s full potential as an arts, events and community space.
PLAN YOUR VISIT
By Tube
The nearest underground station is Old Street (Northern Line) and the nearest overground station is Shoreditch High Street (Windrush Line).
By Train
The nearest mainline station is Old Street and London Liverpool Street.
By Bus
Buses stopping nearby include the 26, 35, 47, 48, 55, 67, 78, 135, 149, 242 and 243.
By Car
The nearest NCP car park is at Finsbury Square.
