London Hippodrome
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Address	Charing Cross Road
City	Westminster, London
Designation	Grade II listed
Architect	Frank Matcham
Owned by	European Leisure
Capacity	1340 seated (1909)
Type	circus and variety shows
Opened	1900
Years active	1900 - 1983
Rebuilt	1958
Previous names	1958 Talk of the Town 1983 London Hippodrome 2004 Cirque at the Hippodrome
Current use	Corporate hire
www.hipevents.co.uk

The Hippodrome is a building on the corner of Charing Cross Road and Leicester Square in the City of Westminster, London. The name was used for many different theatres and music halls, of which the London Hippodrome is one of only a few survivors. The name hippodrome was derived from animal acts forming a significant part of the entertainment.

[edit] History

[edit] Hippodrome

The London Hippodrome was built in 1900 by Frank Matcham for Edward Moss for £250,000 as a hippodrome for circus and variety performances. The venue gave its first Circus show on 15 January 1900^[1]. Entry to the venue was through a bar, dressed as a ship's saloon and the performance space featured both a proscenium stage and an arena that sank into a 230 ft, 100,000 gallon water tank (400 ton, when full) for aquatic spectacles. The tank featured eight central fountains, and a circle of fountains around the side. Entrances at the side of the auditorium could also be flooded, and used for the entry of boats^[2]. Shows included equestrian acts, elephants and polar bears, and acrobats would dive from a Minstrel Gallery above a sliding roof, in the centre of the proscenium arch. The auditorium featured cantilevered galleries, removing the columns that often obstructed views in London theatres, the whole was covered by a painted glass retractable roof, that could be illuminated at night^[2]. The building included the headquarters of Moss Empires^[3].

[edit] Theatre 1909-1951

In 1909, it was reconstructed by Matcham as a music-hall and variety theatre with 1340 seats in stalls, mezzanine, gallery, and upper gallery levels. It was here that Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake received its English première by the Russian Ballet in 1910. The Albert de Courville (1887-1960) revues were performed here from December 1912.

Its reputation was for revue and musical comedy, among them The Five O'Clock Girl and also Mr. Cinders, both in 1929, and Ivor Novello's Perchance to Dream in 1938. From 1949 to 1951 it was the London equivalent of the Folies Bergères.

[edit] Talk of the Town

In 1958, the original interior was demolished and the London Hippodrome was converted into the cabaret restaurant, "Talk of the Town", featuring many of the popular artists of the time, including appearances by Judy Garland^[4], Eartha Kitt,Shirley Bassey^[5] and The Temptations^[6], Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Englebert Humperdink, Val Doonican, Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones, Lulu, Matt Monro, Cliff Richard, Stevie Wonder, Sacha Distel and Neil Sedaka. The Seekers' final concert was recorded for the album 'The Seekers: Live at The Talk of the Town' in 1968. This form of entertainment, in its turn fell out of public favour, and the venue closed in 1982.

[edit] Night club years

Renovated yet again, the building was reopened as a nightclub/restaurant called "The London Hippodrome" by nightclub tycoon Peter Stringfellow in 1983. Some years later, Stringfellow sold it to a chain company called European Leisure. Under the stewardship of David Chipping and then Nigel Collinson the club went on to win many BEDA and DI awards, regularly attracting crowds in excess of 2,000. Following its sale to Luminar the club soon went out of fashion and it wasn't until April 2004 that the Hippodrome regained its standing when it was transformed into "Cirque at the Hippodrome". The interior was taken back to hues of reds and golds and Burlesque was the theme. Cirque at the Hippodrome won the BEDA award for best UK nightclub in 2004.

It was revealed in October 2005 that the club had lost its public drinks licence and would no longer be able to serve alcohol as the local police didn't want what they called 'vertical drinking' in Leicester Square. The police also shut down most of the venues in the local area. Following this, in December 2005, the club was eventually forced to close, following reports of violence involving rival gangs after they had left the building. The Hippodrome is now an Event space for private parties and corporate hire.

The Hippodrome is currently undergoing an extensive restoration programme taking it back to Matcham's original designs for use as a casino. Set to open in 2010, the redevelopment plans include a new Gordon Ramsay restaurant, his 15th in London.^[7]

[edit] The Hippodrome Casino

The venue is currently undergoping a £15 million restoration project to retain many original features such as Flemish Renaissance plasterwork, mosaics, ornate balustrades and glorious interior, whilst updating it with world-class entertainment and dining facilities. Following the renovation, the Hippodrome will be re-launched in early 2011 as an integrated entertainement venue, housing a world-class restaurant on the first floor balcony, a casino, several bars and a dedicated cabaret area seating 150, which will once again see first class cabaret and famous names back at the Hippodrome. The casino area will be on the ground floor, with 20 gaming tables spaciously arranged under the 60ft atrium and the Minstrels gallery high above. In the basement, there will be a dedicated poker room as well as a large members’ sports bar and lounge, which will also be available for private parties, film premieres, product launches and much more.

There is now a 'Hippodrome' nightclub in Kingston-Upon-Thames in Surrey, England. Replacing the closed down The Works nightclub.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website
• La Clique website
• 'Talk of the Town' performances
• Jive Nation run Modern Jive (a.k.a CEROC) dance classes with freestyle events every week at the Hippodrome
• History of the London Hippodrome

Coordinates: 51°30′41″N 0°07′43″W / 51.5114°N 0.1286°W / 51.5114; -0.1286