Theatre Royal, Pall Mall, Hanley

Description:The Theatre Royal frontage pictured before it was destroyed by fire in June 1949.

Hanley's Theatre Royal had a long and colourful history until its closure in 2000. In 1840 a disused Methodist Chapel on Brunswick Street was converted into a lecture hall by Thomas Hinde, and renamed 'the People's Theatre'. In 1871 a new 'Theatre Royal' was built on the same site - this was the theatre which was destroyed by fire in 1949. This photograph shows the aftermath of the fire of June 2nd which destroyed the entire auditorium, leaving only the outer walls standing. The owner at the time of the fire was Frederick Peake who undertook the re-build at a considerable cost. The teatre reopened on 14 August 1951. In 1961 it was sold to Mecca who operated it as a Bingo hall for twenty years. It reopened as a theatre in 1982, closed again in 1996, and was purchased by Mike Lloyd and refurbished in 1997. The curtain finally fell when Mike Lloyd's business empire collapsed in 2000. It has since been converted into bars.