£500-a-day needed to keep Victoria Hall open

From playing host to show-stopping musical concerts to providing a home for projects to support the vulnerable, it is one of the town’s most important and popular venues.

Now four singing groups have joined forces for the first time to raise money for the upkeep of the Knowsley Street building which costs £500 a day to run.

Bolton Choral Union, The Brixi Singers, Ladybridge Singers and Jazzicle — a group of musicians from Bolton Symphony Orchestra — will perform a Gala Concert at 7.30pm on Saturday, October 18.

Each will showcase their own songs and style to create a night of music to suit all tastes, featuring songs from hit musical Les Miserables and Handel’s Messiah to songs from the shows, jazz and English folk.

All the proceeds will go to support the 114-year-old hall, home to Bolton Methodist Mission.

The Rev Paul Martin said money was needed for the general upkeep of the hall, including an expected bill of £20,000 to comply with fire regulations.

He said: “The bigger the place, the bigger the bills are.

“We are constantly trying to improve and upgrade things, like toilet facilities, the heating and lighting. Our main concern is to make the place warm, comfortable and safe for people.”

Barbara Melbourne, who lives in Lostock and is secretary of Bolton Choral Union, said: “I have been in the choir for 40 years and we have used the hall all that time.

"It’s a lot for a congregation to keep on supporting. It’s a wonderful building. It’s got wonderful acoustics.

“We get visiting choirs, everybody loves being there.”

About the forthcoming concert, she said: “It’s going to be a light-hearted concert with about 120 people in it. It’s taken a lot of organisation but we are nearly there now.”

Chris Cresswell and Kath Webster, members of the church council, are among those keen to safeguard the future of the hall for generations to come.

The Grade II listed building was built in the style of, not a church, but a music hall or theatre, with its platform — or stage — at one end and horseshoe balcony.

Mrs Cresswell, who lives in Bradshaw and has been involved with the church since 1970, said: “The Victoria Hall has been at the heart of Bolton for over 100 years.

“The hall was discovered to have the best acoustics in the North West, that was why we attracted all sorts of famous orchestras, including The Hallé.”

Sir Thomas Beecham, said to be Britain's first international conductor, performed there, as well as Sir Harold Sargent, who was widely regarded as the country's leading conductor of choral works, and Scottish soprano, Dame Isobel Baillie.

Mrs Cresswell added: “It’s still being used for concerts now. We are particularly pleased to have links with Bolton Music Service, they use it for their annual music festival.

"We still have an active congregation, although it’s much smaller than it was in 1900.

“Our forefathers knew a town centre congregation would not be very wealthy and so they had shops on either side, in Knowsley Street, which brought in an income, fairly successfully, until very recently.

"Because of the recession and the town centre getting run down, the shops closed and they were empty for a while.

"That’s what brought on the awareness that we have got to do something to raise money or there’s a danger we might lose the opportunity to do all this work.”

It was revealed in August that town hall bosses are planning a £6.5 million revamp of the Albert Halls, owned by Bolton Council, while Victoria Hall relies on money from its congregation, fundraisers, grants and lettings.

A place of worship on Sundays, it is hired to stage a variety of musical events, lectures, meetings and graduation ceremonies throughout the rest of the week.

Cllr Kevin McKeon, cabinet member for schools and education, said: “I’ve been to a number of concerts there, I’ve also seen my own children taking part in Bolton Music Service’s Schools’ Music Festival.

"The venue is absolutely superb for those occasions. The Victoria Hall is probably the best music venue we have got in the town.

"It’s got a unique place in the town’s cultural history. I’m delighted that the various choirs are putting on the concert, it shows the affection with which it’s held by those musical groups.

“I hope it continues to be used and continues to have a place in the town’s life. As the town centre is regenerated, I hope it will have an even higher profile.”

Tickets for the Gala Concert cost £10, are available by calling 01204 492301 or on the door from 7pm on the night of the concert.

HISTORY OF BOLTON’S VICTORIA HALL

THE site where Victoria Hall now stands was originally home to the Ridgway Gates Chapel, built on a garden that stretched from the Ridgway Gates to the River Croal.

It was opened by Anglican clergyman and joint founder of the Methodist movement in the Church of England, John Wesley, on April 16, 1777, during one of his many visits to Bolton.

In the late 19th century, to further the Methodist cause, it was proposed to build a Central Methodist Mission and buy adjoining shops to provide an entrance from Knowsley Street, creating The Victoria Hall.

It was built between 1898 and 1900 by Bradshaw and Gass of Bolton, using red brick and terracotta with stone dressings and slate roofs.

The hall would play host to sell-out concerts on a Saturday night and the rooms underneath were used as classrooms to teach adult literacy.

Deaconesses would also offer support and care to people who found themselves in difficulty. In 1932, the Ridgway Gates Chapel was found to be unsafe and was demolished.

In its place, due mainly to the generosity of the late Colonel W E Walker, the Walker Memorial Hall was built, opened on October 1, 1935, by Mrs W. E. Walker.

During World War Two, refugees who had fled the German invasion of the Channel Islands were temporarily housed in the classrooms.

A generous donation paid for the addition of a 90-foot terracotta tower at the entrance to the Victoria Hall, which celebrated its centenary in 2000.

The main hall has seating for 1,250, plus window seats for 50, and was altered in the 1960s.

Bolton Methodist Mission currently supports work including a destitution project to help refugees and asylum seekers, as well as services for people with mental health issues.