The Guild Lounge work reaching final stages as part of Preston Guild Hall venue prepares to re-open

New branding is being fitted as part of the work in The Guild Lounge Pic: Preston City Council

Work is nearly finished to bring part of The Guild Hall back into use as a venue.

The RAAC-ridden building has been mothballed for half-a-decade but live entertainment is being revived within the foyer of the venue – which is not affected by the concrete issues.

The Guild Lounge venue has dozens of shows booked in from Thursday 3 October through until Christmas.

Preston City Council confirmed it was committing to a six-month programme of events and then reviewing whether to continue, as it also assesses how the main Grand Hall and Charter Theatre can be brought back into use as functioning venues.

Previously used as a venue, the foyer area has been subject to works – costing £6,000 – over the past few weeks to ensure it is ready as a 350-seater capacity venue with up to 500 people for standing events.

Inside The Guild Lounge works Pic: Preston City Council

Cabinet member for arts and culture at the city council, councillor Anna Hindle, said: “It’s full steam ahead behind the scenes as we prepare for opening night. There is a lot to do from new lighting, new heating, re-upholstering chairs, installing a new sound system, upgrading the lighting rigs, painting, woodwork, creating a new stage, new signage, branding, the list goes on, but the professional team are 100% dedicated and on schedule.

“This marks a new start for the Guild Hall, with a wide variety of shows and entertainment, there’s something here for everyone. Ticket sales are going well and we’re looking forward to sell out nights at the Guild Hall once again.”

The first event is the Disco Inferno 70s night on Thursday 3 October.

No timescale has been given for when the main venues will return into use.

The city council is awaiting structural surveys to advise on how the RAAC which is in the roof structure of the building can be contained, and what the likely repair bill is due to be.

As Blog Preston reported, the city council has spent nearly £4million on maintaining the Guild Hall since taking it back under council control in 2019.

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