Winter Gardens

Significance

Morecambe Winter Gardens is a Grade II* listed building of a rare type – a big concert party hall. It is now thought to be one of a kind. It was built in 1897 to the designs of Mangnall & Littlewood. Prominently sited on the seafront, the main elevation is an ornate, symmetrical composition in brick and terracotta. The foyer and stair hall are richly decorated with the original mosaic, faience tiling and fine joinery. Beyond, a curving promenade with timber and glazed screens leads to an impressive auditorium. This wide and elaborately decorated hall is over sailed by a spectacular tunnel vaulted ceiling.

Why is this theatre at risk?

Morecambe Winter Gardens has been on the Theatres at Risk Register since 2006 when we started the Register.

The building is operated by Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust Ltd (MWGPT), which, alongside invaluable help from local volunteers, has been slowly restoring the theatre and bringing it back into use. Since 2020, MWGPT, under new governance and leadership, has built on the work of the previous administration and made even greater progress. The work achieved to date has allowed the theatre to open to the public for a mixed programme of entertainment, operating from the ground floor and stalls only. While the circle level and upper levels are open for public tours, they are currently undergoing restoration.

In 2023 Morecambe Winter Gardens was awarded £2.74m through the Cultural Development Fund for works to provide additional accommodation including a new toilet block, circulation, and evacuation routes as well as continued restoration work. This is the first phase of a larger project for the Winter Gardens to be fully reopened and operating at its full potential.

The building continues to be on our Theatres at Risk Register as significant additional funding will be required to realise the ambition of completely restoring the building as a 2,300-capacity music venue.

Theatre potential

This is a landmark building at the very heart of Morecambe that has seen a great amount of support from the local community over many years. The Winter Gardens is in use as a performance venue hosting a broad programme of entertainment.

Audience data indicates that the Winter Gardens has attracted visitors from Cumbria, Lancashire, Derbyshire and Northumberland, as well as other parts of the UK, helping evidence that the venue can draw audiences from a wide area. The data also helps evidence the viability of the Winter Gardens to be returned to a large-scale music and live performance venue.

In addition, he continued use of this building would assist with urban renewal and is listed as a cultural asset in the Lancashire Cultural Strategy through Creative Lancashire.

Eden Project Morecambe, which is on a site opposite the theatre, will be a transformational project for Morecambe that will help promote all-year-round visitor activity and subsequently greater demand for performance and entertainment linked to the night-time economy, of which the Winter Gardens will form an important part.

Current situation

Recent years have seen successes in fundraising and some great strides made towards both restoration of the building and stability of the organisation.

In 2019, a grant from our Theatres at Risk Capacity Building Programme funded a governance and training review and provided short-term business planning advice. As a result of this governance review MWGPT is now the sole charity responsible for the running and operation of the venue. The works have also proven key in enabling MWGPT to secure partnerships with stakeholders. This has included aiding in discussions with Lancaster City Council for a loan to allow the group to re-mortgage the theatre and to part-finance essential repair works, and in grant applications to the Culture Recovery Fund for Heritage for grant support during the pandemic.

Since this time MWGPT has been incredibly successful in its fundraising with more than £5m raised. This has included:

• from the government’s Coastal Communities Fund, Historic England, Architectural Heritage Fund, Ken Dodd Charitable Foundation and Marketing Lancaster to support a range of essential works to the building which have incrementally improved its state and condition.
• £200k of funding through the government’s Shared Prosperity Fund to support work to the fly tower and stage to make the building more sustainable and energy efficient.
• Funding for a feasibility study and long-term business plan, to create one clear vision for the future of the building, from Morecambe Town Council, Lancaster City Council, the University of Sheffield Policy Fund, the Architectural Heritage Fund and further funding from Historic England.
• Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities grant of £11.5k to support the creation of an audience development strategy.

The above were instrumental in informing MWGPT's successful application to the government's Cultural Development fund which resulted in a £2.74m grant.

In addition to successful grant applications MWGPT has also been effective in gaining support through individual fundraising campaigns to supplement grants from trusts and foundations. This has included boosting a £12k grant from the Pilgrim Trust to £45k to repair the historic mosaic floor in the entrance foyer. Theatres Trust has also recently brokered a grant from the Aslackby Trust to fund restoration of the theatre’s chandeliers.

During 2024 initial capital works funded by the Cultural Development Fund award were completed, and a project team appointed to lead the second phase of the capital project. Theatres Trust supported the planning and listed buildings consent applications to add a side extension to the building, which will both provide a necessary escape route from the circle level and provide the additional toilets needed for a higher audience capacity.

We also wrote a letter of support for MWGPT’s successful application to Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Capital Fund in 2025. The grant of c£587k will go towards essential repairs that will allow the circle to be brought back into use.

Alongside completing the capital works, the project team is working on developing new audiences for the venue, engaging volunteers, improving working practices, and the boosting the venue’s digital presence. This work has been supported by a Resilient Theatres: Resilient Communities grant to fund an accessibility development strategy and training for volunteers through the same programme’s cohort training element.

Theatres Trust continues to provide advice and support to MWGPT, working closely with MWGPT and its chair, Professor Vanessa Toulmin, to help prioritise the needs of both the building and its operation. Historic England, Architectural Heritage Fund, and the council are also providing essential stakeholder support. Together with Theatres Trust, all parties are aiming to help MWGPT grow in strength and capacity and to determine a route to allow this magnificent Grade II* listed building to be fully restored and reopened.

Images, Morecambe Winter Gardens, Historic England Archive, 2019.