For more details, and to book: https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson/music-hall.htm

#LondonEvents #MusicHall #LondonHistory

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Sharing stories about the characters she meets on her way, she offers a different view of Britain from her very watery map.

Find 'Boater: A Life on England’s Waterways' in our museum bookshop 📚

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She draws on her history knowledge and specific admiration for the last great canal builder Thomas Telford, to take us on a humorous and informative journey of her experience of the inland waterways, including a brief intrepid adventure on the Bristol Channel on her boat Tinker.

And children can play shopkeeper in our ice cream role play area—but beware! Parents, will you discover a creepy crawly lurking in your ice cream pot?

Visit our Halloween page for more info and to book tickets 👉 https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson/halloween-tunnel.htm
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Join us for a ’Scream Tea’ trip through the Islington Tunnel - listen to tall tales as you devour your scones, pale cream and blood-dripping jam!

For our younger visitors, our popular Top Ten Trail has a ghostly twist this season! Can you uncover all the spooky surprises hidden along the way? 
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And children can play shopkeeper in our ice cream role play area—but beware! Parents, will you discover a creepy crawly lurking in your ice cream pot?

Visit our Halloween page for more info and to book tickets 👉 https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson/halloween-tunnel.htm
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Join us for a ’Scream Tea’ trip through the Islington Tunnel - listen to tall tales as you devour your scones, pale cream and blood-dripping jam!

For our younger visitors, our popular Top Ten Trail has a ghostly twist this season! Can you uncover all the spooky surprises hidden along the way? 
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It was rechristened the Charing Cross Theatre in 2011 and now shows a variety of productions, including old-time music hall.
Why not experience Victorian-style music hall for yourselves? We're hosting a special evening on 8 Nov, details: https://www.canalmuseum.org.uk/whatson/music-hall.htm
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In 1946, the hall reopened as the Players Theatre, presenting Victorian-style music hall and was very popular. 
In 1987, the theatre had to close for building work above the station, but reopened in a different set of arches a short distance up Villiers Street.
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Over time, the Gattis redecorated the hall, and a small balcony was added. 
The Gatti family left the building in 1903, after which it became a boxing arena, then a cinema.
The Forum Cinema closed in 1939 at the outbreak of World War II and didn’t reopen.
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The Palace continued until 1924, when it was converted into a full-time cinema and named ‘Gatti’s Cinema’.
The Cinema was damaged by bombing in 1940 and never reopened. It was demolished in 1950 to make way for a road extension.
Check back tomorrow for our final instalment
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To diversify the offering, Gatti’s became a home of early cinema in 1897 with the introduction of short films among the regular music hall acts. These short films became a huge hit with the audience and included footage of clowns, snowball fights, steamboats and more.
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The Palace’s stage depth and small dressing rooms compared to the Canterbury limited the type of performance at the Palace, whereas the Canterbury could deliver plays, opera, in addition to music hall.
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What happened to the Palace of Varieties?
The Palace was opposite the Canterbury, the first purpose-built music hall. 
By 1875, there were 375 music halls in London, so competition was strong.
The Palace and the Canterbury were upgraded multiple times throughout the 1800s.
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Katie Lawrence was a regular at Gatti’s. She was enormously popular in the 1890s due to the success of her song ‘Daisy Bell’. Walter Sickert, the eccentric painter, painted a controversial and unflattering painting of Katie performing. The painting had an awful reception.
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The music hall was known as ‘Gatti’s in the Arches’ and the cafe next to it was the ‘Grand Café-Restaurant de la Confederation Suisse’ with the largest billiard saloon in the world, offering 30 full-sized tables.
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