“It’s a fantastic building that is currently being wasted”: The people planning to bring a Salford theatre back to life
manchestereveningnews.co.ukWhen three local people first joined forces to save an abandoned Salford theatre, reopening it to the public seemed a far-off idea – now, they’ve been given a lifeline.
The Victoria Theatre is thought to include the only surviving complete example of substage machinery, machinery that lifts a stage similarly to a drawbridge, in the UK.
It was originally built in 1899 by Bertie Crewe and functioned as a cinema as early as 1901, according to Theatres Trust. Esteemed actors such as ‘Carry On’s’ Charles Hawtrey and Englebert Humperdinck (under his real name, Jerry Dorsey) also did stints at the Salford theatre during their careers. READ MORE: Neighbourhood Italian loved by Man City squad finally gets visit from Pep Guardiola READ MORE: Inside the musical-inspired diner where waiters serenade you with show tunes Sadly, the ‘sleeping beauty’ in Lower Broughton was abandoned in 2007 and has been left to decay since.
Now though, the theatre may finally be on the path to opening its doors again after a lifeline donation of £5,000 from the Theatres Trust.
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