Building    From 3/5/1951 

Royal Festival Hall

Categories: Dance, Music / songs

A 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre. The first post-war building to be protected with a Grade 1 Listing, in 1981.

The project was led by London County Council's then chief architect, Robert Matthew, with a young team of talented designers including Leslie Martin, who was eventually to lead the project.

Built on the site of the former Lion Brewery, the foundation stone was laid in 1949 and the building was officially opened on 3 May 1951.

A London Inheritance has a splendid post about the construction of the RFH, with lots of historic photos.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Royal Festival Hall

Commemorated ati

Clement Attlee - Royal Festival Hall

This film shows what looks like a time capsule being buried, and Attlee layin...

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Other Subjects

Hammersmith Palais

Hammersmith Palais

Former dance venue. It opened as a roller-skating rink, then became an ice rink, before being turned into a popular ballroom and concert hall. During WW2 it was used for making tanks and also as a ...

Building, Dance, Music / songs

1 memorial
Marie Taglioni

Marie Taglioni

Ballet dancer. Born Stockholm to an Italian father and Swedish mother, both in the dancing world. From an early age she lived around Europe. First appeared in London in 1829. She was aclaimed in he...

Person, Dance, France, Italy, Sweden

1 memorial
David Norman

David Norman

Businessman and management consultant. He has held posts at many companies, and has been chairman of the Royal Ballet School and the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. This photo comes from the Kew A...

Person, Commerce, Dance, Gardens / Agriculture, Politics & Administration

1 memorial
Baroness Betty Boothroyd, O.M., P.C.

Baroness Betty Boothroyd, O.M., P.C.

Betty Boothroyd was born on 8 October 2023 in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, the daughter of Ben Archibald Boothroyd (1886-1948) and Mary Boothroyd née Butterfield (1901-1982).  In the 1939 England and...

Person, Dance, Politics & Administration, USA

1 memorial
Dame Marie Rambert

Dame Marie Rambert

Ballet dancer who had a great influence on ballet in Britain. Born Cyvia Ramberg in Poland. Arrived in England in 1914. Married Ashley Dukes in 1918, a marriage which lasted until his death. Founde...

Person, Dance, Poland

2 memorials