{"id":18690,"date":"2019-01-08T08:00:47","date_gmt":"2019-01-08T08:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/?p=18690"},"modified":"2019-01-07T22:10:45","modified_gmt":"2019-01-07T22:10:45","slug":"ten-years-ago-londons-astoria-theatre-closes-for-good-jan-2009-in-photos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/ten-years-ago-londons-astoria-theatre-closes-for-good-jan-2009-in-photos\/","title":{"rendered":"Ten Years Ago: London&#8217;s Astoria Theatre closes for good, Jan 2009 &#8211; in photos"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-01.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s the sad sight of the Astoria Theatre in central London after it had closed its doors for good in January 2009.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-02.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Opening at a cinema in 1927, the 2,000 capacity venue was converted for use as a theatre in 1976, and from 1985 until the 14th Jan, 2009 it was exclusively used as a music venue and night club.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the world\u2019s greatest bands played the Astoria, including the Beach Boys, Nirvana, Jimi Hendrix, Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Blur, Radiohead, David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Megadeth, Alice Cooper, Oasis, Prince, U2, Eminem and The White Stripes. It also witnessed the last performance of the Manic Street Preachers\u2019 Richey Edwards.<\/p>\n<p>My favourite gigs there were\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/amy-winehouse-at-the-astoria-london\/\">Amy Winehouse in Feb 2007<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/832\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Le Tigre in April 2004<\/a>. I also enjoyed many a drunken night upstairs in the rock nightclub upstairs.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-03.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Wikipedia takes up the story of the venue&#8217;s demise:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>In January 2009 the property was\u00a0compulsory purchased\u00a0for the\u00a0<a title=\"Crossrail\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Crossrail\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Crossrail<\/a>\u00a0development, despite public opposition and an online petition. Former London Mayor\u00a0Ken Livingstone\u00a0confirmed that the venue &#8220;can&#8217;t be saved&#8221;.<sup id=\"cite_ref-7\" class=\"reference\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/London_Astoria#cite_note-7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>The\u00a0nightclub\u00a0<a title=\"G-A-Y\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/G-A-Y\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">G-A-Y<\/a>\u00a0left the Astoria in July 2008 and moved to the\u00a0Heaven nightclub. The Astoria hosted its final night on 14 January 2009, co-organised by\u00a0Get Cape Wear Cape Fly&#8217;s\u00a0<a class=\"mw-redirect\" title=\"Sam Duckworth\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sam_Duckworth\">Sam Duckworth<\/a>\u00a0in aid of\u00a0Billy Bragg&#8217;s Jail Guitar Doors charity and\u00a0Love Music Hate Racism. Acts included\u00a0The Automatic,\u00a0My Vitriol\u00a0and ex-Mansun\u00a0singer Paul Draper,\u00a0Frank Turner,\u00a0&#8230;And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead\u00a0and\u00a0The King Blues. London Astoria 2 also had a closing party, headlined by rock band Open The Skies, with support from Outcry Fire, F.A.T.E and Orakai.<sup id=\"cite_ref-8\" class=\"reference\"><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>By October 2009, the venue had been demolished completely.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-04.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-05.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-06.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-07.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-08.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-09.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-10.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-11.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-12.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-13.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-14.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-15.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-16.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-17.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-18.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-19.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-20.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-21.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-22.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-23.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-24.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-25.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/images\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-26.jpg\" alt=\"Ten Years Ago: London's Astoria Theatre closes for good, January 2009\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"735\" height=\"414\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qrHrDmv0e7w?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-GB&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/div>\n<h2>Chat about The Astoria on our forum<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.net\/forums\/threads\/the-astoria-your-memories.203490\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Astoria. Your memories?<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.urban75.net\/forums\/threads\/cpo-for-astoria-music-venue-central-london-issued.194708\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CPO for Astoria music venue, central London, issued<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/London_Astoria\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read more about the Astoria on Wikipedia<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.arthurlloyd.co.uk\/AstoriaTheatreCharingCrossRoad.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See archive photos in this excellent historical piece<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here&#8217;s the sad sight of the Astoria Theatre in central London after it had closed its doors for good in January 2009.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18693,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[196,194,456,17,193],"tags":[2032,686,2033,37,28,60,10,2031,2034,2035],"class_list":["post-18690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nightlife","category-london-features","category-news","category-photos","category-places","tag-astoria-theatre","tag-charing-cross-road","tag-closed-venue","tag-clubs","tag-gigs","tag-history","tag-london","tag-london-astoria","tag-lost-london","tag-ten-years-ago"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/astoria-theatre-london-closes-2009-01.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pQI7P-4Rs","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18690","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18690"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18690\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18697,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18690\/revisions\/18697"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18690"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18690"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.urban75.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18690"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}