Venuewatch: Hippodrome to host gigs again

Although the building was originally an ice rink for the first five years, the Hippodrome on Brighton's Middle Street only really came to life as a variety theatre. Opening in 1902, the venue was the site of performances from everyone from Max Miller, Sandra Bernhardt, through Laurel and Hardy, to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones before it closed in 1965. Like many buildings of its size and type, it would then spend time as a bingo hall - indeed, it was eyes down at the Hippodrome until last year.

Now, though, the company which runs the soon-to-merge LiveNation and Academy groups are to renovate and restore the grade II listed building and once again use it for gigs.

We're far from fans of the LiveNation group, but it's nice to see that the new company seems intent on keeping up the Academy's tradition of restoring faded buildings and making them part of the community again.