A Brighton theatre has topped the list of the most at-risk venues in the country.
The Hippodrome in Middle Street has been named on the Theatres At Risk Register for 2023 where it scored highest in all the categories being assessed.
It has been on the register since 2006, despite plans to restore and renovate the building.
The Theatres Trust, which collates the register, said the Hippodrome “is considered the UK’s most architecturally significant circus theatre – the finest surviving example of its type in the country”.
There are plans to redevelop the building into an event space and apart-hotels as well as a bar and restaurant but the trust said the plans “threaten the future viability and use of the Hippodrome as a performance space in any form”.
Theatres on the register are graded based on how at risk they are as well as their “star quality” and value to the community.
On this list, the Hippodrome scored the highest possible score in each of these categories. The trust said its loss would be a “greater tragedy” due to the character and history of the building.
The trust said it had previously met the current owners of the Grade II* listed building, Matsim, to discuss the proposals but believed the current plans to be “fundamentally unviable”.
A spokesman for Matsim said that they were “really shocked and disappointed” by the trust’s remarks, adding: “These unsubstantiated comments are unhelpful to say the least."
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The Hippodrome has been under renovations for a number of years in an attempt to restore the building into a working venue.
Major stars to have played at there in the past include the Rolling Stones and The Beatles.
The building, which first opened in 1897, closed in 2007 after being used as an ice-skating rink, a circus and, most recently, a bingo hall.
Also on the Theatres At Risk register for 2023 is Clair Hall in Haywards Heath, which was first added to the list last year.
The hall was closed in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and has not been reopened since.
The site has been used as a vaccination site since December 2020.
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