We thought it was time we highlighted some of the smaller, less talked about venues around the UK and 1st up is a little gem in East London.
The Round Chapel is a beautiful, historic building in the middle of one of London’s most vibrant boroughs, Hackney.
The Round Chapel we see today opened in 1871, but its beginnings were more modest. The story of the Round Chapel begins with a nonconformist, congregationalist church established in 1804 at the Old Gravel Pit Chapel on nearby Morning Lane. The Gravel Pit Chapel was in turn a breakaway group from the Ram's Chapel in Homerton.
In the 19th Century the population of Hackney was expanding fast. Between 1841 and 1871, the borough’s population increased from 38,000 to 115,000, and then doubled again over the following thirty years.
By 1868, the congregation at the Old Gravel Pit had quadrupled and they decided to build a new, much bigger chapel as part of the new development nearby in Clapton to take account of the increasing popularity of the area. The Clapton Park Chapel, known as the Round Chapel, would become one of the important nonconformist centres in East London. But despite its members and missionary activities increasing in the 1870s and 1880s, from the turn of the century the congregation shrunk as the composition of the neighbourhood changed and the slow but steady exodus to London’s outer suburbs began.
The architectural importance of the Round Chapel has been recognised and protected through its status as Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England, meaning that it is in the top four percent of protected buildings in the country. The designation made specific mention of the chapel’s interior for its unique shape, and for the cast iron columns, which caused controversy at the time of building as they were typically only used in music halls and railway stations.
Over the years our London event crew have supported a number of productions and shows, here are just a few of the fantastic events to have taken place at this great venue:
Tom Walker performing ‘Angels’ live in the auditorium.
The Stoke Newington Opera Cabaret
New Model Army
Freestyle World Trampoline Championships
Jamie Cullum performing Love is in the Picture for BBC Children in Need
Mica Paris
Liam Gallagher
RUNE Fashion Opera
Our event crew in London, and further afield including Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester, have a diverse range of skills so whether it’s building stages and sets, assisting with AV & sound we have event crew for the job. We also have qualified banksmen to ensure loading and unloading is stress-free!
