The Clapham Grand: history, nights out and how to book
Built for Dan Leno's music hall crowd in 1900, later a cinema and a bingo hall, now Clapham's biggest night out. The Grand, its ceiling and how to get in.
By Clapham London Editorial
The Clapham Grand at 21-25 St John's Hill is a Victorian variety theatre that has been putting on a show since 1900, and today it is Clapham's biggest night out: club nights, gigs, comedy, drag, Bongo's Bingo and singalong films under a painted ceiling. Book ahead, arrive early, and look up when you get inside. Here is its story, and how to do a night there.
A palace of variety
The Grand opened in 1900 as the New Grand, the successor to an earlier Grand Hall of Varieties, according to the Junction's history pages, and it is the only one of the area's late Victorian entertainment venues to survive. Its first night, Wikipedia records, was 26 November 1900, and it was built for a group of music hall stars led by Dan Leno and Herbert Campbell, with room for around 3,000 people.
The architect was E A Woodrow. The building's listing describes a robust red-brick front with seven bays, the centre ones set forward under belvederes, and calls it one of the few surviving suburban variety palaces of its era. It was listed Grade II in 1983.
Look up: the Chinese ceiling
Inside is the surprise. The listing singles out an unusual Chinese decorative scheme: boxes with pagoda-style canopies, plaster dragons, and a ceiling that resembles an upturned willow-pattern plate. Find a spot with a view up between sets and take it in.
Cinema, bingo, gigs and clubbing
Like most variety theatres, the Grand changed with the times. It was fitted for films in 1927, became a full-time cinema in 1950, and from 1963 was a bingo club, latterly run by Mecca until 1979. A false ceiling hid the auditorium for years. In 1989 it was bought to become a music venue, the false ceiling came out, and it reopened for gigs in December 1991. The Kinks, Chuck Berry, Oasis, Muse and Jamiroquai have all played here, and it was the studio for the first series of Taskmaster. It has been a nightclub since 1998, and today it runs as an independent venue for clubbing, live music, theatre and events.
What is on now
The Grand calls itself London's palace of variety since 1900, and the programme lives up to it. A typical month mixes:
- Club nights: themed late nights such as Grand Afters, which run until 2.30am.
- Gigs and concerts: touring bands and tribute nights.
- Comedy, cabaret and drag: from big-name stand-up to drag shows.
- Bongo's Bingo: afternoon matinees and evening sessions, which often sell out.
- Movie nights: singalong and drink-along screenings of the classics.
- Family shows: morning concerts for babies and toddlers.
The big seasonal nights, Halloween, Christmas and New Year's Eve, are the hottest tickets of the year. At Christmas the Grand runs what it calls London's biggest programme of Christmas events, from Bongo's Bingo specials to drag cabaret and family concerts. Check the Grand's listings as soon as they go up.
How to book
Tickets are sold through the Grand's website, which links out to Dice, Eventbrite and, for bingo, the Bongo's Bingo site. Sold-out nights often have a waiting list, so sign up rather than giving up. For questions, the box office is on 020 7223 6523 or info@claphamgrand.com. The Grand also hosts private hire.
Getting there
The Grand is on St John's Hill, SW11, a short walk from Clapham Junction station. The Brighton Yard entrance brings you out on St John's Road, and from there it is a few minutes on foot. Clapham Junction has staff on hand around the clock from Friday to Sunday, which helps for getting home after a late one.
Make a night of it
- Before: a drink and a pizza at Northcote Records on Northcote Road, which runs 2-for-1 cocktails until 7pm Monday to Thursday.
- During: get there early for a good spot, and do look up at that ceiling.
- After: the late nights at the Grand run into the early hours, so you may not need an after.
Tips from the regulars
Book early for anything with Christmas, Halloween or Bongo's in the title. Check each event's times, because a single day can host a bingo matinee, an evening show and a club night. Bring photo ID for late events, and check the start time on your ticket rather than the doors time on the poster. And if a night has sold out, join the waiting list: tickets do come back.
The Grand has survived music hall, cinema, bingo, a long closure and more than one change of owner. Go once and you will see why Clapham fought to keep it.
