‘Amazing Grace’, a brand-new music venue, will be opening in London Bridge on October 15th. The venue has been established inside St. Thomas’ Church, which was originally built in 1192, and is situated next to The Shard. Aesthetically, the interior of the venue still retains many of the aspects of the church, such as the stained-glass windows, the woodwork and an altar that was originally crafted in the 1700s.
NME has stated, based on a recent press release, that the venue will also play host to a Banksy piece entitled “Christ With Shopping Bags” or “Consumer Jesus”, which was originally created in 2004 and released in 2005 and was limited to 82 signed prints.
Amazing Grace describes itself as “London’s newest and most exciting live music venue focusing on high quality emerging talent and established artists from across the city and globe.” The venue has launched a new website, alongside an Instagram page. Whilst most of their website is still in its infancy, they have stated: “Amazing Grace will play host to an eclectic mix of musicians and DJ’s showcasing many different genres and styles. The venue boasts a large main bar, dancefloor and a jaw dropping mezzanine overlooking the downstairs space.” In addition, Amazing Grace will feature a 3D-mapped wall at the back of the stage, which will allow for projections to appear behind the acts that are playing, promising visually stunning performances.
The venue has also announced that they are partnering with Mr Bao, a Peckham-based family run business specialising in Taiwanese food: “We’re delighted to have partnered with the ever-popular restauranteur Mr Bao, who will offer an incredible selection of Chinese street food to keep you nourished throughout your evening. Alongside this our bars will serve an array of top-quality craft beers including our very own in-house lager, an expansive cocktail list and more.”
In other news pertaining to UK music venues, grassroots venues are currently facing a debt of £90million due to long closures during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the height of the pandemic, over 1,000 music venues, theatres and festivals were granted the first share of the UK government’s Cultural Recovery Fund, and in October of 2020, it was reported that there was an 89% success rate for English music venues that applied for the emergency lifeline fund. Given the worrying state that the pandemic threw the music industry into, the number of venues that we’re able to persevere and attain the funding they needed was both relieving and impressive. However, grassroots venues are now emerging from the pandemic with an average debt of between £80,000-£120,000 per venue. You can read more about this here.
