The run-down Crown Theatre on Liverpool Road in Eccles got a Banksy-style makeover at the weekend when campaigners hung a large mural on the front entrance sparking hopes artists will return to tread the boards.
Local residents have formed the Save the Crown Theatre group in the hope of restoring this once-great space to its former glory.
Jon Grieves, who lives on Cromwell Road in Eccles, is the mastermind behind the project and told us: “The campaign to get the theatre reopened is going from strength to strength and the local community have been magnificent in their support.”
Local artist and teaching assistant Bree Hughes painted the mural and told SalfordOnline.com: “I live at the back of this theatre and I pass it every day, so I became a member of the Save the Crown Theatre Group.
“Jon asked me if I’d get involved in painting the mural to help raise awareness among passing drivers and pedestrians.
“The boards were in place and I had stencilled out the designs that I wanted to go on them and painted them on on Saturday morning.
“The response from the general public was fabulous with many people stopping and asking us what was going on, some even thought it was reopening shortly!
“One old lady stopped and told us how she used to be an usherette here when it was a cinema, many years ago and recalled how she nearly fell from the top tier or the gods as they were known into the auditorium, several floors below!”
The Grade II listed Victorian theatre has seen sad decline over the past 20 years.
Its heyday was in the 1930s when it could boast 2,500 seats for delighted theatre audiences.
It became a cinema in 1932 and then a bingo hall in 1963, finally closing its doors due to lack of trade in 1990.
Since then the building has fallen into rack and ruin with smashed windows, a rubbish and rubble-strewn courtyard, and a general lack of care.
SalfordOnline.com filmed the partial demolition of the theatre here and here.
The Crown has had planning permission for 96 apartments since 2008, but Bolton-based applicants Westgate Developments have done little with the site, leaving it to fall into serious disrepair.
“Hopefully I’ll be here on Thursday to finish the mural off and when it’s completed it will depict a pair of red velvet curtains opening into the theatre”.
The wood for the mural was donated by local firm Tunny’s Scaffolding, while the paint was donated by the owners of Millie’s Cafe on Liverpool Road.
The community are really pulling together on this project,” said Jon.
“The ideas we have for the theatre are that it will be used by the whole community. We could have a cafe in the daytime, function rooms for local business and in the evenings hold stage shows with local theatre groups and pop groups, the opportunities are endless.
“What we do need – apart from a large amount of money, obviously – are people with specialised skills who could help us with fundraising, with expertise in legal matters or building regulations and anyone who could bring their own ideas to the table. Are there any local celebrities out there who could front this campaign?
“We have a long way to go but I’m certain that we see shall see a new theatre arise from the ashes of the old Lyceum Theatre.
If you wish to help John then why not call in at their meeting on Wednesday 29 July at the Nur Malaysia Community Cafe on Liverpool Road opposite the Eccles Mosque, where everybody is welcome to attend.
Pictures by Stuart David Potts and Bree Hughes
