Behind the scenes at The Town Hall

Chester Town Hall, built 1869 is one of Chester’s architectural and civic jewels. In recent years there has been confusion about access and ownership, but now back under council management the historic building has been opened up to a wider range of uses, with future renovations and improvements planned for the future. In recent weeks the venue has hosted a diverse range of events including Bingo Bango, Chester Operatic Society as well as a regular Monday night dance class.

The Assembly Room is the Town Hall’s main event space. It’s walls are covered in portraits of the Grosvenor family and the Lord Mayors, with an impressive canvas depicting the late Gerald Grosvenor who died in 2016. Upcoming events here include a Disco for grown ups and a Halloween Disco, with Christmas events in the planning stages. The venue has a new booking system accessible via the website https://chestertownhall.com . We went backstage and visited the green rooms, used by visiting performers and special visitors and offering a great view over the square below.

Next on the tour we visited the Victorian magistrates court. The court room which was in active use until 1992 when the new magistrates court was built on Grosvenor street. The court has been used for TV filming in recent years with stars from Hollyoaks and Coronation Street taking their place in the dock. Behind the judges chair is a portrait of King George III presented to the city in 1808, and the grand surroundings are one part of the building that is being considered for more creative community uses in the future.

Up the Grand Staircase decorated with plaques and shields gifted by visiting dignitaries is the Council Chamber. Rebuilt in 1897 after a fire the Chamber is a popular choice of wedding venue. A range of different packages are available including an affordable option. The wedding hosts are able to choose their own catering arrangements. Outside are several display cabinets full of civic memorabilia including the autographs of the late Queen and Meghan from their visit in 2018. The Town Hall management hope to expand this display in a currently vacant room to add further interest for visitors.

Up to the next floor, and not open to the public are areas that have not been in use for decades. A store room contains many relics from the past including paintings, council records, gifts from dignitaries and even Victorian fire fighting equipment. Climbing a ladder we ascended into another unused area which the Council aspires to bring back to life in the future. Funding permitting the potential for new and expanded social and event space is great. The ladder up to the clock tower remains out of bounds.

We ended our tour in the atmospheric cell block below the Town Hall. Currently the cells are used for storage but again a wide range of potential future uses are being explored. Here we found further historical artefacts including a wooden model of the Northgate development, as well as an early concept sculpture for Stephen Broadbent’s Celebration of Chester statue. A raised bed in one of the cells was added by the Coronation Street team for filming purposes.

Back on the steps of the Town Hall, the centre of so many civic and cultural events we paused to find the 3 snails on the iron gates as well as admiring the stone sculptures in the porch illustrating periods of Chester history. A visit to the Town Hall comes highly recommended, the building is open 9 til 5 to the general public except when in use for a private event. With strong aspirations to open up access and renovate the building, the future hopes for the Town Hall are great.