Built as a Crosse & Blackwell Pickle factory, The Astoria has played a varied role in the London’s West End since its conception. The venue’s first foray into the entertainment industry was as a kind of variety centre, where scantily-clad women would sell cigarettes and strip for The Astoria’s male clientele. When it became apparent that more money could be made from providing amusement for both men and women the site was turned into a music hall.
This set the scene for The Astoria’s next re-invention as a theatre. Shows such as “Elvis”, starring Shakin’ Stevens, and “John, Paul, George and Ringo…” were scheduled, proving that music was the main crowd-puller for this particular setting.
All suspicions were confirmed when The Astoria later became the studio where BSkyB recorded ‘The Happening’, (which featured an assortment of musical, comedic and acrobatic acts on several stages), and also ‘Jukebox Jury’ with Jools Holland. The venue demonstrated once again that it had the capacity to mix hundreds of people in a musical environment with considerable success.
So it was inevitable that live music should become an integral part of The Astoria’s character. It has now been used exclusively for gigs, concerts and club nights for a total of twelve years and artist’s such as Nirvana, Black Sabbath, David Bowie, Metallica, Oasis, Prince, U2, Eminem and The White Stripes among others have been enjoyed by many thousands.
The Astoria’s convenient central location has seen it attract many people over the years and it has been fêted by musicians and audiences alike - winning second place in the ‘Best British Venue 1999’ Top Ten, as voted by NME.com.
Mean Fiddler acquired the London Astoria in May 2000, securing the future of live music at one of London’s most famous rock ‘n’ roll venues.