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Redgrave fight gets London backing
Campaigners fighting to save the
Redgrave Theatre have been encouraged by their cause
being taken up by a London-based lobbying group.
The
Save London's Theatres campaign group has
been battling to retain venues in and around the
capital for more than 30 years.
It has contacted the New Farnham
Repertory Company (NFRC) to confirm its support,
having noticed a letter from Anne Cooper in
The Stage periodical, seeking help to save
the theatre.
Listed status
Mrs Cooper, a Farnham
resident, is currently
requesting listed status for the Redgrave Theatre
from the Department of Culture Media and Sport,
which could assure its future.
She explained that the Redgrave
has been recognised for its pioneering design of
amphitheatre.
This has led to the Farnham
Society giving its support to the campaign to retain
the Redgrave.
Council's opposition
However, Waverley Borough Council
remains entrenched in its position that the building
will be scrapped as part of the East Street
regeneration project.
The Council took a strategic
decision to close the theatre in 1998 following its
poor commercial fortunes, and it refuses to let the
NFRC re-open it.
Closure condemned
The theatre group's
founder and chairman, Ian Mullins, has repeatedly condemned its
closure.
He said that if it were to be
removed it would be the first modern theatre to be
demolished in the country.
Hannah Williams, of the NFRC,
said: "We have been campaigning for five years now,
so it is good to learn that there is someone
fighting on our behalf.
"I can assure you that we will
carry on fighting until the bulldozers are there on
site. We are not giving up at all."
Based on an
article that first appeared in the Farnham Herald
on 5 March 2004.
Click here to
see what the Redgrave Action Group is doing to try
and save the theatre from demolition.
Redgrave: momentum gathers for its retention.
In a
letter to the Farnham Herald Ann Cooper explains the
encouraging signs she has detected in the stance of
the East Street developer, Crest Nicholson.
Sir
The analysis of the
next public consultation exercise on east Street,
however conducted, will not leave more than a couple
of weeks for the redrawing of Master Plan III if it
is to go to Waverley’s executive on June 1. There
is an intention to drive the project through with
minimum changes and only a token gesture towards
public opinion.
However, there may be
a hitch for this fast-track train: the Redgrave
Theatre. Should the request for listing status be
granted the Secretary of State would be very
unlikely to look favourably on a subsequent request
to demolish it shortly afterwards.
Even without the
independent listing of the modern theatre building
the Redgrave is already protected under the grade II
listing of Brightwell House. The case I have
presented to the DCMS (Department of Culture Media
and Sport) would also stand as the basis for a solid
objection to any planning application which might
require its demolition.
Last week I met
representatives from the developers, Crest
Nicholson, and they repeated to me what they
have said before: that they would and could
include the Redgrave in a new master plan, even
though it would mean a new concept for the East
Street site. All they need is for Waverley to ask
them to do it. They would be anxious to improve
the exterior of the theatre and to incorporate it
sensitively into the plan.
There is a now
gathering momentum for the retention of the Redgrave
Theatre and this may literally change the landscape
of the whole East Street project. The Redgrave
Theatre, refurbished as a working theatre on the
inside and improved on the outside, could be an
asset not just for the Borough but for the whole
region. There are opportunities for creative
thinking here, both architecturally and for ways to
ensure that the theatre would have a viable future.
Minds are already focusing on this exciting
challenge.
I would urge all
supporters of the Redgrave to ensure that their
views are registered with Waverley and the
developers in the public consultation process.
Mrs Anne Cooper,
Nutshell Lane, Upper Hale.
This letter appeared
in the Farnham Herald
on 2 April 2004
However - demolition remains imminent.
The fight is by no means won and
needs your support.
Follow this
link to read more.
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