This month’s catch up…
Another Soho music venue closes
With ever increasing rents, rising
business rates and ongoing
redevelopment plans for Soho,
Borderline has taken the decision
to close the venue by 31 August.
Owners DHP Family announced
their intention to reinvest into
the other areas of its venue
portfolio with £1m earmarked
for work on the Thekla in Bristol;
the upcoming 40th anniversary
for the iconic Rock City in
Nottingham and work underway
to open its first Birmingham
venue. Meanwhile, The Garage in
Islington has just won protection
from the council’s local plan
following a campaign to safeguard
its future.
Managing director George
Akins said: “This has been a
06
difficult decision, but given
intentions by the landlord to
increase the rent significantly
for a second time since we took
it over in 2016 as well as plans to
redevelop the building housing
the Borderline, we now know the
venue doesn’t have a long term
future.
“We’ve put our all into
trying to revive this iconic
venue but unfortunately, it has
been impossible to turn into a
sustainable operation due to so
many external factors. This is a sad
day for all of us who love live music
and believe in grassroots venues.”
DHP have retained the
Borderline name and will be
considering opportunities to
relocate.
All-English Champions League
Final prompts ticketing madness
The UK might be leaving Europe, but English football
clubs have demonstrated an uncanny resolve to remain,
with Tottenham Hotspur facing Liverpool FC in the
UEFA Champions League Final on 1 June, and Arsenal
taking on Chelsea in the UEFA Europa League final on
29 May.
This unprecedented turn of events has promoted
some disruptive event and ticketing activity. UEFA has
warned that fans who’ve paid thousands of pounds for
tickets online could be turned away at the turnstiles.
Indeed, secondary sites have tickets listed at up to
£45,000.
Meanwhile, fans of the band Muse have revealed their
conflicting loyalties, after it was announced that the
venue at which the rock band are playing, the London
Stadium, will not be screening the Champions League
Final. Tickets for the date are now retailing online for as
little as £35.
There’s also been uproar on Twitter over bars and
venues charging for tickets to watch the finals. On
Facebook, Julie Kate Edwards said: “How dare they
charge fans ... I wouldn’t go anywhere that has the cheek
to charge, especially when bar prices for plastic cupped
warm drinks are astronomical anyway.”
With preparations for the Rugby League World Cup
2021 and 2022 Commonwealth Games underway and
at a critical stage for other international competitions
including Tokyo 2020 and Pan American Games, these
issues will remain on the agenda long into the future.
The issues surrounding major events will also be
discussed at the Major Events International’s June
Summit, Villa Park, Birmingham, 26-27 June. Mash
Media, an MEI partner, has secured a limited number of
discounted places. The Summit will facilitate knowledge
transfer and present an opportunity for suppliers to
demonstrate their ambition to be involved.