G Live is an arts centre in

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

, England. The venue was officially opened by Prince Edward,

Duke of Kent Duke of Kent is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of King George V. Since 1942, the title has been held by Prince Edwar ...

in February 2012.

Background

Guildford Civic Hall Guildford Civic Hall was an arts and entertainment venue in Guildford, Surrey, England. Opened in 1962, it closed in January 2004,

was the town's main arts and entertainment venue. It closed in January 2004 and was replaced on the same site by the new live entertainment and conference venue, G Live, which opened in September 2011. The new building incorporates 80% of the structural material from its predecessor. The venue cost £26m. G Live is operated by HQ Theatres Limited Guildford on behalf of Guildford Borough Council. The name was chosen by local members of the public.

Facilities

The venue has a main auditorium with a capacity of 1000 seated or 1700 for standing events, a 100 seat studio theatre, known as the Bellerby Studio, and also conference rooms.

2013 accident

On Saturday morning, 9 February 2013, a tour manager from the singing group

Fisherman's Friends The Fisherman's Friends are a folk music group from Port Isaac, Cornwall, who sing sea shanties. They have been performing locally since 1995, and signed a record deal with Universal Music in March 2010. Whilst essentially an a cappella group, ...

was killed by a falling metal door at the venue. The group were due to have performed at the venue. One of the singers of the group also suffered critical injuries when the door fell and later also died in hospital. In November 2015 David Naylor, 56, from

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079. Histor ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

, was charged with two counts of manslaughter by gross negligence. In November 2016, Naylor was cleared of manslaughter, and Express Hi-Fold Doors Limited was fined £30,000 for breaches of health and safety laws.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Arts centres in England Theatres in Surrey 2011 establishments in England Buildings and structures in Guildford