The Starlight Room and entrance block

Summary

A 1963-1964 dancehall with earlier entrance block of 1960 to the north.

Reasons for Designation

The Starlight Room and entrance block of 1960-1964 are listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* as a good example of a late-era dancehall with a deliberately modest exterior giving no indication of the luxury and glamour within;
* the Starlight Room retains its maple sprung dancefloor, revolving stage, gallery and balustrade, open-tread stairs and fixed seating which are good-quality examples of 1960s design.

Historic interest:

* as an extremely rare survival of an early 1960s dancehall, a once common building type particularly prone to alteration, retaining a remarkably high proportion of its original features;
* as a remnant of the once popular pastime of dancing, of importance to the nation’s cultural and social history in the C20.

History

In the mid-C20 dancing was one of the most popular pastimes for Britons: in 1943 some 4 million people went dancing every week. Between 1920 and 1960 up to 500 dancehalls were licenced and operating full time, although not all were purpose built. During the Second World War, dancehalls were initially closed by the government but when the feared blitzkrieg failed to materialise, they were reopened with shorter and earlier dances due to planned blackouts. Dancing proved popular with service personnel on leave and particularly with American servicemen who were relatively affluent and many were expert dancers.

The Gliderdrome in Boston was originally opened as an open-air roller-skating rink in 1939, with dances swiftly introduced on Wednesday nights. Soon after, a roof was added so that dances could be held more regularly. The dances proved particularly popular with large numbers of British and American airmen who were stationed in the area. The building was destroyed by fire in May 1959 but was quickly rebuilt and opened again in January 1960 as a single-storey hall.

In 1963-1964 a second, much larger hall was added, known as the Starlight Room. The former dancehall was subsequently used for bingo following the passing of the Betting and Gaming Act 1960. In the early 1960s the Gliderdrome was included as part of a well-known touring circuit for pop acts and live bands, and many important artists played there with spectators travelling from all over the country on bigger nights. In 1969 a low-ceiling nightclub was added to the west, known as the Richmond Bar, which inhabited a neighbouring former-industrial building. When constructed the bar included gaming tables and cabaret; some fittings including a small cabaret bar, were removed in the late-C20. Vandalism eventually forced the owners to also use the Starlight Room for bingo from the mid-1970s onwards. The Starlight Room was restored in 1995-1996 and at this time the ceiling fairy lights which gave the room its name were removed due to the failure of a fire test. The hanging-lantern light fittings within the Starlight Room have recently been removed (2021).

Details

A 1963-1964 dancehall with earlier entrance block of 1960 to the north.

MATERIALS: constructed of brick in stretcher bond with a tiled roof. The Starlight Room roof is covered in corrugated sheeting.

PLAN: the Gliderdrome is arranged as a series of single-storey buildings. The entrance block is at its centre with the 1963 Starlight Room located to its south, orientated north-south.

EXTERIOR: the entrance block with six glazed double-doors stands at the centre of the principal (west) elevation. The entrance is covered by a projecting flat-canopy with a series of glazing above and below. To the south of the main entrance, the link block meets the Starlight Room with a wide-arching roof.

INTERIOR: the entrance block opens to a lobby area with a tiled northern wall. The lobby leads to an entrance foyer with toilet facilities and a canteen beyond to the east.

The Starlight Room is accessed at the southern end of the entrance hall and is a vast double-height hall containing a large sprung, maple dancefloor with star motifs. The dancefloor measures approximately 90 by 50ft and can hold dances for up to 2000 people. A bar with timber cladding to the rear wall occupies most of the wall-space at the northern end of the hall, punctuated centrally by a stair to access the gallery above. At the southern end of the room is the stage with a circular revolving floor in situ, although this no longer functions. The stage partition to allow bands to set up discretely so that there was continuous playing of music has been removed. To the west, east and north sides of the room is a first-floor gallery with alternating bronzed lozenge-balusters. The gallery is supported by a series of slender piers with timber cladding. Original fixed bench-seating survives both on the first-floor gallery and in the seating areas below. Three open-tread stairs with matching balustrades provide access to the gallery at the north, west and east ends of the room. Accessed via the gallery, to the right hand of the stage, is a small control room at first-floor level with lighting and controls for the revolving stage. The backstage area with dressing rooms is accessed via the left hand of the stage. At the west end of the room doors access the low-ceiling Richmond Bar.

The Richmond Bar and the original dancehall to the north of the entrance hall which has been converted to a bingo hall are not included in the listing.

Sources

Books and journals
Nott, J, Going to the Palais, A Social and Cultural History of Dancing and Dance Halls in Britain, 1918-1960, (2015)

Websites
Boston Gliderdrome, January 2015, accessed 28 April 2021 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Di5dqgLu4rI
The Gliderdrome, 'Gliderdrome History', accessed 28 April 2021 from https://www.thegliderdrome.com/gliderdrome-history/

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