The Clapham Grand

The Grand (previously The Grand Theatre) is a Grade II listed building on St John's Hill, near Clapham Junction in Battersea, South London.

It was designed by Ernest Woodrow and was first opened in 1900 as The New Grand Theatre of Varieties.

The Grand continued to be a successful Music Hall and Variety venue for 40 years. In 1927, the theatre was fitted for cinema use, but remained known as The Grand Theatre, as it still mainly staged variety shows.

From May 1950, The Grand went on to become a full-time cinema, after it was purchased by the Essoldo Cinema chain, and was renamed Essoldo Cinema.

The Essoldo Cinema closed in August 1963 and became the Essoldo Bingo Club in October 1963. It was later taken over by Classic Cinemas, who renamed it Vogue Bingo Club. During this time, they built a false ceiling, cutting off the upper parts of the theatre.

From 1972 until 1979, Mecca Bingo took over as the final bingo operator. The building then remained closed until 1989 when it was bought by The Mean Fiddler group to be transformed into a live music venue which, due to licensing issues, did not open until December 1991.

During the 10-year closure between 1979 and 1989, the false ceiling was removed, and the building was restored and redecorated.

Mean Fiddler closed in July 1997 after being mostly unsuccessful as a music venue and the venue was then purchased by the pub chain J.D.Wetherspoon, which was then unable to acquire a license to serve alcohol there.

The Grand is now an independently run venue which functions as a nightclub, live music venue, theatre and event space.

Taskmaster connection

The theatre was used as the studio location for the first series of Taskmaster, with subsequent series instead using a studio set which replicates the venue's interior.

First appearance

The interior of The Clapham Grand is first seen at the start of the first episode of series 1.