Looking past the scheduled monuments façade shows the new stair leading to the first floor
Cinema interior
Section
First floor plan
Old Market Hall
Lying within a giant loop of the River Severn, the historic town of Shrewsbury boasts over 660 listed buildings. Standing at the centre of the town square, its cultural and economic focal point, is an arcaded English Renaissance market hall—The Old Market Hall.
Dating back to 1596, this Scheduled Ancient Monument was built and used as a cloth and wool market until 1870, when it was converted into a magistrates’ and latterly a coroners’ court. Our brief from Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council was to relocate Shrewsbury’s art-house cinema to the Old Market Hall and create a cultural focal point for the town.
The restoration and conversion of the two-storey stone building to a cinema/digital media centre was a radical but sensitive re-working of this Grade I listed structure. Alongside the intimate 81-seat cinema is a café bar and cultural space for evening entertainment. The building is open seven days a week, with cinema seats regularly sold out.
| Client | Shrewsbury & Atcham Borough Council |
|---|---|
| Location | Shrewsbury |
| Size | 295 sq m |
| Status | Completed 2003 |
| Awards | Design & Heritage Award 2004 |
| Team |
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