O2 Academy Newcastle

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O2 Academy Newcastle
O2 AcademyNewcastle.jpg
Former namesCarling Academy Newcastle
AddressWestgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, NE1 1SW
United Kingdom
LocationNewcastle upon Tyne, England
Coordinates54°58′13″N 1°37′07″W / 54.970411°N 1.6185073°W / 54.970411; -1.6185073Coordinates: 54°58′13″N 1°37′07″W / 54.970411°N 1.6185073°W / 54.970411; -1.6185073
OperatorAcademy Music Group
TypeMusic venue
Capacity2,000
The venue during its time as the Carling Academy from 2005 until 2008.

The O2 Academy Newcastle is a music venue in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It opened on 14 October 2005 as the Carling Academy, and was renamed for Telefónica Europe's O2 mobile network brand in 2008.[1] The venue is operated by Academy Music Group.

The O2 Academy has two rooms and can host up to 2,000 people for a show.[2] Major bands and solo musicians that have performed in the main room since 2005 include Arctic Monkeys, Adele, Katy Perry, The Libertines, Sam Smith, McFly, Blondie and Amy Winehouse.[3] The upstairs room, officially known as O2 Academy2, is smaller and hosts performances by lesser-known bands.[4] The venue has also hosted club nights, including Dirty Pop, Ikon Live and Alpha.[5][6][7]

History[]

The O2 Academy Newcastle building first opened in 1927 as the 1,870 seat New Westgate Picture House, showing its first movie – the silent film The Monkey Talks – in October of that year.[8] In 1959 the venue was renamed the Majestic Ballroom, and hosted performances by The Beatles and The Who in the 1960s.[9] It was then a Gala Bingo hall for over twenty-five years until the chain relocated the club to Byker.[2]

Academy Music Group first declared their interest in taking over the building from Newcastle City Council at the end of 2004,[10] and an entertainment licence was granted in March 2005 despite protests from local residents concerned about the noise and anti-social behaviour.[2] The official acquisition was announced the following month, with the venue confirmed as the latest member of the Carling Academy chain of venues.[11]

The Carling Academy opened on 14 October 2005 with a headline performance by Sunderland band The Futureheads and support slots from Kubichek! and Field Music.[9] The opening of the venue was called the "biggest happening on the Newcastle music scene in a decade".[12] In November an Ian Brown concert was cut short after the floor of the venue started to sag, requiring the venue to close for a short time.[13] Newcastle's Maxïmo Park played at the new venue in December, shortly after their international breakthrough with debut album A Certain Trigger.[14] Other performers in the opening months included Natalie Imbruglia, The Human League and Rooster.[12]

In 2006 the Carling Academy was one of the venues for Evolution Festival for the first time, hosting performances by Hot Chip and The Guillemots.[15] The NME Awards Tour, featuring Arctic Monkeys, We Are Scientists, Mystery Jets and Maxïmo Park, also stopped by for the first time in January.[16] Panic! At the Disco headlined at the academy in April 2006,[17] and The Killers in November.[18] In 2007 Mika performed at the height of his fame, filling the venue with giant balloons, while Amy Winehouse was an hour late for her headline performance in the same year.[3]

All of the Carling Academy venues were re-branded under the O2 Academy name in 2008 through a £22.5 million deal with brand owner Telefónica.[1] As part of the tie-in users of the O2 network were able to buy tickets for shows up to two days before non-O2 customers.[19]

Blur played a surprise show at the O2 Academy in 2009, their first appearance in Newcastle for twelve years.[20] Katy Perry performed at the venue on her Hello Katy Tour in August 2009,[21] and Adele made a much-hyped appearance in 2011.[22] The popular alternative[disambiguation needed] night Alpha moved to the O2 Academy in February 2014.[7]

On 14 October 2015 the O2 Academy celebrated its tenth birthday with a ten-band bill of local talents, headlined by the popular Little Comets.[9] Years & Years, The Prodigy, The 1975 and James Bay also sold-out the venue in the surrounding months.[23][24][25][26]

The freehold of the venue was put up for sale by Newcastle City Council in 2015 for £625,000, with reassurances that the operations of the venue would not be affected.[27] It was purchased by Electric Group, who run the Electric Brixton and SWX Bristol venues.[28] Academy Group's lease on the building expires in March 2021.[28] As of October 2020, planning documents have been submitted to Newcastle City Council by Electric for "a significant scheme of renovation and improvements before reopening as Newcastle’s premier live music venue".[28]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Sweney, Mark (6 November 2008). "O2 to sponsor Academy music venues". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Rock venue plan is given the go-ahead". Evening Chronicle. 23 March 2005. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  3. ^ a b Duke, Simon (14 October 2015). "O2 Academy Newcastle is 10: A look at the big names who've entertained". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Newcastle's music scene: where bands thrive". The Independent. 14 April 2006. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  5. ^ Duke, Simon (7 May 2016). "O2 Academy Newcastle to host Jamie Vardy Party to celebrate Leicester City title win". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  6. ^ Thompson, Craig (31 May 2016). "Man arrested after alleged Newcastle nightclub attack leaves clubber fighting for his life". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Nightlife: Alpha @ the O2". Newcastle Student Radio. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  8. ^ Grundy, Ian. "Cinema Treasures – O2 Academy Newcastle". Cinema Treasures. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  9. ^ a b c Wonfor, Sam (16 August 2015). "The O2 Academy in Newcastle prepares to celebrate its 10th birthday in style in October". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 10 July 2016.
  10. ^ "Beat may be back". Evening Chronicle. 29 December 2004. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  11. ^ Williams, Lowri (26 April 2005). "New Carling Academy to open in Newcastle". Gigwise. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  12. ^ a b Barr, Gordon (7 October 2005). "Carling all music fans". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  13. ^ "Sagging floor ends Ian Brown gig". BBC News. 22 November 2005. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  14. ^ Barr, Gordon (4 August 2005). "Trigger has shot at win". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  15. ^ "Orange Evolution 2006". Evening Chronicle. 22 May 2006. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  16. ^ "Hot U.K. Bands Set For NME Tour". Billboard. 28 November 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  17. ^ Martin, Rick (5 May 2006). "Panic! At The Disco: Carling Academy, Newcastle: Friday, April 21". NME. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  18. ^ Robinson, John (18 November 2006). "Pop music preview". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  19. ^ Bychawski, Adam (6 November 2008). "Academy Group music venues announce new partnership". NME. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  20. ^ Barr, Gordon (21 April 2009). "Blur set to play Newcastle concert after 12 years". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  21. ^ "Music Video of the Week - August 09". Evening Chronicle. 9 August 2009. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  22. ^ Barr, Gordon (12 September 2011). "What's On: Adele, O2 Academy Newcastle". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  23. ^ Duke, Simon. "Years & Years impress in Newcastle as they dazzle capacity O2 Academy crowd". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  24. ^ Barr, Gordon (13 January 2015). "The Prodigy announce gig at O2 Academy Newcastle". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  25. ^ Dunne-Miles, Matthew (3 June 2015). "The 1975 end social media blackout and announce UK tour dates". WOW247. Johnston Press. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  26. ^ Westmorland-Thornhill, Marie (28 September 2015). "Review: James Bay, O2 Academy, Newcastle". Sunderland Echo. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  27. ^ Ford, Coreena (30 June 2015). "Building housing the Newcastle O2 Academy up for sale with £625,000 guide price". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  28. ^ a b c Dickinson, Katie (2 October 2020). "O2 Academy Newcastle 'to close and be replaced with another live music venue'". The Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 2 October 2020.

External links[]

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