St George’s Bristol celebrates its 200th birthday

St George’s Bristol, the much loved Park Street music venue, turns 200 in 2023.

Samir Savant, Chief Executive of St George’s, said, “I am excited for our 200th birthday at St George’s, Bristol this year.  Our calendar of anniversary events take the theme of ‘Past, Present and Future’, based on recognising our past, celebrating our present and looking forward to our future and the next 200 years. We hope you will join us.”

The 200th anniversary of St George’s Bristol coincides with the major Bristol 650 anniversary; 2023 marks the 650th year of Bristol being recognised as a city.

Across 2023, St George’s Bristol is celebrating its 200th birthday with a series of major events:

In April, St George’s partnered with Bristol Cathedral to gather together 650 singers to ‘Sing for the King’, in celebration of the joint 200th and 650th anniversaries, and the coronation of King Charles III. 

In June, St George’s stakeholders, members, colleagues and friends, will take part in a unique invite-only fundraising event, Midsummer Magic, to celebrate St George’s past and present, and to ensure the future of the building and the organisation.

Across the weekend of 16-17 September 2023, St George’s is opening its doors for its Big Birthday Bash, a festival-style weekend of pop-up concerts, family events, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, outdoor music, and a few surprises.

Originally built in 1823 as a church, St George’s historic building has a colourful history. During the Second World War, the church crypt served as an air raid shelter for local residents, while the hall above was hit by a bomb – which luckily didn’t explode! (There is a star-shaped light in the ceiling of the modern-day concert hall which marks the site of the impact.) St George’s underwent a transformation from church to concert hall in the 1980s when it was deconsecrated. The church’s last vicar, Canon Percy Gay, was instrumental in ensuring that the building was to become an arts venue, instead of being turned into offices or flats. Canon Gay had already begun St George’s longstanding relationship with the BBC, as well as the lunchtime concert series – both of which continue to this day. In April 2023, St George’s received a blue plaque commemorating Canon Gay’s work and his love of the arts. 

Having undertaken a landmark extension project in 2018 to increase the venue’s capacity and create new performance spaces as well as a new Café Bar, St George’s Bristol welcomes hundreds of musical and spoken word events and over 73,000 audience members through its doors every year. 2023 has also seen the launch of St George’s ‘Past, Present and Future’ fundraising campaign as it looks to the next 200 years as a centre for music, sound and culture in Bristol. Alongside this exciting new initiative, St George’s board has also welcomed 7 new trustees, who bring with them a diverse range of skills and experience.