About the Hippodrome Casino
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The Hippodrome has been a casino since 2012, and the theatre on its first floor was rebuilt in 2018 for Magic Mike Live, with the stage pushed out into the audience and tables round it. A different show could bring a different layout.
The building itself goes back to 1900. Frank Matcham designed it for the impresario Edward Moss, and it opened on 15 January 1900 as a circus, with a 100,000 gallon water tank under the arena for shows on water. It's Grade II listed, and it's run by Hippodrome Casino Limited.
Circus, variety and the Talk of the Town
Matcham turned it into a music hall and variety theatre in 1909. Houdini appeared here in 1904, England got its first look at Swan Lake here in 1910, when its second act was staged, and a 12-year-old Julie Andrews made her professional debut here in 1947.
The Talk of the Town took over in 1958, a dinner-theatre nightclub built inside once Matcham's interior had been stripped out. Judy Garland, Shirley Bassey, Sammy Davis Jnr and Stevie Wonder all performed there. After it closed in 1983, Peter Stringfellow ran the place as a nightclub and put the Hippodrome name back up. The Thomas family took it on in 2009, and the casino opened on 13 July 2012.
Notable past shows
- Houdini (1904)
- Swan Lake, Act 2 (1910), the first time any of it was performed in England
- Julie Andrews's professional stage debut (1947), aged 12
- The Talk of the Town (1958 to 1983), with Judy Garland's residency
- La Clique (2008 to 2009), the Olivier Award-winning burlesque show
How big is the theatre compared with other London theatres?
With around 330 seats it's a small theatre, and with tables round a stage that comes out into the audience, it's closer to a cabaret club than a traditional theatre.
Other venues of similar size
- Donmar Warehouse, 251 seats round a stage with the audience on three sides, in Seven Dials
- Dorfman Theatre, up to 450 seats, laid out differently for each show, at the National Theatre
- Kit Kat Club, 649 seats in the round for Cabaret, with tables beside the stage
About FAQs
Who owns the Hippodrome Casino?
Hippodrome Casino Limited, a family business run by the Thomases, who took on the building in 2009 and opened the casino in 2012.
Did Peter Stringfellow own the Hippodrome?
He ran it as a nightclub from 1983, after The Talk of the Town closed, and it was Stringfellow who brought back the Hippodrome name.
When was the Hippodrome built?
It opened on 15 January 1900, designed by Frank Matcham as a circus theatre. The original interior was taken out in 1958, and the theatre you sit in today was built for Magic Mike Live in 2018.