The End of An Era


A great end to the weekend and the end of an Era. I met Dale at 6pm for a pre-theatre supper at the always reliable Tampopo. Tampopo are a canteen style restaurant serving quality fast food from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philipines, Japan and Korea. The chain started in Manchester and is starting to spread throughout the UK. They have always catered for vegans, including 3 dessert options and the menu is labelled accordingly.


After eating we headed for the Library Theatre. This Manchester institution opened it's doors 58 years ago and last night the curtain fell on the final night of the final production (The Importance of Bring Earnest) at this venue. The theatre is in the basement of the iconic Manchester Central Library. The library itself closed a few months ago for some major refurbishment work and will reopen in 2013. I've seen lots of productions at the Library Theatre over the years, including one of the best pieces of theatre I've ever seen anywhere.

So, tonight was the Library Theatre's send off. A gala evening of hits past and present with performances and speeches from the likes of Richard Griffiths and Patrick Stewart. It's so strange to think I will go past my favourite building everyday but I can't go in it for several years. And the Library Theatre? Unlike the library itself it won't return. For the next few years it will stage shows in the Quays Theatre at The Lowry. Then in 4 years time in 2014, it will move to it's new home, Manchester's oldest surviving theatre, and a bingo hall and nightclub since the 1970s, The Theatre Royal.



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