- Ulster Hall
The Ulster Hall ( _ga. Halla Uladh) is a
concert hall and grade B1listed building inBelfast ,Northern Ireland .Situated on Bedford Street in
Belfast City Centre , the hall stagesconcert s, classicalrecital s and political party's conferences.Originally built in
1859 , the hall's purpose was to give the expanding city of Belfast a multi-purpose venue of sufficient size. Designed byWilliam J. Barre , who is also responsible for the Albert Clock, the hall includes one of the oldest examples of a functioning classic Englishpipe organ . "The Mulholland Grand Organ" is named in honour of a formerLord Mayor of Belfast, Andrew Mulholland, who donated it to the hall. It was built by William Hill and extensively restored in the late1970s , to Hill's own original design. Mullholland's great-grandson, Michael Henry Mulholland, 5thBaron Dunleath , oversaw the restoration.Lord Randolph Churchill called for opposition to Home Rule in the hall in 1886 andUlster Resistance was launched there in 1986. However in 2002 Sinn Fein held a rally in the hall.Until
2005 , the adjoining smaller hall was used as the Group Theatre. Controversially, the theatre is to be converted into a bar in2007 . The conversion is part of a £7m refurbishment by architect and Everest mountaineer Dawson Stelfox. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6730955.stm BBC News] ] The hall's capacity is 1,850. [ [http://www.worldstadia.com/ws/show-page.php?menuCommand=stadium&menuData=1264 worldstadia.com] ] Despite the opening of larger concert halls such as theWaterfront Hall and the Odyssey in the city, the Ulster Hall is still popular, seen to have much more atmosphere than the newer venues.The hall is now owned by
Belfast City Council . The venue is notable for being the first place in whichLed Zeppelin played their iconic song "Stairway to Heaven ", on March 5, 1971.References
External links
* [http://www.ulsterhall.co.uk Official site]
* [http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/ulsterhall/index.asp?menuitem=history Belfast City Council - About Ulster Hall]
* [http://www.culturenorthernireland.org/article.aspx?art_id=159 Ulster Hall £74.3m Refurbishment - CultureNorthernIreland.org meets the architects]
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