Heritage

Raising the curtain on history

The main Grand Opera House building stands on the site of former circus buildings. The site's owner, Joseph Warden, was quick to see the potential of the site with its central location and close-by transport networks, and felt it right to create a new opera house in Belfast. He enlisted the help of Frank Matcham, widely considered to be one of the greatest and most prolific theatre architects of all time, to design his new theatre. Matcham got to work and the Grand Opera House Theatre and Cirque, as it was then known, opened to the public in 1895 with the pantomime, Bluebeard.

Victorian engineering at its finest

“This house has been erected under the supervision of the eminent theatrical architect, Mr Frank Matcham, from plans prepared by him. The building is one of the finest and most extensive in the United Kingdom and it is estimated will accommodate 3,500.”

- Extract from the prospectus for the New Grand Opera Circus and Cirque, published by Warden Ltd (1895)

From 1896's opening season to its restoration in 1970 and again in 2020, the Grand Opera House has proudly stood as part of the Belfast skyline, weathering many storms and welcoming numerous famous faces across the years including greats like Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy and Judi Dench, to name just a few.