The Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall have been part of the fabric of Belfast’s live entertainment scene and night-time economy for as long as we can remember; from the Grand Old Dame of Bedford Street first opening her doors in 1862, to U2 playing at Belfast’s infamous ‘Yes’ concert in 1997, people have been making memories at the venues ever since.
Whether you were at the Led Zeppelin concert in 1971 at the Ulster Hall when the iconic ‘Stairway to Heaven’ was debuted or became the envy of your Instagram following at Biffy Clyro’s Unplugged gig at Waterfront Hall in 2018, you will know better than most about that spine-tingling feeling live entertainment creates. The Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall are renowned for delivering world-class events, but it is the people that are at the heart of the emotional connections and live experiences.
The city of Belfast is facing unprecedented times, the current global pandemic of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has resulted in many businesses temporarily closing their doors. The entertainments industry also finds itself facing challenging times. Temporarily closing the venues’ doors to visitors means temporarily not being able to create lifelong memories and ‘I Was There When’ moments at Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall gigs.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom at two of Belfast’s most iconic venues; the team have been working hard behind the scenes to reschedule the majority of shows to take place when it is safe to do so.
Music will fill the air again in the iconic venues at some of the biggest gigs of 2020; Belfast will bring worldwide stars to its stage with Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott, Nathan Carter, Kerry Ellis and many more already rescheduled for later in the year. The venues look forward to welcoming all music lovers back very soon to enjoy once again the atmosphere of a bustling crowd as they make their way to listen to their favourite artist.
If there is one thing the world is missing right now, it’s laughter in the belly, and as all comedians will say, there is no better audience than a Belfast audience. The streets of Belfast will be filled with laughter again as Blindboy, Milton Jones, Iain Stirling and many more comedy acts have all been rescheduled to later in the year and into 2021.
If you’ve had to break the news that Peppa wasn’t coming to Belfast, you can brighten their faces again as Mummy Pig, Daddy Pig, Peppa and George are still going out on their Best Day Ever in January 2021!
Iain Bell, Interim Chief Executive, commented on the venue closure saying:
‘I look forward to a time when we’re able to come together again to create and deliver incredible live event experiences. Until then, please take care of yourselves, your families and your communities. We often use the phrase, ‘when we win, everyone wins’ and by playing our part as individuals and teams, I am certain we will be able to overcome this, which will truly be a win for all.’
Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall are committed to bringing the best in live entertainments to Belfast – while the venues are temporarily on pause, rest assured the Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall will be there to welcome all visitors in the near future when it is safe to do so, to continue creating those ‘I Was There When’ moments.
May we never take for granted the little things in life; meeting a friend for coffee, birthday celebrations, dining in your favourite restaurant, the cheer from the crowd as they welcome their favourite artist on stage. Belfast is #inthistogether and it is just a short delay in bringing those world-class acts to the Waterfront Hall and Ulster Hall stages.
