Home   Thanet   News   Article

The Theatre Royal in Margate and The Roundhouse Theatre in Dover placed on The Theatres Trust’s at-risk register 2025

Two Kent theatres have been placed on the "at risk" register following continued concerns about the safety of their buildings.

The Theatres Trust has added The Theatre Royal in Margate and The Roundhouse in Dover to its Theatres at Risk Register 2025.

The Theatre Royal in Margate
The Theatre Royal in Margate

The charity - which is the national advice and advocacy body for UK theatres - says the register highlights buildings under threat and at greatest risk across the UK due to severe structural or safety issues, or redevelopment proposals.

The Theatre Royal originally opened in 1787 and is the fourth oldest in the country, but has been closed and empty since April 2022.

Last year, Thanet District Council (TDC) unveiled plans to secure £7.5m to revamp the ramshackle theatre which once hosted the likes of Charlie Chaplin.

Fresh proposals for its future include a bar and cafe, 50-seat studio theatre, sound recording studio, rehearsal rooms/dance studio and accommodation.

The Grade II* listed building, which also featured as a chapel and cinema until 1963, was remodelled by architect Jethro Thomas Robinson in 1874. The only other auditorium designed by J.T Robinson is the world-famous The Old Vic in London.

However, since its closure, the building in Addington Street has suffered significant dilapidation and is in need of capital investment to return it to a usable space.

Dover Discovery Centre. Picture: Google
Dover Discovery Centre. Picture: Google
Campaigners previously lobbied to save Dover's only theatre. Picture: Save Our Roundhouse Theatre
Campaigners previously lobbied to save Dover's only theatre. Picture: Save Our Roundhouse Theatre

Meanwhile, Dover's Roundhouse Theatre is located within the Dover Discovery Centre - a complex constructed in the late 1980s.

The theatre was designated an Asset of Community Value in September 2021, a move opposed by Kent County Council but approved by Dover District Council (DDC).

Plans were submitted in 2022 to turn the site into office space, but DDC rejected the proposal as it did not want to wave goodbye to the theatre.

Blackfish Academy, whose lease expired in 2013, remained at the helm of the 100-seat theatre under an informal arrangement which ended in 2022. The move continues to leave Dover without key theatre provision.

A total of 44 UK theatres have been added to the list across the UK this year.

Close This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.Learn More