Listed Building: THEATRE ROYAL (1104328)

Theatre, formerly hall. Built as Landport Hall 1854, converted to theatre 1856, substantially rebuilt 1884 by CJ Phipps, reconstructed 1900 by Frank Matcham, restoration work in progress from 1980. Grey and red brick in English bond, stone dressings and iron balcony. Welsh slated hipped roof. EXTERIOR: 3-storey façade with attic at centre. 5 bays. Across front is a projecting 2-storey iron and glass shelter with curved ends, arcaded with 5 fretted round-arched openings, flanking paired and enriched iron Corinthian columns, basket arched opening at each end, moulded iron cornice. On first floor are 5 paired windows each with two 2-leaf fixed casements set under round iron arch with centre dividing column and flanking paired pilasters, ornate patterned aprons. On left and right return and to each of the recessed flanking curved wings is a similar round-headed casement with fretted iron balustraded balcony; band cornice and similar balustrade over with splayed rooflight over centre 3 bays. Ground floor façade is faced in black marble and has six 2-leaf entrance doors with fanlight; each leaf has 2 moulded lower panels, 2 oval middle panels and glazed upper panel. Plasterwork above imposts has decorated panels. First floor has rusticated stone quoin strips, moulded band then fluted stone Corinthian pilasters to quoins and flanking the centre 3 bays to second floor. On each side of iron rooflight, high level first floor, is a 2-leaf casement set under flat stone arch with flanking paired pilasters, moulded band, moulded stone head panel and second floor sillband between pilasters. Second floor has five 2-leaf 6-pane casements each with stone architrave and pediment. Entablature and moulded stone eaves cornice. Centre 3 bays have facing stone dentilled pediment with relief carvings within tympanum and at centre is a half round fixed attic casement with moulded stone architrave and keystone. INTERIOR: decoration of 1900 is intact and unaltered with nautical theme having seafaring emblems such as ships prows between the boxes, Dolphin's anchors and mermaids, life belts and shells on the dress circle with military emblems on the upper circle. (Balfour A: Portsmouth: London: 1070-: 67; Lloyd DW: Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs: Portsmouth: 1974-: 109, 110, 111; The Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Lloyd DW: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight: Harmondsworth: 1967-: 460). Selected Sources Books and journals Balfour, A, Portsmouth, (1970), 67 Lloyd, D W , Buildings of Portsmouth and its Environs, (1974), 109-111 Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, (1967), 460