Frank Matcham's Grade II* music hall, built in 38 weeks for Oswald Stoll and opened 9 December 1901; survived as a TV studio and bingo hall before Tim Ronalds' £17m restoration reopened it in 2004.
Location
Map
Insider Intel
Look For
The 1901 electric-lit, steel-cantilevered structure behind the Edwardian exuberance, and the 2004 brick fly tower with giant letters spelling HACKNEY EMPIRE.
Best Time
An evening show is the way to see the auditorium; the pantomime season (Nov–Jan) is the local institution.
Know Before You Go
Interior only accessible with a ticket to a performance; no regular public tours are advertised on the site. Hackney Central and Hackney Downs stations are 5 minutes' walk.