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Frank Matcham

January 01, 1970

Francis Matcham (22 November 1854 – 17 May 1920)[1] was an English architect who specialised in the design of theatres and music halls. He worked extensively in London, predominantly under Moss Empires for whom he designed the Hippodrome in 1900, Hackney Empire (1901), Coliseum (1903) and Palladium (1910). His last major commission before retirement was the Victoria Palace (1911) for the variety magnate Alfred Butt. During his 40-year career, Matcham was responsible for the design and construction of over 90 theatres and the redesign and refurbishment of a further 80 throughout the United Kingdom.

Matcham, c. 1900

Matcham was born in Newton Abbot, Devon, where he became apprenticed at the age of 14 to the architect George Soudon Bridgman. Matcham moved to London, aged 21, where he joined the architectural practice of J. T. Robinson, who was to become his father-in-law. Under Robinson, Matcham completed his first solo design, the Elephant and Castle Theatre, which opened in June 1879. He took over the business on Robinson's death and continued the designs of various provincial theatres. He formed his own practice, Matcham & Co., in the 1880s and enlisted skilled craftsmen. His first major association came in the 1880s when he was employed to design and refurbish theatres belonging to the Revill family who owned many of the theatres throughout the United Kingdom.

Matcham's most successful period was between 1892 and 1912 when he worked extensively for Moss Empires, a theatre building business headed by Edward Moss and run by Oswald Stoll. Under them, Matcham completed 21 theatres, including three in London, with the rest being in the provinces. Also during this period, although not with Moss Empires, he completed the designs for the Tower Ballroom at Blackpool Tower, Grand Theatre, Blackpool, both in 1894, and the County Arcade, Leeds, in 1900. The author Iain Mackintosh, writing for the Dictionary of National Biography in 1993, describes Matcham's theatre interiors to be superior when compared to the building's external designs. Matcham's use of cantilevers for the galleries allowed him to discontinue the use of columns, which would otherwise obstruct the audience's view of the stage. The auditorium decorations were often mixed with Tudor strap-work, Louis XIV detail, Anglo-Indian motifs, naval and military insignia, rococo panels, classical statuary, and baroque columns.

Matcham retired to Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, shortly before the First World War, where he died of a heart attack, brought about by a blood infection, in 1920. His biographer Brian Walker notes from the architect's personal archives that he was "a man of remarkable vigour and had an enthusiasm for life ... he possessed a tranquility of mind and a great sense of humour and fun."[2]

Early life edit

 
Of the two centre buildings; the Matchams' house in Union Street, Torquay (left), with the Bridgemans' on the right

Francis Matcham was born on 22 November 1854 in Newton Abbot, Devon.[1][3] He was the second of nine children and the eldest son of Charles Matcham (1826–1888), a brewer, and his wife, Elizabeth née Lancaster (1830–1905).[4][n 1] In 1857 Charles Matcham moved his family to Union Street, Torquay, and secured a job as a manager of a brewery and a malthouse.[3] Frank was educated at Babbacombe School, in Babbacombe, Torquay.[1]

Matcham showed an early interest in architecture and became apprenticed at the age of 14 to George Soudon Bridgman, a local architect.[1][6][n 2] The apprenticeship lasted 18 months until Matcham was offered a job at a quantity surveyor's office in London in around 1868.[12] Working in the capital allowed Matcham to study with different architectural professionals. His training under a quantity surveyor[1] taught him how to draw up estimates of cost, interact with building contractors, and introduced him to complex calculations, something which he was unlikely to have been taught at school.[13] He also learnt the importance of working to tight schedules imposed by demanding customers.[14]

 
The Gaiety Theatre in the Strand, a building from which Matcham took inspiration as a student

In his spare time, Matcham visited many of London's buildings but took a particular liking to theatres and music halls. A building of special interest to him was the newly completed Gaiety Theatre in the Strand, designed by Charles J. Phipps. Matcham was impressed at Phipps's ability to build a normal-sized theatre on a small, awkward plot, and it is probable that Matcham gained inspiration from the Gaiety in some of his later buildings which were also built on restricted plots of land.[13] It is not known how long Matcham spent in London, although it was not uncommon for an architect to take up to six years to become qualified. The theatre historian Görel Garlick estimates that Matcham spent three years in the capital during this time, which would seem probable as by 1871 Matcham was back in Torquay and again under the guidance of Bridgeman, this time as his chief assistant. Bridgeman was eager to take advantage of Matcham's experience in London and asked him to help on the redesign of the Lyceum Theatre in Torquay.[13][15]

Isaac Singer, the American businessman, moved from France to Devon in late 1871. His intention was to buy a large property in the English countryside for his family. His attempt at buying Isambard Kingdom Brunel's estate was unsuccessful and instead, he purchased the Fernham Estate, in Torbay, on which Oldway Mansion was eventually built.[16] Singer commissioned Bridgeman's office to undertake the design and instructed that a theatre be built within the house, long since demolished.[17] Garlick considers it entirely possible that Matcham was given responsibility for the design of the theatre because of his educational experiences in London. Singer spared no cost in terms of Oldway Mansion's construction; he sourced the finest materials from around the world and instructed Bridgeman to design the interior in an exuberant French style. Garlick notes that it was highly likely that Singer's exuberance would have influenced someone as architecturally impressionable as Matcham whose later theatres also used extravagant decoration.[18]

Entry into the Robinson family business edit

In around 1875, soon after the completion of Singer's house, Matcham secured a job with J. T. Robinson's office in London.[19][n 3] The employment allowed Matcham to become more familiar with what Matcham's biographer Brian Mercer Walker calls, "theatre design of a high order".[10] Matcham's time under Robinson was brief; Robinson died unexpectedly at the family home in Bloomsbury Square, London, in 1877, shortly after Matcham's marriage to Robinson's daughter, Maria, on 9 July.[1] Matcham was entrusted by the family to continue with Robinson's designs which included the refurbishment of the Elephant and Castle Theatre,[1] as well as the modifications to the Cambridge Music Hall in Shoreditch.[21]

By the mid-1870s around 137 theatre fires had been reported in the United Kingdom which prompted parliament to create the Metropolis Management and Building Act (1878) which established safety rules for developers to adhere to. Matcham found the rules to be problematic; because of them, the Elephant and Castle Theatre project had to be extended by six months.[22]

Matcham's designs for the Grand Theatre, Islington
 
The stage with unobstructed sight lines
 
Interior layout
 
Cross section

In 1882 Matcham took on the redesign of the Grand Theatre in Islington. It was an important project for him: it was the first to be designed using unobstructed sightlines to the stage and was notable for its holding capacity, and prompt construction, something for which he latterly became known in architectural circles. The Grand was revolutionary in its design; it was used as an educational showpiece to amateur architects and it was often visited and commented on by architectural critics and journalists.[23] In one of the three volumes, entitled Modern Opera Houses and Theatres, which were published between 1896 and 1898, the author Edwin Sachs made reference to the Grand's "good sighting and acoustics of the auditorium, economy of space and cost, and rapidity of execution".[24] Matcham's improvement of sightlines were a result of his use of cantilevered steel. This new design allowed for the balconies to protrude into the auditorium without the use of the supporting pillars which increased seating capacity and gave the audience better views of the stage. It was a design that Matcham patented and incorporated into all his future theatrical designs.[25]

The Paragon in Mile End, East London, in 1882, was Matcham's next major project. The design was one of importance, according to Walker, as it showed a great emphasis on the ventilation system—the first of its kind—which used a sun burner in the roof and warm air ducts, 6 feet (1.8 metres) above ground level, which emitted draughts.[26] The builders of the theatre, Crowder and Payne, advertised the venue as being "the best-ventilated theatre in London".[27] It opened in May the following year to much praise for its achievements in audience comfort.[28] The success of the Paragon allowed Matcham to open up his own office in Belfast in 1884.[26]

Work under the Revills edit

 
James Elliston, proprietor of the Theatre Royal and Opera House, Stockport

Outside of London, and prior to 1886, Matcham only had two designs commissioned, both in Glasgow: Hengler's Grand Cirque and the Royalty Theatre.[29] In 1879 he started work on the redesign of the Royalty,[30] a playhouse originally designed by James Thomson and one that had been built on the first floor of a four-storey building. The layout was problematic and Matcham had to make a series of adjustments. To compensate, he designed a ventilation system which involved the installation of an exhaust duct over the auditorium gas light which caused the heat from the burners to rise up and create a movement of air through the theatre. It was a design that he also used on the Gaiety, Matcham's second Glaswegian theatre. The Royalty took just four weeks to complete and was relatively inexpensive, two factors that helped enhance his reputation.[23]

Matcham met the actor and theatrical manager James Elliston in 1886.[n 4] Elliston, a native of Edinburgh, had heard of the architect through his work in Glasgow and commissioned him to reconstruct the side boxes and gallery and to improve the acoustics and ventilation system at his theatre, the Theatre Royal, Blackburn. Through Elliston, Matcham was introduced to William J. Revill, the proprietor of the People's Temperance Hall in Stockport.[31] The Revill family were influential in theatrical circles with their connection to the stage going back to the 18th century.[32]

Revill contracted Matcham to draw up designs for a new building after the hall was destroyed by a fire in 1887. The new building, as with most of the Revill family's theatres, was to be named the Theatre Royal and Opera House; it was completed to schedule the following year. The finished structure was considered to be state of the art by the town's magistrates who granted an entertainments licence that June.[n 5] The Era considered the new building to be "undoubtedly one of the finest theatres in the country".[34] According to the biographer Michael Sell, Matcham's relationship with Elliston helped the young architect to become a nationally recognisable name in theatrical architecture and brought him to the forefront of his profession.[31]

Matcham was commissioned in 1888 by Revill's son, the theatre manager Wallace Revill, to design a new theatre on land he had purchased in St Helens, Lancashire. The new theatre was named the Theatre Royal and Opera House. It was constructed of brick with stone dressings and comprised an orchestra pit, stalls, a dress circle of three rows, an upper circle, which had the unusual feature of its own retiring rooms, and a very large gallery which allowed for unobstructed views. The entrance façade was built in the classical style with three wide bays of giant pilasters.[35] On the theatre's opening night the following year, Elliston called the building "one of the most beautiful theatres [he] had ever seen".[36]

 
King's Theatre, Glasgow (1904) built for Howard & Wyndham.
 
King's Theatre, Southsea (1907), Matcham's last building for the Revill family.

In addition to the Stockport theatre under Revill, Matcham received another commission from Elliston, this time to rebuild the Theatre Royal and Opera House, in Bolton, which had caught fire on 4 January 1888. Elliston's only requirement was for the building to be completed within a 20-week period, which Matcham honoured. The foundation stone was laid by the actor Henry Irving on 17 October, a month before its opening. Owing to the large numbers of people who died in a similar theatre fire in Exeter the previous year, Matcham improved the safety features, such as fireproofing the ceilings and walls; widening and straightening the staircases; using outwardly opening doors; installing hydrants on each floor; and hanging an automatic, fireproof curtain in the auditorium.[37] The interior was decorated in terracotta and gold tints and the seats covered in crimson upholstery.[38]

Other theatres followed for the Revill family who had by now employed Matcham full-time to work on their projects. Bury and Rochdale, then both in Lancashire, were to get their own Theatre Royal and Opera House with the Rochdale building being a renovation of an existing building. The Bury theatre opened on 26 December 1889 with a pantomime production. The theatre lacked interior decoration as Matcham had been behind schedule. He made a rare appearance, on stage, that night, and assured the audience that during a fortnight's closure he would complete the designs. To compensate for the lateness, he took the unusual step of sub-contracting the auditorium's artwork out to a London-based sculptor.[39][n 6]

The following year Matcham was contracted by Frederick Purcell, a member of the extended Revill family,[41] to undertake the renovations of his theatre that had caught fire the year before. Matcham was afforded the benefit of being able to use the existing building, which increased the possibility of his being able to finish the project on time.[42] The same year, The Grand Cirque and Amphitheatre opened in Bolton. Matcham's design allowed for it to be used as a circus and a theatre and for the venue to be changed between the two in a few hours. It was decorated in the Italian style and had the capacity to seat 3,200 people. The circus ring eventually fell out of favour with audiences and it was covered over.[43]

Purcell took over the family business in 1899 after the death of four of its members but only commissioned a few buildings over the next decade, including the Alexandra Theatre, Stoke Newington.[44] Matcham continued to work with Purcell until around 1908 when the latter decided to wind up the business.[45] Matcham's last design for the family, according to the historian Michael Sell, was the King's Theatre, Southsea, in 1907.[46] The architecture historian Nikolaus Pevsner called the King's Theatre "splendid" and described the theatre as having a "prominent hexagonal tower with Ionic columns and lion finials around a broad spire-like top crowned by a cupola with a replica statue of Aurora. The interior is charming and richly detailed, making full use of the tight space. Plaster figures and mouldings in Matcham's full-blown Baroque."[47]

Matcham & Co. edit

 
The auditorium at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, opened in 1891, the oldest of Matcham's existing theatres.

The establishment date of Matcham & Co. is unclear; it could originate from when Matcham established his office in Belfast in 1884 after the success of the Paragon Theatre in Mile End, or it could be a renaming of Robinson's business which Matcham took over a decade or so prior to the 1880s.[48] What is known is that it operated out of three offices in Holborn at different times. The first was in Bedford Row, between 1880 and 1886, after which it moved to 3 Great James Street. The business stayed there until 1893 when it moved again, this time to 9 Warwick Court, where it remained until after Matcham's death.[49][50] It is not known how many staff Matcham employed;[51] he worked with a regular team of assistants and craftsmen, among them, Felix De Jong, an expert in work with fibrous plaster;[52] Jonas Binns, a specialist decorator;[52] and Albert Dean, a master furnisher.[53] During their time in operation, Matcham & Co. completed around 170 theatre designs.[54][n 7] Matcham was assisted in his designs and the running of the business by the engineer R.A. Briggs and F. G. M. Chancellor, an architect.[n 8] Little is known of the working relationship between the three men, only that it was a prosperous one.[55]

Theatre boom years: 1892–1912 edit

Further information: Theatres designed by Frank Matcham

Before variety theatre, music halls were the preferred entertainment of the working-class communities in London and the provinces. Acts including George Robey and Marie Lloyd were deemed "overly racy", according to The Stage, with major theatres banning them in the interests of decency. The restrictions were brief, mainly because of the negative effect such censorship was having on audience numbers.[62] By the 1880s most music halls were either operated by amateur syndicates, who cared less about revenues and more about entertainment, or wealthy, profit-driven businessmen. Safety, in both cases, was frequently compromised, mainly down to cost, so much-needed renovations were often ignored. Music-halls had, for many years, been a hugely profitable business, but had become the subject of stringent regulations and safety controls. By 1880 covert inspections were taking place by local authorities to ensure proprietors were adhering to the safety requirements; the rules were so strict that a lot of the ageing halls, particularly those whose proprietors had little money, were forced to close.[63] Those that remained open were instructed to improve and refurbish their premises to meet expectations. The boom required competent architects who knew how theatres worked.[64][n 9]

Moss Empires and Oswald Stoll edit

From 1898 to 1910 Oswald Stoll had been the managing director of Moss Empires,[65] a theatrical entertainment circuit headed by the impresario Edward Moss, which at its height was responsible for 33 theatres around Great Britain. Matcham first worked for Moss Empires in 1892 on the Empire Palace, Edinburgh.[66] Moss was so impressed with Matcham's work that he commissioned him to design other provincial theatres over the next seven years. Matcham's work in London under the impresarios included the Empire in Hackney, and the Coliseum and Hippodrome theatres, both in Westminster. In total, Matcham was responsible for designing 21 theatres for Moss and Stoll over a 20-year period which ended with the Wood Green Empire, in 1912.[66]

London Coliseum
 
Interior view of the domed roof which helped enhance the sound
 
The balconies, which slope towards the auditorium to improve sight lines

Stoll intended the Hackney Empire to be his London headquarters, but the plan changed midway through construction when he decided to locate his offices further into central London: this caused a drastic reduction in the Empire's budget to allow extra finances for the new headquarters at the Coliseum.[67] Matcham rushed together a secondary, cheaper design of the Empire's façade and presented it to Stoll on a piece of scrap tracing paper.[68] The exterior of the Empire was a design that Matcham always loathed but was one, according to the historian Michael Sell, that demonstrated the architect's "seemingly endless powers of invention" and one that will "forever remain a landmark".[69] The auditorium is noted by Historic England as being "one of the most exuberant Matcham interiors in Britain",[70] while the historian Brian Walker called the Empire's interior "the most perfect Matcham interior in Greater London".[71] Pevsner considered the Empire to be "splendidly confident" and "among the best-surviving Edwardian variety theatres".[72]

For the Coliseum, Matcham encountered a problem; Stoll wanted the theatre to be the largest and most lavish in London.[62][73][74] Matcham was concerned that the vast size would cause a reduction in sound quality and view to the stage; accordingly, he gave particular attention to the theatre's acoustics and designed the balconies so that they sloped towards the auditorium sides, rather than the more traditional method of being supported by pilotis; Matcham pioneered the use of cantilevered steel in his designs, and took out patents to protect his work.[73] The theatre featured a revolving stage, the first of its kind in London, which allowed for imaginative ideas, including the theatre's extravagant celebrations of Derby Day, featuring guesting jockeys riding real horses, galloping against the moving revolve.[62] Backstage there were, according to Pevsner, "box-to-box telephones" and "changing rooms so that evening dress could be donned on site". The Coliseum cost £250,000 to build.[75]

 
Tower Ballroom, Blackpool, for which Matcham designed the decoration in 1894

What a room. The palette is rich cream, gold and brown. The proscenium is framed by glorious turret-like boxes topped with onion domes, while the top is crowned by enormous figures representing the Three Graces. The Wurlitzer organ faces a backdrop of a romantic seaside scene (wholly unlike Blackpool).

Nikolaus Pevsner describing the Tower Ballroom, Blackpool, in Lancashire: North, 2009.[76]

Walker called it the "fruit of close collaboration and understanding between client and architect". He further noted: "Matcham's frequently noticed skill in planning is here matched by a different kind of wizardry. Few of his contemporaries could have made so memorable an architectural statement on so short a frontage in such an unpretentious thoroughfare. It is much more impressive than, for example, the neighbouring Garrick Theatre of 1889"[77] According to the theatrical magazine The Stage, Matcham's design provided "a handsome marble staircase, the landmark tower topped by a revolving globe and an impressive range of amenities, including spacious tea-rooms on each floor, lifts to the theatre's upper levels, lavishly decorated retiring rooms, a roof-garden with a glass-domed roof and an information bureau from which messages and telegrams could be sent and where doctors might register their whereabouts in case of emergencies".[62]

Other works edit

Matcham rarely ventured away from theatres but did so on occasion. He was commissioned by the Blackpool Tower Company, a Standard Contract & Debenture Corporation, to design the decoration for the ballroom, which formed part of their entertainment complex in Blackpool, Lancashire.[78] The ballroom's interior was Matcham's only design for the complex, although Historic England consider it probable that he was also responsible for the remodelling of the circus, also within the complex, in 1900. Pevsner considered the circus to be "the largest and most elaborate theatre of its type in England" and provided the UK with a "permanent setting for a circus not available in any other resort".[76] The complex opened in 1894.[79] The same year, he completed the designs for Grand Theatre, Blackpool.[80]

The regeneration of Briggate in the 1890s, one of the oldest streets in Leeds, included the building of a number of shopping arcades to accompany the existing Thorntons Arcade, completed in 1878. Matcham designed the Cross and County Arcades for the Leeds Estate Company, between 1898 and 1900, at the northernmost part of the street.[81] At the same time as his work on the County Arcade, he designed the Empire Palace, for Moss, which was located further down Briggate.[82] He created two new streets, Queen Victoria Street and King Edward Street, which run between Briggate and Vicar Lane.[83] Matcham's buildings include 49–51 Vicar Lane; 2–24 King Edward Street and 115–120 Briggate, which consists of shops and offices within the County Arcade development.[84] The construction costs of the County Arcade were in excess of £300,000.[85][n 10] According to Walker, Matcham's biographer, the architect took on the designs for the County Arcade either because of a decline in the need for new theatres, or an attempt to try out something different. Either way, Walker considered the project to be completely out of character for Matcham who had previously displayed such energy and enthusiasm for all his designs.[86]

Together with a few public houses in London,[87][n 11] Matcham's other non-theatrical commissions include a new wing for the Royal Variety Artistes' Benevolent Fund at Brinsworth House[89] and a printing works in Southwark.[90][n 12]

Retirement and death edit

In 1910 the London Palladium was completed and opened on 26 December.[91] Designs for the Victoria Palace Theatre, for the variety magnate Alfred Butt, were already under way;[92] it opened the following November. During the design stage of the Palace, Matcham was working alongside Bertie Crewe for a new Hippodrome in Bristol which was to become Matcham's last major design.[91] The inter-war period was slow for theatrical architects and builders, mainly because of the introduction of cinema, and many of the theatres that had been designed in Matcham's office were now becoming picture houses.[93] Matcham & Co.'s projects had started to slow down by 1913; that year, the only theatrical venture was the Palace Theatre, in Leicester.[94]

 
Matcham's house in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex

Matcham retired to Westcliff-on-Sea with his wife shortly before the First World War[95] and left the running of the business to Chancellor and Briggs.[58] He died at his house, 28 Westcliff Parade,[96] on 17 May 1920.[1] His death was attributed to blood poisoning, brought about from cutting his finger nails too short.[97] The funeral took place at St. Paul's Church, Finchley, before his interment in the family vault[98] in Highgate Cemetery.[99] He left an estate worth £86,389[100] (£3,690,000 in 2021 adjusted for inflation).[101] Matcham bequeathed his company, equally, to Briggs and Chancellor.[51] A journalist for The Architect newspaper predicted that the business would continue,[50] which it did, although it never achieved the same success as it did under Matcham. Upon the outbreak of the Second World War, Chancellor retired and moved to the countryside, where he died in 1941.[58] Briggs held the business in a dormant state until after the war when it was sold to a property agency in Covent Garden. It continued, on a small scale, until it was eventually wound up in the late 1970s.[58]

Personal life edit

 
Matcham's younger brother, Charles

Matcham was a devoted if frequently absent husband and father. He married Maria Robinson, the daughter of his tutor, J. T. Robinson, on 9 July 1877 at St. James's Church, Pentonville.[n 13] They had two daughters; Eveline, who was born in 1878,[2] and Constance, in 1884.[4] In an interview with Vanity Fair, Matcham listed an interest in music but admitted that although he owned a Stradivarius violin, he "wasn't particularly good with it".[2] Another hobby was amateur dramatics and the Matchams would perform minor pieces at their address in Dollis Avenue, Finchley, for the entertainment of their neighbours. From a review of Matcham's personal archives, Walker concludes that the architect was "a man of remarkable vigour and enthusiasm for life ... he possessed a tranquility of mind and a great sense of humour and fun."[2]

Of Matcham's eight siblings, two were notable: Charles Matcham (1862–1911) moved to America in 1881 and became a millionaire businessman within the civil engineering industry. His early work for the American Bell Telephone Company[102] included the building of the first telephone exchanges in Europe and the introduction of the telephone to St. Petersburg and Riga where he personally installed Alexander II of Russia's phone system.[103] Through his later work, he founded several concrete-making companies and invented a cement stone pulveriser for which he owned the patent.[103] Sydney Matcham (1868–1957) moved to Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he founded the Matcham Travel Bureau, the city's first travel agency.[104]

Legacy edit

Matcham's theatres were often mocked by architects during the five decades after his death,[1] and little care was taken by local authorities to preserve them during area regeneration programmes, particularly during the 1960s.[105] It was only after 1970 that his buildings were taken seriously and, according to Mackintosh, his genius was widely recognised.[1] In 1995 the Theatre Museum acquired in excess of 7000 of Matcham's drawings. Of these, around 500 are highly finished and represent over seventy-five theatres or cinemas and about one-sixth of his total life's output.[1]

 
Plaque at the London Coliseum, unveiled by the Frank Matcham Society in 2014

The total number of theatres Matcham designed is unknown and has been the subject of much speculation. The architect Victor Glasstone estimated the architect's work to include 66 new theatres and the remodelling and restoration of 58 others, between 1879 and 1910;[91] Matcham's biographer Brian Walker lists him ahead of his contemporaries and counts 92 designs,[106] with the closest to him being Charles J. Phipps, with 72.[1] According to the theatre historians John Earl and Michael Sell, Matcham was the original architect for half of the 48 surviving theatres associated with him, and the rest he restored, altered or remodelled from existing buildings. A further 111 of his theatres were either bombed during the wars, destroyed by fire,[1] or demolished as part of area regeneration, mostly during the 1960s.[105]

From the start of the 1900s Crewe and W. G. R. Sprague had started to make names for themselves in architectural circles. It has been suggested by various architectural journals that Crewe and Sprague were pupils of Matcham, and although Glasstone was sceptical of this in his 1975 book Victorian and Edwardian Theatres, the author Iain Mackintosh noted a clear Matcham influence in Sprague and Crewe's designs; he describes the former as being suaver compared to Matcham, whilst Crewe, although sharing a lot of Matcham's exuberance, was "more polished" because of his earlier training in Paris.[91] Sir Alfred Butt, writing in The Era, considered: "Frank Matcham lived for his work, and unquestionably was pre-eminent as a theatrical and music hall architect."[98] According to the historians, Roger Dixon and Stefan Muthesius, Matcham was "the most consistent and prolific architect of the later music halls ... his buildings, mostly in the provinces and the suburbs of London, [were] equal or exceed in splendour [compared to] the metropolitan theatres and opera houses."[107]

On 22 November 2007 Matcham was commemorated by English Heritage when a blue plaque was unveiled at his former London home, 10 Haslemere Road, Hornsey, by the actors Timothy West and Prunella Scales.[108][109]

Notes and references edit

Notes

  1. ^ Charles Matcham originated from Andover in Hampshire, while Frank's mother, Elizabeth, was born and brought up in Islington, London. They married at St Giles in the Fields, then part of Holborn, Middlesex, in 1850. After briefly settling in Andover, shortly before the birth of the eldest child, Elizabeth, in 1851, the Matchams moved to Torquay owing to Charles's desire to capitalise on the increase in tourism in the seaside town.[5]
  2. ^ George Bridgeman was born in 1839[7] and was the son of John Bridgeman and Mary née Soudon. Mary Luscombe Bridgeman, John's mother, was the proprietor of the family brewery business at which Charles Matcham worked.[8] The Bridgemans were also neighbours to the Matchams in Union Street, Torquay, and their probable landlords.[9] George first came to notice when at the age of 23, he helped to design a large residential development in the Roundham area of Paignton. George Bridgeman's employers were responsible for the designs of many local buildings including schools, public houses, and municipal structures. Bridgeman went on to form his own successful drawing office, shortly after Matcham left for London. He was later appointed as the chairman of Paignton Urban District Council and became their principal architect responsible for designing many of the buildings that still make up Paignton,[10] including the Palace Avenue development.[11]
  3. ^ Robinson was a leading theatre architect in Victorian London. His rebuilding of the Old Vic theatre in 1871[1] was a particularly noted design. Later that decade he became a consulting architect to the Lord Chamberlain of the Household.[1][20]
  4. ^ James Elliston (1852–1920) was born in Edinburgh. He was known as a hard-working entrepreneur and had a varied career both on and off the stage. He had been based in Blackburn since 1875 but had previously managed theatres in Liverpool, Bishop Auckland, and Durham.[31]
  5. ^ The building was the first purpose-built, stone and brick theatre in Stockport. It introduced the latest designs in ventilation and featured an updated version of gaslighting. The auditorium had a capacity of 3,000 and featured tip-up seats in the dress circle and upholstered chairs in the boxes. Local building contractors were used at a cost of £12,000, a fee paid personally by Revill. The theatre was demolished in 1962.[33]
  6. ^ Particular attention was paid to the roof which was decorated in crimson, green, electric blue and gold. Three large panels over the proscenium and sides of the auditorium depicted scenes of drama, comedy, poetry, and music. There were with life-size carvings of Ludwig van Beethoven, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and William Shakespeare. Two panels flanked the proscenium, one depicting music, the other, drama.[40]
  7. ^ In 1996 around 10,000 original drawings were purchased by the Theatre Museum after they were found in a damaged and damp state. The drawings represented 75 buildings, 35 of which were either wholly or in part attributed to Matcham.[48]
  8. ^ Francis Graham Moon Chancellor (styled professionally as F.G.M. Chancellor) was born in Tasmania and was the lead architect for Matcham & Co., in Matcham's absence.[55] He was related to the publisher Francis Moon,[56] and Frederic Chancellor, an Essex-based architect and surveyor.[57] Under F. G. M Chancellor, the company's most successful commissions were the new Sadler's Wells Theatre in 1931,[58] and the State Cinema in Grays, Essex, seven years later,[59] which was completed for Frederick's Electric Theatre circuit.[60] Robert Alexander Briggs possessed more of a business mind compared to his colleagues and was an engineer of good standing. He designed the stage machinery for all of Matcham's Hippodromes. He, along with Matcham, purchased the patent for his self-designed cantilever which was specifically used in theatre construction.[61]
  9. ^ In Victorian England,theatre architects were not taken seriously in architectural circles and were often looked upon as being of inferior status.[64]
  10. ^ The Empire Palace closed on 25 February 1961 and was demolished the following year.[82]
  11. ^ One of the few existing public houses designed by Matcham is the Crown, which is attached to the London Hippodrome Theatre in Westminster, London.[88]
  12. ^ The works have since been converted into flats, but the facade remains from the original designs.[90]
  13. ^ Maria was born in 1858 to Jethro Thomas Robinson and his wife, Hannah née Beedham. Maria initially took her mother's first name at birth, but she went by the name of Maria for most of her life. She died a few months after her husband in 1920.[4]

References

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Sources edit

External links edit

  • Frank Matcham Society
  • Theatres built by Frank Matcham
  • Frank Matcham page 29 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  • Frank Matcham and Company at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

January 01, 1970
frank, matcham, francis, matcham, november, 1854, 1920, english, architect, specialised, design, theatres, music, halls, worked, extensively, london, predominantly, under, moss, empires, whom, designed, hippodrome, 1900, hackney, empire, 1901, coliseum, 1903, . Francis Matcham 22 November 1854 17 May 1920 1 was an English architect who specialised in the design of theatres and music halls He worked extensively in London predominantly under Moss Empires for whom he designed the Hippodrome in 1900 Hackney Empire 1901 Coliseum 1903 and Palladium 1910 His last major commission before retirement was the Victoria Palace 1911 for the variety magnate Alfred Butt During his 40 year career Matcham was responsible for the design and construction of over 90 theatres and the redesign and refurbishment of a further 80 throughout the United Kingdom Matcham c 1900 Matcham was born in Newton Abbot Devon where he became apprenticed at the age of 14 to the architect George Soudon Bridgman Matcham moved to London aged 21 where he joined the architectural practice of J T Robinson who was to become his father in law Under Robinson Matcham completed his first solo design the Elephant and Castle Theatre which opened in June 1879 He took over the business on Robinson s death and continued the designs of various provincial theatres He formed his own practice Matcham amp Co in the 1880s and enlisted skilled craftsmen His first major association came in the 1880s when he was employed to design and refurbish theatres belonging to the Revill family who owned many of the theatres throughout the United Kingdom Matcham s most successful period was between 1892 and 1912 when he worked extensively for Moss Empires a theatre building business headed by Edward Moss and run by Oswald Stoll Under them Matcham completed 21 theatres including three in London with the rest being in the provinces Also during this period although not with Moss Empires he completed the designs for the Tower Ballroom at Blackpool Tower Grand Theatre Blackpool both in 1894 and the County Arcade Leeds in 1900 The author Iain Mackintosh writing for the Dictionary of National Biography in 1993 describes Matcham s theatre interiors to be superior when compared to the building s external designs Matcham s use of cantilevers for the galleries allowed him to discontinue the use of columns which would otherwise obstruct the audience s view of the stage The auditorium decorations were often mixed with Tudor strap work Louis XIV detail Anglo Indian motifs naval and military insignia rococo panels classical statuary and baroque columns Matcham retired to Westcliff on Sea Essex shortly before the First World War where he died of a heart attack brought about by a blood infection in 1920 His biographer Brian Walker notes from the architect s personal archives that he was a man of remarkable vigour and had an enthusiasm for life he possessed a tranquility of mind and a great sense of humour and fun 2 Contents 1 Early life 1 1 Entry into the Robinson family business 1 2 Work under the Revills 1 3 Matcham amp Co 2 Theatre boom years 1892 1912 2 1 Moss Empires and Oswald Stoll 3 Other works 4 Retirement and death 5 Personal life 6 Legacy 7 Notes and references 8 Sources 9 External linksEarly life edit nbsp Of the two centre buildings the Matchams house in Union Street Torquay left with the Bridgemans on the right Francis Matcham was born on 22 November 1854 in Newton Abbot Devon 1 3 He was the second of nine children and the eldest son of Charles Matcham 1826 1888 a brewer and his wife Elizabeth nee Lancaster 1830 1905 4 n 1 In 1857 Charles Matcham moved his family to Union Street Torquay and secured a job as a manager of a brewery and a malthouse 3 Frank was educated at Babbacombe School in Babbacombe Torquay 1 Matcham showed an early interest in architecture and became apprenticed at the age of 14 to George Soudon Bridgman a local architect 1 6 n 2 The apprenticeship lasted 18 months until Matcham was offered a job at a quantity surveyor s office in London in around 1868 12 Working in the capital allowed Matcham to study with different architectural professionals His training under a quantity surveyor 1 taught him how to draw up estimates of cost interact with building contractors and introduced him to complex calculations something which he was unlikely to have been taught at school 13 He also learnt the importance of working to tight schedules imposed by demanding customers 14 nbsp The Gaiety Theatre in the Strand a building from which Matcham took inspiration as a student In his spare time Matcham visited many of London s buildings but took a particular liking to theatres and music halls A building of special interest to him was the newly completed Gaiety Theatre in the Strand designed by Charles J Phipps Matcham was impressed at Phipps s ability to build a normal sized theatre on a small awkward plot and it is probable that Matcham gained inspiration from the Gaiety in some of his later buildings which were also built on restricted plots of land 13 It is not known how long Matcham spent in London although it was not uncommon for an architect to take up to six years to become qualified The theatre historian Gorel Garlick estimates that Matcham spent three years in the capital during this time which would seem probable as by 1871 Matcham was back in Torquay and again under the guidance of Bridgeman this time as his chief assistant Bridgeman was eager to take advantage of Matcham s experience in London and asked him to help on the redesign of the Lyceum Theatre in Torquay 13 15 Isaac Singer the American businessman moved from France to Devon in late 1871 His intention was to buy a large property in the English countryside for his family His attempt at buying Isambard Kingdom Brunel s estate was unsuccessful and instead he purchased the Fernham Estate in Torbay on which Oldway Mansion was eventually built 16 Singer commissioned Bridgeman s office to undertake the design and instructed that a theatre be built within the house long since demolished 17 Garlick considers it entirely possible that Matcham was given responsibility for the design of the theatre because of his educational experiences in London Singer spared no cost in terms of Oldway Mansion s construction he sourced the finest materials from around the world and instructed Bridgeman to design the interior in an exuberant French style Garlick notes that it was highly likely that Singer s exuberance would have influenced someone as architecturally impressionable as Matcham whose later theatres also used extravagant decoration 18 Entry into the Robinson family business edit In around 1875 soon after the completion of Singer s house Matcham secured a job with J T Robinson s office in London 19 n 3 The employment allowed Matcham to become more familiar with what Matcham s biographer Brian Mercer Walker calls theatre design of a high order 10 Matcham s time under Robinson was brief Robinson died unexpectedly at the family home in Bloomsbury Square London in 1877 shortly after Matcham s marriage to Robinson s daughter Maria on 9 July 1 Matcham was entrusted by the family to continue with Robinson s designs which included the refurbishment of the Elephant and Castle Theatre 1 as well as the modifications to the Cambridge Music Hall in Shoreditch 21 By the mid 1870s around 137 theatre fires had been reported in the United Kingdom which prompted parliament to create the Metropolis Management and Building Act 1878 which established safety rules for developers to adhere to Matcham found the rules to be problematic because of them the Elephant and Castle Theatre project had to be extended by six months 22 Matcham s designs for the Grand Theatre Islington nbsp The stage with unobstructed sight lines nbsp Interior layout nbsp Cross section In 1882 Matcham took on the redesign of the Grand Theatre in Islington It was an important project for him it was the first to be designed using unobstructed sightlines to the stage and was notable for its holding capacity and prompt construction something for which he latterly became known in architectural circles The Grand was revolutionary in its design it was used as an educational showpiece to amateur architects and it was often visited and commented on by architectural critics and journalists 23 In one of the three volumes entitled Modern Opera Houses and Theatres which were published between 1896 and 1898 the author Edwin Sachs made reference to the Grand s good sighting and acoustics of the auditorium economy of space and cost and rapidity of execution 24 Matcham s improvement of sightlines were a result of his use of cantilevered steel This new design allowed for the balconies to protrude into the auditorium without the use of the supporting pillars which increased seating capacity and gave the audience better views of the stage It was a design that Matcham patented and incorporated into all his future theatrical designs 25 The Paragon in Mile End East London in 1882 was Matcham s next major project The design was one of importance according to Walker as it showed a great emphasis on the ventilation system the first of its kind which used a sun burner in the roof and warm air ducts 6 feet 1 8 metres above ground level which emitted draughts 26 The builders of the theatre Crowder and Payne advertised the venue as being the best ventilated theatre in London 27 It opened in May the following year to much praise for its achievements in audience comfort 28 The success of the Paragon allowed Matcham to open up his own office in Belfast in 1884 26 Work under the Revills edit nbsp James Elliston proprietor of the Theatre Royal and Opera House Stockport Outside of London and prior to 1886 Matcham only had two designs commissioned both in Glasgow Hengler s Grand Cirque and the Royalty Theatre 29 In 1879 he started work on the redesign of the Royalty 30 a playhouse originally designed by James Thomson and one that had been built on the first floor of a four storey building The layout was problematic and Matcham had to make a series of adjustments To compensate he designed a ventilation system which involved the installation of an exhaust duct over the auditorium gas light which caused the heat from the burners to rise up and create a movement of air through the theatre It was a design that he also used on the Gaiety Matcham s second Glaswegian theatre The Royalty took just four weeks to complete and was relatively inexpensive two factors that helped enhance his reputation 23 Matcham met the actor and theatrical manager James Elliston in 1886 n 4 Elliston a native of Edinburgh had heard of the architect through his work in Glasgow and commissioned him to reconstruct the side boxes and gallery and to improve the acoustics and ventilation system at his theatre the Theatre Royal Blackburn Through Elliston Matcham was introduced to William J Revill the proprietor of the People s Temperance Hall in Stockport 31 The Revill family were influential in theatrical circles with their connection to the stage going back to the 18th century 32 Revill contracted Matcham to draw up designs for a new building after the hall was destroyed by a fire in 1887 The new building as with most of the Revill family s theatres was to be named the Theatre Royal and Opera House it was completed to schedule the following year The finished structure was considered to be state of the art by the town s magistrates who granted an entertainments licence that June n 5 The Era considered the new building to be undoubtedly one of the finest theatres in the country 34 According to the biographer Michael Sell Matcham s relationship with Elliston helped the young architect to become a nationally recognisable name in theatrical architecture and brought him to the forefront of his profession 31 Matcham was commissioned in 1888 by Revill s son the theatre manager Wallace Revill to design a new theatre on land he had purchased in St Helens Lancashire The new theatre was named the Theatre Royal and Opera House It was constructed of brick with stone dressings and comprised an orchestra pit stalls a dress circle of three rows an upper circle which had the unusual feature of its own retiring rooms and a very large gallery which allowed for unobstructed views The entrance facade was built in the classical style with three wide bays of giant pilasters 35 On the theatre s opening night the following year Elliston called the building one of the most beautiful theatres he had ever seen 36 nbsp King s Theatre Glasgow 1904 built for Howard amp Wyndham nbsp King s Theatre Southsea 1907 Matcham s last building for the Revill family In addition to the Stockport theatre under Revill Matcham received another commission from Elliston this time to rebuild the Theatre Royal and Opera House in Bolton which had caught fire on 4 January 1888 Elliston s only requirement was for the building to be completed within a 20 week period which Matcham honoured The foundation stone was laid by the actor Henry Irving on 17 October a month before its opening Owing to the large numbers of people who died in a similar theatre fire in Exeter the previous year Matcham improved the safety features such as fireproofing the ceilings and walls widening and straightening the staircases using outwardly opening doors installing hydrants on each floor and hanging an automatic fireproof curtain in the auditorium 37 The interior was decorated in terracotta and gold tints and the seats covered in crimson upholstery 38 Other theatres followed for the Revill family who had by now employed Matcham full time to work on their projects Bury and Rochdale then both in Lancashire were to get their own Theatre Royal and Opera House with the Rochdale building being a renovation of an existing building The Bury theatre opened on 26 December 1889 with a pantomime production The theatre lacked interior decoration as Matcham had been behind schedule He made a rare appearance on stage that night and assured the audience that during a fortnight s closure he would complete the designs To compensate for the lateness he took the unusual step of sub contracting the auditorium s artwork out to a London based sculptor 39 n 6 The following year Matcham was contracted by Frederick Purcell a member of the extended Revill family 41 to undertake the renovations of his theatre that had caught fire the year before Matcham was afforded the benefit of being able to use the existing building which increased the possibility of his being able to finish the project on time 42 The same year The Grand Cirque and Amphitheatre opened in Bolton Matcham s design allowed for it to be used as a circus and a theatre and for the venue to be changed between the two in a few hours It was decorated in the Italian style and had the capacity to seat 3 200 people The circus ring eventually fell out of favour with audiences and it was covered over 43 Purcell took over the family business in 1899 after the death of four of its members but only commissioned a few buildings over the next decade including the Alexandra Theatre Stoke Newington 44 Matcham continued to work with Purcell until around 1908 when the latter decided to wind up the business 45 Matcham s last design for the family according to the historian Michael Sell was the King s Theatre Southsea in 1907 46 The architecture historian Nikolaus Pevsner called the King s Theatre splendid and described the theatre as having a prominent hexagonal tower with Ionic columns and lion finials around a broad spire like top crowned by a cupola with a replica statue of Aurora The interior is charming and richly detailed making full use of the tight space Plaster figures and mouldings in Matcham s full blown Baroque 47 Matcham amp Co edit nbsp The auditorium at the Everyman Theatre Cheltenham opened in 1891 the oldest of Matcham s existing theatres The establishment date of Matcham amp Co is unclear it could originate from when Matcham established his office in Belfast in 1884 after the success of the Paragon Theatre in Mile End or it could be a renaming of Robinson s business which Matcham took over a decade or so prior to the 1880s 48 What is known is that it operated out of three offices in Holborn at different times The first was in Bedford Row between 1880 and 1886 after which it moved to 3 Great James Street The business stayed there until 1893 when it moved again this time to 9 Warwick Court where it remained until after Matcham s death 49 50 It is not known how many staff Matcham employed 51 he worked with a regular team of assistants and craftsmen among them Felix De Jong an expert in work with fibrous plaster 52 Jonas Binns a specialist decorator 52 and Albert Dean a master furnisher 53 During their time in operation Matcham amp Co completed around 170 theatre designs 54 n 7 Matcham was assisted in his designs and the running of the business by the engineer R A Briggs and F G M Chancellor an architect n 8 Little is known of the working relationship between the three men only that it was a prosperous one 55 Theatre boom years 1892 1912 editFurther information Theatres designed by Frank Matcham Before variety theatre music halls were the preferred entertainment of the working class communities in London and the provinces Acts including George Robey and Marie Lloyd were deemed overly racy according to The Stage with major theatres banning them in the interests of decency The restrictions were brief mainly because of the negative effect such censorship was having on audience numbers 62 By the 1880s most music halls were either operated by amateur syndicates who cared less about revenues and more about entertainment or wealthy profit driven businessmen Safety in both cases was frequently compromised mainly down to cost so much needed renovations were often ignored Music halls had for many years been a hugely profitable business but had become the subject of stringent regulations and safety controls By 1880 covert inspections were taking place by local authorities to ensure proprietors were adhering to the safety requirements the rules were so strict that a lot of the ageing halls particularly those whose proprietors had little money were forced to close 63 Those that remained open were instructed to improve and refurbish their premises to meet expectations The boom required competent architects who knew how theatres worked 64 n 9 Moss Empires and Oswald Stoll edit From 1898 to 1910 Oswald Stoll had been the managing director of Moss Empires 65 a theatrical entertainment circuit headed by the impresario Edward Moss which at its height was responsible for 33 theatres around Great Britain Matcham first worked for Moss Empires in 1892 on the Empire Palace Edinburgh 66 Moss was so impressed with Matcham s work that he commissioned him to design other provincial theatres over the next seven years Matcham s work in London under the impresarios included the Empire in Hackney and the Coliseum and Hippodrome theatres both in Westminster In total Matcham was responsible for designing 21 theatres for Moss and Stoll over a 20 year period which ended with the Wood Green Empire in 1912 66 London Coliseum nbsp Interior view of the domed roof which helped enhance the sound nbsp The balconies which slope towards the auditorium to improve sight lines Stoll intended the Hackney Empire to be his London headquarters but the plan changed midway through construction when he decided to locate his offices further into central London this caused a drastic reduction in the Empire s budget to allow extra finances for the new headquarters at the Coliseum 67 Matcham rushed together a secondary cheaper design of the Empire s facade and presented it to Stoll on a piece of scrap tracing paper 68 The exterior of the Empire was a design that Matcham always loathed but was one according to the historian Michael Sell that demonstrated the architect s seemingly endless powers of invention and one that will forever remain a landmark 69 The auditorium is noted by Historic England as being one of the most exuberant Matcham interiors in Britain 70 while the historian Brian Walker called the Empire s interior the most perfect Matcham interior in Greater London 71 Pevsner considered the Empire to be splendidly confident and among the best surviving Edwardian variety theatres 72 For the Coliseum Matcham encountered a problem Stoll wanted the theatre to be the largest and most lavish in London 62 73 74 Matcham was concerned that the vast size would cause a reduction in sound quality and view to the stage accordingly he gave particular attention to the theatre s acoustics and designed the balconies so that they sloped towards the auditorium sides rather than the more traditional method of being supported by pilotis Matcham pioneered the use of cantilevered steel in his designs and took out patents to protect his work 73 The theatre featured a revolving stage the first of its kind in London which allowed for imaginative ideas including the theatre s extravagant celebrations of Derby Day featuring guesting jockeys riding real horses galloping against the moving revolve 62 Backstage there were according to Pevsner box to box telephones and changing rooms so that evening dress could be donned on site The Coliseum cost 250 000 to build 75 nbsp Tower Ballroom Blackpool for which Matcham designed the decoration in 1894 What a room The palette is rich cream gold and brown The proscenium is framed by glorious turret like boxes topped with onion domes while the top is crowned by enormous figures representing the Three Graces The Wurlitzer organ faces a backdrop of a romantic seaside scene wholly unlike Blackpool Nikolaus Pevsner describing the Tower Ballroom Blackpool in Lancashire North 2009 76 Walker called it the fruit of close collaboration and understanding between client and architect He further noted Matcham s frequently noticed skill in planning is here matched by a different kind of wizardry Few of his contemporaries could have made so memorable an architectural statement on so short a frontage in such an unpretentious thoroughfare It is much more impressive than for example the neighbouring Garrick Theatre of 1889 77 According to the theatrical magazine The Stage Matcham s design provided a handsome marble staircase the landmark tower topped by a revolving globe and an impressive range of amenities including spacious tea rooms on each floor lifts to the theatre s upper levels lavishly decorated retiring rooms a roof garden with a glass domed roof and an information bureau from which messages and telegrams could be sent and where doctors might register their whereabouts in case of emergencies 62 Other works editMatcham rarely ventured away from theatres but did so on occasion He was commissioned by the Blackpool Tower Company a Standard Contract amp Debenture Corporation to design the decoration for the ballroom which formed part of their entertainment complex in Blackpool Lancashire 78 The ballroom s interior was Matcham s only design for the complex although Historic England consider it probable that he was also responsible for the remodelling of the circus also within the complex in 1900 Pevsner considered the circus to be the largest and most elaborate theatre of its type in England and provided the UK with a permanent setting for a circus not available in any other resort 76 The complex opened in 1894 79 The same year he completed the designs for Grand Theatre Blackpool 80 The regeneration of Briggate in the 1890s one of the oldest streets in Leeds included the building of a number of shopping arcades to accompany the existing Thorntons Arcade completed in 1878 Matcham designed the Cross and County Arcades for the Leeds Estate Company between 1898 and 1900 at the northernmost part of the street 81 At the same time as his work on the County Arcade he designed the Empire Palace for Moss which was located further down Briggate 82 He created two new streets Queen Victoria Street and King Edward Street which run between Briggate and Vicar Lane 83 Matcham s buildings include 49 51 Vicar Lane 2 24 King Edward Street and 115 120 Briggate which consists of shops and offices within the County Arcade development 84 The construction costs of the County Arcade were in excess of 300 000 85 n 10 According to Walker Matcham s biographer the architect took on the designs for the County Arcade either because of a decline in the need for new theatres or an attempt to try out something different Either way Walker considered the project to be completely out of character for Matcham who had previously displayed such energy and enthusiasm for all his designs 86 Together with a few public houses in London 87 n 11 Matcham s other non theatrical commissions include a new wing for the Royal Variety Artistes Benevolent Fund at Brinsworth House 89 and a printing works in Southwark 90 n 12 Retirement and death editIn 1910 the London Palladium was completed and opened on 26 December 91 Designs for the Victoria Palace Theatre for the variety magnate Alfred Butt were already under way 92 it opened the following November During the design stage of the Palace Matcham was working alongside Bertie Crewe for a new Hippodrome in Bristol which was to become Matcham s last major design 91 The inter war period was slow for theatrical architects and builders mainly because of the introduction of cinema and many of the theatres that had been designed in Matcham s office were now becoming picture houses 93 Matcham amp Co s projects had started to slow down by 1913 that year the only theatrical venture was the Palace Theatre in Leicester 94 nbsp Matcham s house in Westcliff on Sea Essex Matcham retired to Westcliff on Sea with his wife shortly before the First World War 95 and left the running of the business to Chancellor and Briggs 58 He died at his house 28 Westcliff Parade 96 on 17 May 1920 1 His death was attributed to blood poisoning brought about from cutting his finger nails too short 97 The funeral took place at St Paul s Church Finchley before his interment in the family vault 98 in Highgate Cemetery 99 He left an estate worth 86 389 100 3 690 000 in 2021 adjusted for inflation 101 Matcham bequeathed his company equally to Briggs and Chancellor 51 A journalist for The Architect newspaper predicted that the business would continue 50 which it did although it never achieved the same success as it did under Matcham Upon the outbreak of the Second World War Chancellor retired and moved to the countryside where he died in 1941 58 Briggs held the business in a dormant state until after the war when it was sold to a property agency in Covent Garden It continued on a small scale until it was eventually wound up in the late 1970s 58 Personal life edit nbsp Matcham s younger brother Charles Matcham was a devoted if frequently absent husband and father He married Maria Robinson the daughter of his tutor J T Robinson on 9 July 1877 at St James s Church Pentonville n 13 They had two daughters Eveline who was born in 1878 2 and Constance in 1884 4 In an interview with Vanity Fair Matcham listed an interest in music but admitted that although he owned a Stradivarius violin he wasn t particularly good with it 2 Another hobby was amateur dramatics and the Matchams would perform minor pieces at their address in Dollis Avenue Finchley for the entertainment of their neighbours From a review of Matcham s personal archives Walker concludes that the architect was a man of remarkable vigour and enthusiasm for life he possessed a tranquility of mind and a great sense of humour and fun 2 Of Matcham s eight siblings two were notable Charles Matcham 1862 1911 moved to America in 1881 and became a millionaire businessman within the civil engineering industry His early work for the American Bell Telephone Company 102 included the building of the first telephone exchanges in Europe and the introduction of the telephone to St Petersburg and Riga where he personally installed Alexander II of Russia s phone system 103 Through his later work he founded several concrete making companies and invented a cement stone pulveriser for which he owned the patent 103 Sydney Matcham 1868 1957 moved to Allentown Pennsylvania where he founded the Matcham Travel Bureau the city s first travel agency 104 Legacy editMatcham s theatres were often mocked by architects during the five decades after his death 1 and little care was taken by local authorities to preserve them during area regeneration programmes particularly during the 1960s 105 It was only after 1970 that his buildings were taken seriously and according to Mackintosh his genius was widely recognised 1 In 1995 the Theatre Museum acquired in excess of 7000 of Matcham s drawings Of these around 500 are highly finished and represent over seventy five theatres or cinemas and about one sixth of his total life s output 1 nbsp Plaque at the London Coliseum unveiled by the Frank Matcham Society in 2014 The total number of theatres Matcham designed is unknown and has been the subject of much speculation The architect Victor Glasstone estimated the architect s work to include 66 new theatres and the remodelling and restoration of 58 others between 1879 and 1910 91 Matcham s biographer Brian Walker lists him ahead of his contemporaries and counts 92 designs 106 with the closest to him being Charles J Phipps with 72 1 According to the theatre historians John Earl and Michael Sell Matcham was the original architect for half of the 48 surviving theatres associated with him and the rest he restored altered or remodelled from existing buildings A further 111 of his theatres were either bombed during the wars destroyed by fire 1 or demolished as part of area regeneration mostly during the 1960s 105 From the start of the 1900s Crewe and W G R Sprague had started to make names for themselves in architectural circles It has been suggested by various architectural journals that Crewe and Sprague were pupils of Matcham and although Glasstone was sceptical of this in his 1975 book Victorian and Edwardian Theatres the author Iain Mackintosh noted a clear Matcham influence in Sprague and Crewe s designs he describes the former as being suaver compared to Matcham whilst Crewe although sharing a lot of Matcham s exuberance was more polished because of his earlier training in Paris 91 Sir Alfred Butt writing in The Era considered Frank Matcham lived for his work and unquestionably was pre eminent as a theatrical and music hall architect 98 According to the historians Roger Dixon and Stefan Muthesius Matcham was the most consistent and prolific architect of the later music halls his buildings mostly in the provinces and the suburbs of London were equal or exceed in splendour compared to the metropolitan theatres and opera houses 107 On 22 November 2007 Matcham was commemorated by English Heritage when a blue plaque was unveiled at his former London home 10 Haslemere Road Hornsey by the actors Timothy West and Prunella Scales 108 109 Notes and references editNotes Charles Matcham originated from Andover in Hampshire while Frank s mother Elizabeth was born and brought up in Islington London They married at St Giles in the Fields then part of Holborn Middlesex in 1850 After briefly settling in Andover shortly before the birth of the eldest child Elizabeth in 1851 the Matchams moved to Torquay owing to Charles s desire to capitalise on the increase in tourism in the seaside town 5 George Bridgeman was born in 1839 7 and was the son of John Bridgeman and Mary nee Soudon Mary Luscombe Bridgeman John s mother was the proprietor of the family brewery business at which Charles Matcham worked 8 The Bridgemans were also neighbours to the Matchams in Union Street Torquay and their probable landlords 9 George first came to notice when at the age of 23 he helped to design a large residential development in the Roundham area of Paignton George Bridgeman s employers were responsible for the designs of many local buildings including schools public houses and municipal structures Bridgeman went on to form his own successful drawing office shortly after Matcham left for London He was later appointed as the chairman of Paignton Urban District Council and became their principal architect responsible for designing many of the buildings that still make up Paignton 10 including the Palace Avenue development 11 Robinson was a leading theatre architect in Victorian London His rebuilding of the Old Vic theatre in 1871 1 was a particularly noted design Later that decade he became a consulting architect to the Lord Chamberlain of the Household 1 20 James Elliston 1852 1920 was born in Edinburgh He was known as a hard working entrepreneur and had a varied career both on and off the stage He had been based in Blackburn since 1875 but had previously managed theatres in Liverpool Bishop Auckland and Durham 31 The building was the first purpose built stone and brick theatre in Stockport It introduced the latest designs in ventilation and featured an updated version of gaslighting The auditorium had a capacity of 3 000 and featured tip up seats in the dress circle and upholstered chairs in the boxes Local building contractors were used at a cost of 12 000 a fee paid personally by Revill The theatre was demolished in 1962 33 Particular attention was paid to the roof which was decorated in crimson green electric blue and gold Three large panels over the proscenium and sides of the auditorium depicted scenes of drama comedy poetry and music There were with life size carvings of Ludwig van Beethoven Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and William Shakespeare Two panels flanked the proscenium one depicting music the other drama 40 In 1996 around 10 000 original drawings were purchased by the Theatre Museum after they were found in a damaged and damp state The drawings represented 75 buildings 35 of which were either wholly or in part attributed to Matcham 48 Francis Graham Moon Chancellor styled professionally as F G M Chancellor was born in Tasmania and was the lead architect for Matcham amp Co in Matcham s absence 55 He was related to the publisher Francis Moon 56 and Frederic Chancellor an Essex based architect and surveyor 57 Under F G M Chancellor the company s most successful commissions were the new Sadler s Wells Theatre in 1931 58 and the State Cinema in Grays Essex seven years later 59 which was completed for Frederick s Electric Theatre circuit 60 Robert Alexander Briggs possessed more of a business mind compared to his colleagues and was an engineer of good standing He designed the stage machinery for all of Matcham s Hippodromes He along with Matcham purchased the patent for his self designed cantilever which was specifically used in theatre construction 61 In Victorian England theatre architects were not taken seriously in architectural circles and were often looked upon as being of inferior status 64 The Empire Palace closed on 25 February 1961 and was demolished the following year 82 One of the few existing public houses designed by Matcham is the Crown which is attached to the London Hippodrome Theatre in Westminster London 88 The works have since been converted into flats but the facade remains from the original designs 90 Maria was born in 1858 to Jethro Thomas Robinson and his wife Hannah nee Beedham Maria initially took her mother s first name at birth but she went by the name of Maria for most of her life She died a few months after her husband in 1920 4 References a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Mackintosh Iain Matcham Frank Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press accessed 7 July 2019 subscription required a b c d Walker p 4 a b Walker p 1 a b c Wilmore p 217 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 30 Walker pp 1 2 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 39 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 35 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 34 a b Walker p 2 25 Palace Avenue National Heritage List for England Historic England accessed 7 July 2019 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 40 a b c Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 42 Frank Matcham in Perspective by Andrew Saint Wilmore p 21 Torquay Directory 12 April 1871 p 4 Tenders The Builder 1 March 1873 p 176 Oldway Mansion Historic England accessed 7 July 2019 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore pp 44 49 Growing Up On The English Riviera by Gorel Garlick Wilmore p 49 Old Vic Theatre Historic England accessed 19 September 2017 Walker p 3 Walker pp 5 6 a b Walker p 6 Walker pp 6 7 Walker p 10 a b Walker p 7 Walker p 68 Walker p 85 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 52 Royalty Theatre Glasgow Scottish Theatre Archive University of Glasgow accessed 20 September 2017 a b c Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 52 53 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 61 62 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 57 58 Stockport Theatre Royal The Era 21 April 1888 p 21 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 62 Quote from Elliston Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 63 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 58 59 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 60 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 65 67 Wilmore p 67 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 64 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 69 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 73 75 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore pp 80 81 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 89 Matcham s Revills by Michael Sell Wilmore p 88 O Brien Bailey Pevsner and Lloyd 2018 pp 531 532 a b The Matcham Office at Work by John Earl Wilmore p 92 Wilmore p 127 a b Stoppage of Building The Architect 18 June 1920 p 424 a b Wilmore p 128 a b Wilmore p 130 Wilmore pp 130 131 The Bognor Post 2 December 1950 pp 9 13 a b Wilmore p 124 The Late Alderman Sir Francis Graham Moon London City Press 28 October 1871 p 2 Chancellor Frederic 26 March 1918 England amp Wales National Probate Calendar Index of Wills and Administrations 1861 1941 a b c d The Matcham Office at Work by John Earl Wilmore p 93 Historical places in Thurrock Thurrock Council accessed 7 July 2019 State Cinema Historic England accessed 7 July 2019 Wilmore pp 124 125 a b c d Curtain up Frank Matcham s London Coliseum The Stage 12 February 2004 accessed 4 October 2017 Earl p 26 a b Earl pp 28 29 Variety theatre Oswald Stoll Victoria and Albert Museum accessed 24 September 2017 a b Walker p 158 The Matcham Office at Work by John Earl Wilmore pp 102 103 The Matcham Office at Work by John Earl Wilmore pp 104 105 The Matcham Office at Work by John Earl Wilmore p 105 The Hackney Empire Historic England accessed 24 September 2017 Walker p 52 Cherry and Pevsner 2002 p 496 a b Barron p 368 History of the London Coliseum English National Opera accessed 16 June 2019 Bradley and Pevsner 2003 p 386 a b Hartwell and Pevsner 2009 p 143 Walker p 57 Walker p 127 Tower Buildings National Heritage List for England Historic England accessed 12 June 2019 Theatre Royal The Era 22 September 1894 p 11 Numbers 1 43 and Cross Arcade Historic England accessed 3 December 2017 a b Walker p 161 Wrathmell pp 24 159 49 and 51 Vicar Lane 2 24 King Edward Street 115 120 Briggate National Heritage List for England Historic England accessed 5 December 2017 Wilmore pp 202 203 Walker pp 17 18 Walker p 18 Crown Public House the London Hippodrome Theatre Historic England accessed 12 June 2019 History of Brinsworth House Royal Variety Charity accessed 12 June 2019 a b 15 16 and 17 Hatfields Historic England accessed 12 June 2019 a b c d King Kong versus Godzilla The Competition for the Royal Opera House at The Hague 1910 11 by Iain Mackintosh Wilmore p 143 Victoria Palace Theatre National Heritage List for England Historic England accessed 12 November 2022 Wilmore pp 138 139 Wilmore p 129 Wilmore p 138 Mr Frank Matcham Dead Western Daily Press 19 May 1920 p 10 The Architects Journal 26 May 1920 p 682 a b Death of Mr Frank Matcham The Era 26 May 1920 p 6 Who s Here Highgate Cemetery accessed 1 July 2016 An Architect s Estate The Builder 6 August 1920 p 140 UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark Gregory 2017 The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain 1209 to Present New Series MeasuringWorth Retrieved 11 June 2022 Charles Matcham Succumbs to Illness The Morning Call 23 September 1911 p 5 a b Charles Matcham Succumbs to Illness The Morning Call 23 September 1911 p 6 Allentown s First Travel Agent Dies The Morning Call 27 December 1957 p 5 a b Earl amp Sell pp 276 278 Walker p 94 Dixon and Muthesius p 93 Matcham Frank 1854 1920 English Heritage accessed 13 June 2019 Frank Matcham plaque unveiling Crouch End London The Stage 29 November 2007 p 55 Sources editBaker Richard Anthony 2014 Auditorium Acoustics British Music Hall An Illustrated History South Yorkshire Penn amp Sword History ISBN 978 1 78383 118 0 Barron Michael 2010 Auditorium Acoustics and Architectural Design London amp New York Spon Press ISBN 978 0 20387 422 6 Bradley Simon Pevsner Nikolaus 2003 London 6 Westminster The Buildings Of England New Haven and London Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 09595 1 Cherry Bridget Pevsner Nikolaus 2002 London 4 North The Buildings Of England New Haven and London Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 09653 8 Dixon Roger Muthesius Stefan 1985 Victorian Architecture London Thames amp Hudson ISBN 978 0 500 20160 2 Earl John 2005 British Theatres and Music Halls Princes Risborough Shire Publications ISBN 978 0 74780 627 1 Earl John Sell Michael 2000 The Theatres Trust Guide to British Theatres 1750 1950 London A amp C Black ISBN 978 0 71365 688 6 Hartwell Clare Pevsner Nikolaus 2009 Lancashire North The Buildings Of England New Haven and London Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 12667 9 Kilburn Mike 2004 London s Theatres London New Holland ISBN 978 1 84330 069 4 O Brien Charles Bailey Bruce Pevsner Nikolaus Lloyd David W 2018 Hampshire South The Buildings Of England New Haven and London Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 22503 7 Walker Brian Mercer 1980 Frank Matcham Theatre Architect Belfast Blackstaff Press ISBN 978 0 85640 231 9 Wilmore David 2008 Frank Matcham amp Co South Yorkshire Theatreshire Books ISBN 978 0 95341 271 6 Wrathmell Susan 2005 Leeds Yale University Press ISBN 0 300 10736 6 External links editFrank Matcham Society Theatres built by Frank Matcham Frank Matcham page Archived 29 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine Frank Matcham and Company at the Victoria and Albert Museum Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Frank Matcham amp oldid 1220902784, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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