High hopes for Morecambe theatre heating grant

Photo Neil Cross
Evelyn Archer at the Winter Gardens theatre looking ahead to the new year, with their new Eric Morecambe statue — Photo Neil Cross Evelyn Archer at the Winter Gardens theatre looking ahead to the new year, with their new Eric Morecambe statue

Evelyn Archer says at the moment the theatre is not taking any bookings for the winter due to it being too cold for audiences.

She said: “The bid for the Coastal Communities Fund had to be in two months ago and we were only allowed to ask for £100k but that will go a long way.

“It’s so cold in the building that we are not taking bookings for the winter which is defeating the object. It is important and our priority is the heating.

“If we can take bookings for 12 months it would kickstart things.

“At the moment we are totally run by volunteers but if we got the grant and were able to open for 12 months, this would create jobs.

“We will hear at the end of June whether we are successful so we are keeping our fingers crossed and hoping we are going to get it.”

MP David Morris said: “The Winter Gardens is one of our greatest assets locally and I am fully supporting Evelyn and the Friends in the application to the Coastal Communities fund.

“Once their application was submitted I spoke to the Northern Powerhouse Minister, Jake Berry MP, and impressed on him how vital it is that he approves their application for funding.

“The Minister has seen for himself what a fantastic asset the Winter Gardens is and I will continue to lobby him in the coming weeks to  ensure that the Winter Gardens gets the vital investment it needs.”