Swansea building shut for 15 years re-opens with foodhall and rooftop garden

  • ITV Cymru Wales' Dean Thomas-Welch reports

An old Swansea music hall that closed its doors over 15 years ago has re-opened as a foodhall and entertainment space with a rooftop garden.

Swansea's Albert Hall has hosted the likes of Oscar Wilde and David Lloyd George over the years and was once even a bingo hall.

However, by 2007 it had deteriorated to the point where the building had to shut.

Now the building is back open after a major restoration project costing nearly £9 million.

The Albert Hall is now a four-storey venue comprising a ground-floor food hall and bar, with private entertainment space, offices, studios, visitor accommodation, a gym and a rooftop garden.

Simon Baston

The venue is on the fringe of the city centre between The Kingsway and De-La-Beche Street and not necessarily a location where people gravitate to socialise. But LoftCo Ltd, the company behind the project are hoping this will change.

"The maxim is, build it and they will come", said director Simon Baston.

"The building is where the building is, and it's on the road to the train station.

"What we've tried to do is bring it 150 years forward but respect everything that happened 150 years ago.

"We wanted it to be a safe environment that's family friendly and dog friendly - something that works for everyone."

There are a number of food vendors and the upgraded venue Credit: ITV Cymru Wales

Food hall tenant Ali Tortorella, who is a joint owner of The Pizza Boyz, believes the building has "really good potential" and thinks it's "going to be very busy".

"It's an up-and-coming area, and places like this seem to fill themselves", he added.

LoftCo say the building will be an exciting fusion of history and innovation, bringing a much-loved old building back into dynamic, modern use.

The top floor of the 160-year-old structure will feature new-style visitor accommodation - known as an aparthotel.

More than 15 years later and after a major restoration project costing nearly £9 million, the building is back open.

Each room will be named after an iconic figure who's graced the old Albert Hall stage, including Charles Dickens & Oscar Wilde.

There'll be exclusive meeting rooms & private dining suites named after legendary operatic singer Adelina Patti who performed at the venue.

There will also be eight street food traders in the main hall, including Swansea favourites and some new additions to the city.

For families, there will be a children's jungle play area for little ones to explore.

Leader of Swansea Council, Rob Stewart said: "They've done an amazing job here of repurposing the old, traditional Albert Hall. We're really pleased because it's a different offering to the city centre.

"It's great to see old buildings that have been in the city for hundreds of years getting a new lease of life and hopefully it'll become a really successful venture."

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