Hippodrome / Coventry Theatre / Apollo show archive

n attempt to list all the shows ever performed at our Hippodromes, beginning with the temporary circus buildings, which from 1884 were specially erected on Pool Meadow for each visit - then, in 1903, to the first permanent, but short-lived, 'Tin' Hippodrome on the Priory Street side of Pool Meadow facing the old Swimming Baths. The popularity of these shows created the demand for a theatre worthy of our city, and so in 1906 began the construction in Hales Street, next to Swanswell Gate, of what we now regard as the Old Hippodrome.
Again, the success of this theatre meant that barely three decades later a greater capacity was required, and so we come to our lovely art-deco New Hippodrome in Hales Street, once known as the Showplace of the Midlands. Opening on the 1st November 1937, it was renamed Coventry Theatre in 1955, then from 1979 became The Apollo, giving its final performance in June 1985. After a short spell as a bingo hall it was eventually realised that such a building could not be put to any practical use, so, sadly, it was demolished in 2002. If anyone still has any tickets or programmes and would like to see them used to illustrate a show, please contact me.

1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985

1961	Coventry Theatre, Hales Street
Date(s)	Show	Notes	Images
Sun 8th Jan 1961	Chris Barber's Jazz Band	One night only.
Sun 15th Jan 1961	Humphrey Lyttleton and his Band	One night only.
Sun 22nd Jan 1961	Mr. Acker Bilk and his Jazz Band	One night only.
Sun 29th Jan 1961	Adam Faith	With The John Barry Seven, The Honeys, Gerry Dorsey (later became Englebert Humperdinck) and Johnny Le Roy. One night only.
Sun 26th Feb 1961	Jack Good's Rock 'n' Trad Spectacular	Starring Billy Fury, Mark Wynter, Tommy Bruce, Joe Brown, Nelson Keene, Duffy Power, The Four Kestrels, Johnny Gentle, Georgie Fame. One night only.
Mon 13th Mar until Sat 25th Mar 1961	Rose Marie	Starring David Whitfield and George Moon.
Mon 27th Mar until Sat 1st Apr 1961	Covent Garden Opera	Including Aida, Carmen, La Boheme, and others.
Mon 3rd Apr until Sat 20th May 1961	Spring Show	Starring Tommy Cooper, Russ Conway, The Kaye Sisters, Jimmy Clitheroe, Jimmy Wheeler, and others.
Sun 7th May 1961	The Shadows	With The Brook Brothers, Peter Elliott, Patti Brooks, The Red Price Combo, Julie Jones, Dave Allen. One night only.
Sun 21st May 1961	Robert Horton	Star of TV's Wagon Train, with The Squadronaires, and others.
Mon 22nd May until Sat 27th May 1961	Putting On The Donegan	Starring Lonnie Donegan, Arthur Worsley, Chic Murray, and others.
Mon 29th May until Sat 3rd Jun 1961	African Dance Company	From Senegal, with 40 dancers, singers and musicians.
Thu 8th Jun 1961	Kenny Ball's Jazzmen	With Clinton Ford.
Sat 10th Jun 1961	Adam Faith	With Peter Elliott, The Dale Sisters, The Maori Hi-Five Show Band. One night only.
Mon 12th Jun until Sat 17th Jun 1961	You Prove It	Comedy, starring Ronald Shiner and Thora Hird.
Tue 20th Jun until Sat 8th Jul 1961	Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs	On Ice.
Tue 11th Jul until Sat 15th Jul 1961	Midlands Festival of Ballet	With 10 International Stars.
Mon 17th Jul until Sat 22nd Jul 1961	Wild Violets	With Derek Roy and Douglas Byng.
Mon 24th Jul until Sat 29th Jul 1961	The Hungarian Dance Ensemble and Orchestra	From Budapest.
Mon 31st Jul until Sat 5th Aug 1961	Boomerang	A searching drama, starring Jess Conrad.
Mon 7th Aug until Sat 12th Aug 1961	Mel Torme	The "Mountain Greenery" Boy, and big supporting company.
Tue 15th Aug until Sat 9th Sep 1961	West Side Story	Direct from Her Majesty's Theatre.
Mon 11th Sep until Sat 16th Sep 1961	Sadler's Wells Opera	Different Opera each night, including Carmen, Barber of Seville, and The Marriage of Figaro.
Mon 18th Sep until Sat 23rd Sep 1961	Simple Spymen	Comedy, starring John Slater.
Sun 24th Sep 1961	The Temperance Seven	With Ed Corrie's Concord Jazzband. One night only.
Mon 25th Sep until Sat 30th Sep 1961	The Gazebo	Comedy Thriller, starring Alan Melville.
Mon 2nd Oct until Sat 7th Oct 1961	London's Festival Ballet	London cast of 100, with a different Ballet each night.
Mon 9th Oct until Sat 14th Oct 1961	Fourth Coventry Festival of Music	With World Famous orchestras and conductors.
Tue 17th Oct until Sat 2nd Dec 1961	1961 Birthday Show	Starring Tommy Steele, Teddy Johnson & Pearl Carr, Jimmy James, Joe Baker & Jack Douglas, and others.
Sun 29th Oct 1961	Festival of Italian Song	In Italian and English.
Fri 10th Nov 1961	Midnight Matinee	Charity Show, starring Peggy Ashcroft, Anton Dolin, John Gielgud, David Nixon, Vanessa Redgrave, Tommy Steele, and many others.
Sun 12th Nov 1961	A Star Spangled Night	Billy Fury, Eden Kane, The Allisons, Joe Brown, Tommy Bruce, Karl Denver Trio, Terry Hale, Peter Jay & the Jaywalkers. One night only.
Mon 4th Dec until Sat 9th Dec 1961	The King And I	By the Coventry Amateur Operatic Society. (Theatre closed next week for Pantomime rehearsals.)
Tue 19th Dec 1961 until Sat 17th Mar 1962	The Frog Prince	Pantomime, starring David Nixon, Charlie Cairoli, Freddie Frinton, Billy Dainty, and star-studded cast of 70.

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1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985

Also of interest might be A short history of Coventry's Theatres and Cinemas, by Bill Birch.