Welcome to the Britannia Panopticon Music Hall Trust & Friends Website

Welcome to the Britannia Panopticon Music Hall Trust and Friends website. Britannia Panopticon Music Hall is the oldest surviving music hall in the UK (if not the world- please let me know if you know of an older one). Founded in 1857 on the Trongate in Glasgow, Scotland, the Britannia quickly became famed as being the most popular place of amusement in the city and 1500 people would cram themselves onto wooden benches for every show. The audience gained itself a reputation for "leaving no turn unstoned" and over the years the stage saw performances by such greats as Dan Leno, Harry Lauder, Marie Loftus, Charles Coburn, Harry Champion, W. F. Frame and of course, the debut of a sixteen year old Stan Laurel in 1906.

The auditorium was also one of the first places in Glasgow to show moving or animated pictures (cinema) in 1896 and by 1897 had become a regular part of the Britannia play bill, but it was in 1906 that the biggest change of all was to come when a young man who billed himself as "A.E.Pickard Unlimited of London, Paris, Moscow and Bannockburn" took over the management of the old Britannia (he was in fact from Bradford in Yorkshire). Pickard had been inspired by the great American showman, P.T. Barnum, and this influence was seen in the "Old Brit" when the young Pickard converted the empty attic above the auditorium into a roof top carnival, waxworks and freak show. Soon afterwards he also converted the basement of the public house on the ground floor into a zoo and renamed the building Panopticon which he took from the Greek; Pan = everything, Optika = to see, as the paying visitor could see everything from attic to basement for the one admission price.

The Panopticon survived until 1938 when it was finally closed as the people of Glasgow flocked to the 130 picture palaces which offered a more comfortable, flea- free enviroment for the viewing of the latest movies.Today the Britannia Panopticon survives and the Britannia Panopticon Music Hall Preservation Trust and Friends of Britannia Panopticon are working to ensure it's preservation for future generations to enjoy. As part of the campaign the Britannia Panopticon is open to the public for special shows and open days and we also have two charity shops at 45 & 49 High Street, Glasgow.

For more information about the amazing history of this unique survivor you can now buy our book "Stan Laurel and Other Stars of the Panopticon - The Story of the Britannia Music Hall" by Judith Bowers, published by Birlinn and available from our shops, Amazon.com and most good bookshops (though you may have to order it in if you shop outside of Scotland).

At the moment this website is a work in progress, but please check out our myspace page at www.myspace.com/britanniapanopticon for more pictures and video.