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<\/p>\nThe first thing visitors notice is the door.<\/p>\n
After 28 years shut, it creaks open to reveal a dark corridor where, as I joined the rare few taking a step inside, paint peels from walls and bare light bulbs hang from the ceiling.<\/p>\n
But beyond the signs of decay lies a surprise: an ornate auditorium that has survived decades of neglect and is now at the centre of ambitious plans to bring one of a city’s most treasured theatres back to life.<\/p>\n
For Barry Green, stepping inside the Queen’s Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent for the first time in years was a moment he will not forget.<\/p>\n
One of about 100 people given a rare glimpse behind its doors, he said the hairs on the back of his neck stood up when he entered the auditorium.<\/p>\n
The theatre holds special memories for him.<\/p>\n
As a member of local punk-indie band Cock’s Entry, named after a nearby walkway in Burslem, he once performed on its stage.<\/p>\n
“Being able to play there was a privilege,” he said.<\/p>\n
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Barry Green played in a punk band at the theatre as well as seeing shows there [BBC]<\/p>\n
Like many visitors, Green was struck not by how much the building had deteriorated, but by how much had survived.<\/p>\n
“I expected pigeons in the rafters, but the ceiling is in good shape,” he said.<\/p>\n
“The structure looks great, far better than what I expected. It’s far bigger than I expected because we went into nooks and crannies I’d never been in before.”<\/p>\n
Opened in 1911, the Queen’s Theatre spent decades hosting plays, concerts and community events.<\/p>\n
Among those to tread its boards was a young Robbie Williams, who appeared as the Artful Dodger in a production of Oliver! in 1988.<\/a><\/p>\n Since closing 28 years ago, the building has stood silent.<\/p>\n Queens Theatre in Burslem had spiralling repair costs which forced it’s closure in 1998 [BBC\/Ethan Saunders]<\/p>\n Today, campaigners hope to change that by transforming it into Kilmister Halls, a new entertainment venue honouring Motorhead frontman Lemmy, who was born in nearby Burslem.<\/p>\n Few understand the affection local people still have for the theatre better than Lindsey Glover.<\/p>\n Now a volunteer at Lemmy’s Lounge, a community bar set up to support the project, she remembers working behind the bar during boxing promotions held at the venue towards the end of its life.<\/p>\n “It’s an absolutely beautiful building,” she said. “They don’t make buildings like that anymore. The architecture, the marble, the work that must’ve gone into it.”<\/p>\n Walking through the building today was bittersweet, she added.<\/p>\n “It’s really sad when you walk through and you remember how it was, but it’s also knowing that it is going to be reopened.”<\/p>\n Glover recalled busy nights when the auditorium would fill with spectators for boxing events, bringing crowds back into the historic venue.<\/p>\n But, she believes, what lies ahead could eclipse even those memories.<\/p>\n Lindsey Glover said she was saddened by the current state of the theatre but excited by what the future of the building could be for Burslem [BBC]<\/p>\n After emerging from the theatre, many visitors continued their conversations in nearby pubs and bars, discussing the building’s future and what its revival could mean for Burslem.<\/p>\n For Green, the excitement was impossible to ignore.<\/p>\n “Being my town makes it even more exciting,” he said. “We walked out of there buzzing.”<\/p>\n Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, X<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n More on this story![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/bbc_us_articles_995\/12d847fbb5429097be6149760de89c3a.jpg\"\/)
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