Campaigners rejoice as top 10 ‘at risk’ status propels bay Pavilion into national spotlight

THE Pavilion in Torquay has been named on a list of the 10 most endangered buildings in the country.

- by GUY HENDERSON & STAFF REPORTER

The listing by the Victorian Society means the former theatre and ice rink where Agatha Christie was once a regular patron is “at real risk of being lost if action is not taken’.

Torbay Council has recently taken back the lease on the building from long-term tenant MDL, and has begun a project to repair and restore the crumbling structure.

The Edwardian art nouveau build-ing was once the centre of the town’s cultural life but has been falling into disrepair since it closed as a shop-ping centre more than a decade ago.

The building is damp and broken windows have allowed vandals and intruders to get in. Conservation campaigners threatened the council with legal action if it didn’t take steps to protect the Grade II-listed build-ing.

Now council teams are inside, working to prevent further damage and developing a detailed restoration plan.

The Victorian Society, whose president is actor Griff Rhys Jones, described the Pavilion as “an exquisite art nouveau pavilion where Agatha Christie was engaged”

It added: “This is nothing short of a national treasure. We will never see its like again. Fantastical and charming and the delightful heart of Torquay itself.

“It’s good news that the former owners have abandoned their inappropriate plans and it is back in the hands of the council. Now funding and general local support is essential.

“Twenty-five years ago, I helped raise £25m for the Hackney Empire - another people's palace dating from that era. It can be done. Come on Torquay. Get behind your jewel box of a venue.”

News of the top 10 listing has been hailed as a “national breakthrough” by members of the Save Torquay Pavilion group.