This year the 600th Anniversary of the Old Red Lion in Islington is being celebrated: born in 1415 as the “Redde Lyon”, it has housed the famous Old Red Lion Theatre for almost 40 years.
Not content with just throwing a party, a whole lot more is planned to make this a year to remember, to thank the loyal customers and the artists who make this one of London’s most beloved venues.
While the theatre is one of London’s oldest Pub Theatres, opening its doors in 1979, there has been a pub on this site continuously since 1415. The Old Red Lion has played an important part in Islington’s tumultuous history – it was here that Thomas Paine sat down to work on The Rights of Man, and where Karl Marx, William Hogarth, Dr. Johnson, Charles Dickens and many more famous characters from history would enjoy a tipple.
It’s been a meeting place for the British Communist party, a boxing ring, and a watering hole for the famous and the infamous alike.
Major research project
A major research projectis being undertaken into the pub’s long history – exploring the heroes and the villains, the successful and the salacious, that have made its past so colourful. The archival research will uncover documentary evidence for the claimed founding date of 1415, and the findings will be published online and in an exhibition within the venue.
The pub is already dated back to the 1500’s – and would welcome any challenges to its contention that it is the oldest surviving and serving pub site in London!
RedFest 600 in the theatre
The theatre will be holding its own celebration with RedFest 600, commissioning a total of six brand new short plays to reflect on each century of the pub’s existence. There is a call for submissions from March 16th, and it is hoped to attract new talent as well as some of the brilliant theatre makers who regularly make the Old Red Lion their home.
Redfest 600 will be running throughout the month of June, with performances of these new plays on Sunday and Monday evenings, building to a final gala performance of a new work written in response to the entire 600 year history.
The Old Red will also host a fantastic programme of one-off events – from music and performance to talks on the heritage of the pub and the rich history of Islington.
To join in the celebration, and help set The Old Red for the next 600 years click here