Gosforth Park
| Gosforth Park | |
|---|---|
 Newcastle Racecourse in Gosforth Park | |
  | |
| Location | Gosforth |
| Nearest city | Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Coordinates | 55°01′52″N1°36′43″W/ 55.0311°N 1.6119°W |
| Created | c. 1760 |
Gosforth Parkis a park north ofGosforthin the city ofNewcastle upon Tyne,England. It housesNewcastle Racecourse,Virgin Money Unity Arena, aBritanniahotel, two golf courses, a garden centre and a football centre. It is also home toGosforth Nature Reserve,a privateSSSImanaged by theNatural History Society of Northumbria,consisting of a lake and woodland.
The park was laid out by CharlesBrandling(1733–1802), a wealthy coal-mine owner and local politician, to adorn his new mansion,Gosforth House(now Brandling House, the racecourse hospitality and conference centre), built 1755–64.
Up to the 1950s tramcars came into the park on race days through a special gate from what was then theA1 Great North Road.
Between 2016 and 2019 the two walled gardens andicehouseat Gosforth Park were the subject of archaeological investigations by AAG Archaeology, prior to the gardens having houses built within them.
Hotel
[edit]The Gosforth Park Hotel, now in theBritannia Hotelschain, was originally built in 1965 and opened by theDuke of Northumberland,and by 1986 was owned byScottish & Newcastleand run byThistle Hotels.[1]Between being in the Thistle and Britannia portfolios it had been operated as aMarriott.[2]
Virgin Money Unity Arena
[edit]Virgin Money Unity Arena is the UK's first purpose builtsocially distancedoutdoor entertainment venue constructed in the grounds of Gosforth Park.[3]During 2020 theCOVID-19 pandemiccaused all concert and stand-up comedy events in the country to be cancelled.[4]As the country came out of lockdown a number of efforts were made to re-start entertainment events including some drive-in venues.[5]
The temporary outdoor venue site is 45,000 square metres (480,000 sq ft) and consists of 500 viewing spaces.[6]Each socially distanced viewing space can occupy up to 5 people bringing the maximum capacity of the venue to 2500.[7]The first two concerts on 11 and 13 August byNorth TynesidesingerSam Fendersold out in minutes.[6]
The venue is operated by SSD Concerts and Engine No.4.[8]The event's title sponsor is theVirgin Moneybank who have their headquarters in the nearbyRegent Centrebusiness park.[9]
References
[edit]- ^"Gosforth Park Hotel".BBC Domesday Reloaded.1986.Retrieved7 September2013.
- ^Ford, Coreena (4 July 2018)."Marriott Hotel in Gosforth sold to new owner as part of major five-hotel property deal".ChronicleLive.Retrieved31 October2021.
- ^Kreps, Daniel (4 July 2020)."U.K. Racetrack to Become First 'Dedicated Socially Distanced Venue'".Rolling Stone.Retrieved12 August2020.
- ^"Coronavirus: Will I get a refund on my ticket if events are cancelled?".BBC News.18 March 2020.Retrieved12 August2020.
- ^"Brit winner headlines first socially-distanced gig".BBC News.12 August 2020.Retrieved12 August2020.
- ^ab"Brit winner to headline socially-distanced gig".BBC News.11 August 2020.Retrieved11 August2020.
- ^Meechan, Simon (12 August 2020)."Live music returns with Sam Fender gig at Virgin Money Unity Arena".The Evening Chronicle.Retrieved12 August2020.
- ^Hanley, James (11 August 2020)."Inside the UK's only major concert series of the summer".Music Week.Retrieved11 August2020.
- ^Vizard, Sarah (7 July 2020)."Inside Virgin Money's plan to build a consumer, not just a bank, brand".Marketing Week.Retrieved12 August2020.
External links
[edit]- Map sourcesfor Gosforth Park
- Virgin Money Unity Arena
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