St Mark's Church, Silvertown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Mark's Church, Silvertown |
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| St Mark's Church, Victoria Docks | |
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| 51°30′9.7884″N 0°2′34.4184″E / 51.502719000°N 0.042894000°E | |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Church of England |
| History | |
| Status | Deconsecrated |
| Founded | 1857 |
| Dedication | 1862 |
| Architecture | |
| Years built | 1862 |
| Closed | 1974 |
St Mark's Church, also known as St Mark's Church, Victoria Docks, is an old church building in east London. It is located on North Woolwich Road in Silvertown. One of its names comes from the nearby Royal Docks. In 1971, it was given a special heritage listing as Grade II*. Today, this historic building is home to the Brick Lane Music Hall.
Contents
The Story of St Mark's Church
Building the Church
The church first started in 1857. It was a temporary building made of iron and served as both a church and a school. A famous architect named Samuel Sanders Teulon designed the permanent church. This new church opened its doors in 1862.
Two years later, in 1864, St Mark's became its own separate parish. A parish is an area served by a church. It took parts of the parishes from Woolwich and East Ham. The manager of the nearby docks, Charles Capper, chose the first vicar (church leader). After that, the bishop of London became responsible for choosing the vicar.
St Mark's Church also helped start other churches nearby. These were called mission churches.
- St Matthew's, Custom House began in 1860. It later became its own parish in 1920.
- St Luke's, Canning Town also started as a mission church. It became a separate parish when its permanent church was finished in 1875.
- St John's, North Woolwich opened in 1872. It became its own parish church in 1877.
- St Barnabas' Church, West Silvertown opened in 1882. It became a separate parish in 1926.
The Church Closes Its Doors
The church building survived World War II. However, the London docks became less busy in the 1960s. This led to fewer people living in the area. Many old houses were also removed in a process called slum clearance.
Because of these changes, the church was no longer needed in 1974. Its parish joined with two of its former mission churches: St Barnabas' and St John's. St Barnabas' also closed. This meant St John's became the only church for the new, larger parish.
In 1979, Newham Council bought the church building. They planned to turn it into a museum. But in 1981, a big fire badly damaged the roof. The roof was rebuilt between 1984 and 1989.
St Mark's Becomes a Music Hall
After the fire, the Brick Lane Music Hall took over the building. They changed it into a performance venue in 2003. Here, they put on traditional music hall and variety shows.
The Brick Lane Music Hall first opened in 1992. It was in an old brewery building in Brick Lane. Later, it moved to Shoreditch before finding its current home in St Mark's Church. Vincent Hayes started the music hall. He used to run and perform in music hall shows at a pub called the Lord Hood in the 1980s.
The outside of the church building looks mostly the same. Inside, a stage, bar, and kitchen were added. New lighting and sound equipment were also installed. The church's old vestry (a room for clergy) now holds offices. In 2004, a colorful mural was painted behind the church's outdoor war memorial. New lighting and sound systems were put in place in October 2006.
When you visit, you sit at tables in a cabaret style. Food is served during the break for daytime shows and before the show in the evenings. The Brick Lane Music Hall can also host weddings and civil partnership ceremonies. They also work with schools, offering workshops. Plus, they take their shows to community centers, care homes, and hospices across the East End of London.
