'It took 25 years - but this wonderful venue is reopening'

Bradford Live has cost £50m to build and taken 25 years to reopen

Twenty-five years ago, Bradford Odeon closed, bringing the curtain down on a cinema and concert hall that had been a premier entertainment venue since 1930.

This weekend, the restored building will come to life again when it officially reopens as Bradford Live, following a long fight to bring it back into use.

The Art Deco gem hosted The Beatles and Tom Jones in its glory days, but Bradford Council were able to buy it for just £1 in 2013. Campaigners who have battled to save the Odeon since 2000 said they were "pinching themselves" at its return to being a music venue again.

Mark Nicholson, from the Bradford Odeon Rescue Group, said: "I feel tremendously happy, vindicated and very proud, not for myself but for Bradford."

The venue will be a 'world-class asset', said campaigners

The council initially wanted to demolish the old cinema and turn the land into "glass block" office space, but a public outcry led to new plans to restore it as a 3,800-seat entertainment complex.

The council signed a contract with the NEC Group, who would operate the venue, but last year the company withdrew from the agreement, delaying the reopening.

The authority also faced scrutiny about how long the project was taking and how public funds were being used to facilitate it.

In February, Trafalgar Entertainment took over the management of the site and invested £3m into it.

A spokesperson said: "The wait is finally over and the good times are coming."

Comedians Bill Bailey and Rob Brydon and DJ Jo Whiley will be among the first performers during the opening season, while household names Bradley Walsh, Brian Conley, Shane Richie and Joe Pasquale - dubbed The Prat Pack - will perform a "spectacular variety show", including comedy routines and musical performances.

Mark Nicholson said Bradford residents were 'very proud' of the historic building

The Trafalgar spokesperson added: "We've assembled the kind of opening season that this magnificent venue and Bradfordians deserve and there's more to come with further artists being announced over the coming weeks."

Though the official opening gala kicks off later, the venue hosted a concert on 1 August.

Campaigner Mr Nicholson said "doubters" called it a "horrible old building" that should be demolished, but he believed it could be "a world-class asset for the 21st Century".

"Bradford lost a lot of great buildings in the 1960s and 70s and that was later viewed as a mistake.

"This building means a lot to us and a lot to the city, culturally.

"Say what you like about Bradford, but its citizens are very proud of it," he added.

During its heyday, the venue was known as The Gaumont and was also a ballet and concert venue with an orchestra pit and a Wurlitzer organ.

In 2007, Mr Nicholson helped to organise a "Hug the Odeon" event, which saw almost 1,000 residents join up to surround the building and embrace it to show their support for its restoration.

Mr Nicholson added: "What we envisaged for this spectacular building has come to pass."

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