Southend venues turn red

Published 7th July 2020

Many Southend Council-run publicly-owned venues were illuminated in red last night in a show of solidarity with the theatres and events industry, which has suffered immensely since the Coronavirus pandemic forced the country into lockdown.

The displays were part of a national campaign (www.lightitinred.co.uk) aimed at lobbying central government for extra assistance to ensure the events industry can recover from the Coronavirus pandemic.

Labour’s Kevin Robinson, cabinet member for Business, Culture & Tourism, said: “Our town has a rich history of culture, arts and events. We have two fantastic theatres which are both very popular both locally and nationally, and the impact the lockdown has had is a real threat to the sector locally and nationally.”

“We are happy to support this campaign which calls for more support to theatres and the events sector as a whole until the industry is back to work. We are very proud of the exceptional talent we have in this town, and by supporting this we hope we are visibly demonstrating that.”

Ellen McPhillips, director of Southend Theatres, said: “The live music industry, along with theatres, are finding creative ways to make their voices heard. This is a nationwide initiative to draw attention to them. Venues up and down the land closed their doors in March with no prospect of re-opening in the near future. Thousands of jobs are at risk and massive economic damage looms if this industry does not survive intact. The goal of this initiative is to press the government to support this billion-pound industry, and to do so quickly. Many venues will not survive the next 100 days if support measures are not announced. Once lost, this industry cannot be easily rebuilt.The Cliffs Pavilion and Palace Theatre are part of this industry and are only too happy to add our voice to ‘Light it in Red’.”