History

The Stables has been described as “one of the finest examples of Georgian domestic architecture.” John Collier, long-serving town clerk and five-times mayor of Hastings, lived in the High Street at what is now Old Hastings House. In 1746, he decided to convert four nearby cottages into stables and a coach-house. The resulting red-brick building, with a tiled roof of traditional Sussex hipped design, is our theatre and arts centre.

The building was adjacent to the Bourne—not then a road but a stream (which still flows in a culvert under the modern road). At one time there was a sluice-gate near All Saints Church, which held the Bourne back to form a pond; from this it could be released to flush out the lower part of the steam when it became polluted. It made a convenient place to water horses.

In 1806, when Napoleon was threatening to invade England, a huge number of troops was billeted in Hastings; no fewer than 410 of them lodged in the stables. They were under the command of Major General Sir Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington, who stayed nearby and no doubt visited the building.

In 1839 Hastings Corporation acquired a new patent fire engine and this was kept in the stables. History repeated itself during World War II, when again the building sheltered fire-fighting equipment.

The stables remained in the possession of the Colliers and their heirs, the Millwards, for nearly two centuries. One of the last horses to be kept at the stables was Sayer Milward’s Negotiator, whose picture hangs in the theatre. But the age of horse-drawn transport was passing, and in 1932 the building was sold to be the garage for the Mayor’s limousine.

Later, small industrial units were housed there, and on one memorable occasion accommodation was provided for a circus elephant.

By the early 1950s the building was semi-derelict and threatened with demolition. Old Hastings Preservation Society (OHPS) was determined to save it and set about fund-raising. Supporters included Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother and Sir Winston Churchill, then Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports.

The future of the building depended not only on money, but on a suitable use being found for the building. Hastings and District Theatre Guild had been formed in 1949, bringing together several local amateur theatrical groups. In 1955 the guild proposed to OHPS that the building should be converted into a little theatre. The Stables Trust Limited was formed to raise the money and to carry out the work.

A 99-year lease at £60 per annum was granted by Hastings Council. The cost of conversion—£15,000—was contributed to by the Ministry of Works, OHPS and local residents. Fund-raising events included a celebrity garden party and a Caledonian market (in full Cockney street trader costume), which was to become an annual highlight.

Work on the building began in 1957. Bricks were sourced from the same Ashburnham brickyard that supplied the bricks for John Collier’s building. The original rafters were kept as a feature of the building, and nearly all of the old tiles were reused.

The new theatre was opened by Sir Ralph Richardson on 16 June 1959. Sir Ralph became the first patron of the theatre, followed by Gwen Watford, Alec McCowan and Barbara Flynn, all celebrated actors with a local connection.

The first production was The Rose Without a Thorn by Clifford Bax. Since then the Stables has produced more than 500 plays, from ancient Greek tragedies to the cutting-edge work of young playwrights.

The original entrance to the theatre was on the High Street side of the building, and front-of-house facilities were very cramped—the bar was in what is now the first-floor landing. In 1978 an extension was built to add two art galleries, a larger bar and a new entrance and foyer facing The Bourne.

A further extension was completed in 2001, providing improved dressing-room facilities and much-needed storage space backstage.

The development continues, and at the start of 2007 the entrance foyer was expanded, a wheelchair lift has been added and the auditorium has been provided with modern raked seating.