Fascinating history of Hasting building that became Yate's
Yates’s in Hastings town centre has announced it is closing but the landmark building it occupies has its own fascinating history.
Built in 1858, the impressive building measured 80 feet long, 60 feet wide, and 85 feet high. Between 1858–1880s, it was leased to Mr. Charles Lockey, who ran and managed it as Hastings Music Hall, a key entertainment and assembly venue for decades.
It’s highpoint came on November 6 1861 when Charles Dickens performed public readings of his prose works, including A Christmas Carol and The Pickwick Papers. The building still has a blue plaque to denote this.
In 1875, the building changed to being the Public Hall Assembly Rooms, but from 1913 to 1978 went back to public entertaining by being a cinema. It’s last incarnation was The Orion cinema.
At street level it became a large branch of W H Smiths, until Smiths re-located to the new Priory Meadow shopping centre. A fashion shop called JAX also occupied part of the building.