There is so much happening in the North Wales seaside town of Rhyl these days, not only with the re-development around the Sky Tower but also news of the replacement for the Rhyl Sun Centre and the news of the Coast2Coast Festival July.
It’s been a while since the Rhyl Sun Centre closed, it used to a very popular hang out for tourists during its heyday with many people enjoying the facilities that it had, including the chance to surf on a wave machine and also enjoy a warm environment by the sea, even if the weather outside was your typical UK summer weather!
Now with the fantastic news that the regeneration for Rhyl is getting a boost of £3.5 million it looks like the seaside town is well on its way to bringing people back to good old “Sunny Rhyl” for them to enjoy the town area and the new places of activity and entertainment.
The Rhyl Sun Centre to be Demolished and Replaced
The fate of the Rhyl Sun Centre was one of uncertainty with many hoping that something would be done to bring it back to life for not only the tourists but this time more for the locals as well and for it to be open all season for everyone to enjoy.
But with the new aquatic centre being built down the road near the Sky Tower, the life of the Rhyl Sun Centre looks like it is unsure again, news of it becoming a “Black Box” which would enable events to take place and bring in many different types of events and shows.
But there is more to what is happening to the Rhyl Sun Centre than we were first meant to believe, we caught up with one of the key designers for the new building and found out that not only is the Rhyl Sun Centre being demolished it will be bringing a vision of grandeur back to the town and part of this design will also see the theatre removed!
“We decided to take both the Rhyl Sun Centre and the Pavilion Theatre down and start from scratch, after we saw the look of the old Pavilion Theatre from a photograph of Rhyl, we decided to get to work and bring the building back with a modern twist, but to make it so much bigger for modern day events and shows” – Marc Papadopulos (Head of Design)
The Photograph that inspired the designers of the New Rhyl Pavilion in Rhyl
Now to us this was a shock, why take down the theatre, it’s a fantastic place for shows and big names coming to Rhyl, but after seeing the plans for the new construction we can say that this is going to be something spectacular, it will take up the areas of the Theatre, Rhyl Sun Centre and the adjacent car parks!
Rhyl The Good Old Days Return with the New Pavilion
The new building is going to be a reconstruction of the old Pavilion that was torn down back in the early 70s, but this building will be so much bigger and fitted out with modern tech to help bring so many more events to the area with the likes of a rotating 360° stage that will also be able to be lowered and raised when required in the theatre.
With its grand entrance hall that will lead off to several sections of the building, the new theatre section will seat around 2,500 people with a stage much bigger than the one that is currently at the theatre, this will allow bigger shows that are touring to bring in more people from surrounding areas.
There will also be an “events hall“, this is going to have a capacity of around 20,000 people, it will be used for the likes of rock concerts and will also be ideal to hold events such as conventions, car shows and so much more.
The building will have that Victorian look from the outside, but on the inside, after the entrance hall with its extravagant chandeliers, winding wooden staircases and mosaic flooring, it will be ultra modern, the events hall itself will have wall panels that will lower from the ceiling  allowing areas to be cordoned off and made into various sections for the events.
The theatre will look like a grand old theatre with the décor having ornate plasterwork, but the seats will be modern seats with several sections have reclining seats to allow more comfort to those that wish to opt for a “VIP” section.
Of course all this comes at a cost, although there has been a £3.5 Million boost for the area, it is estimated that the cost of this new building will be in the region of £450 Million, a local official told us that “this is going to be money well worth spending and is a must for the area, to enable Rhyl to go back to the Sunny Rhyl days, where families can enjoy so much more than just a stroll along the beach.”
“Having this new venue will allow us to get so many more big names to the area for the theatre and the new venue section will be THE place for big named bands to have sold out gigs in the town, plus with the flexibility of the indoor events area, we can have so much more going on.” – Council Official
The New Pavilion is going to be a massive undertaking to build once the Rhyl Sun Centre and theatre have been taken down and the work should be finished by Autumn 2018, with that £450 Million budget, it is certainly going to be a magnet for so much more entertainment for Rhyl and North Wales.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
