The 16th October marked an important step forward for the Tobacco Factory Theatre, when the building owner George Ferguson officially granted the popular Southville venue a 25-year rent-free lease, helping to secure the theatre’s future.

The Tobacco Factory was once the headquarters of Imperial Tobacco, the major employer in South Bristol. In the 1980’s Imperial relocated, causing widespread unemployment in South Bristol, and the building fell into disrepair. George Ferguson bought the Tobacco Factory in the mid-90’s, determined that it could be the driver of a revival in Southville. His vision for the building had a theatre at its heart and the Tobacco Factory Theatre duly opened its doors to the public in 1998 when Show of Strength Theatre Company used part of the first floor of his recently acquired building as a theatre space. In 2000, Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory began to produce work in the space and the theatre became a full-time professional organisation in 2001 and a charitable trust in 2005.

The Tobacco Factory project has been an enormous success; BS3 was once one of the poorest postcodes in the country but is now comparatively affluent; North Street – once a wasteland – is packed with independent retailers, bars and restaurants and has become a destination area. Developers Urban Splash said, “The city is moving south. It started with the Tobacco Factory Theatre and now we’re all following.” The theatre has continued to be a driver for the Tobacco Factory. It is generally considered to be the most important studio theatre in the South West, is nationally recognised for the excellence, diversity and popularity of its programme and is well established as a favourite venue for a diverse and vibrant audience (70,000 people bought a ticket to see a show last year).

With this lease, the Tobacco Factory Theatre can now enjoy formal independence for the first ever time. Coupled with the recent confirmation that in the future it is to be grant-aided as a Key Arts Provider of Bristol City Council, it will help the theatre to plan ahead with confidence and ensure that it continues to be a beacon of theatrical excellence loved across Bristol and admired nationwide.