New venue would be UK’s largest concert arena
Plans for a new live music and entertainment venue in Stratford designed by Populous have gone in for planning.
The venue, which will be known as MSG Sphere, would hold up to 21,500 people making it the largest concert arena in the UK.
The Madison Square Garden Company (MSG), the firm behind the New York concert and sports venue of the same name, is developing the arena on a 1.9ha site in Stratford that was used as a coach park during the 2012 London Olympics.
Jayne McGivern, MSG’s executive vice president of development and construction, said: “This is an opportunity to take an inaccessible coach park and use it to support thousands of jobs, and billions of pounds of economic benefit.
“If our plans are approved, we believe MSG Sphere will complement London’s existing venues and drive overall growth in the music and entertainment market – benefiting residents, artists and fans.”
If built the MSG Sphere will have a diameter of 120m and will be 90m tall at its highest point.
The venue would be wrapped in triangular LED panels which, when active, will showcase a range of images including digital art, content related to current and future events in the venue, and advertising and partnership branding.
The inside of the venue will feature the largest and highest resolution LED screen in the world and wireless connectivity that delivers 25 megabits per second for every guest.
In addition to the main venue, the plans for MSG Sphere include a smaller music club or nightclub, retail space, a cafe, restaurants and publicly accessible outdoor spaces.
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