Why Bradford Live completion date has been pushed back again

Earlier this week, the group that will run the building, the NEC group, confirmed it will not be opening until early 2024.

It comes after the project, to turn the 1930s city centre former cinema and theatre into a 3,800-capacity live music venue, was originally earmarked for 2022 and then this year.

Inside one of the foyers (Image: Newsquest)

Chris Morrell, of Bradford Live, says the delays are mainly down to the installations of the floors in the building.

The auditorium is set to be made up of three floors with a capacity of 800 on the top balcony, 500 in the middle and the remaining crowds on the ground.

When questioned why the completion date keeps getting moved back, Mr Morrell said: "The condition of the building has thrown up many surprises in a number of different ways.

"The original plan was to retain the original floors of the foyers but they have had to be replaced because the structure was not as strong as we had anticipated.

"It was more decayed than we had expected. We could have never determined that until we got into the building and the project started.

"The floor has to be removed before you can scaffold up onto the next level. The floors in the foyers and to the upper balcony have caused most of the delays."

Last week's fire created concern among Bradfordians wondering if it would impact the completion of the works.

The blaze in the southern dome of the building was believed to have been caused by workmen doing hot work.

It has since emerged that the damage sustained is thought to be "limited" following the fire.

One of the roofs (Image: Newsquest)

Although at first thought it was "everyone's worst nightmare", Mr Morrell described it as a "minor incident".

"It was a minor incident in a difficult-to-access location", he said.

"We are grateful to the fire service for doing such a thorough job of putting it out and putting all our minds at rest.

"Hopefully it will not impact the programme or the costs."

Essential work has already been carried out on the building, including to the ballroom roof, and the rest is likely to be completed this year.

The steps leading to a balcony (Image: Newsquest)

It is the fit-out needed to make it an operational concert venue that will not take place until early 2024 when the building is handed over to the NEC group.

Mr Morrell added: "Progress is looking good. The seat store and new extension block are almost complete. We are working on the roof and also the foyer space.

"It is an incredibly complex process. We are taking on 20 projects at the same time and they are all interconnected.

"It is a question of doing everything at once. You have to break the whole building down into separate spaces.

The damage caused by the fire (Image: Newsquest)

"We have come to the end of the known unknowns. The roof was the last one. The ballroom roof has been removed, which has not thrown up any surprises at this stage.

"You have the problem of connecting new stuff into an old building. That has caused a lot of difficulties.

"There are no records of what was where. Whole areas have had to be redesigned.

"We have had to be pragmatic. We are not stuck in the past. We don't want it to be a museum."

The opening of the venue is to tie in nicely with the One City Park and Darley Street Market projects set to be completed later this year.

"We like to think it will be the cornerstone of the rebirth of Bradford," said Mr Morrell.

"The building will attract 3,500 people, many won't be regular visitors to Bradford, and once they come they will be pleasantly surprised by what the city has to offer.

The material on the outside of the building (Image: Newsquest)

"They will have a brilliant night out seeing a world-class performance in a historic venue.

"It should make a big difference."

Opening in 1930 as the New Victoria, the building changed its name to The Gaumont in 1950.

For three decades after 1969, the building operated as an Odeon cinema and Top Rank bingo club, before finally closing its doors in 2000.