The Luminaire is a retro styled music venue with elegant styling throughout. They play host to a wide and varied assortment of bands ranging from Americana to folk and rock.

HISTORY
The Luminaire opened its doors on 1 March 2005. We were sick of the way bands and gig-goers were treated by promoters and venues. We never understood why things had to be confrontational, why sound engineers snapped at bands who requested basic things, why people who were supposed to love music were disrespectful to those who made it and those who came to listen. We still don't understand it, so you won’t find any of that behaviour around here.
We hoped that if we met our bands with a smile and a handshake, helped them load in, showed them round, offered them clean towels, tea and coffee, fresh milk, beer and water, and somewhere comfortable to sit backstage, and gave them a calm, friendly sound engineer to work with, they'd really appreciate it.

We thought that, instead of acting aloof and moody when people arrived for a gig, we welcomed them and asked how they were and maybe had a bit of a conversation and a laugh, they'd remember that and tell their friends.

And we figured that if we employed people behind the bar who genuinely loved live music and who knew that, when an acoustic act was playing, they had to do their best to serve drinks quietly, it would be greatly appreciated by our customers.

In February 2006, just eleven months after opening, Time Out magazine named The Luminaire as its Live Venue of The Year.

In March 2007, two years after opening, we won Music Week's UK Venue of The Year award.