Lucky escape after fire breaks out at Edwardian theatre

Staff at a volunteer-run Edwardian theatre are feeling "incredibly lucky" after a fire inside the historic building was swiftly contained, causing minimal damage to the performance space.

The fire service was called to the Hippodrome Theatre on Halifax Road in Todmorden at 15:54 GMT on Tuesday.

The Hippodrome's Steve Jackson said the emergency services were on site "within minutes" of the alarm being raised, ensuring the damage was confined to the roof space.

"We were incredibly fortunate,"Jackson said. "There is some damage to the actual auditorium, but it's mainly water damage."

"The fire brigade were there within about four minutes of the actual alarm being raised," said Jackson.

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said crews "found a fire involving around 10% of the roof space" of the three-storey building on arrival, and said it took about an hour to extinguish the blaze.

The Hippodrome, which first opened in 1908, was saved from closure by the Todmorden Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society (TAODS) in the 1950s on a lease from the owner.

It was purchased by the society in the 1980s and is one of the UK's largest volunteer-owned theatres.

Jackson said an "awful lot of blood, sweat and tears" had gone into running and restoring the theatre.

"The thought that we nearly lost it is just terrifying."

The theatre is currently undergoing a large extension, funded by the Todmorden Town Deal.

The £2.1m project will provide a large foyer and entrance area, as well as rehearsal, performance and exhibition spaces.

Although the cause of the fire has yet to be established, Jackson - who is project and development officer for TAODS - said it was not being linked to the construction work.

Praising the speed and professionalism of the firefighters, he said they were "incredibly lucky" the alarm had sounded during the afternoon "rather than the middle of the night, when there wouldn't have been a retained service".

Jackson said the impact of the fire was still being assessed and discussions with their insurance company were continuing, but stressed the building work would carry on.

"We have no electric in the building at the moment and we've got quite a lot of water damage and condensation, but our first event isn't until March so we are confident that will be able to go ahead."

He said the amount of support they had received from people in the area had been "absolutely heartwarming".

"The public outpouring of support is absolutely tremendous.

"We've been just overwhelmed with people contacting us and saying they can be there with mops and buckets, and it's just wonderful that people are so fond of it and have such good memories of it.

"They were devastated at the thought that we might lose it yesterday."

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