Oxford Music Hall was a music hall located in Westminster, London at the corner of Oxford Street and Tottenham Court Road. It was established on the site of a former public house, the Boar and Castle, by Charles Morton, in 1861. In 1917 the music hall was converted into a legitimate theatre, and in 1921 it was renamed the New Oxford Theatre. In May 1926 it closed and was demolished.
Facade of the Oxford Music Hall, 1918 postcard
The 'apse' stage of the Oxford, ca. 1875. Patrons ate and drank in the auditorium
Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Britain between bold and scandalous music hall entertainment and subsequent, more respectable variety entertainment differ. Music hall involved a mixture of popular songs, comedy, speciality acts, and variety entertainment. The term is derived from a type of theatre or venue in which such entertainment took place. In North America vaudeville was in some ways analogous to British music hall, featuring rousing songs and comic acts.
The Eagle Tavern in 1830
The Oxford Music Hall, c. 1875
The interior of Wilton's Music Hall (here, being set for a wedding). The line of tables give some idea of how early music halls were used as supper clubs.
Interior of the Canterbury Hall, opened 1852 in Lambeth