Bloomsbury Theatre

The husband and I saw Katherine Ryan here this past Friday night. Hilarious. But this review is not about her show, it is about the venue.
The venue is small and, unfortunately, we visited during the Great Heat Wave of London 2015 where temperatures the prior day were 93 F and hovered around 85 F the day of our visit. There may be a/​c in this theatre but if there is, it cannot accommodate for such blazing external temperatures + body heat. The theatre was stuffy and slightly too hot but the show quickly took our mind off the temperatures.
We were seated in row L, seats ²¹⁄₂₂ and they were great seats. Nearly in the middle of the theatre (widthwise) and a couple rows from the back. We had no issues seeing or hearing Katherine. The only slight problem with these seats was climbing over a ton of people to get in and out. A prior reviewer mentioned that there were plenty of exits in the theatre and that no climbing would be necessary and while, yes, there are exits on both sides of the theatre, there still is a fair amount of climbing over people. Each row has approximately 30 seats.
The staff were some of the friendliest staff I have come across in London. The bar was small but efficient with five bartenders on staff to handle the intermission rush. Selection is small: red or white wine, standard liquors (vodka, rum, whisky) and a few beers including one cider. Note that the bar is cash only.
The toilets are kick ass — recently refurbished with about a dozen cubicles in the upper ladies toilet, not sure about the lower ladies toilet.
Overall, a super venue!

100!
So our visit here was sort of spur of the moment, as after seeing tweets from Chris Ramsey all week pushing his gig here, I finally gave in and bought two tickets with just 24 hours to go until the show. And I am SO glad I did.
To start with, the Bloomsbury Theatre is one of my favourite kinds. The online seating plan makes it look huge so I was a bit apprehensive that my back-​of-​the-​stalls tickets would mean I had a rubbish view. How mistaken was I.
This theatre is a LOT smaller in real life, and warmer, with plushy seats, multiple exits so there’s no muttered ‘sorry’ as you climb over people’s knees, and ice cream vendors milling around. It has all the benefits of a properly posh theatre like the Barbican or the Wyndham, but with the intimacy of a typical student-​sized auditorium, like the Gulbenkian in Canterbury only in our lovely Capital. Be still my beating heart.
If you don’t want to pay theatre prices for food or drink, there’s the Bloomsbury Café round the corner offering sweets, snacks, salads and wraps as well as a selection of bottled soft drinks, and they don’t bag search you or seem to care. I walked in munching on a bag of prawn cocktail so don’t worry about it.
The show itself was incredible. I’ve seen Chris Ramsey before so I knew I was in for a good time but I always forget how funny he actually is. Highlights include his story about his appearance on Soccer AM (‘bumming’ is NOT swearing!), the time he was arrested for burglary after he was caught in his mum and dad’s house, and the woman in the second row who clearly felt tired and decided to lie down and have a nap, prompting 10 minutes of riffing on the ‘Bloomsbury Sleepover’.
Special mentions also have to go to Carl Hutchinson, his opener. Consistently hilarious, the same stage presence as Ramsey and his addition gives the whole thing a 2-​amazing-​comedians-​for-​the-​price-​of-​one feel to it.
After, the Theatre kindly set up a table for him to sign programmes at, so we got to meet him, have a chat and walk away with a souvenir unheard of at most gigs in London. If you see someone you like performing here, book. Any seat you get will be a winner. And if you see Chris Ramsey tour dates near you, book. You’ll be crying with laughter at the end of the first half.

This is a great venue that’s part of the university, so the prices reflect this. Both the tickets and the drinks inside the venue are reasonably priced and are fantastic value for central London. The theatre is styled in the traditional way with stalls and a balcony seating. The seats are very comfortable and have a fantastic amount of legroom (bear in mind I’m pretty tall), the stage is large and the seats are laid out in a crescent shape; giving everyone a good view.
They seem to have lot of different types of event at this venue catering for different tastes. Within the venue there is a bar, café and downstairs there is a free cashpoint machine. Great facilities, great location and an interesting and varied programmed at reasonable prices, what more could you want.

This is a great little venue with good acoustics. It was reasonably easy to find. I don’t think you could get a bad seat here. Very helpful staff at the box office.

Decent sized theatre this — great raked seats with ample leg room.
They show a lot of comedy here. I was lucky to get some comp tickets for the Time Out comedy night and had myself a great time. It appears to be undergoing some work in the foyer area so it was in a bit of disarray. That said, there is ample bar support and the loos were practically empty at the interval which is always welcome!
Being part of UCL it’s in the Euston area which doesn’t present too much scope for before and after drinking unless you really know where you’re going.
Still — I really like the theatre and thought the acoustics were spot on.

This is such a cute little theatre — I’m shocked to see it hasn’t been reviewed yet. I came here for a Foyles event (note to self, check the tickets before you leave so you don’t turn up at the bookshop instead) and it’s actually a great little secret place by Warren Street tube, although it’s very easy to get to from Euston if you’re coming from the other branch of the Northern Line.
The theatre isn’t huge, but I like that. It’s modern, but still has a bit of a traditional feel — not like the National. I saw Audrey Niffeneger here which was fab and it’s well worth checking out the events to see what’s going on.
The best part? I think they’re linked with UCL because the café isn’t stupidly expensive. Bottle of diet coke — 95p. I was very pleasantly shocked. And perked up enough not to fall asleep in the cosy theatre.

This is a semi-​secret venue for top class acts in London. It’s part of University College of London and far from being a student union theatre, it plays host to national celebrities with acts ranging from comedy to drama and music.
Quite often, top comics will hone their acts here before going mainstream with new material. For example, I’ve watched Omid Djalili perform here before putting that material into his recent TV series. In the coming months, Ricky Gervais and Jimmy Carr will be performing here.
The theatre is comfortable with a bar and the prices are much lower than the West End.
So, get your name on that mailing list and pay the Bloomsbury a visit.

The Bloomsbury Theatre is part of the University College of London and is conveniently located a 5 minute walk from Euston Station and a 10 minute walk from Kings Cross & St Pancras. The staff are cheery and enthusiastic about the place which I found to be warming and put me at ease. It also generated a positive atmosphere which I believed made my evening’s show more enjoyable.
The auditorium is nicely designed with plenty of leg room between seats which means you can really stretch out and relax during the show. It is quite small and so all seats are close to the stage and come with a good view. Bars are located directly outside the main performance area and sell basic drinks and snacks at a reasonable price.
Although the Bloomsbury Theatre is not the biggest name on the London circuit but it does frequently host some big names from stand up comedy as well as some notable ones from the world of music. It is always worth keeping an eye on their website so that you don’t miss out on the chance to be a part of a select audience.
Travel wise, public transport is advised as much of the surrounding area is either parking permits or pay meters, not to mention the congestion around Euston Station.