Grand Opera House

The Grand Opera House, built around 1900 by Frank A Tugwell, is located on an irregular corner site on Oxford Street. The building has three storeys and attics, featuring an eight-bay entrance front with an octagonal tower at the corner topped by a cupola. The roof is slated, with parapets and coped gables. The structure is made of red brick with stone dressings, and it includes architraved sash windows, some adorned with cornices and pediments. The theatre entrance is arched, and there is a modern shop present.

Inside, the Edwardian decor showcases plasterwork embellished with floral motifs and gilding. The ceiling is panelled with a central dome, while the carved circle and balcony fronts are decorated with masks, swags, and putti. The theatre features two tiers of boxes with bowed fronts, flanked by pilasters that support a cornice with broken pediments. The proscenium opening is architraved, featuring a central oval cartouche flanked by cornucopiae, and the proscenium itself has a moulded cornice and frieze enriched with masks and scroll decoration. The entrance foyer is particularly interesting, designed in the 'Art Nouveau' style, with a frieze in low relief by Frances Darlington. The interior is included in the listing for its significance.