Boiler Shop

Behind Newcastle’s Central Station is a post-industrial site that is being transformed by development but still holds onto the region’s heritage, the Boiler Shop, where some of the world’s most famous steam engines were designed and built.

Newcastle was one of the major cities of the Industrial Revolution, and George and Robert Stephenson purchased the site that would become the Boiler Shop in 1820 to build the boilers for their steam engines – hence the name. The boiler shop today is a stylish and often alternative events space, but it is still full of its industrial heritage – in fact, the building is grade two listed. The building itself was refurbished in 2016 to bring it into the modern age, but the work preserved the key industrial heritage while allowing for contemporary features.

In the same room where George and Robert Stephenson worked and directed their engineers to build the first steam engines, you can enjoy one of Newcastle’s best events spaces

In the same room where George and Robert Stephenson worked and directed their engineers to build the first steam engines, you can enjoy one of Newcastle’s best events spaces. From conferences to food and drink festivals, the Boiler Shop has hosted it all. It has also been a venue for art exhibitions, having accommodated Aardman’s Famous Wallace and Gromit during the Great Exhibition of the North in 2018. There are regular club nights, and the borderline ridiculous ‘Bongo’s Bingo’ – a combination of roller disco, bingo and a rave in a single event that has to be seen to be believed.

The food festivals are a treat on weekends, enabling visitors to enjoy worldwide and local street food and drink while listening to up-and-coming bands – a great way to impress your friends on a visit to Newcastle and Gateshead. Live music events come under the banner of BOILER SHOP PRESENTS, the in-house events brought together by David Phillips, Chiara Tomasoni and Richard Clouston.

These nights are incredibly popular, and events are held throughout the month bringing new bands and established favourites from every genre to the North East. Discover the Boiler Shop on your next visit to Newcastle and be a part of modern events that hold onto the heritage of the North East.