Unusual event venues
Unusual event venues, each profiled from the organisation's own published information.
The 55 venues listed here are in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh and other UK cities. Profiles were last checked between 7 and 14 November 2026. Unusual event venues in Bristol · Unusual event venues in Leicester.
Venues
Ashmolean Museum
You can host from an 18-seat board meeting to an 800-guest reception across the galleries, a 5 to 10 minute walk from Oxford station, with two approved caterers. Up to 800 · 8 spaces
Bar Convent
You can hire three meeting rooms for up to 60 people theatre style, a short walk from York station, from £35 an hour, with in-house catering and a guest house on site. Up to 60 · 3 spaces
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery
You can hold an evening reception or dinner for 50 to 200 guests in Victorian galleries on Chamberlain Square, about 10 minutes' walk from New Street and Snow Hill stations. Up to 200 · 3 spaces
Bristol Museum & Art Gallery
You get exclusive evening use of two glass-roofed Edwardian halls for up to 400 standing or 240 seated, with Monday day conferences from £67 plus VAT per delegate. Up to 400
Bristol Zoo Project
Hold a meeting for up to 40 people with free parking, WiFi and optional zoo access, 150 metres off the M5 at junction 17, in four spaces at Bristol Zoo Project. Up to 40 · 4 spaces
Cardiff Castle
You can host up to 100 guests for dinner inside Cardiff Castle, in the Banqueting Hall or the vaulted Undercroft, with Cardiff Central and Queen Street stations within walking distance and hourly hire rates published. Up to 120 · 3 spaces
Chester Cathedral
Seat up to 850 theatre style or 504 at round tables in Chester Cathedral's medieval nave, with four smaller historic rooms on the same site for breakouts and receptions. Up to 850 · 5 spaces
Chester Zoo
Run a conference for up to 250 theatre style or a company day for up to 500 inside Chester Zoo, with free parking, Wi-Fi and zoo entry in the delegate packages. Up to 300 · 11 spaces · 51 bedrooms
Cornerstone Events
You can host up to 450 guests in central Milton Keynes across three rooms in the Church of Christ the Cornerstone, with in-house catering, a bar and sound and lighting from one team. Up to 450 · 3 spaces
Coventry Cathedral
Hold a concert, dinner or exhibition for up to 1,350 standing guests in Coventry's open-air Ruins or modernist Nave, a short walk from the railway station, with local caterers the cathedral recommends. Up to 1,350 · 12 spaces
Coventry Transport Museum
Hold a conference or dinner for up to 200 in the Mezzanine Gallery over the Land Speed Record gallery, a 15-minute walk from Coventry station, with day delegate rates from £45 excluding VAT. Up to 200 · 4 spaces
Curve
You can open Curve's two theatres and stage into one space for up to 1,300 people, with five meeting rooms and a 98m Mezzanine for receptions of 660, under 10 minutes' walk from Leicester station. Up to 970 · 5 spaces
Discovery Museum
You can host up to 1,000 standing guests across the whole museum, or 150 for a reception beside Turbinia, five minutes' walk from Newcastle Central Station; the 300-seat Great Hall takes bookings again from spring 2027. Up to 300 · 8 spaces
Dynamic Earth
You can seat 550 for dinner, hold 800 standing or run a 300-seat plenary, with chefs, an AV technician and parking on site, a 15-minute walk from Edinburgh Waverley. Up to 300 · 9 spaces
Edinburgh Castle
You can host dinners, receptions and small meetings inside Edinburgh Castle, from 22 at dinner in the Gatehouse Suite to 250 to 500 guests with exclusive use of the whole castle. Up to 500
Engine Shed
You get weekday daytime rooms for up to 100 people right beside Bristol Temple Meads, with hybrid-ready AV and published day rates, until the venue closes in December 2026. Up to 100 · 5 spaces
Glasgow Science Centre
Run a conference in a 370-seat IMAX and a dinner for up to 500 in the Atrium at one Clyde-side science centre, with free parking and day delegate rates from £45 plus VAT. Up to 500 · 13 spaces
International Centre for Life
You can host guests under a seven-metre Earth globe, in a 71-seat Planetarium or in a marquee on Times Square, five minutes' walk from Newcastle Central Station.
Kelham Island Museum
Hold a conference or dinner for 200, or a reception for 250, in the Upper Gallery above Kelham Island Museum's industrial collections, with AV, a licensed bar and preferred caterers from one hospitality team. Up to 250 · 3 spaces
Leicester Cathedral
You can hire the nave of the cathedral that holds Richard III's tomb for a concert, dinner or exhibition, 10 to 15 minutes' walk from Leicester station.
Leicester Haymarket Theatre
You get a 901-seat tiered auditorium in central Leicester with a 24-hour car park joined to the building and Haymarket Bus Station two minutes away. Up to 901
Liverpool Cathedral
You can seat up to 2,000 guests in the cathedral's central space and run meetings for up to 90 theatre style in its separate Sir Giles Gilbert Scott Suite, with in-house catering and an on-site car park. Up to 2,000
Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
Hire a 1,677-capacity Art Deco concert hall with its foyers and events team, or the 250-standing Music Room behind it, a 10 to 15 minute walk from Liverpool Central and Lime Street. Up to 1,677
M Shed
You can seat 270 theatre style in the Waterside Suite and take drinks onto a private rooftop terrace over Bristol's harbour, with in-house catering and day delegate packages from £53 + VAT. Up to 270 · 5 spaces
Manchester Museum
You can hold a 90-seat conference in the Kanaris Lecture Theatre, dine 120 under a sperm whale skeleton in Living Worlds, or take over the whole museum on a Monday for up to 1,000 guests. Up to 1,000 · 5 spaces
Mayflower Theatre and Studios
You can run a conference for 449 seated delegates in Studio 1 and add show hospitality at the theatre, with ten hireable spaces across two Southampton buildings a few minutes' walk from Southampton Central. Up to 449 · 10 spaces
Merchant Adventurers’ Hall
You get a medieval Great Hall in central York seating 180 for dinner, a separate Undercroft for 180 at the drinks reception, and corporate dinner hire from £1,200 with no VAT. Up to 180 · 4 spaces
National Railway Museum
Hold a reception for up to 1,000 guests among locomotives, or seat 450 for dinner beside royal carriages, a signposted walk from York station, with a conference centre seating 100. Up to 1,000
National Space Centre
You can host up to 500 at a reception among the space galleries, seat 192 in the Planetarium and park over 400 cars on site, two miles north of Leicester city centre. Up to 500
Nottingham Castle
You can host a seminar, launch or reception in the Grade I listed Ducal Palace on Castle Rock, within walking distance of Nottingham station and the Old Market Square.
Òran Mór
You can seat 360 theatre style or 276 for dinner in a converted West End church, with day delegate packages from £35 a head and Hillhead subway a few minutes' walk away. Up to 500 · 4 spaces
Phoenix
Hire meeting rooms from £15 an hour plus VAT or a 220-seat cinema screen in Leicester's Cultural Quarter, about a 10-minute walk from the station, with in-house catering. Up to 220 · 5 spaces
Rosebank Distillery
You can hold an 18-guest meeting, a 40-guest presentation or an exclusive evening for up to 80 in a working Falkirk distillery, with free on-site parking and published rates from £25 per person. Up to 40
Royal Armouries and New Dock Hall
You get a pillar-free 1,259 m² hall, a divisible 886 m² hall and museum galleries on one Leeds Dock site, with space for 1,200 theatre style in New Dock Hall. Up to 1,200 · 12 spaces
Royal Institution
You can run a conference for up to 400 in the Royal Institution's tiered Theatre and use nine more Mayfair rooms for dining and breakouts, five minutes' walk from Green Park. Up to 400 · 10 spaces
Royal Liver Suite
You can take the whole first floor of the Royal Liver Building for up to 200 guests, or 240 in some layouts, with a private balcony over the Mersey and in-house catering. Up to 240
Science and Industry Museum
You can hold a 250-seat theatre-style conference and an evening dinner for 270 at one Manchester site, with Benugo catering and Deansgate station about 10 minutes' walk away. Up to 450 · 6 spaces
SeaCity Museum
You can host up to 120 at a reception in the 1930s Grand Hall or take the whole museum for about 500 guests, five minutes' walk from Southampton Central. Up to 500 · 5 spaces
Sheffield Theatres
You can hire four auditoriums seating up to 1,098 and six private rooms in Sheffield city centre, a 10 to 15 minute walk from the station, through one events team. Up to 1,098 · 6 spaces
SS Great Britain and Bristol Dockyards
Run a conference in the Great Eastern Hall for up to 160 theatre style, then take guests on board the SS Great Britain for dinner for 160 in the First Class Dining Saloon. Up to 160 · 11 spaces
St Mary’s Guildhall
Seat 100 guests or host 110 at a reception in a medieval Coventry guildhall, with day meetings from £30 plus VAT per delegate and the station about a 10-minute walk away. Up to 110 · 4 spaces
Storyhouse
Hire anything from a 14-seat library meeting room from £30 to an 800-seat theatre in central Chester, with lift access to every floor and the station a 17-minute walk away. Up to 800 · 5 spaces
Techniquest
You can host up to 800 guests among hands-on science exhibits on Cardiff Bay's waterfront, with conference packages for up to 240 theatre style, ten minutes' walk from Cardiff Bay station. Up to 800 · 5 spaces
Thackray Museum of Medicine
Book one of five rooms for 10 to 120 seated delegates, with AV, free Wi-Fi, discounted parking and free gallery entry included, in a Grade II listed former Leeds workhouse. Up to 200 · 5 spaces
Thames River Cruise
Hire a whole boat on the upper Thames for up to 140 guests, with in-house food, bar and crew, boarding at Caversham Pier in Reading. Up to 140 · 3 spaces
The Halls, Norwich
Host from 20 guests to 900 standing in one Grade I listed medieval complex, 950 metres from Norwich station, with four spaces from Becket's Chapel to St Andrew's Hall. Up to 900 · 4 spaces
The Hepworth Wakefield
Hold a meeting for up to 100 in a riverside auditorium, then take guests into the galleries, with in-house catering and Wakefield Kirkgate station about 8 minutes' walk away. Up to 100
The Oxford Union
Seat up to 360 on the Oxford Union's Debating Chamber benches and host private dinners for 60, in six hireable rooms a 12-minute walk from Oxford station. Up to 360 · 6 spaces
The Royal Yacht Britannia
Hire Queen Elizabeth II's former Royal Yacht for the evening, with drinks for up to 500 guests and dinners for 8 to 196, by tram from central Edinburgh. Up to 500 · 4 spaces
Titanic Belfast
Seat 500 for a banquet beside a replica of Titanic's Grand Staircase, with seven indoor event spaces and 520 underground parking spaces in Belfast's Titanic Quarter. Up to 800 · 7 spaces
Ulster Museum
You can hold a 160-seat conference in the Lecture Theatre and a 160-guest dinner or 200-guest reception in the Atrium, on one ground floor of the Ulster Museum in Botanic Gardens. Up to 200 · 8 spaces
Wales Millennium Centre
You can hold a conference, dinner or reception in a Cardiff Bay theatre with 12 spaces for hire, from the 1,897-seat Donald Gordon Theatre to the Japan Room boardroom, with technical and IT staff on site. Up to 1,897 · 12 spaces
Watershed
You can run a talk for up to 197 in a cinema or a reception for 150 in a harbourside room, with standard AV and an in-house technician included in the hire. Up to 197 · 7 spaces
We The Curious
Host up to 460 theatre style in the top-floor Rosalind Franklin Room on Bristol's Harbourside, with private terraces, a 3D Planetarium for 85 and evening use of the science exhibits. Up to 480 · 4 spaces
Wollaton Hall
You can seat 100 for dinner in Wollaton Hall's Great Hall, host 150 for a reception with the Salon, or put up to 1,000 in a marquee in its Nottingham deer park. Up to 150
Compare venues in the Unusual event venues sector at a glance
| Venue | Town or city | Largest capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Ashmolean Museum | Oxford | 800 people (drinks reception, multiple galleries or museum-wide hire) |
| Bar Convent | York | 60 people (theatre style, The Bedingfield) |
| Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery | Birmingham | 200 people (Christmas drinks reception or dinner packages (published range 50-200)) |
| Bristol Museum & Art Gallery | Bristol | 400 people (informal reception, Winterstoke Hall and Wills Hall combined) |
| Bristol Zoo Project | Bristol | 40 people (African Forest Classroom or Bear Wood Event Space (16 to 40, layout not specified)) |
| Cardiff Castle | Cardiff | 120 people (dancing, The Undercroft) |
| Chester Cathedral | Chester | 850 people (theatre style, The Nave) |
| Chester Zoo | Chester | 300 people (reception (standing), The Atrium at The Square) |
| Cornerstone Events | Milton Keynes | 450 people (maximum published, the Worship Area (layout not stated)) |
| Coventry Cathedral | Coventry | 1,350 people (standing, the Nave or the Ruins) |
| Coventry Transport Museum | Coventry | 200 people (maximum capacity, The Mezzanine Gallery) |
| Curve | Leicester | 970 people (theatre capacity, Theatre) |
| Discovery Museum | Newcastle | 300 people (theatre style, Great Hall) |
| Dynamic Earth | Edinburgh | 300 people (theatre style, Biosphere) |
| Edinburgh Castle | Edinburgh | 500 people (drinks reception, exclusive use of the castle (published as 250-500)) |
| Engine Shed | Bristol | 100 people (theatre style, Bristol Innovations Zone event space) |
| Glasgow Science Centre | Glasgow | 500 people (banquet or reception, Atrium) |
| International Centre for Life | Newcastle | – |
| Kelham Island Museum | Sheffield | 250 people (reception, Upper Gallery) |
| Leicester Cathedral | Leicester | – |
| Leicester Haymarket Theatre | Leicester | 901 people (theatre style, auditorium (Stalls and Circle)) |
| Liverpool Cathedral | Liverpool | 2,000 people (seated, Main Cathedral) |
| Liverpool Philharmonic Hall | Liverpool | 1,677 people (auditorium capacity as published (no layout named), Liverpool Philharmonic Hall) |
| M Shed | Bristol | 270 people (theatre style or standing reception, Waterside Suite) |
| Manchester Museum | Manchester | 1,000 people (whole-museum Corporate Takeover Day (Mondays); largest single space 200 drinks reception, Main Hall) |
See every listing in the Unusual event venues sector on the map
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55 of 55 listings have a mapped address.
Questions about Unusual event venues
How many listings are there for Unusual event venues?
You can compare 55 listings here: 55 venues.
Which towns and cities have the most listings in the Unusual event venues sector?
Bristol (7), Leicester (5), Chester (3), Coventry (3), York (3).
Which venue in the Unusual event venues sector has the largest stated capacity?
Liverpool Cathedral, at 2,000 people, among the venues here that publish a capacity.
You can check every answer against the 55 listings in this section: each one is worked out from what they publish.