Goodbye Trocadero
- Thread starter Bods
- Start date
A Muslim billionaire has won permission to turn a major London landmark into a mosque. The Trocadero, between Picadilly Circus and Soho, opened in 1896 as a restaurant. Westminster Council has approved the plans for a three-storey mosque in the heart of London.
kingtreelo
Active member
its not like he is turning a thriving arcade/entertainment establishment into a a mosque, by all accounts it was dead and buried
even so, this all sounds a bit racial...who cares what it is being turned into?
even so, this all sounds a bit racial...who cares what it is being turned into?
I don't because I don't live there
Plenty of Retro Arcades doing well so could of been some Entertainment place again, just more history lost which is a shame
New arcade machines are rubbish so not surprising there dying, good when 24 year olds say there crap now and no good games to play in them
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thegreathopper
Active member
Trocadero has been gone for years, at least 10. HOG ended up with a lot of the cabs the Sega VS cabs and a few more.
You may not have been aware of the redevelopment of the site but yeah they'd completely gutted and rebuilt the interior years ago leaving just the listed facade remaining.
I recall a builder who worked on it telling me the floors didn't line up with the windows at all now, but nobody cared as they'd all be well above visible street level anyway.
Last time I wandered past, the old entrance shopping arcade (remember the old hologram shop?) was hollowed out and used to sell cheap knock-off sports gear... basically an incredibly low quality JD Sports.
It was certainly a place of worship for us in the 90's and hey.. had been dance halls and theatres in the 30's / 40's / 50's so I'm those who visited in that era wouldn't have taken kindly to the neon escalator tunnel to Segaworld either
I recall a builder who worked on it telling me the floors didn't line up with the windows at all now, but nobody cared as they'd all be well above visible street level anyway.
Last time I wandered past, the old entrance shopping arcade (remember the old hologram shop?) was hollowed out and used to sell cheap knock-off sports gear... basically an incredibly low quality JD Sports.
It was certainly a place of worship for us in the 90's and hey.. had been dance halls and theatres in the 30's / 40's / 50's so I'm those who visited in that era wouldn't have taken kindly to the neon escalator tunnel to Segaworld either
deadendthrills
Active member
Yeah, Trocadero has been a zombie derelict for years. Anything that wipes another Kingdom Of Sweets from the face of the Earth is a good thing.
I'm happy knowing my one cab was a refugee from that place (via HOG iirc).
Watching the Segaworld in Bournemouth decline in the post-Dreamcast years was pretty miserable, too, not least because I lived a few doors down during my degree. I'd complain about the Star Wars Trilogy Arcade breaking while it had my high score on it but it was me who kept breaking it so...
I'm happy knowing my one cab was a refugee from that place (via HOG iirc).
Watching the Segaworld in Bournemouth decline in the post-Dreamcast years was pretty miserable, too, not least because I lived a few doors down during my degree. I'd complain about the Star Wars Trilogy Arcade breaking while it had my high score on it but it was me who kept breaking it so...
It was certainly a place of worship for us in the 90's and hey.. had been dance halls and theatres in the 30's / 40's / 50's so I'm those who visited in that era wouldn't have taken kindly to the neon escalator tunnel to Segaworld either
I think that's spot on, Trocadero was a pretty special place in it's day - now it's just a shell. If a rich chap wants to make it into a mosque - great.
A mosque with an 8 player Daytona ? Even better.
John Bennett
Senior Member
Well, at least the building hasn't mysteriously burnt down, like it would up North, so some of the architectural history remains.
There would be zero chance of it ever being a massive arcade again - arcades are down to the embers of what they used to be and retro arcades are a pretty niche thing.
Up here, the Spanish City in Whitley bay was a massive funfair that coachloads of people turned up to. Now it's just the main building with the dome, and it's a fish and chip restaurant inside, but at least it's still standing.
Metroland is a cinema and restaurants (ignoring the 'Namco' arcade that's dwindled to ticket redemption games).
There would be zero chance of it ever being a massive arcade again - arcades are down to the embers of what they used to be and retro arcades are a pretty niche thing.
Up here, the Spanish City in Whitley bay was a massive funfair that coachloads of people turned up to. Now it's just the main building with the dome, and it's a fish and chip restaurant inside, but at least it's still standing.
Metroland is a cinema and restaurants (ignoring the 'Namco' arcade that's dwindled to ticket redemption games).