King's Hall Belfast, Boxing, Concert, & Exhibition Venue

I've stopped outside one of the most famous buildings in Belfast and it is in a very sorry sad state. This is the iconic Kings Hall Exhibition and Concert venue once the Belfast home of the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society, top boxing bouts, concerts and all manner of exhibitions. The King's Hall was designed by Leitch and Partners, Glasgow and was built in 1933 by J & R Thompson, Belfast. It was opened by the Duke of Gloucester on 29 May 1934. The King's Hall was the largest exhibition venue in Northern Ireland and prior to the completion of the Odyssey and the Waterfront Hall, was the only large concert venue in Northern Ireland. It hosted the Balmoral Show, an annual agricultural show with regular attendees in excess of 75,000. The stepped facade of the hall features substantial windows and Art Deco motifs on doors and buttresses. Inside. The functional space is spanned by reinforced concrete arches. In June 2012, the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society voted to purchase and develop a new venue, Balmoral Park, a 65-acre (260,000 m2) events park located in Lisburn, around 10 miles (16 km) from the current King's Hall site. Also at this time, the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society unveiled plans to build Northern Ireland's largest exhibition and events venue at Balmoral Park to replace the main King's Hall building. This venue was constructed in 2015 and named the Eikon Exhibition Centre. As a result, the King's Hall building closed its doors on 30 June 2012. Now all this is gone. Belfast City Council's planning committee recently approved plans for a £100m private health care hub facility at the site. The proposed south Belfast development, being brought forward by Benmore Octopus, includes a next generation GP care facility combining on-site diagnostics including X-ray, ultrasound and near patient care for more than 25,000 patients. Apparently the listed King's Hall building will be restored and refurbished, with a two storey side extension added for the site's primary health centre. The non-listed 29 Balmoral Avenue and all other non-listed buildings, including the showgrounds and stables are due to be demolished. Boxing The main hall is also a famous boxing venue. Rinty Monaghan boxed several times in the Hall. A blue plaque was unveiled in his memory at the hall in 2007. In 1985 Barry McGuigan made his first title defence against Bernard Taylor at the King's Hall, having fought there on six previous occasions. Both boxers have become synonymous with the venue. Other famous bouts to have taken place in the hall include Ray Close's rematch with Chris Eubank in 1994, and Dave McAuley's two fights with Fidel Bassa in 1987 and 1988. Other high-profile boxers to have fought at the venue include: Tyson Fury, Jamie Moore, John Duddy, Martin Lindsay, Neil Sinclair, Robin Reid, Wayne McCullough, Danny Williams, Amir Khan, Paul McCloskey, Eamonn Magee and Brian Magee. Concert Venue At one time the King's Hall was Northern Ireland's one and only biggest concert venue. The Beatles, Mary Wells, U2, Dylan, Bowie, Dolly Parton, Brenda Lee,Tammy Wynette, Bros, chris De Burgh, Nirvana, Thin Lizzy, Gary Moore, Gallagher & Lyle, … but no more. The Fab Four performed two shows at the King's Hall on 2 November 1964, in front of 16,000 fans. The top price then was £1. lol At the time they were the biggest group in the world, and making their second and last visit to Ireland. Now Benmore Octopus are developing a major £100m health facility at this site.

Added 16 Sept 2026