Additional reporting by KMTV’s Oliver Leader de Saxe

A cash-strapped council is spending hundreds of thousands of pounds maintaining and securing a run-down music venue as concerns mount over its future, KentOnline can reveal.

Thanet District Council (TDC) has stumped up £177,911 on security alone for Margate’s historic Winter Gardens since it closed in August 2022.

It comes after former management firm Your Leisure handed back its lease to the authority after reporting financial losses.

Now, figures KentOnline has obtained via a Freedom of Information request reveal mothballing the 2,500-capacity venue, which famously hosted The Beatles, has set the taxpayer back £382,694.

While some say the council should work harder to mitigate soaring costs, others praised the decision to stand firm on its pledge to revive the venue.

Thanet district councillor Barry Manners (Con) said: “The authority’s attitude is to look backwards to the days in the 50s when a building like that was viable.

“Unless we can build a time machine to go back to the 50s then the venue will remain empty.

“It’s beyond economic repair. Its listed status puts the council in a hopeless situation - it should be a year-round tourist destination.

“It’s easy for a council to kick the decision down the road when it’s spending other people’s money, but when it’s your own money you have to grasp the nettle.”

Local musician Aidan Sheridan was due to play at the Winter Gardens, close to his home, before it closed.

He believes shoring up various enterprises to operate the venue would solve the issue.

He said: “What we need to make this work is a true collaboration - we need the entertainment, we need a high-end restaurant taking over the balcony and a high volume boozer with a profit share model.

“What’s so special about the venue is it’s built into the cliff with sea views - there is absolutely no sound pollution to the town.”

Mr Sheridan says partnerships between the council and businesses in his home city of Birmingham saw the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) become a leading music and sports venue, bringing in hundreds of thousands of visitors yearly.

Yet with the Winter Gardens still empty, official council papers paint a bleak picture of money haemorrhaging away to stave off decay.

The Fort Crescent site “continues to deteriorate internally, leading to increased costs” for repairs, a recent report states.

“Public concern is growing due to the high-profile nature of the property, which also risks the council's credibility,” it adds.

“Recent changes in our insurance underwriter may result in new security requirements for vacant properties, increasing the risk the longer the asset remains unoccupied.”

Council staff must monitor the empty interior weekly, where poor air circulation and lack of footfall perpetuate expensive leaks and dampness.

Officers patrol the exterior twice daily which, alongside security alarms and callouts, significantly ramps up costs.

“Funding is depleting to continue with the increased levels of added security,” the papers say.

The report explains the authority “cannot mitigate” the prolonged empty period because, in short, it hinges on whether prospective operators materialise.

A previous effort to secure a new owner or operator, launched last year, stumbled given the estimated £6 million cost of repairs to get the Grade II-listed venue in a state to reopen.

However, it is hoped £4 million of government funding - initially earmarked for Dreamland but now reallocated to the Winter Gardens - will help sweeten the deal.

Exactly what shape the venue will take will be determined only once an operator has signed up – but many are keen to see it reopen soon.

Speaking next to the site, Sean Gambrell told KentOnline: “I’d love for it to open up again. It’s a hub of the community, promotes businesses here - hotels used to do a lot better up here.

“It’s a shame, it’s just rotting away down there. If they could spend the money on it and bring back some local comedians, nationwide bands, it would turn it around.

“Obviously Dreamland has gone from strength to strength - it only shows there is an appetite for bands and such like to come down here.”

Describing his experiences visiting the night spot, Ian Pearce said it was a “beacon” in the area. However, he sympathised with the council’s position, saying local authorities are underfunded.

“It was brilliant, especially at night time, because it all lit up,” he said.

“It was just sort of a beacon in an area where there wasn't a great big venue.

“An old-fashioned venue like this, it's absolutely criminal it has just been left to wrack and ruin.

“Covered in ivy, concrete cancer all over it. It's a disgrace, really.”

Steve McKenna, who has run Margate Bay Guest House with wife Hannah for 20 years, says while he is still able to open year-round since the venue shut, other hotels have not been so fortunate.

“The Winter Gardens created activity,” he said.

“Even when people were leaving the shows, you'd hear the hustle and bustle of the taxis arriving, the people outside.

“There were weddings there at the weekend, business events. It was so much more activity. It was a place to be.

“I know some hotels in this area can't afford to stay open in the winter months.

“The Winter Gardens definitely kept us busy throughout October, November, and even into December - we just hope that there's a plan for it.”

Historically, the spot served as an entertainment hotbed for crowds too numerous to mention, attracting some of the biggest names in show business since being built in 1911.

It was here Laurel and Hardy played their one Kent show in 1947, The Beatles trod the boards for six days in 1963, followed by the Manic Street Preachers in 1998.

In fact, the entire list of performers reads like a ‘who’s who’ of stars in their heyday.

On what the future holds for the site, a TDC spokesperson said: “A process to identify potential operators is ongoing.

“As this is still a live process, public updates could potentially impact the outcome.

“In light of this, we will only share information once the process has been concluded.

“We expect to provide an update on the situation in the coming weeks.

"The Margate Winter Gardens is a well-loved, iconic part of our local history.

It’s also a Grade II-listed building and of significant architectural and cultural heritage.

“The investment in looking after the building whilst we work to secure its future reflects our commitment to bringing the Winter Gardens back into use."