Affectionately known throughout the country as Ally Pally, the hilltop building has more than earned its proud place in British cultural life.
It’s only fitting that the place is celebrating its 150th anniversary today with a huge party complete with DJ sets, film screenings, a craft beer festival, street food and an ice disco.
We too wanted to celebrate this monumental milestone by taking a look back at some of the defining moments in the life of one of Britain’s most beloved venues.
It’s safe to say that Alexandra Palace got off to a bad start – just 16 days after the beautiful structure opened its doors on May 24, 1873, it was destroyed in a fire (Image: SSPL/Getty Images)
The new building, which people are more familiar with today, officially opened almost two years later, on May 1, 1875 (Image: The Print Collector/Print Collector/Getty Images)
The instantly recognizable huge circular window at the south end of Central Hall is seen in this image from 1875 (Image: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
The site played an important role in both world wars, serving as an internment camp for Austrian and German civilians from 1915 to 1919 and hosting refugees during World War II – as seen in this image (Image: Northcliffe Collection/ANL/REX/Shutterstock)
Alexandra Palace became famous across the country when the BBC set up its TV station there. It was attended by visitors including legendary songwriter Irving Berlin, seen here interviewing Welsh broadcaster Wynford Vaughan-Thomas (Image: George Konig/Keystone Features/Getty Images)
Of course, Ally Pally also has a long musical history: The Rolling Stones drew huge audiences in 1964 (Image: Frank Monaco/REX/Shutterstock)
The wild 14-hour Technicolor Dream concert in 1967 was in the presence of John Lennon and led by Pink Floyd, who took the stage at 5am (Image: Daily Mail/REX/Shutterstock)
Ozzy Osbourne wowed the crowd with Black Sabbath in 1973 (Image: Ilpo Musto/REX/Shutterstock)
The darkest day in Alexandra Palace’s long history was July 1, 1980, when a devastating fire destroyed a third of the building – a tragic echo of the 1873 disaster (Image: Ian Tyas/Keystone/Getty Images)
The building’s shell served as the filming location for the dystopian Victory Square in the 1984 film adaptation of George Orwell’s book. It took another four years before Alexandra Palace was fully restored and opened its doors again (Image: FLPA/REX/Shutterstock)
On November 4, 2009, two decades after recovering from the fire, Ally Pally guested with one of the world’s best-selling musicians: US rapper Jay-Z (Image: Simone Joyner/WireImage)
The first of four Red Bull Soapbox Races at Alexandra Palace took place on 14 July 2013, with Newcastle-based Spit-Phya winning in their vehicle inspired by Donald Campbell’s Bluebird (Image: Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images)
The Kaleidoscope festival, held on the grounds of the building, is considered “London’s premier festival” – meaning musicians on stage have to compete with stunning views over the city (Credit: Jack Dredd/REX/Shutterstock)
Groove Armada performed at the festival in 2021. This year’s event will feature Hot Chip and comedians Joe Lycett and Nina Conti (Image: Eamonn M. McCormack/Getty Images)
In October 2021, Alexandra Palace hosted the inaugural Earthshot Awards ceremony, attended by William and Kate (Image: Alberto Pezzali/WPA Pool/REX/Shutterstock)
The then-Duchess of Cambridge presented one of the awards for the award, which was created by her husband and David Attenborough (Image: Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Earthshot)
Ally Pally is also known to millions as the home of crazy costumes and exciting action at the World Darts Championship, last won by Michael Smith in January (Image: Andy Rain/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)
The breathtaking building is remembered by millions and is the scene of wonderful days and nights (Image: Getty Images)
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