The Stage Door was a basement club in Hereford Lane, central Christchurch, that ran from 1964 to around 1968 under three names — King Bee Koffee Kellar, Stage Door, and Ram Jam Club. Home to Chants R&B and the city’s mod underground, it was Christchurch’s answer to the Cavern Club, and the site of one of New Zealand’s most celebrated live recordings.
The Plainsman was a no-alcohol coffee lounge, steakhouse and music venue that operated from 1962 to 1972 at 110 Lichfield Street in central Christchurch. One of the city’s most important musical venues of the beat era, it launched the careers of Ray Columbus, The Secrets, and Gary Thain — later of Uriah Heep — and hosted Dinah Lee, Chants R&B, and a young Johnny Farnham.
The Great Hall at the Christchurch Arts Centre is one of the oldest and most significant concert halls in Canterbury. Designed by Benjamin Mountfort in 1882 as College Hall for Canterbury College, it features Gothic Revival architecture with native timber panelling and a hammerbeam roof. Closed for earthquake restoration between 2011 and 2016, it reopened to international recognition and continues to host concerts, recitals, and events.
The Bedford was Christchurch’s premier large-capacity live music venue of the 2000s, a converted warehouse on Lichfield Street capable of holding around 1,000 people. Demolished after the 2011 earthquake, it was kept alive through a series of marquee pop-up venues by owner Wendy Alfeld — earning national recognition for keeping live music alive in the city through years of disruption.
Warners Hotel at 50 Cathedral Square was one of Christchurch’s most storied establishments, tracing its history from 1863 through to the February 2011 earthquake that led to its demolition. In the 1990s, its live music bar drew crowds of up to 800, hosting performances by Shihad, The Chills, Straitjacket Fits, Radiohead, and many of New Zealand’s leading indie and rock acts.
Dux Live was a purpose-built live music venue at 363 Lincoln Road in Addington, Christchurch, opened in December 2011 as the post-earthquake successor to the original Dux de Lux. Founded by Richard Sinke, the converted warehouse was fitted with a state-of-the-art KV2 sound system and operated as a dedicated live music space until 2016.
Players and Hustlers was a pool bar and live music venue at 96 Oxford Terrace on Christchurch’s The Strip, hosting DJ nights, rock, and metal acts through the late 1990s — including a Judgement Day dance party in 1997, a Brutal Truth show in 1998, and performances by The Civilians and Gaia. The building previously housed the Player Tenpin Bowling Centre, largest in New Zealand in 1995. The venue was demolished following the 2011 Canterbury earthquakes; the site is now the Riverside Market.
Canterbury Caledonian Society Hall at 135 Kilmore Street West, home of the Zodiac Lounge rock and pop dance venue in the 1960s. Hosted Faith No More, Fugazi, and Pavement in the 1990s. Damaged in the February 2011 earthquake and demolished in March 2011.
Zebedees was Christchurch’s only all-ages, alcohol-free live music venue, operating from a 400-capacity hall at 479 Blenheim Road, Sockburn from approximately 1998 to 2014. Run by Steve and Jennie White as a charitable trust for sixteen years, it hosted hundreds of local and touring bands for teenage audiences and was widely regarded as one of the best youth music venues in the world.
One of Christchurch’s oldest licensed premises, the Riccarton Hotel on the corner of Riccarton Road and Deans Avenue can trace its origins to an 1853 Canterbury Almanack advertisement for “The Traveller’s Home.” Over 150 years it traded as the Plough Inn, the Riccarton Hotel, DB Riccarton, and — most memorably — Nancy’s, named for the beloved publican Annie (Nancy) Hancock who ran it from 1930 until the 1960s. In its final chapter it became the Fat Ladies Arms student bar before being demolished and replaced by a fast food restaurant.
The Aranui Tavern at 317 Pages Road was a working-class pub in Christchurch’s eastern suburbs that became one of the city’s most significant live music rooms from the mid-1970s through the 1980s. Bon Marché and The Newz held a three-year residency from 1978 to 1981, nurturing emerging acts including Pop Mechanix and the Dance Exponents — whose own Aranui residency led directly to their Mushroom Records signing in 1982.
Biography Allen Street Rock Club occupied a former motorcycle shop at 32 Allen Street in central Christchurch, opened as a live music venue in the post-earthquake rebuild era. The interior was designed by Dean Johnstone — a set designer with… Read More »Allen Street
St Michael and All Angels is a Heritage New Zealand Category I Anglican church at 84 Oxford Terrace, Christchurch, designed by William Fitzjohn Crisp and consecrated in 1872. One of the largest timber Gothic Revival churches in the Southern Hemisphere, it survived the 2011 earthquakes intact and has served as a concert venue for Lawrence Arabia, Andrew Keoghan, Anika Moa, Boh Runga, Hollie Smith, Marlon Williams, and Holly Arrowsmith.
Cafe and bar at 42 London Street in Lyttelton, run by Lois Ogilvie and Pete Llewellyn Evans from 1988 until the 2011 earthquakes. A creative hub for Lyttelton’s arts community — painter Bill Hammond designed the iconic 1994 LAVA poster for the venue.
The Foundry is Canterbury University’s live music venue, operating at 90 Ilam Road in Ilam since the 1970s. After the 2010 earthquakes closed the original student union building, The Foundry ran from a beloved carpark temporary venue for eight years — hosting acts including Savage, Hilltop Hoods, Machine Head, and Dead Kennedys — before settling into the new $27 million Haere-roa building in 2019.