The Pavilion ballroom, where dances were held on Saturday nights. Within these walls romance blossomed for many locals; it was to be the meeting place for two couples closely related to the web mistress. In the fifties they would jive along to the likes of Shane Fenton and the Fentones, who were amongst the bands who performed live. Ron Farrell is believed to have been a regular here and so were the "Teen Scenes". Dudley Smith, whose father ran the petrifying well, was one of the group.

It was also the venue for concerts and plays. Visiting theatre groups performed here and ballet companies also came in the post war period (i.e. after 1945). As a young girl I remember Matlock Bath school taking us to see Coppelia, for example, and other school groups were also taken to see the shows. The final concert of the post war Musical Festivals was also performed at the Pavilion. What more could you want? Romance and culture all under one roof.

This picture dates from the inter war period and the ballroom is decorated with a mixture of patriotic flags and bunting for some kind of celebration. Music stands are set up on the stage. So it was possibly decked out for a celebration, a Christmas concert or similar event.

In 1960 the ballroom had been fitted with new curtains, costing about £100, but only one council member was interested in the renovation and proposed improvement of the stage lighting^[1]. Such a lack of enthusiasm was possibly linked to less financial support - or less finance/income.

By 1966 there was real concern about the Pavilion ballroom because its takings were down. It's management were unable to keep up with Buxton, who were attracting the top pop groups - and therefore many young people. So although the ballroom had once been one of the top venues in the County, according to one local paper, its popularity had faded. The weekly "beat" dances had been reduced, with only one held every third Saturday. In the intervening weeks Old Tyme and modern dances were promoted, which did not attract the youngsters. So instead of going to the Pavilion, the young pop fans of the sixties took one of the numerous buses to Buxton which were laid on to ferry them from central Matlock to the pop concert. Other venues in the Matlocks were also affected by the number of attendees dropping considerably. The Boathouse Disco and the Cromford Blues club also had reduce to their opening nights^[2]. Times had changed.

Grand Pavilion (Kursaal) 1910-12	Grand Pavilion (The Kursaal) 1915	Pavilion, Obelisk & Spar Shop	Grand Pavilion, 1911-20	Grand Pavilion 1920s
Grand Pavilion, 1930s	Pavilion, 1938	Pavilion Grounds 1923	Industrial Exhibition 1946	Musical Festival 1961	Post War to Present