19 members of the Scottish Parliament have supported a motion put forward by the MSP for Edinburgh Central Marco Biagi which is urging the new owners of Edinburgh’s Picture House venue to preserve its status as a live music venue.
The JD Wetherspoons chain recently bought the venue with the stated aim of turning it into a ‘superpub’ – casting doubt on the future of one of Britain’s best loved live music sites.
“That the Parliament notes the recent purchase of the Edinburgh live music venue, the Picture House, by JD Wetherspoon; considers that the Picture House is a much-loved venue and a key part of Edinburgh’s music scene; believes that the loss of the capacity to host musical performances would be a cultural and economic loss to the city; understands that a petition urging the new owners to retain the Picture House as a venue for music has attracted over 10,000 signatures, and urges JD Wetherspoon to preserve the place of live music in its plans for the Picture House,” the motion reads.
An online petition which is also pushing for the Picture House to continue hosting music concerts has found support from the likes of Frightened Rabbit, Amanda Palmer and Frank Turner.
