Emsworth Town Hall
Trademark
UnclaimedA historic former chapel and entertainment venue in Emsworth that currently operates as a café.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Emsworth Town Hall is a historic building in St Peter's Square, Emsworth, Hampshire, England. Although its name suggests a municipal building, it was never used for formal town-government purposes. The structure began life as St Peter's Chapel, a chapel of ease associated with St Thomas à Becket's Church in Warblington. Designed in the Italianate style by John Painter and John Sueter, it was built in red brick with stone dressings and completed in 1790. Its original frontage was arranged symmetrically in three bays, with a central three-stage tower, a Venetian window, a clock face, and a small bell tower crowned by an ogee-shaped roof and weather vane. The reported construction cost was £1,400. The chapel closed in 1852 after the construction of St James' Church in North Street. The vacant building deteriorated for roughly two decades before being acquired in 1876 by the Emsworth Proprietary Hall Company. The company converted it into an events venue, and the building was renamed Emsworth Town Hall in 1881. During this period it hosted lectures, theatrical performances, concerts, and other public gatherings. The conversion also involved removing the original three-stage clock tower, changing the appearance of the building while preserving its role as a local gathering place. In 1912, the building was adapted for cinema use. The frontage was remodelled with a rusticated-stone ground floor, a broad entrance opening, and pairs of Doric pilasters. Several earlier visual features, including the Venetian window, pediment, clock face, and bell tower, were reintroduced or echoed in the new design. The venue initially showed silent films as the Town Hall Cinema and was renamed the Pavilion Cinema in 1930. It continued as a cinema until 1953, when the operation ended and the building was converted for use by builders' merchant Reeves Limited. A serious fire in July 1994 caused extensive damage to the builders' merchant business. The building subsequently underwent another change of use and reopened as a café in 1998. It traded as the Greenhouse Café from 2002. In April 2015 it was briefly renamed the Redhouse Café during a Comic Relief fundraising promotion associated with comedian Hugh Dennis. After acquisition by Steve and Gemma Cross, the café was renamed Cross Kitchen in October 2021. The business received the Best Cafe title in the 2023 Muddy Stilettos Awards. The building therefore represents a layered local landmark whose uses have moved from religious worship to civic-style events, cinema, retail, and hospitality.
History
Emsworth Town Hall stands in St Peter's Square in Emsworth, Hampshire. Its architectural and commercial history spans more than two centuries, although the building was not originally intended to be a town hall. It was commissioned as St Peter's Chapel, a chapel of ease serving the parish church of St Thomas à Becket in Warblington. John Painter and John Sueter designed the building in an Italianate style. Completed in 1790, it used red brick with stone dressings and had a formal three-bay frontage facing the square. The centre contained a three-stage tower with a Venetian window, a blind middle section, and a clock face. Tall round-headed windows and oval upper windows illuminated the outer bays, while a smaller bell turret and weather vane completed the roofline. The chapel's religious role ended after St James' Church was built in North Street in 1845. St Peter's Chapel closed in 1852 and remained empty for approximately twenty years. During that period it became seriously neglected. In 1876, the Emsworth Proprietary Hall Company purchased the property and undertook a substantial refurbishment to create an events venue. The company removed the original three-stage clock tower, and in 1881 the building received the name Emsworth Town Hall. The title was descriptive of its public-assembly role rather than evidence of municipal ownership or use. Lectures, concerts, theatrical productions, and other community events made it a prominent local venue. A further transformation took place in 1912, when the building was converted into a cinema. The main elevation was substantially remodelled. Its lower level acquired rusticated stonework and a broad entrance framed by paired Doric pilasters. At the same time, elements associated with the earlier design, including the Venetian window, pediment, clock face, and bell tower, were incorporated into or restored on the frontage. The venue began showing silent films under the name Town Hall Cinema. In 1930 it was renamed Pavilion Cinema and continued operating as a cinema for approximately another two decades. Cinema use ended in 1953. The premises then became a builders' merchant operated by Reeves Limited, representing another shift from public entertainment to commercial retail and trade supply. A major fire in July 1994 caused considerable damage to the business. The building was later converted into a café and reopened in 1998. From 2002 it traded as the Greenhouse Café. Its public identity changed briefly in April 2015, when it became the Redhouse Café for a Comic Relief fundraising promotion associated with Hugh Dennis. Steve and Gemma Cross later acquired the café business, which was renamed Cross Kitchen in October 2021. In 2023, the café received the Best Cafe award in the Muddy Stilettos Awards. In its present form, Emsworth Town Hall is best understood as an active hospitality venue housed in a protected-feeling historic setting, while its earlier religious, civic-cultural, cinematic, and commercial uses remain central to its local significance.
- 2023
Best Cafe award
[1]The café received the Best Cafe title in the Muddy Stilettos Awards.
- 2021
Adopts Cross Kitchen name
[1]After acquisition by Steve and Gemma Cross, the café was renamed Cross Kitchen in October.
- 1998
Reopens as a café
[1]The former chapel and cinema was converted into a café and reopened to the public.
- 1994
Major fire
[1]A serious fire in July caused substantial damage to the Reeves Limited builders' merchant business.
- 1953
Cinema closes
[1]The cinema ceased operating and the premises became a builders' merchant.
- 1930
Renamed Pavilion Cinema
[1]The cinema adopted the Pavilion Cinema name and continued screening films.
- 1912
Conversion to cinema
[1]The building was remodelled for film exhibition and began operating as the Town Hall Cinema.
- 1881
Renamed Emsworth Town Hall
[1]Following refurbishment, the former chapel was renamed Emsworth Town Hall and became a venue for lectures, concerts, and theatrical performances.
- 1876
Acquisition by Emsworth Proprietary Hall Company
[1]The disused and deteriorating chapel was purchased for conversion into an events venue.
- 1852
Chapel closes
[1]St Peter's Chapel ceased operating after the establishment of St James' Church in North Street.
Products and positioning
A locally significant historic building and hospitality venue whose identity is rooted in architectural heritage, adaptive reuse, and community-oriented visitor activities.
Café · 2021
Cross Kitchen
The current café identity associated with the building. Cross Kitchen began trading under that name in October 2021 after the premises were acquired by Steve and Gemma Cross. It represents the site's present hospitality use following earlier periods as a chapel, events hall, cinema, and builders' merchant.
Café · 2002
Greenhouse Café
The café name used at the former town hall from 2002. It followed the building's conversion into a café and its reopening in 1998.
Cinema · 1930
Pavilion Cinema
The cinema identity adopted by the venue in 1930. The building continued showing films under this name until cinema operations ended in 1953.
Marketing campaigns
- 2015Redhouse Café Comic Relief promotion
United Kingdom
In April 2015, the Greenhouse Café was temporarily renamed Redhouse Café as part of a Comic Relief fundraising promotion led by comedian Hugh Dennis.
Outcome. The temporary name was used for the promotion and the business later returned to another café identity.
Brand decisions
1998
Adaptive reuse as a caféStrategyBackground
Following the end of the builders' merchant use and a serious fire in 1994, the historic building required a new commercial purpose.
Action taken
The former chapel, hall, cinema, and retail premises was converted into a café and reopened.
Aftermath
The site continued as a café, first under the Greenhouse Café name and later as Redhouse Café and Cross Kitchen.
1912
Conversion from events venue to cinemaStrategyBackground
After decades as a venue for lectures, theatrical performances, and concerts, the building was adapted to serve the growing cinema market.
Action taken
The frontage was remodelled and the premises began operating as the Town Hall Cinema.
Aftermath
The building remained in cinema use, later under the Pavilion Cinema name, until 1953.
Sources1 sources
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