19 of the best photos inside now-threatened Dudley's JB's music venue - from legendary acts to new use
The future of an iconic music venue turned banqueting suite is up in the air.
Dudley Council wants to buy the former JB's music venue on Castle Hill to make way for a new education centre.
The authority has already torn down the former Hippodrome next door, and has now turned its attention to the former JB's venue which is now a banqueting suite, plus a neighbouring martial arts centre.
The owners of the banqueting suite, at 15-21 Castle Hill, have been unwilling to do a deal with Dudley Council, so a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) was slapped on the site last year.
In its heyday in the late 1970s/early 1980s, the venue - then in King Street - hosted the likes of U2, former Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant, and Annie Lennox. In the 2000s, Steve Winwood and Happy Mondays were among artists to play there, which was around the time the venue moved to its current location.
We've dug out some photos from our archive that show these legendary musicians entertaining crowds in Dudley, as well as more recent pictures showing its transformation into the banqueting suite it is now.
