The Cockpit
Theatre in the round, and three studios up the spiral stair
Gateforth Street
LocationLondon, NW8 8EH
Map data from OpenStreetMap contributors
Things to know before you book
- Level access to the foyer, bar and foyer toilets. Six steps down to the auditorium: wheelchair users come in through the car park and rear entrance, so call on the day. The three studios are only up a large spiral staircase, with no lift.
Where it is
Gateforth StreetLondonNW8 8EHPhotograph by Onthemat, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Wheelchair access
- Mirrors
- Piano
- Natural light
- Blackout
- Stage lighting
- PA system
- Wi-Fi
- Bar
- Bookable hourly
- Bookable daily
Wheelchair access, Mirrors, Piano, Natural light, Blackout, Stage lighting, PA system, Wi-Fi, Bar, Bookable hourly, Bookable daily.
- Rooms
- 4
- Main house
- Auditorium, 220 seats
Upcoming at this venue
- Oct23Space HamletFri 23 Oct, 2.30pm, until 31 OctSpace Hamlet LLC, Auditoriumthecockpit.org.uk
- Oct26Sharp Little Bones ft. Tony Kofi, Dominic Ingham & Jay Verma + GuesdeMon 26 Oct, 8pmJazz In The Round, Auditoriumthecockpit.org.uk
- Nov1New Stuff: NovemberSun 1 Nov, 5.30pmthecockpit.org.uk
- Nov2Pick of Voila!Mon 2 Nov, 7pmAuditoriumthecockpit.org.uk
- Nov3Rostro x EminemTue 3 Nov, 7pm, until 4 NovOlivier van den Hende, Auditoriumthecockpit.org.uk
Filmed at this venue
No show filmed at The Cockpit has been released on Quelight yet.
When a company films here and releases the recording, it appears in this space with its poster, its cast and its run dates.
How filming worksPerform and hire
Perform
- Theatre in the Pound
- A monthly scratch night in the main house for pieces up to 15 minutes, with £1 entry. Performers pay £60 up front: £20 hire and a £40 deposit.
- New Stuff
- Monthly rehearsed readings in Studio 1. Writers pay £20; the audience pays £3. Applications for 2026 are open.
- Theatre Maker
- Classes, scratch nights, readings and cheaper studios: anyone in Theatre Maker, Theatre in the Pound or New Stuff in the last year gets 20% off studio hire.
- Bring a show
- A show in a day from around £975, then about £750 a performance after the get in; a six show week is £3,900 to £4,700. No VAT.
- Voila! Festival
- The Voila! Theatre Festival, 2 to 22 November 2026, produced by The Cockpit.
- Camden Fringe
- Applications for 2027 open in early January.
- Transfer
- The Stephen Joseph Transfer, with VAULT Creative Arts and the ABTT: a week at The Cockpit for one company from Lower Marsh Arts Club's spring season, a free rehearsal week and mentoring.
Hire
- Auditorium, up to 220, stage 8.4 by 6.6 m£30 an hour
The house itself, seating 220 in the round or 170 in thrust, six steps down from the foyer, with 8 m headroom. Dry hire for rehearsals is £30 an hour, without theatre lighting, PA or dressing rooms; a show in a day is from around £975.
- Studio 1, up to 20, 56 sqm£25 an hour, £90 a half day, £170 a day
About 8 by 7 m with 2.8 m headroom: a mirrored wall, a Harlequin floor (not sprung), floor to ceiling windows with blackout curtains, a sound system and a small lighting rig with a technician.
- Studio 2, up to 15, 25 sqm£12 an hour
About 5 by 5 m: a former recording studio, acoustically treated, with no windows and no air conditioning; not for dance. A Yamaha P-45 piano for £10 more.
- Studio 3, up to 20, 30 sqm£16 an hour
About 5 by 6 m under four skylights, with tables, chairs and whiteboards, for meetings and readings.
- Open
- 10am to 10pm, Sundays vary
- Booking
- Health and safety form first, then call 020 7258 2925 under a month away, or email studios@thecockpit.org.uk further ahead
- Payment
- Card by phone at the time of booking
- Cancelling
- Two weeks' notice for a studio, refunded less 15%
- VAT
- No VAT
- Piano
- A Yamaha P-45 in Studio 2, for £10 more