contact

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Email : hello@tunbridgewellsforum.co.uk

Telephone : 08712 777101 (has a list of options) Write: The Forum, Fonthill, The Common, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN4 8YU

Opening Times : 8PM – 11PM unless advertised otherwise.  (See listings)

Age limit : 16+ or all ages when accompanied by an adult

ID : You may be asked for photo ID (please don’t be offended) to confirm your age for entry on some nights / to be served alcohol at the bar.  We can accept a Passport, Photocard driving licence (provisional/full) or any PASS accredited ID card (CitizenCard/Validate etc.).

The Forum is fully licensed to sell alcohol. Thus as a license restriction, people are not allowed to bring their own drinks into the venue.

The Forum is a Community Interest Company.  Find out more here

[Virtual Tour]

getting-here

SAT NAV postcode : TN4 8YU

Click the map below to go to the full google maps site.

You’ll find the Forum at the bottom end of town on Fonthill Common, opposite the King Charles The Martyr Church. It is only a five minute walk from Tunbridge Wells rail station, which has frequent direct connections in and out of London.

For those driving, the Forum is situated on the A26. If you’re approaching from London, take junction 5 off the M25 onto the A21 (signposted as Sevenoaks & Hastings) and then turn off the A21 at the Junction signposted for Tunbridge Wells. That’s the A26, so stay on that road for 3 miles or so till you see the common on your right….

PARKING

Castle Road to the rear of the property has free parking [unlit] in two or four hour bays during the day.  After 6PM you can park here until 8AM the next morning. [Not suitable for HGV’s]

Between 7PM-8AM London Road (at the front of the property) free parking is available.  A dispensation can be applied for for commercial vehicles (large band splitters and coaches) outside of these times.

Further parking is available nearby – nearest pay and display is Linden Park road near The Sussex Arms Pub (postcode TN2 5TE)

access

Entrance through the rear garden, via the side gate, has level access through to the rear fire exit to the performance area and bar.  It is best to inform us of your requirements through an email/facebook/phone message (details above) or just ask the door staff if you are able, so we can assist you in the best manner.

The venue itself is located on a hill on the common.  We suggest parking in Castle Road to the rear of the property (see above map).  There is a single disabled parking bay here at the beginning of the road.  You can take the fairly even path directly opposite this bay to the front of the building.  The garden entrance can be found  a short uphill section of path.   Alternatively from Castle Road, the garden entrance is  a short distance across the common on a worn, down-sloping concrete path.

A toilet accessible by wheelchair is located through the Ladies toilet near the front entrance of the building.

We are currently working with attitude is everything.org.uk on how to improve our access for the deaf and the disabled.

tickets

We issue E-Tickets to your email address through the ‘musicglue’ ticket vendor system – you will not receive a physical ticket in the post. Please bring a copy of the e-ticket with you to the show either printed or on a smartphone. If you arrive without a copy we can still confirm your ticket purchase on our computer on the door, when presented with relevant ID (i.e. something with your name on it).

The ticket vendor adds a booking fee on top of the advertised ticket price.

LOST E-TICKET
If you have lost or not received your e-ticket but you know you definitely did buy one then please don’t panic.  We can check your name from a form of ID against our list on the night.  If you still need some reassurance, then email us here.  Everything is going to be ok.

For other requests please email musicglue (our ticket vendor on the website).

“SOLD OUT”
Due to the physical and load-bearing nature of walls, we are finding it increasingly difficult to raise the capacity of certain shows without the roof falling in.  Thus we can only offer a finite number of tickets to shows.  Occasionally this means we sell out of tickets, or we are “SOLD OUT” of tickets to coin a phrase.  It’s not that we don’t like you, it’s just there isn’t enough room sorry.  We continue to work on a solution.

hire

HIRING THE VENUE

The venue is available for private (including rehearsal space) and public event hire.  Please email Dan for information.

PLAYING THE VENUE

If you are in a band and want to apply to play an event, contact here.

Our local band showcase nights will soon be relaunching.

EQUIPMENT

We will provide bands with an engineer, 11000watt PA, microphones, stands, DI boxes and lighting.  Other equipment may be provided on request.

[Venue information]

Any bands requiring rehearsal rooms or recording studios, THE FORUM can highly recommend…

The Granary Studio – Lamberhurst, Kent

The Club House Studios – Tunbridge Wells, Kent

cic logo website

The Tunbridge Wells Forum is a Community Interest Company.

“CICs are limited companies which operate to provide a benefit to the community they serve. They are not strictly ‘not for profit’, and CICs can, and do, deliver returns to investors. However, the purpose of CIC is primarily one of community benefit rather than private profit.” [THE FORUM MUSIC AND ARTS CIC (Launch Document)](http://www.twforum.co.uk/the-forum-cic/) ![music venue trust](http://musicglue-wordpress-tw-forum.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/music-venue-trust.jpg) “Over the last few years, many important grassroots music venues in the UK have been closed down, and many more are currently under threat. These venues up and down the country play an essential role for artists building their careers and as a social and cultural hub within our communities. **The Music Venue Trust** is a registered charity that aims to protect, support and improve Independent Live Music Venues in the UK. We are sending a message, loud and clear, to the Music Industry, the cultural sector and to the Government, that UK Music Venues are essential to our culture and must be legislatively and financially supported in a way that reflects their real value to artists, audiences and communities. You can be part of that message.” [The Music Venue Trust](http://www.musicvenuetrust.com) ![bass](http://musicglue-wordpress-tw-forum.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/bass.jpg) Bassist, please note that regrettably if you have not played bass in a top 10 ’70’s funk outfit (or in Level 42) at any point, you are banned from attempting to play slap-bass between the hours of 8PM-11PM by order of the management.