Plan to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a landmark structure

Council bosses are planning a 50th anniversary party for one of the country’s best known – and discussed – buildings.
The Apollo Pavilion in PeterleeThe Apollo Pavilion in Peterlee
The Apollo Pavilion in Peterlee

The Apollo Pavilion, in Peterlee, an example of brutalist 1960s architecture, was unveiled in 1969 – the year men first walked on the moon.

The historic lunar event led to the naming of the building and, on July 16 – 50 years to the day after Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins set off on their historic mission – a day of celebrations has been organised by

Durham County Council to mark the pavilion’s birthday.

The Apollo Pavilion lit up earlier this yearThe Apollo Pavilion lit up earlier this year
The Apollo Pavilion lit up earlier this year
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A free-of-charge musical extravaganza will take place at the structure, on the town’s Sunny Blunts estate, between 11am and 2pm, featuring performances from Mr Wilson’s Second Liners and Oompah Brass, as part of Durham’s BRASS Festival, and Barry Hyde, lead singer of the Futureheads, who has been working with local schools to create a new song to mark the occasion.

This will be followed by a programme of films celebrating humanity’s longstanding fascination with the moon and its missions to get there and back, at the nearby Pavilion community centre, from 3.45pm.

Again entry is free.

The events are part of a year of activities organised by the council to celebrate 50 years of the Pavilion, which have already seen a Lumiere style light installation by artists Mader Wiermann at the structure in March, as part of the county’s year of culture.

Coun Joy Allen, the council’s cabinet member for transformation, culture and tourism, said: “The first moon landing was one of the most memorable moments in modern day history and by happy coincidence it came at the same time as the building of the structure we now know as the Apollo Pavilion.

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“There was a desire locally to mark the Apollo mission and it was decided naming the structure in its honour was the perfect way.”

The line-up for the films is:

3.45pm Wallace and Gromit – A Grand Day Out (U)

4.15pm Moon Man (U)

6.00pm A Trip to the Moon (U)

6.15pm Lunar (U)

6.25pm First Man (12A)