Independent Venue Week spotlight: The Golden Lion, Todmorden

If you are a regular viewer of our blog, you might have noticed, with Independent Venue Week on the horizon, we’ve taken some time to appreciate some of the best independent venues in the UK. And this time, it’s Todmorden's very best pub turned gig venue, The Golden Lion.

The space is a pub reimagined. A community hub that works hard to provide the locals of the area with a space for both fantastic food and drinks, an incredible array of live music, and a crowd that always bring a buzzing atmosphere unlike anywhere else in the town. The genuine alternative to your usual local that is now a staple in the North West small venue tour circuit.

Image: The Golden Lion on Facebook

Since its reopening into what it is today in 2015, the pub has seen a huge range of internationally recognised artists and Djs play its coveted stage. In the past, they have hosted DJ sets from the likes of Jarvis Cocker, Andrew Wetherall, David Holmes, Kevin Rowland and even snooker legend Steve Davis. Their upstairs bespoke live room has also seen the likes of Jane Weaver, Endless Boogie, Acid Mothers Temple and Julie Byrne; plus folk legends Michael Hurley, Emmanuelle Perrine and Michael Chapman.

Year-round they channel the ethos of independent venue week, with their local in-house promoters, White Rabbit, being an intrinsic part of their gig calendar making live music an essential part of life at The Golden Lion.

Whilst the venue is great for live music, last year, they had the incredible idea of how to support the independent music scene further, by releasing music on vinyl by artists who have visited the venue. 

Their specialist record label releases a bi-monthly series of exclusive seven-inch vinyl records, all Limited and numbered featuring musicians and DJs who have played live or DJ-ed at The Golden Lion since its inception.

So far Working Men’s Club, Goa Express, W H Lung, The Lounge Society, David Holmes, Jarvis Cocker, The Emperor Machine, Jane Weaver, Andy Votel, Crazy P and more have all contributed tracks which have been mastered by local solo artists and their engineer Andrew Liles.

Vice magazine called The Golden Lion "A shining example of small town ingenuity and community spirit," and we couldn't agree more.

Even if you're not a fan of the live music, the setting of the pub allows you to choose to lounge by the canal, hang out in the cosy beer garden, sample some delicious Thai food, or even visit their pub within a pub, Tor Beers, which is an incredibly unique experience that only chances the space.

If you want to find out more about independent venues that are taking part in Independent Venue Week 2023, then check out our blog for more of these venue spotlights.

Or, if you want to get down to one of the events put on during IVW across the country, then check out our Inspire Me page, for all the vents on sale on Skiddle - HERE

Check out our What's On Guide to discover more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.

Header image credit: The Golden Lion on Facebook