Construction work on a new building to house Belfast’s ageing Lyric Theatre is now underway. The £18m new build — designed by architects O’Donnell & Tuomey — will be constructed at a new location in order to provide a theatre almost four times the size of the original 1968 site. The Lyric’s new home will comprise a 394-seat main auditorium, a 150-seat studio theatre, a rehearsal room, riverfront foyers and

The Scottish Government has been called upon to help provide funding for the creation of a new landmark building on Dundee's waterfront that could house a proposed Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum. Kevin Keenan, chair of the Dundee Waterfront Board (DWB), wants to see an iconic 'anchor' building developed as part of the wider regeneration of the city's waterfront, in order to capture the public's imagination and to act as

The Ulster Hall, a historic 150-year old cultural venue in Belfast, Northern Ireland, has reopened following an extensive multi-million pound refurbishment scheme lasting two years. It is the first scheme to be completed as part of a series of major renovation projects taking place at buildings across the city, with St Malachy's Church, the City Hall and the Ulster Museum set to reopen later this year. Work on the £8.5m

Southampton City Council (SCC) has launched a search for a development partner to take on the transformation of the city's former Tyrrell and Green department store as part of plans for a new cultural quarter. At the heart of plans for the mixed-use development, which has been designed by Assael and could cost up to £50m, is the creation of a new arts complex. A hotel, restaurants, cafés and education

Plans to create a new seafront contemporary art venue in Hastings, East Sussex, have been formally submitted to the local authority by the Jerwood Foundation. If Hastings Borough Council (HBC) approves the scheme, the Jerwood Gallery will house the foundation's collection of 20th and 21st century British art, as well as acting as a regional venue for the Jerwood Visual Arts programme. The proposed building, designed by HAT Projects, will

A planning application has been submitted for the redevelopment of Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum in Gloucester. The 100-year-old museum, which attracts more than 60,000 visitors each year, will undergo a £5m revamp which will add more than 300sq m of new temporary exhibition space and a new dedicated gallery to house the museum's collection of Dutch, Italian and British masterpieces. Fundraising for the project has begun, with Gloucestershire-based Summerfield

Victoria's new AUD$74.5m (£33.64m, 37.6m euro, US$47.75m) purpose-built music facility, the Melbourne Recital Centre (MRC), has opened in Australia – 30 years after being planned. The facility, designed by Ashton Raggatt McDougall (ARM) architects in collaboration with UK-based Acoustic Engineer Raf Orlowski of Arup Acoustics, offers a 1,000-seat concert hall called Dame Elisabeth Murdoch Hall. It is accompanied by a second 150-seat performance space, with a 100-seat dining area and

Scarborough Borough Council (SBC) has approved in principle proposals to take over responsibility for the redevelopment of the resort's open air theatre in order to ensure the scheme goes ahead despite the downturn. The revamp of the theatre is currently included in a development agreement with Benchmark Leisure, which was appointed by the council in December 2002 to transform 55 acres (22.3 hectares) of land in the town's North Bay

Plans put forward by seven shortlisted architects for the refurbishment of the Grade II-listed Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool have been put on public display until the end of the month. Designs for the revamp of the 1,250-seat theatre, which has one of the biggest revolve stages outside the West End of London, can be viewed until 27 February in the Architruck, the Royal Institute of British Architect's (RIBA) purpose-built

David Chipperfield Architects has revealed its winning design for an extension to the Kunsthaus Zurich art gallery in Zurich, Switzerland. The early 20th century building will continue to house the Old Masters, Giacometti collection, Swiss art and popular large-scale exhibitions, whereas the new 20,500sq m (220,660sq ft) extension will display classic modernism and art starting from the 1960s, as well as the Bührle collection. Photograph: courtesy if David Chipperfield Architects

A 13m (43ft) rooftop wind turbine has been installed at Colston Hall in Bristol in a bid to develop a renewable energy source for the 2,000-seat concert venue, which is currently undergoing a multi-million pound refurbishment. EDF Energy's Green Fund has contributed £30,000 towards the £47,000 sustainable energy scheme, which also includes 25 solar panels, and aims to generate 27,000kWh of green electricity each year. Bristol City Council (BCC) has

Designs for the €450m (US$582m, £399m) Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Centre in Athens, Greece have been revealed by Italian architects Renzo Piano. The 187,800sq m centre, to be built on a 42-acre (17-hectare) waterside site in Stavros Niarchos Park, will house the Greek National Opera and the National Library of Greece. The project is funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and once completed in 2015 will be handed over to

Property developer Montpellier Estates is to take legal action against Leeds City Council (LCC) after losing out in the race to build a new multi-million pound entertainment arena. In November, LCC's executive announced that the new 12,500-seat venue would be built by the council itself on a 5.1-acre (2.06-hectare) site at Claypit Lane, which is part-owned by Leeds Metropolitan University. Proposals for the new arena put forward by two developers,

Masterplans for the regeneration of Calgary's east village in Alberta, Canada, are being designed by London-based architect Broadway Malyan on behalf of the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC). The East Village Project includes new arts and cultural facilities, a promenade and an urban beach as well as a new residential development for 12,000 residents, which will be built on the 55-hectare (135-acre) city centre site. There will also be new

The DCMS has announced the latest group coastal towns that will benefit from its Sea Change grant scheme. Southport, Great Yarmouth, Bridlington and Hastings are to receive £12m between them in order to “boost regeneration through investment in culture and heritage”. Barbara Follett, culture and tourism minister, said: “In these difficult economic times it is more important than ever before to make sure we continue to invest in the regeneration

One of the oldest museums in Britain, the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archeology at Oxford University, is to close the public until November 2009 as part of a major redevelopment project. First opened in 1683, the museum is undergoing a £61m revamp including the creation of a new 8,812sq m (94,852sq ft) exhibition hall, which will double the amount of available display space at the attraction. The museum has

The National Theatre on London's South Bank has commissioned architects Haworth Tompkins to produce a masterplan for the development of the Grade II-listed building. Haworth Tompkins beat architects Dixon Jones, Levitt Bernstein, Allies & Morrison and David Chipperfield to win the commission. The masterplan is expected to build on Haworth Tompkin's previous refurbishment work on the theatre's studio annex, completed in November 2007. It is likely the plans will include

The 20-year masterplan for the £700m leisure-led regeneration of Edinburgh's harbour front has been submitted to the city council by developer Forth Ports. The detailed framework for the 26-hectare site, designed by architect RTKL Associates, includes two urban villages at Leith Docks, two piers, a landmark cultural venue such as an international concert hall, up to five new hotels and new leisure, restaurant and retail space around Ocean Terminal. Plans

Hadrian's Wall Heritage (HWH) has acquired 150 acres (60.7 hectares) of land at Camp Farm in Maryport, Cumbria, as part of plans to establish a new museum at the World Heritage Site. The £11.5m scheme will involve the excavation of the former Roman fort at Maryport, as well as an adjacent vicus, a civilian settlement that spread outside the fort walls and comprised more than 170 buildings. It is hoped

A new £12m music, cinema and arts venue is to be established on the Shetland Islands after the project secured investment worth £2.8m from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). It is hoped that the Mareel centre, which will be situated on Lerwick's waterfront, will become a centre of excellence for "international creativity", as well as driving Scotland's cultural and economic development. Led by Shetland Arts Development Agency (SADA), the

Nottingham City Council (NCC) has confirmed that a project to establish a new art gallery in the city centre is to cost £3.25m more than had been previously expected. Nottingham Contemporary, which is set to be one of the largest contemporary arts centres in the UK, will now cost £19m to complete, compared with an initial estimate of £13.9m. Facilities at the 3,000sq m (32,292sq ft) site will include four

Designs for the redevelopment of Gwyn Hall in Neath, South Wales, which was severely damaged by fire, have been unveiled by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council (NPTCBC). A public consultation has now been launched by the council to allow local residents to have their say on Holder Mathias Architects' proposals for the venue, which was undergoing a £4m refurbishment at the time of the fire on 18 October last

Theatre company Mind the Gap has opened its £2.1m performing arts workspace in Lister Mills in Bradford. Mind the Gap Studios boasts three fully-equipped studio spaces for rehearsals, workshops, training and dance. The organisation aims to help people with learning disabilities to become professional actors. Designed by Allen Todd Architecure, the project was delivered in partnership with Bradford Council, and funded by £1.25m from Arts Council England, Yorkshire as well

Construction work on the Turner Contemporary gallery in Margate, Kent, has begun but the opening will be delayed until 2011. The new gallery, designed by architect David Chipperfield, will exhibit contemporary art and celebrates the town's connect with artist JMW Turner, who was schooled in Margate and later lived there. The attraction, which has been in the pipeline for 15 years, was originally expected to open in 2010. Kent-based contractor

Seven architects have been shortlisted for the multi-million pound refurbishment of the Grade II-listed Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool. The firms, whittled down from fifty submissions, are London-based Allford Hall Monaghan Morris; Burrell Foley Fischer, in London; Nord Architecture in Glasgow; Pentagram Architects; Paris-based Studio Andrew Todd; Studio 3 and Union North. The design competition to upgrade and restore the 70-year-old art deco-style building also included firms from New York

Leeds City Council (LCC) has approved plans for a new centre of excellence for dance which will become the new home of the Northern Ballet Theatre (NBT) and the Phoenix Dance Theatre (PDT). The new six-storey £12m centre will consist of seven dance studios, including a 200-seat studio theatre, as well as a health suite, a costume workshop and office space. It will also eventually house a full-time a classical

Public art and social facilities have been proposed by Leicester University as part of its £1bn campus redevelopment project. The scheme is designed to establish the university as one of the top ten in the UK, and its new Development Framework Plan outlines £786m of investment over the next two decades to complement a £300m plan unveiled in 2002. At the centre of proposals, the university plans to establish high