The Plough Arts Centre

The Plough Arts Centre stands in Great Torrington, North Devon, in a former Territorial Army drill hall on Fore Street. The site once held a 16th-century town house turned into The Plough Inn in 1750. After the pub closed in 1910 and the building was demolished, the present structure was completed in 1913. The centre’s name recalls the inn that once stood there. Its location keeps it at the heart of the town’s activity. The Plough opened in 1975 with a performance by Dame Edith Evans. Financial trouble in 1991 nearly closed it, but a merger with Beaford Arts saved the venue. Beaford Arts had been set up in 1966 by the Dartington Hall Trust to support rural arts in north Devon. Beaford left in 2002, and The Plough regained independence. Today it presents theatre, cinema, music, comedy and art exhibitions, with seating for up to 240 people. Visitors find a theatre with 132 raked seats, a cinema equipped with both 35mm and digital projectors, and spaces for live music and comedy. The Plough runs creative workshops for all ages and abilities. It also hosts the Plough Youth Theatre, founded in 2010. Public fundraising, backed by patron Alistair McGowan, helped upgrade technical equipment in 2014. The centre remains a lively part of Great Torrington’s cultural life.