Ulster Hall, Belfast

Ulster Hall, Belfast

The Ulster Hall is a concert hall and historical building in Belfast. Situated on Bedford Street in Belfast city center, the hall hosts concerts, classical recitals, craft fairs and political party conferences. Despite the opening of larger concert halls in the city, such as the Waterfront Hall and the Odyssey, the Ulster Hall has remained a very popular venue, and is considered to evoke much more atmosphere than the newer venues.

Built in 1859 and opened in 1862, the hall's purpose was to provide the expanding city of Belfast with a multi-purpose venue of sufficient size. The Ulster Hall features one of the oldest examples of a functioning classic English pipe organ. The Mulholland Grand Organ is named in honor of former Lord Mayor of Belfast, Andrew Mulholland, who donated it to the hall in the 1860s. It was built by William Hill & Son and donated after the hall was officially opened. In the late 1970s, the organ was extensively restored to Hill's own original design. Mullholland's great-great-grandson, Henry Mulholland, 4th Baron Dunleath, oversaw the restoration.

In 1902, Belfast City Council commissioned the local artist Joseph W. Carey to produce thirteen scenes from Belfast history on canvas, to be mounted within the Ulster Hall. The scenes depict the city and the surrounding area, incorporating historical and mythological influences.

In 2007, a major refurbishment plan was done to restore the venue back to its original condition, while also modernizing the building's facilities and providing better disabled access.
Sight description based on Wikipedia.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Belfast. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

Download The GPSmyCity App

Ulster Hall on Map

Sight Name: Ulster Hall
Sight Location: Belfast, Ireland (See walking tours in Belfast)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Belfast, Ireland

Create Your Own Walk in Belfast

Create Your Own Walk in Belfast

Creating your own self-guided walk in Belfast is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
The Troubles and Peace Process Landmarks

The Troubles and Peace Process Landmarks

Decades past the official end of The Troubles in Belfast, the price of peace in Northern Ireland remains high. One of the means with which to secure it, back in 1969, was erecting a wall to physically separate the capital's warring Protestant and Catholic communities. Known since as the Peace Wall, the structure has become a popular tourist attraction for the multiple murals painted thereon...  view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.1 Km or 1.3 Miles
Belfast Introduction Walking Tour

Belfast Introduction Walking Tour

For over a century, the political situation of Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, has been the source of strife, first between the Crown-loyal Protestants and Irish Catholics, and more recently between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

Sitting on the banks of the River Lagan where it meets the Irish Sea, the city owes its name to this coastal condition, with "Belfast"...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.5 Km or 2.2 Miles
Belfast Victorian Architecture Jewels

Belfast Victorian Architecture Jewels

Described as “modestly scaled, undemonstrative, somewhat solid in aspect, and usually restrained (sometimes even austere) in its use of external decoration”, the urban landscape of Belfast has been influenced by the demands of shipbuilding and linen industry, much as transitioning between culture, arts, commerce, and education. Still, the architectural spectrum of the city is quite broad and...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 2.9 Km or 1.8 Miles