In the past, many well know bands and musicians played gigs or rehearsed in various rooms at Hanwell Community Centre including The Who, Deep Purple, Procol Harum, Led Zeppelin, Uriah Heep, The Sweet, Manfred Mann, Gene Vincent, The Animals, Jerry Lee Lewis – and others! The historic Grade II listed building is also where Charlie Chaplin attended school as a child when it was the Central London District School aka Cuckoo Schools and it is steeped in history.
Today, the vaulted basement of the centre gets transformed about once a month by volunteers from an empty walk way and delivery area, into an atmospheric, underground pop-up venue called The Hanwell Cavern™ where they host live music events. At each event they showcase three acts, bringing together a mix of musical styles and genres, but always live. All events are not-for-profit, and are run by a small charity of volunteers called Hanwell Community Centre Consortium. Their regular live music events often feature local bands and musicians from Hanwell and the Borough of Ealing. They are keeping Hanwell’s music heritage alive and kicking – come and join in!