Your Union Venues

These establishments are: The LCR & Hive, The Union Pub & Bar and The Waterfront.

The LCR, or Large Common Room, is situated in Union House and is one of the biggest Students' Union gig and club venues in the country. It is also one of the major live music venues in East Anglia and has hosted bands such as Coldplay, the Darkness and The Thrills in recent years. It also plays host to numerous top quality club nights and regular classic student nights such as the LCR, Skool Daze and Club Retro.

The Hive, adjoining the LCR, functions as a coffee bar during the day and an extra room for club nights and discos in the evening. It is a due to get a massive refurbishment this year, more details of which will appear on this page soon.

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The new Union Pub and Bar opened in September 2002, following a massive £1.2m extension and refurbishment.

By acquiring the defunct 'Breakers II' restaurant from the University we were able to double the space available for drinkers. Heron Design were chosen to refit the entire space, with a concept that was bright, durable and a vast improvement on the old 'Harvesters' style murky Union Bar.

The Union Pub now reaches right up to the side of the Square at UEA, with a warm design, pool tables and plenty of comfortable sofas, perching stools and table space. It shares a bar - one of the longest in Norfolk - with the Union Bar, cooler in both sense of the word: high serpentine sofas, armchairs you can get lost in, a raised poser shelf and a mini-amphitheatre arrangement that lends itself ideally to watching sport on the big screen. There is a non-smoking area, helped by an advanced airflow system that ensures that any smoke goes straight up and out of the building.

Reaction to the new pub and bar was mixed though generally positive when it first opened its doors. Some were upset that they would no longer feel comfortable coming for a pint in their dressing gowns, others inexplicably preferred the sticky green carpet and cruise-liner design of the old bar. Most, however, were delighted to be able to find a bar that catered for their needs: more space, quicker service, more toilets, better lighting, more comfortable seating, more pool tables, less stale smoke and no beer-soaked carpets.

After nearly a year of use sales are way up on last year and the Union is ready to start using the bar and pub in new ways - closing off the bar for clubs and societies events and entertainments warm ups. Better advertising of televised sport and more variety in the events offered to complement the atmosphere and design.

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The Waterfront was set up by Norwich City Council in 1990 and, following three years later under an unsuccessful management team, The Union of UEA Students took over the running of the venue.

As the premier city centre live music & club venue The Waterfront hosts the best in alternative clubbing on weekends and a wide variety of established and up & coming live acts. The past decade has seen top name DJ's, a regular indie and alternative night, 80's nostalgia nights & many more all over 2 rooms and a chill out Cafe Bar. There have also been a host of live bands such as; PAUL WELLER, APHEX TWINS, CATATONIA, PULP, RADIOHEAD, FUN LOVIN CRIMINALS, JOHN MAYALL, FAITHLESS, THE DAMNED, MOLOKO, TRAVIS, STEREOPHONICS, FEEDER, COURTNEY PINE, DOVE, JTQ, DIVINE COMEDY, THE PROCLAIMERS, ROOTS MANUVA, ELBOW, RONI SIZE, THE CORAL and many many more.

The Waterfront is situated on King Street just off the city centre, near Prince of Wales Road and over the water from The Riverside Complex and nearby to Norwich City Football ground.

We have always insisted on a policy of ‘NO DRESS CODE’ and a philosophy whereby all are welcome whilst adhering to the Unions own entry regulations. We therefore have a friendly atmosphere that has created a loyal customer base.

We are the alternative to the cheesy pop of the LCR Disco and the corporate, glitzy ‘rules and regulations’ of other nightclubs.

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