April 16, 1976

THE derelict needle factory crumbling to pieces beside the Palace Theatre will soon spoil the view no more.

Come September, renovation work on the red-brick eyesore should be well under way, blending the building with the rest of the theatre.

While inside groups of voluntary workers will be busy decorating dressing rooms and enlarging the theatre stage.

Planning permission for the scheme - granted by the council's planning committee this week - started the ball rolling.

Entertainments officer and theatre manager Edward Willis is keen to get on with the work.

"We think it would be a vast improvement," he said.

"The nice part of it is that it is very much a community effort."

The development corporation are giving £3,500 for the renovation, £500 for materials has come from Redditch District Council and voluntary workers from local drama groups will do most of the internal renovations themselves.

Mr Willis says extra dressing room space will be the biggest boon of the enlarged theatre.

But the Palace Theatre stage will also benefit by 3ft.