Thekla

East Mud Dock, The Grove, Bristol BS1 4RB

Thekla is a former cargo ship moored in the Mud Dock area of Bristol's Floating Harbour, and one of the most distinctive venues in the country by virtue of being a boat. Built in Germany in 1958, she was bought by Ki Longfellow-Stanshall and Vivian Stanshall and brought to Bristol in 1983 as the Old Profanity Showboat, a floating theatre and cabaret stage. Run as an underground nightclub through the 1990s, she was refurbished and taken over by Daybrook House Promotions in 2006, and is now an established music venue and club. A Banksy Grim Reaper once adorned the hull at the waterline. Since the 2006 takeover the boat has hosted Franz Ferdinand, the New York Dolls, Santigold, Phoebe Bridgers and Stormzy, among many others. A refurbishment in 2019 saw a new steel hull welded into place, and the venue marked its 40th anniversary in 2024, still moored where it first docked.

About Thekla

Since the 2006 takeover the boat has hosted Franz Ferdinand, the New York Dolls, Santigold, Phoebe Bridgers and Stormzy, among many others. A refurbishment in 2019 saw a new steel hull welded into place, and the venue marked its 40th anniversary in 2024, still moored where it first docked.