Marcus Davey helped transform the Roundhouse into a world-leading concert venue – but also an arts charity for young people [John Murray]

TRIBUTES poured in last night (Wednesday) to Roundhouse chief Marcus Davey, who has announced he is calling time on his role at the helm of the performing arts venue and charity – a job he has held for 26 years.

Mr Davey has been the chief executive and artistic director of the former railway shed and now a cultural landmark again since the plans were made to bring it back to life.

He was on board when Sir Torquil Norman, who died earlier this year, decided to plough the money he had made through designing toys into establishing a creative arts hub at the building in Chalk Farm Road.

Under Mr Davey’s leadership the Roundhouse has established itself once more as a must-play venue for some of the world’s biggest names with the likes of Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Ray Davies, James Brown and Burt Bacharach having graced its stage.

But the real magic of the venue has been how it has funded creative education programmes for more than 11,000 young people every year.

Mr Davey’s work has fostered relationships with the Royal Ballet and Royal Opera House, giving the young people who come to the Roundhouse’s classes, workshops and work experience a gateway to a cultural world that can sometimes feel hard to access.

Mr Davey became chief executive after being taken on in 1999 by Sir Torquil – and he became the founder’s right-hand man, working closely to see the venue re-open in 2006 after its spectacular refurbishment.

He will remain in his post until the Roundhouse appoints a successor but he told the New Journal he felt the time had come for a fresh pair of hands on the tiller.

He said: “Having opened Roundhouse Works in 2023, delivered our first Roundhouse Three Sixty festival and appointed Daniel Kaluuya as associate artistic director, I felt that if there was a time to move on then this would be it.

“It has been the honour of my working life to have led the Roundhouse. I have been hugely privileged to work with an exceptional chair and board and a great leadership team – and I mean great – with a clear vision.

“I am looking forward to staying in touch and seeing how the Roundhouse develops into the future as I take on new ventures and experiences. I want to thank our chair Simon Turner, the trustees, the artists and young people, funders and donors, audiences and volunteers and my exceptional colleagues as they have made my time here the most wonderful opportunity anyone could wish to have had.”

Mr Turner led plaudits for Mr Davey’s pioneering work and said: “He has dedicated his life to the Roundhouse and in particular its transformational work with young people.

“He embodies the heart, spirit and soul of the Roundhouse and has taken the place from a redundant building to a world renowned and greatly loved cultural institution with young people at its heart.”

Arts Council England chairman Sir Nicholas Serota said: “Under his leadership, the Roundhouse has become a pioneering model for the future by creating opportunities for young people to shape their own involvement in the arts.

“Last year more than 10,000 young people took advantage of the opportunity to explore their creativity alongside international names in an iconic building that is once again at the centre of cultural London.”

Sculptor Sir Antony Gormley was once commissioned to place one of his iconic metal figures on the roof of the Roundhouse.

He said Mr Davey had created a “beacon of creative support to a whole new generation of artists,” adding: “From its total reconstruction in the late 90s to its present position as an inspirational venue for audiences across all ages and demographics.

“Here poets, musicians and performers thrive. Under Marcus’s leadership the Roundhouse has become a powerhouse of creative energy.”

And BBC director of music Lorna Clarke also added her praise.

“Marcus was determined it would build on its fantastic history and be more than amazing performances,” she said.

“Its pioneering schemes and workshops are one of the most impactful in the UK.

“It’s a unique space and he’s a unique creative leader, driven to make things much better than you could ever imagine.

“He leaves a genuine legacy.”