The Unicorn during the Covid lockdown

THE Unicorn pub and venue could re-open next year if developers get the green light to convert much of the building into homes and a supermarket.

The building, on the corner of Camden Road and Brecknock Road, has a long history for maverick acts and has played host to some of the biggest names in punk, rock and metal. But under the scheme, its guitar-focused music will not return.

Owners Warwick Classic Cars, based next to the venue, want to undertake a massive renovation project that will radically alter the pubs trade.

They have invited music impresario Vince Power and his Powerhaus Camden group to manage the bar and venue – but the famous promoter does not intend to create another live music venue for his stable of concert halls.

Plans lodged at the Town Hall reveal seven homes carved out of upper floors and an extension at the back.

On the ground floor, part of the pub will be converted into a supermarket with a new entrance in Brecknock Road. Co Op or Amazon Fresh have been mentioned as possible tenants.

Part of the ground floor and the basement – which will be deepened by just over a metre – will become a bar with a capacity for a stage.

The Unicorn’s demise was much lamented by rock music fans. After a three-month refurbishment in 2017 it became a key venue on London’s rock circuit. In recent years, the Unicorn carved out a niche for its heavy metal and rock offerings – including a strictly no cover bands policy.

But the imposing Victorian gin palace, which has previously been known as the Brecknock Tavern and The Pickled Newt, closed in 2020 because of the pandemic. The venue set up a crowdfunder to try and keep afloat, but its dance floor remains silent, and its owners say it is not viable to re-open under the old business model.

The documents reveal that Mr Power, has been in discussions about managing the new venue – though he has told the New Journal the size would mean it would be predominantly a pub, with a possibility of low key music events, leaving its guitar-soaked feed-back saturated past behind it.

Mr Power, who runs the Powerhaus in Camden Lock and is behind a swathe of north London’s best-known and celebrated venues, was asked for advice by developers. He has agreed to take on the running of the new bar – but says the plans are not suitable for a large-scale concerts.

“They have come to us for advice and we are interested in running the bar,” he said. “It isn’t really big enough for us to run a full gig venue, and we run four in Camden already – but it may work very well for smaller, acoustic-style things.”

In the planning application, the owners say: “The proposals include an attractive, workable pub and live music venue at ground and basement level that meets operator requirements whilst also protecting residential amenity.”

They said the new supermarket would support the shopping parade in Brecknock Road, adding: “This represents an exciting opportunity to invest in the existing building and help secure the long-term viability of the former public house, as well as delivering an active, vibrant focal point on this prominent corner site.”