The Eventim Apollo — still known to generations of music fans simply as the Hammersmith Apollo, and before that the Hammersmith Odeon — is one of London’s most iconic live music venues. Located in Hammersmith, West London, it holds up to 5,300 people for part-standing concerts and 3,655 for fully reserved seated shows, ranking it among the largest indoor venues in the capital and a clear step up from a typical West End theatre.
Opened on 28 March 1932 as the Gaumont Palace cinema and designed by Robert Cromie in a sweeping Art Deco style, the building has hosted nearly a century of landmark performances. Today it is a Grade II* listed structure jointly operated by AEG Presents and Eventim UK — a venue where The Beatles played 38 shows across 21 nights and where Kate Bush staged her long-awaited return to the stage after nearly 35 years away.
Quick Answer: Eventim Apollo Capacity
The Eventim Apollo has a capacity of 5,300 for part-standing (open-floor) concerts and 3,655 for fully reserved seated events. The auditorium is split into two tiers — Stalls on the ground level and Circle above — and sits in Hammersmith, West London. It is the same venue as the Hammersmith Apollo and Hammersmith Odeon; the Eventim Apollo name has simply been in official use since 2013.
Eventim Apollo Capacity: Standing vs Seated Configurations
The venue’s total capacity shifts between two main configurations depending on the type of event. For concerts where the Stalls floor is left open as standing room, capacity reaches 5,300 — one of the highest figures of any indoor music venue in London. For shows requiring fully reserved seating throughout, including the Stalls, the venue accommodates 3,655.
The flexibility comes from the Stalls floor, where the seating is removable. Introduced in 2003, this system lets promoters choose between a standing configuration for high-energy gigs or a fully allocated seated arrangement for theatre productions, comedy shows, orchestral performances, and family events. Before 2003, the venue had a fixed seated capacity of around 3,487 and standing configurations simply weren’t offered — so today’s 5,300 standing figure is a relatively recent development in the building’s 90-plus-year history.
The raised Circle tier remains fixed in a seated configuration for every event regardless of how the Stalls are set up. Within the standard seated layout there are also small designated standing areas: a zone directly in front of the stage at Stalls level and a rear standing section in the Circle holding roughly 178 people, for fans who prefer to stand even during otherwise seated shows.
How the Capacity Compares to Other London Venues
At 5,300, the Eventim Apollo sits well above a mid-size theatre but is still a fraction of London’s true arenas — OVO Arena Wembley holds around 12,500 and The O2 arena scales up to roughly 20,000. That gap is exactly why the Apollo occupies its own niche: it’s the venue promoters choose for acts and productions that have outgrown a 2,000-seat theatre but don’t need — or don’t want — arena scale. That mid-size sweet spot is a large part of why it has stayed one of the most sought-after bookings in London for both music and comedy.
Eventim Apollo Seating Chart: Stalls and Circle Explained
The auditorium divides into two tiers. The Stalls occupy the ground floor and hold approximately 1,417 seats arranged across nine blocks. Rows run from A at the front through to FF at the rear, with the widest rows containing up to 70 seats. Multiple aisles make movement easy, and step-free access into the Stalls is available from street level.
The Circle sits above and holds approximately 1,924 seats spread across eleven blocks, with the longest rows running to around 84 seats. Rows A through F at the front of the central Circle blocks are widely regarded as among the best-value seats on the seating chart — they deliver unobstructed views of the stage and are typically priced the same as rear Stalls rows, where sightlines are less clear. Seats at the far left and right edges of both tiers tend to have more restricted views, so the middle blocks of the Stalls or front-and-centre Circle are the safest picks when reading the seating plan.
Reaching the Circle means climbing roughly 30 steps to the circle foyer, with further steps up to individual rows; there is no lift to the upper tier. Two dedicated wheelchair platforms in the rear corners of the Stalls accommodate up to eight wheelchair users plus one companion each, with step-free street access and unobstructed sightlines to the stage. An upgraded hearing loop covers the whole auditorium, and amplification headphones or neck loops are available for a refundable deposit at the venue. For the exact block-by-block layout and interactive view, the venue publishes an official seating chart on the Eventim Apollo website.
Is Eventim Apollo the Same as Hammersmith Apollo and Hammersmith Odeon?
Yes — the Eventim Apollo, the Hammersmith Apollo, and the Hammersmith Odeon are all the same building, and the capacity figures above apply to all three names. Robert Cromie’s Gaumont Palace opened on 28 March 1932 as a cinema seating around 3,500, distinguished by a Moorish-influenced Art Deco facade and an ornate, lavishly decorated auditorium. It operated as a cinema for three decades before transitioning to live music in 1962 under the name Hammersmith Odeon, a name that became synonymous with rock and roll for the next thirty years — this is the era, and the capacity, most fans mean when they search for the venue’s old name.
Since then the venue has been rebranded several times through commercial naming-rights deals: Hammersmith Odeon (1962–1993), Labatt’s Apollo (1993–2002), Carling Apollo (2002–2009), HMV Apollo (2009–2013), and Eventim Apollo (2013–present). Throughout all these changes, fans and the music industry have continued to call it simply the Hammersmith Apollo. The current era began in September 2013 following a £5 million renovation overseen by architect Foster Wilson, which restored the auditorium’s original Art Deco grandeur and upgraded the technical infrastructure for modern touring productions; the venue reopened on 7 September 2013 with a concert by Selena Gomez. Historic England first listed the building Grade II in 1990 and upgraded it to Grade II* in 2005, placing it among the most significant protected structures in England.
Landmark Performances at the Apollo
Few London venues can match the Apollo’s run of historic bookings. The Beatles played a residency of 38 shows across 21 nights at the venue in the early 1960s, and it went on to host career-defining sets from Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, and Bob Marley during its Hammersmith Odeon years. It’s also long served as the traditional home of the Secret Policeman’s Ball benefit comedy shows and countless classic live-album recordings.
More recently, the venue is best known for hosting Kate Bush’s Before the Dawn residency — her first live shows in 35 years — which ran for 22 nights between 26 August and 1 October 2014 and drew roughly 80,000 fans across its run. That residency, staged entirely in the venue’s fully seated configuration, is still cited as one of the most significant comeback runs in British live-music history.
Getting to Eventim Apollo: Location, Tube, and Parking
The venue is at 45 Queen Caroline Street, Hammersmith, London W6 9QH, around a five-minute walk from Hammersmith Underground station, which is served by the Piccadilly, District, and Hammersmith & City lines and sits within the Broadway shopping centre.
Eventim Apollo has no on-site car park, and the streets immediately around it are largely residential, so driving and parking nearby isn’t recommended. Drop-offs are possible directly outside the venue on Queen Caroline Street, and the nearest public car park is around a ten-minute walk away. The box office at the venue typically opens on the afternoon of a performance rather than daily, and tickets for shows are sold online through the venue’s own ticketing partner rather than at a walk-up counter most days — for current listings, box office hours, and access bookings, check the official Eventim Apollo website directly, since these details can change show to show.
Eventim Apollo capacity and seating chart FAQs
What is the capacity of Eventim Apollo (Hammersmith Apollo)?
5,300 for part-standing concerts with the Stalls floor open, or 3,655 for events where the whole venue, including the Stalls, is fully seated.
Is Hammersmith Odeon the same venue as Eventim Apollo today?
Yes. It’s the same Grade II* listed building in Hammersmith — Hammersmith Odeon was the name used from 1962 to 1993, before later rebrands led to today’s Eventim Apollo name.
Where can I find the official Eventim Apollo seating chart?
The venue’s Stalls (about 1,417 seats across nine blocks) and Circle (about 1,924 seats across eleven blocks) layout is published on the official venue seating chart page, linked in the seating section above.
What is the difference between Stalls and Circle seating at the Apollo?
The Stalls are ground-level, closer to the stage, and can be converted to standing room for concerts. The Circle is the raised upper tier, always seated, reached by around 30 steps with no lift.
How do I get to Eventim Apollo and is there parking?
It’s a short walk from Hammersmith Underground station on the Piccadilly, District, and Hammersmith & City lines. The venue has no on-site parking, and the surrounding streets are residential, so driving in isn’t recommended.
How many people did The Beatles and Kate Bush play to at this venue?
The Beatles played 38 shows across 21 nights here in the early 1960s. Kate Bush’s 2014 Before the Dawn residency ran 22 nights and drew roughly 80,000 attendees in total.
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