Royal Exchange Theatre, St Ann's Square, Manchester

The beginnings of the Royal Exchange Theatre lie in the formation of the 69 Theatre Company in 1968. This group, which included Michael Elliott, Casper Wrede, Braham Murray and Richard Pilbrow, came to Manchester to put on new plays and escape the crippling pressures of the London theatre world. Their season of plays at the University Theatre was critically acclaimed and featured star names such as Tom Courtenay and Vanessa Redgrave. Despite the difficult financial climate, the group perservered in their aim of establishing a new theatre in Manchester, audaciously locating it in the trading hall of the Royal Exchange rather than building from scratch. With Richard Negri as lead designer and Levitt Bernstein Associates as architects, this theatre-in-the-round was opened by Lord Olivier on 15 September 1976 and the company, now called the Royal Exchange Theatre Company, continued to pursue the founders' ideals of originality and adventurousness, all led by a team of exceptional directors. This programme of high-quality productions, that continues to this day, has earned the Royal Exchange the reputation of 'unofficial National Theatre of the North'.