‘We’re not the Ritz, obviously’: Meet the team behind lively Newcastle venue The Lubber Fiend

When the Music Venue Trust released its 2025 annual report into the state of the UK live music venue earlier this year, its findings were disappointing, if not surprising. More than half of the UK music scene’s grassroots venues failed to turn a profit, with 6,000 jobs and 30 entire venues being lost over the year.

The threat to the UK music scene that the closure of grassroots music venues (GMVs) ushers in cannot be ignored. That’s what’s inspired The Independent to team up with the Music Venue Trust once more and relaunch its Main Stage. This summer, The Independent will be showing you eight grassroots venues from across the UK, speaking to the people in charge about what it takes to run an independent music venue in 2026, and what makes it worth it.

Today, we’re heading to Newcastle, to learn more about the non-profit, relatively recent opening that is The Lubber Fiend.

Each venue that features in the Main Stage series will be the subject of an article in The Independent, £5,000 worth of ad inventory, and design assets that they can use in their comms and marketing, highlighting that they’re a Main Stage picked venue.

The Utilita Arena might play host to the world’s biggest pop stars, but just a stone’s throw away you’ll find The Lubber Fiend and a far more eclectic mix of musicians. It was actually the closure of other venues in the area that led to the venue opening in 2022, after stalwarts of the Newcastle music scene Sam Booth and Tom Hopkin found themselves joking about opening a venue just to have somewhere their band could play. The idea had legs – they found a venue, and with the time volunteered by their friends, built The Lubber Fiend.

Today, the venue is a place where gigs, club nights and community radio station Slack’s Radio all come together. Booth and Hopkin run the station with the station’s founder Jon Cornbill, operating on a not-for-profit basis. There’s even a restaurant and kitchen downstairs.

“We started out with volunteers and with very little knowledge of how to run a music venue, and I am sure we have made plenty of mistakes along the way,” Booth tells The Independent. “But I feel like we are a much more professional outfit these days and hopefully bands, artists, and customers have a positive experience at the venue!”

How would you describe The Lubber Fiend to someone who has never been there?

Booth: I would say we are a grassroots, DIY music venue. This means we are friendly and the music can be amazing – but it’s maybe not the Ritz Hotel. We are incredibly passionate about the music we put on, so after that I would probably start waxing lyrical about some obscure band who are playing midweek sometime!

What’s on the cards for the venue in the future?

Booth: In the immediate future we have an amazing festival that we are doing this year, 17-20 September, called New Ruins. We are hoping to do it every year, but let’s see how we go on this first one!

It’s been really exciting to programme and is effectively an amalgamation of what we love and would programme anyway, but in a bigger, slightly grander, event. We have also just started a membership scheme to help support the venue. It’s something other spaces do; hopefully people can join up and feel part of what we do whilst getting some membership benefits! As I already mentioned, we are hopeful the restaurant will also be able to help financially in the long term. And I guess it’s obvious, but the main aim is just to stay open and continue to programme music that we love whilst supporting grassroots music locally and further afield.

What are some of the biggest challenges you face as a venue?

Booth: Like most venues across we face a mixture of specific local challenges and then much broader and general issues. Generally, venues like ours are struggling with rising costs and lower disposable incomes of the people who do come. When you add that to people drinking less, it becomes really difficult. It’s fair enough that people, especially young people, are drinking less, and it’s rubbish that our business relies on bar sales. Unfortunately though, that is just the case for a lot of venues like ours. That’s partly why we are moving to having a membership scheme – so that people can support us without drinking.

What would you say makes running a music venue so worthwhile?

Booth: So many things! The music, obviously, but also working with friends, meeting so many nice, talented and interesting people, having so much more autonomy than in previous roles, which can be stressful when it’s difficult decisions and solving problems, but overall I value it. There are also opportunities away from the venue such as running the bars at Supernormal Festival.

And it sounds a bit hokey, but it’s really rewarding to host artists and do something you care about. Oh, and the food at the restaurant is amazing. Bad for my waistline, but damn it’s good!

What’s been one of your favourite recent gigs you put on?

One that comes to mind was The Sprigs back in February. They’re a Wind in the Willows-themed experimental folk band, but they absolutely rule. Their new record is also amazing. Al Wooton was awesome for our 4th birthday in May, and Germ Lattice! The Les Disques Omnison label show in March was also amazing.

Classic Dolly Parton hits re-enter UK charts days after her death

Squeeze cancel US gig after worker dies in tour bus tragedy

Katy Perry makes rare admission about Orlando Bloom split amid Justin Trudeau romance

Fifty years ago, Abba’s biggest song waltzed its way into the charts

Steven Knight’s theory on why the Oasis reunion happened when it did

Fury over St Paul’s Cathedral raves: ‘An insult to Lord Nelson’s memory’