Beloved Deptford venue Matchstick Piehouse is reopening

London’s late night industry might be in dire straits, but sometimes we get flickers of hope – like the news that beloved grassroots gig venue Matchstick Piehouse is reopening in 2025 after being closed for a year. 

The Deptford gig venue shut down at the end of 2023 after the Covid pandemic left it with £36,000 of rent arrears. But it seems that the day has been saved. Campaigners to save the pie house, called the The Piehouse Co-op, joined forces with charity Music Venue Trust to save the venue. They’ve drawn up a deal with the landlords to re-open the venue in spring 2025. 

Oluremi Falowo, a Co-op member, told MyLondon: ‘It’s really important that a venue like this survives. The place really cared about the community that it was serving as opposed to trying to profit from people.

‘The special thing is that the programming for events and themed nights always prioritised people from local communities, especially those that don’t always get the chance to have their voice heard. Having a space like that is essential, especially as access to those kinds of things has really, really decreased.’

First opened in 2018, the community-led and self-proclaimed ‘anti-capitalist’ music venue has hosted gigs by Mercury prize winners Ezra Collective, Nubya Garcia, Moses Boyd and Kamasi Washington over the years. 

The venue isn’t totally out of the woods yet though, and is hoping to raise £15,000 to replace the furniture and equipment taken by debt collectors during the initial closure. If you want to help, you can donate to their Crowdfunder here. 

In a statement online, the co-op wrote: ‘South east London needs a DIY wheelchair accessible venue and community space, and we can’t open without your support.

‘The Piehouse offers a space for artists, activists, and community organisers to come together and create new work. The Piehouse provides a space for marginalised communities who are left out of other lineups, and at a time when venues are closing weekly throughout London, we need this space more than ever.’

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