#158 DAY 16 - 31 NIGHTS OF FRIGHT! 🎃 Birmingham's Haunted Theatres

The Alexandra Theatre stands in the heart of Birmingham, a city better known for its industry, music and busy streets than for ghost stories.

But the Alex has been entertaining audiences for well over a century and behind its stage curtains lies a history of performers, managers, stagehands and audiences who have passed through its doors.

The theatre first opened in 1901 originally as the Lyceum before becoming the Alexandra Theatre in 1902.

It was rebuilt in the 1930s giving it the distinctive Art Deco auditorium that became part of its character.

For generations it has hosted plays, pantomimes, musicals and touring productions.

Thousands of people have stood on that stage and countless more have sat in its auditorium watching the lights dim and waiting for the show to begin.

But the name has become particularly associated with the building's ghost stories.

But one name has become particularly associated with the building's ghost stories, and that is Leon Solberg, the manager who stayed behind.

Leon Solberg became an important figure in the Alexandras' history.

The Solberg family ran the theatre for decades and Leon was closely associated with its life and success.

He died in his office at the theatre in 1938.

According to the stories told about the Alex, his connection with the building did not end there.

Leon is said to remain in the theatre, with reports of a presence in the auditorium and other parts of the building.

Some accounts describe a figure associated with the old-fashioned world of theatre management.

A man who seems to belong to an earlier era when the theatre was his domain and every detail of production mattered.

It's an intriguing idea, isn't it? A man who devoted so much of his life to a theatre that, even after death, he simply carries on working.

Imagine being one of the last members of staff to leave after a performance.

The audience has gone, the front of house lights are being switched off and the auditorium is falling into darkness.

You make your way along a corridor, checking that everything is secure.

Then you notice a figure near the entrance to the stalls.

At first you assume it's a colleague, perhaps someone has come back to collect a coat or check a door.

You call out, but there's no answer.

figure moves away from you, disappearing into the dimness of the auditorium.

You follow, expecting to find someone working late.

But the seats are empty, and the stage is silent.