Even allowing for a large potential audience at its doors, the Hippodrome struggled to survive, taking several diversions into straight drama and films before closing in 1959. It was demolished in 1960.

The Hippodrome music hall, which was designed by Frank Matcham, opened in 1911.

With a capacity of 3,222 it was clearly a sign that Catford had reached maturity as a suburb.

Until the Corbett Estate had added more than 15,000 to the population in the previous decade such a huge theatre could not have been expected to pay.