Jesus Army cult packed out Northampton theatre, manager says

BBC News

5 days ago

The man who ran the theatre owned by an orthodox evangelical church said the group would "pack out" the 900-seater auditorium when it held worships there.The Jesus Army church recruited thousands of people to live in close-knit, puritanical communities in Northamptonshire, London and the Midlands, but was later exposed as a cult in which sexual and physical abuse was perpetuated.In 2000 it purchased what was the Savoy theatre in Northampton, which at the time was derelict, reopening it as the Jesus Centre and the Deco Theatre.Kev Roach, who worked at the Deco, said the activities the Jesus Army did in the building "just didn't seem right".
The Grade II listed building was reopened by the Jesus Army in 2006, and it would serve as its headquarters.When the Jesus Army disbanded following the death of preacher Noel Stanton in 2009, allegations against him of numerous sexual assaults on boys emerged.The Jesus Fellowship Church ultimately disbanded in 2019 following a series of historical cases of sexual abuse.
Mr Roach said the building was divided up into two areas, including a main auditorium that the Deco had a lease for Monday to Saturday.He told BBC Radio Northampton's Annabel Amos, that when the Jesus Army bought the building, "the roof was open, there were pigeons flying around, so it took several years" for it reopen.
'Disbelief'
"[The church] invested, we think, something like eight to ten million [pounds] on restoring it," he said.Mr Roach said that although the theatre operated separately, the Jesus Army "put restrictions on things like comedy and certainly any mediums".The theatre management used a side door for access, while the main entrance and much of the building was used by the Jesus Army as a drop-in centre."They would recruit, they would bring people in, they would get showered and wash clothes and it just didn't seem right the whole thing," he said.
On a Sunday the Jesus Army would use the theatre for worship held by Stanton, who he said "wasn't a very friendly character".Mr Roach said after a performance by a band, Stanton would "speak in a very low tone... telling them to repent all their sins and things like that".He said there would be "two services on Sunday and the place was packed out"."We didn't have access to the building on Sunday, but because we had equipment here, inevitably there were some times you'd come in and you'd just kind of stand in the back in disbelief at what was going on," he said.
After the church disbanded in 2019, the building was purchased by a community interest company, run by Mr Roach, and rebranded as the Old Savoy.He said one of the first things he did was remove the large crucifix above the entrance to the theatre.The stage still has the pit for baptisms, which he wants to remove as it is on top of a mechanism for the old cinema organ, which he hopes to eventually restore.
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