£6 million casino and bingo hall to open in Southend

The Park Inn Palace Hotel where the Grosvenor Casino and Mecca bingo hall is scheduled to open in September.

A £6 million casino and bingo hall will open in Southend next month.

The casino and bingo hall is expected to create new jobs, as well as bring some glitz and glamour to the Southend seafront.

The 24-hour Grosvenor Casino and Mecca bingo hall is scheduled to open below the Park Inn Palace Hotel on September 18.

Speaking to the Echo News, General Manager of the casino, Tom Docherty, said: “Southend is a popular seaside town with a long-established association with entertainment and innovation, making it ideal.

“We’re confident our new casino will attract new and existing gamers into Southend, with its state-of-the-art facilities, and further increase interest in the area as a key tourist destination.

“It will be a stylish new venue, where you can enjoy the thrill of gaming and live sports around the clock and also support employment in the area.”

The casino, he says, will be “a new and exciting venue, perfect for serious gamers or those just looking for a fun, alternative night out.”

The new casino will feature a 100-seat poker room that will be available for private functions and tuition, as well as slot machines, electronic gaming and a VIP room for high-stakes games.

There will also be a bar, a restaurant, and an individual sports lounge with betting terminals, showing Premier League football, rugby, cricket, boxing and motor racing.

Mr Docherty said: “We’re hugely excited about our sports lounge and sports betting facilities, as this will be only the second Grosvenor Casino in the UK to have such facilities.”

Paul Thompson, who is chairman of Southend Seafront Traders’ Association, said that he believed the appeal of the casino would be boosted by a new multiplex cinema in the nearby area.

“It will be good. It’s more investment in the seafront and investment in Southend, which is good news,” he said.

“Once we get it going, and if the cinema gets up and running, things will be looking good for Southend seafront again.

“It will give people staying in the hotels something to do in the evenings.

“Everything is on the up.”