The SSE Arena

Wembley Arena is the indoor arena built in 1934 opposite the old Wembley Stadium. Built for the Empire Games taking place at the time, it used to house a large swimming pool (which was last used in 1948 during the Summer Olympics) hence it is sometimes still referred to by it's original name, the 'Empire Pool'. Recently Wembley Arena has been completely redeveloped alongside Wembley Stadium itself. The Grade II listed building was refurbished and internally reorientated such that it now opens onto the newly constructed "Arena Square" which links it to the new Wembley Stadium.

During the 1940s, 50s and 60s, the arena was used by the Wembley Lions and the Wembley Monarchs, two ice hockey teams. Until 1996, Wembley Arena also hosted the British Hockey League play-off finals. Nowadays Wembley Arena is generally used for live concerts, comedy shows and sports events. Wembley Arena is now also famous for its ice shows, such as Holiday on Ice and Disney on Ice.

When it re-opened in 2006 a “Square of Fame” had been created, similar to Hollywood’s Walk of Fame: famous performers have bronze plaques imprinted with their names and handprints - Madonna was the first artist to have one of these plaques, other artists, such as Status Quo, Kylie Minogue, Lionel Richie and Bryan Adams soon followed.