The Forum, Tunbridge Wells The Forum, Tunbridge Wells The Forum is an independent music venue in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent with a standing capacity of 250. The venue opened in 1993, the building having previously been a public toilet. The Forum is located on Tunbridge Wells Common, close to the junction of the A26 London Road and Frant Road, opposite the King Charles the Martyr church and The Pantiles. It is approximately five minutes walk from Tunbridge Wells station. The Forum was the brainchild of four friends: Michael Oyarzabal, Peter Hoare, Jason Dormon, and Mark Davyd, two of whom had previously been involved with
Royal Tunbridge Wells South Eastern Railway's London-Hastings Hastings Line at Tonbridge. During this time Decimus Burton developed John Ward's Calverley Park estate. In 1889 the town was awarded the status of a Borough, and it entered the 20th century in a prosperous state. 1902 saw the opening of an Opera House, and in 1909 the town received its "Royal" prefix. Due to its position in South East England, during the First World War Tunbridge Wells was made a headquarters for the army, and its hospitals were used to treat soldiers who had been sent home with a "blighty wound"; the town also received