Royal Albert Hall Royal Commission bought Gore House and its grounds (on which the Hall now stands) on the advice of the Prince. Progress on the scheme was slow and in 1861 Prince Albert died, without having seen his ideas come to fruition. However, a memorial was proposed for Hyde Park, with a Great Hall opposite. The proposal was approved and the site was purchased with some of the profits from the Exhibition. Once the remaining funds had been raised, in April 1867 Queen Victoria signed the Royal Charter of the Corporation of the Hall of Arts and Sciences which was to operate
Royal Albert Hall Armed Man" in person. On 19 November 2012, the Hall hosted the 100th anniversary performance of the Royal Variety Performance, attended by the HM Queen Elizabeth II and HRH Duke of Edinburgh, with boyband One Direction among the performers. During his Rattle That Lock Tour, David Gilmour performed at the Royal Albert Hall eleven times between September 2015 and September 2016, once in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust. On 3 May 2016, singer-songwriter and Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell played at the hall what would become the last UK show of his life as part of his "Higher Truth" European tour.