Steels Social Club, established in the early 1950s, is one of Sunderland's most popular and longest-running social clubs and one of the city's best-loved live-music venues. The large concert room comfortably seats up to 300, with good views of a large raised stage from all areas, a full PA system with static and roving mics, and a drop-down big screen for live sport. Live entertainment runs Sunday and Wednesday evenings from 8pm — typically solo artists or duos in the Concert Room. There's a large bar plus traditional club games (darts and snooker), and the room is available for private function hire. Found at 1 Peacock Street West, SR4 6LQ.
Sunderland · Every other Thursday · Free
Steels Social Club Open Mic
Sunderland open mic at Steels Social Club — listed on Google Places. Schedule details below are pending venue confirmation; check the venue's own listings before turning up.
Open mic at a glance Steels Social Club · Sunderland
Thursday
Open mic night
Apr 2026
Listed since
26 Aug
Last verified
Free
Entry
10 min
Slot length
Community
Listing status
Run a Sunderland open mic? List it free — verified within 48 hours
Last updated: 3 June 2026
Steels Social Club Open Mic — Quick Facts
Sunderland open mic at Steels Social Club — listed on Google Places. Schedule details below are pending venue confirmation; check the venue's own listings before turning up.
We need your help verifying thisWas this open mic on recently?10 seconds, no signup
The Details
Everything you need before you turn up
DayThursday
Start20:00
Sign-up19:30 walk-in
Slot length10 min
EntryFree · 18+
Capacity–
Performer typesMusicians · Poets · Comedians · Spoken word artists
Sound engineerBYO / hire on the night
View on map
Where
Steels Social Club1 Peacock St W
Sunderland SR4 6LQ
Sunderland — check venue website for parking and nearest station.
Contact
Walk-in sign-up only
No advance booking
Highlights
Free entry for all
PA system provided
Walk-in sign-up
Musicians, Poets, Comedians, Spoken word artists welcome
How do you rate this open mic?One tap, no sign-up required.
Spotted something wrong with this listing?Closed, moved night, different start time? Let us know and we'll re-verify within 48 hours.
What’s on in Sunderland this week — or see what’s on across the UK.
About Steels Social Club
About This Open Mic
Every other Thursday in Sunderland
Kicks off at 20:00, sign-up from 19:30
Free entry for performers and audience
10-minute slots
PA provided — BYO instrument
Part of the Sunderland open mic directory
The Night
Steels Social Club runs a fortnightly Thursday open mic in Pallion, Sunderland, started by Wearside folk singer Dave Murray - known locally as the Mackem Folk Singer - to get musicians using their local social clubs again.
The night
Fortnightly on a Thursday, 8pm to 11pm, in the club's concert room. Free to perform and free to watch. It is deliberately broad church: "Everyone from singers to musicians, story tellers, poets, comedians is invited." Local artists, bands and students at Sunderland's university and colleges are all encouraged along.
Signing up
Walk in and put your name down on the night. Roughly 10-minute slots. Over-18s (licensed social club).
Getting there
1 Peacock Street West, Sunderland SR4 6LQ, in Pallion, west of the city centre.
Please check before travelling
The schedule above is taken from the Sunderland Echo's launch report. We have not been able to confirm the current run of dates directly with the club, so ring ahead before making a special trip.
What's on stage — equipment and backline at this venue, verified regularly.
PA + monitors
Drum kit
Guitar amp
Bass amp
Keys / keyboard
Vocal mics
In-house engineer
The Night at a Glance
How Steels Social Club’s Thursday night runs.
19:30Sign-up
20:00Kick-off
23:00Last songs
23:30Venue closes
Every other Thursday 10-min slots Free entry
Find Steels Social Club
1 Peacock St W, Sunderland SR4 6LQ
Planning Your Thursday Night
Arrive by 19:30 to sign up for a slot. Entry is free and the open mic typically runs until 23:00. A PA is provided — bring your own instrument and amp.
Part of the Sunderland live music scene.
What should you charge for paid gigs?Most open mic musicians are ready for paid work sooner than they think. Check live UK rates by role, city, and venue size.
Try the Rate CalculatorCommon Questions
Seven things people ask before turning up at Sunderland's Steels Social Club open mic.
Walk-in sign-up only, opens at 19:30. Arrive early — slots fill on the night. See other Sunderland open mic nights for alternatives.
PA + vocal mic provided. BYO instrument and amp.
10 minutes per act — typically 3 songs solo.
Yes — free entry for performers and audience. Most Sunderland mics are free; browse the list.
Solo and duo acts work best given the gear available; ask the host before bringing a full band.
1 Peacock St W, Sunderland SR4 6LQ.
Mostly fellow musicians, friends and Sunderland regulars across the Sunderland open mic scene. Sunderland open mic crowds tend to listen attentively.
Keep up with Sunderland
One email a week with live music near you. Free, and it keeps grassroots rooms full.
Help keep grassroots venues open in Sunderland
—A UK venue stops hosting live music every 5 days — and turning up is what keeps a room open. Get a free weekly email of gigs in Sunderland. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy.
See what’s on in Sunderland over the next four weeks →
Booking or playing in Sunderland? The GX Index publishes what UK gigs actually pay, by city, band size and venue type, and the GX Index reports set out the methodology and the sample behind every figure. Both are free to read and free to cite.
Keep exploring: the UK gig directory for what's coming up, the venue directory for rooms that book live music, the open mic finder for recurring stage time, and what's on across the UK this week. The blog covers pricing, contracts and getting booked, and about GigXchange explains who runs it and why. Something not right on this page? Tell us — or start on the home page.
Run an open mic in Sunderland?
Add yours to the directory free. 2-minute submission, verified within 48 hours. Reach 1,000+ Sunderland musicians.
Looking for paid gigs, not open mics?