Sunderland · small venue · Verified open
Sunderland community music CIC — learn, play, record and perform.
About 50 standing, house PA.
Nearby venuesUpdated 12 November 2026
At a glance, The Bunker in Sunderland is summed up below. There is an in-house PA. The figures below set out its size, live nights, kit and genres.
capacity
| Live music | Varies |
| TodayClosed | 09:00–22:00Opens in 1h 21m 57s |
| Backline | PA provided |
| Books | Mixed |
4 photos show the inside of The Bunker, from the stage to the bar. Tap any photo to open it at full size. Venue owners can claim this page and add their own photos.
Before you book The Bunker, here are its size, live nights, genres and website. Members can vote to bring this venue onto GigXchange. Spotted something out of date? Send us a correction from this page.
| Capacity | about 50 standing |
| Live nights | Contact venue |
| Curfew | – |
| Sound limiter | – |
| Website | bunkeruk.com |
| Status | Verified open |
| Last checked | 4 Jun 2026 |
The Bunker is at 29 Stockton Rd, Sunderland, SR2 7AQ. The map below opens step-by-step directions in Google Maps. It is one of 23 rooms in our Sunderland venue directory.
Sunderland SR2 7AQ
The nearest station is Park Lane (Metro station), about 5 minutes' walk away.
The Bunker for artists: The Bunker has not joined GigXchange yet, so acts vote here to bring it on - to hire the venue for a private event, choose Private hire.
| Booking email and phone | Locked |
| Fee range per act | Locked |
| How far ahead to book | Locked |
| Payment terms | Locked |
| Rate calculatorWhat should you charge here?Live UK rates by role, city and venue size. |
The Bunker publishes its opening times for 7 of the 7 days. These are the venue's own opening hours, not the gig start times. Check the venue's own website before travelling on a bank holiday.
| Mon | 09:00–22:00 |
| Tue | 09:00–22:00 |
| Wed | 09:00–22:00 |
| Thu | 09:00–22:00 |
| FriToday | 09:00–22:00 |
| Sat | 09:00–22:00 |
| Sun | 09:00–22:00 |
The Bunker has an in-house PA for visiting acts. The list below shows the PA, drums, amps and mics we know about. Played here and the kit was different? Tell us and we will update it.
| PA system | Provided |
| Drum kit | TBC |
| Guitar amp | TBC |
| Bass amp | TBC |
| Keys / keyboard | TBC |
| Vocal mics | TBC |
| In-house engineer | TBC |
This is the background on The Bunker, from the venue and its listings. The notes below sum up what the venue and its listings say.
The Bunker is a grassroots music venue in Sunderland with a standing capacity of about 50.
Listing notesThe Bunker is a community music facility and Community Interest Company at 29 Stockton Road in the centre of Sunderland (SR2 7AQ). Founded in 1982, it runs 17 rehearsal and recording studios open seven days a week, offers tuition in guitar, bass, ukulele, piano, drums, singing and music production, and hosts regular live gigs in its performance space. As a CIC, all profits are reinvested to support more local musicians — it has been a starting point for thousands of artists, pairing recording and rehearsal facilities with training, development and career guidance. A genuine grassroots hub rather than a straightforward pub stage; the live programme runs alongside the studio and education work.
It keeps this page true for the next act through the door.
The regular night at The Bunker on GigXchange is its open mic. Venues often post their next nights on their own website first. The Sunderland gig directory lists what is on across the area tonight.
Open mic, every Wednesday - 20:00 · Free entry. More nights out in the wider Sunderland gig directory.
The Sunderland league ranks live music venues by the gigs listed over the next 30 days. It refreshes every night, so a busy month moves a room up.
live rooms
| 01 | Independent | 2 gigs |
| 02 | The Fire Station New | 1 gig |
| 03 | Diego's Joint down1 | 0 gigs |
| 04 | Harbour View Pub down1 | 0 gigs |
| 05 | Herrington Country Park down1 | 0 gigs |
| 06 | Horden Comrades Social Club down1 | 0 gigs |
| 07 | Live Lounge down1 | 0 gigs |
| 08 | Low Lights Tavern down1 | 0 gigs |
| 09 | Pop Recs down1 | 0 gigs |
| 10 | South Shields Folk Club (South Tyneside Indoor Bowls and Social Club) down1 | 0 gigs |
Not seeing your venue? This ranking counts gigs listed in the next 30 days. Create a page free or add your gigs - it ranks on the next nightly refresh.
| 01 | Edit your profile and photos |
| 02 | Set your fee range |
| 03 | Receive artist enquiries |
| 04 | Update backline and capacity |
The Bunker
Sunderland community music CIC — learn, play, record and perform. Capacity about 50.
- c. 50
- Capacity
- Varies
- Live music
- 09:00
- Open today
- PA
- Backline
- Mixed
- Books
- Verified
- Directory status
More Sunderland venues
Grassroots venues, pubs and stages that book live music in Sunderland.
Open mic here
The Bunker hosts a regular open mic — see the night, time & sign-up.
What's on near you
The national view — every city we cover, and what is on there this week.
Last updated: 12 November 2026
The Bunker — Quick Facts
The Bunker capacity: about 50 standing. Sunderland community music CIC — learn, play, record and perform. Here are the key facts on The Bunker at a glance.

By size, The Bunker is the joint 10th largest of the 11 venues we list in and around Sunderland with a standing capacity. Similar-size rooms: The Point Events Venue (about 50), Harbour View Pub (about 80) and The Secret Garden Pub (about 80).
The Bunker's listed capacity is about 50 standing - a small room on the scale we use for every venue. Around Sunderland, the middle-sized room we list holds about 180 - The Bunker is well below that. Rooms under about 150 are where most acts start out: shorter sets, a local crowd and often a door split or a modest flat fee. A room this size fills on your own following, so bring your guest list. We have not verified that figure yet - confirm it with the venue before you plan a show around it.
The Bunker this week
The Bunker for artists: The Bunker has not joined GigXchange yet, so acts vote here to bring it on - to hire the venue for a private event, choose Private hire.

The Bunker hasn’t claimed its page yet, so nobody from the venue is on GigXchange to message. Vote to bring it on - free account, no card, 30 seconds.
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Closed, changed capacity, different backline? Let us know. We review corrections within 7 days.
What’s on in Sunderland this week — or see what’s on across the UK.
Inside The Bunker
The Bunker has an in-house PA for visiting acts. The room holds about 50. Below: the PA, drums, amps and mics we know about and what we know about the room.
The Bunker is a grassroots music venue in Sunderland with a standing capacity of about 50. The Bunker provides a PA system — check the rest with the venue.
This listing is part of the Sunderland venue directory.
The Bunker is a community music facility and Community Interest Company at 29 Stockton Road in the centre of Sunderland (SR2 7AQ). Founded in 1982, it runs 17 rehearsal and recording studios open seven days a week, offers tuition in guitar, bass, ukulele, piano, drums, singing and music production, and hosts regular live gigs in its performance space. As a CIC, all profits are reinvested to support more local musicians — it has been a starting point for thousands of artists, pairing recording and rehearsal facilities with training, development and career guidance. A genuine grassroots hub rather than a straightforward pub stage; the live programme runs alongside the studio and education work.
There are no fixed live nights listed for The Bunker - the gigs in the rail below show when it actually runs shows. There is a PA listed - ask what else is on stage before you load in. The Bunker hasn't joined GigXchange yet; vote to bring it on, and in the meantime keep a short EPK and a live clip ready - it is what most venues ask for first. More rooms, open mics and what they pay: getting gigs in Sunderland.
By size, The Bunker is the joint 10th largest of the 11 venues we list in and around Sunderland with a standing capacity. Similar-size rooms: The Point Events Venue (about 50), Harbour View Pub (about 80) and The Secret Garden Pub (about 80).
Find The Bunker
The Bunker is at 29 Stockton Rd, Sunderland, SR2 7AQ. The map below opens step-by-step directions in Google Maps. It is one of 23 rooms in our Sunderland venue directory.
The nearest station is Park Lane (Metro station), about 5 minutes' walk away. You'll find The Bunker in Sunderland; SR2 7AQ is the postcode for sat-nav and ride apps. Check the start time before you set off, and see what else is on in Sunderland this week, or book a Sunderland band for a night of your own.
The Dun Cow, The Peacock, The Secret Garden Pub and The Ship Isis
Station data: NaPTAN, Department for Transport (Open Government Licence).
The Sunderland League
The Bunker is #15 of 23 Sunderland venues for live music — ranked by gigs on the calendar over the next 30 days, refreshed nightly. Only gigs in the GigXchange directory count.
- #1 – Independent 2 gigs
- #2 NEW The Fire Station 1 gig
- #3 ▼1 Diego's Joint 0 gigs
- #4 ▼1 Harbour View Pub 0 gigs
- #5 ▼1 Herrington Country Park 0 gigs
- #6 ▼1 Horden Comrades Social Club 0 gigs
- #7 ▼1 Live Lounge 0 gigs
- #8 ▼1 Low Lights Tavern 0 gigs
- #9 ▼1 Pop Recs 0 gigs
- #10 ▼1 South Shields Folk Club (South Tyneside Indoor Bowls and Social Club) 0 gigs
Run this room? This page, and this ranking, is yours to take over.
Claim This VenueNot seeing your venue? This ranking counts gigs listed in the next 30 days. If your room has no page here yet, create one free and it joins the directory. If it is already listed, add your gigs and it will rank on the next nightly refresh.
Rankings like this run across GigXchange: the national Hardest Working Rooms table tracks the UK's busiest grassroots stages week on week, the Pint Index prices a gig ticket in pints city by city, and UK market statistics covers what live music pays. All of it is built from the same directory this page lives in.
Common Questions
These are the 9 questions people ask most about booking and visiting The Bunker. Each answer uses the details already shown on this page. Can't see your question? Send it to us with a correction.
These are the 9 questions people ask most about booking and visiting The Bunker. Each answer uses the details already shown on this page. Can't see your question? Send it to us with a correction.
Venues Near The Bunker
16 other venues are close to The Bunker in Sunderland. Each one has its own page with its size, kit and live nights. Use them to plan a night out or a run of local gigs.
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The Bunker in brief. Set in Sunderland, The Bunker is a small room (under 150). There’s also an open mic (every Wednesday). Rooms nearby include The Dun Cow, The Peacock and The Secret Garden Pub; the Sunderland venue directory has the rest.
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.
We list 23 grassroots music venues in Sunderland. Or search the full UK directory by town, size or genre. Every listing shows capacity, kit and live nights where we have them.
More rooms near The Bunker: Live Lounge, Steels Social Club, The 3 Stories, The Engine Room, The Fire Station, The Point Events Venue, The Saltgrass, These Things Happen, Diego's Joint, Harbour View Pub and Herrington Country Park.
Sunderland has 23 rooms in the UK grassroots venue directory - why we built it, and what the data shows.
Rankings like this run across GigXchange: the national Hardest Working Rooms table, the Pint Index and UK market statistics - all built from the same directory.
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More Sunderland venues
We list 23 grassroots music venues in Sunderland. Or search the full UK directory by town, size or genre. Every listing shows capacity, kit and live nights where we have them.
























