Fire Breaks Out at Iconic Music Venue in London Where Madonna and Prince Performed

The iconic KOKO club in London, where celebrities like Madonna and Prince have performed, was damaged by a fire on Monday night.

According to the London Fire Brigade, eight fire engines and around 60 firefighters arrived at the scene in Camden to tackle the blaze. Part of the roof was damaged, but the firefighters managed to put the flames out.

The Brigade Control received 22 emergency calls to notify officials. Fire crews from Euston, Kentish Town, Islington, Soho, Holloway and surrounding fire stations all assisted on the scene.

“Firefighters’ quick action and hard work in the early stages meant the fire was contained to the roof and saved the rest of the building,” station commander Jon Lewis said. “Fire crews will remain at the scene throughout the morning.”

Georgia Gould, a Labour councillor in the Kentish Town ward and the leader of Camden borough council, shared images on Twitter of smoke and flames coming out from the building’s roof.

“Heartbreaking watching the Camden Palace / Koko up in flames this evening, a building that holds so many memories and means so much to us in Camden. Incredible how quickly @LondonFire got under control, we owe them so much for their swift and courageous response,” Gould wrote.

According to BBC News, KOKO owner Olly Bengough was “deeply saddened” by the fire, telling the outlet, “We’ll be doing our best to get the redevelopment of this iconic building back on track.”

KOKO was already temporarily closed to “undergo a major state-of-the-art transformation,” its website says. It was set to reopen in the spring.

The building originally opened in 1900 as the Camden Theatre. Since its inception as KOKO in 2004, it has reportedly hosted performances by Madonna, Coldplay, Prince, Kanye West, Bruno Mars, Amy Winehouse, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and J Cole.