Cart & Horses

The Cart & Horses: Birthplace of Iron Maiden.

When I was just 10 years young, I purchased my first 7" single. It was Iron Maiden's 'Run to the Hills'. I have been a fan of theirs ever since, so I decided that it was high time that I visited The Cart & horses, Stratford, where Iron Maiden performed their first gig, back in 1976.

Brief History

The Cart & Horses was built prior to 1765, at 150-152 The Grove. It was in around 1880 that the premises were rebuilt on their current site, at 1 Maryland Point, adjacent to the old premises. The old building survived until its demolition in 1970.

Steve Harris, founder member of Iron Maiden, originally played three of six gigs at The Cart & Horses, with his band Gypsy's Kiss, in 1973. When the band split, he joined Smiler and continued to play gigs here.

After leaving Smiler, Steve Harris formed Iron Maiden, on Christmas Day 1975, and this new band, which consisted of Steve Harris, Dave Sullivan, Paul Day, Ron Matthews and Terry Rance, would play their first gig at The Cart & Horses, for the princely sum of £10.

Iron Maiden performed their last gig here, on April 7th, 1978, when they consisted of Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Barry Purkis and Dennis Willcock.

Cart and Horses: Birthplace of Iron Maiden