The Hackney Empire opened in 1901, designed by the architect Frank Matcham, who was responsible for more than 150 theatres across Britain during his career. Matcham understood music hall audiences: they wanted spectacle from every angle, and the Empire's seventy-seven-galleried auditorium was designed to ensure it. The ornate terracotta exterior and the tiered interior drew admiration from scholars including Nikolaus Pevsner, who described it as a key example of Victorian and Edwardian architecture. On the roof stands a statue of Thalia, the Greek muse of comedy — removed in 1979, then reinstalled. The building holds Grade II* listed status, designating it as particularly important.

In its music hall years, the Hackney Empire's stage carried some of the most famous performers of the early 20th century. Charlie Chaplin performed here before he emigrated to America and transformed himself into cinema's first global icon. Gracie Fields, Stanley Holloway, and Julie Andrews all appeared here. Marie Lloyd — the working-class queen of the halls — performed at the Empire; she is buried at Hampstead Cemetery nearby. The venue's location in Hackney, east London, made it a neighbourhood theatre as much as a prestige destination, and it drew crowds who could not have afforded the West End.

By the mid-20th century, music hall was dying and television had changed what entertainment meant. The Empire became a bingo hall. By 1984, the bingo operation found the building too expensive to maintain and handed it over to CAST — the Cartoon Archetypical Slogan Theatre — a satirical touring company led by Claire and Roland Muldoon. CAST used the venue as a London base and mounted variety nights featuring an emerging generation of alternative comics: Ben Elton, Dawn French, and Jennifer Saunders all appeared at the Empire during the 1980s before they became nationally known. The building had reinvented itself again.

In 2001, the Empire closed for a £17 million refurbishment designed by Tim Ronalds Architects, reopening in 2004. The restoration added a 60-seat orchestra pit to allow opera performances, a flytower for stage productions, and improved dressing rooms. Comedian Griff Rhys Jones led the restoration appeal, with a significant donation from local businessman Alan Sugar. The Marie Lloyd public house was incorporated into the extension. Today the Hackney Empire programmes theatre, opera, comedy, dance, and music, partnering with the Royal Shakespeare Company, English Touring Opera, and Scottish Opera. Its Creative Futures programme works with over 4,000 young people annually, providing free pantomime tickets to local housing associations, community groups, and young carers. The Rolling Stones chose it well.