BIG-NAME stars are to be enticed back to East Lancashire after the final phase of improvements start on a leading venue.

Chart-topping bands were banned from playing stand-up concerts at King George's Hall, Blackburn, when bosses at Blackburn with Darwen Council deemed the structure unsafe in 1998.

Now the council is completing its safety repairs by closing the adjoining Blakey's bar while installing strengthening pillars.

The bar is based directly underneath the concert hall floor and is expected to close at the end of March for up to three months.

Fears were first raised about the safety of the building during a concert two years ago when a capacity 2,000 crowd caused the structure to vibrate during a show by superstar Robbie Williams.

Council bosses slapped a ban on similar shows until safety work costing £50,000 had been carried out after engineers discovered damage to girders which hold the balconies up.

Now eight pillar-style columns are to be installed which will run from Blakey's into the large concert hall above.

Officials are hoping that the completed improvements will signal a return of high-flying bands like previous visitors including Manic Street Preachers, Kula Shaker, Space and Cast.

A spokesman for the council said: "We always have a list of line-ups well in advance but it is not clear which big names we have for when the work is complete."

In the meantime, the popular Blakey's bar will also undergo a complete transformation, including redecorating and the installation of air conditioning.

Council bosses said they were hoping to relocate the bar's weekend service into the hall's Windsor Suite, which has just re-opened after being turned into a modern conference centre with seminar, training and banqueting facilities.