Studio 144: why has Southampton hidden its £30m culture palace behind a Nando's?

Southampton’s new arts venue has been almost 20 years in the making and consumed millions in public funds. But commercial interests have overshadowed a bold cultural visionSouthampton’s new culture palace squats on the town square like a particularly lacklustre block of flats, clad in grey and beige tiles. Studio 144, the city’s £30m arts venue, provides a new well-equipped auditorium for Nuffield Southampton Theatres and an airy home for the university’s John Hansa