[4] The current building was commissioned to replace a previous town hall which had been built in 1727 on the western side of Market Street.

[5] The foundation stone for the new building was laid by Thomas Read Kemp, a local property developer who had encouraged the initiative, in April 1830.

[7] On 12 and 13 November 1858, the author Charles Dickens gave a reading of A Christmas Carol to a large audience at the town hall[8][9] and, on 16 September 1861, the opera singer Adelina Patti performed there during a concert given by the composer and pianist Wilhelm Kuhe.

[15] The council closed Priory House in 2011 and the building was subsequently sold and converted to residential use, with the linking doorways to the town hall being blocked up.

[16][17] In March 2003 the town hall was entered by activists protesting at the start of the Iraq War, who caused significant damage to computers and furniture.