By the 1860s the area had deteriorated greatly and the old inn had been converted into what the historians Mander and Mitchenson describe as "dwellings of a dubious nature".

[1] In 1864 part of the area was cleared to make way for a new hotel, which failed, and the Globe Theatre, which was built to the commission of its proprietor, Sefton Parry.

[3] Parry built the theatre cheaply, hoping to make handsome profits from compensation when the area was demolished, which was even then in contemplation.

[5] Parry's first production, a five-act comedy called Cyril's Success, by H. J. Byron, was well received, and ran for 100 performances – considered a very good run for that period.

H. J. Montague opened with a strong company, headed by himself, Carlotta Addison[12] and Henry Compton, but could not make the theatre pay.

A comic opera in an attempted Gilbert and Sullivan vein,[15] The Vicar of Bray, by Sydney Grundy and Edward Solomon (1882) ran for only 69 performances,[16][n 1] and The Promise of May, a "Rustic Drama in Prose" by the Poet Laureate, Lord Tennyson, lasted only a few nights.

[13] Success on an even greater scale than that of The Private Secretary came to the Globe in 1892, when the farce Charley's Aunt transferred there after a few initial weeks in the smaller Royalty Theatre.

He brought Kate Terry out of retirement to support the stage debut of her daughter Mabel Terry-Lewis in The Master by Stuart Ogilvie, presented revivals of Tom Robertson's Caste, School and Ours, and premiered Arthur Pinero's comedy The Gay Lord Quex, which ran for 300 performances.

[18][20][n 3] By the time Hare gave up the management of the Globe in 1900 the long-envisaged Strand Improvement Scheme was finally under way, and the demolition of "the rickety twins" was scheduled by the London County Council.

The last company to occupy the theatre was headed by Fred Terry and Julia Neilson, with William Greet as lessee and Frank Curzon managing the house.

They presented a melodrama about Russian politics, which failed completely, and for the final production at the Globe they revived a popular costume drama, Sweet Nell of Old Drury.