Admiral Casino’s 24-Hour London Casino Plan Stirs Strong Feelings

Admiral Casino is aiming to extend its opening hours to 24 hours a day at its high street branch in West London. The Earl’s Court Road shop is currently open 8am to 11.30pm Sunday to Thursday, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday, but it is keen to become a round-the-clock service.

The driving force behind its desire to be open all hours is to cater to customers working in the nighttime economy or who have irregular shift patterns. Luxury Leisure, which owns Admiral Casino, insists concerns surfaced over gambling addictions aren’t connected to the planning application.

So far, there have been 200 objections to the plan, and zero letters of support. And it seems some of the concerns raised are linked to a change in identity of the area.

Residents furious over plans

Earl’s Court is crammed with betting shops and Adult Gaming Centres (AGCs). A visit carried out by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) indicated it found two betting shops and two AGCs within a stone’s throw of Admiral Casino. Earl’s Court Society Chair, Francesco Zibellini, who represents the interests of residents, believes Admiral Casino’s application should be denied.

He said: “I frankly think [the application] should be refused definitely. This is a residential area.

“Look around you. I mean, most of these houses are residential, so of course having another site that is going to be open 24 hours is going to increase the potential for noise and nuisance.”

Crime occupies focus of fight

Crime has been affecting Earl’s Court, and this has spread fear among residents. As things stand, the area is subject to a Public Space Protection order to curb anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Interestingly, the Met Police statistics indicated ASB contributed 30% of all reported crimes in Earl’s Court in the past 12 months, with 711 incidents logged. Next on the list was violence and sexual offences, with 471 incidents noted, accounting for 20% of crimes.

A mini Las Vegas in the making?

One of the Earl’s Court AGCs (Silver Time) has a 24-hour licence, while there is a 24-hour Burger King, with McDonald’s applying for the same licence. And Zibellini has suggested Earl’s Court is at risk of morphing into a ‘mini Las Vegas’ if Admiral Casino gets its way.

He added: “What I see is that when [the council] is evaluating these applications for  24-hour [operations], they just consider the absolute impact, which means they say, oh, there is no substantial increase [in noise or antisocial behaviour], but that is actually wrong.

“You put a stone over a stone and another stone and another stone, and in 15 years, this is going to end up like a mini Las Vegas. That’s what we are very much concerned about as residents here.”

Admiral Casino’s next steps

Admiral Casino has already lodged an application to the council to lift the restricted opening hours in Bearwood, which is in the West Midlands. As far as the Earl’s Court branch is concerned, a Council Planning Committee meeting has been scheduled for this evening.

Residents will convene at 6.30pm at Kensington Town Hall to hear a review of the application, and members of the public are also invited to attend.

Kensington and Chelsea Council were approached for comment, but they declined to do so as they didn’t want to pre-empt what the committee had to say. Admiral Casino still has a few hoops to jump through, but this is a debate that is likely to rumble on for some time.

1.

4.9/5

BetMGM UK Bonus Code

200 Free Spins When You Play £10

Requirements (WR): 35x Deposit, Min. Deposit: £10

Go to BetMGM UK

Visit Provider

New cust only. Opt in & deposit £10 in 7 days & wager 1x in 7 days on any casino game (excluding live casino and table games) for 200 Free Spins. Wagering contributions vary. Free Spins worth 10p each on Big Bass Splash. 3 day expiry. 18+. T&Cs Apply. GambleAware.org.

2.

4.8/5

Duelz Bonus Code

100% up to £100 + 100 Free Spins

Requirements (WR): 30x (Bonus + Deposit), Min. Deposit: £20

Go to Duelz

Get Bonus

18+. New players in GB only. 100% deposit bonus up to £100. Min. deposit: £20. Max Bonus wins: £500. Max bet with active bonus: £2. Wagering requirement: 30x sum of deposit + bonus. 100 Free Spins applicable to Book of Dead only: 20 Free Spins per day for 5 days. Daily login required. Maximum Free Spins winnings: £100. Winnings credited as bonus money with a 45x wagering requirement. Game restrictions apply. Games contribute differently when wagering a bonus. First deposit only, no expiration date. Deposit bonus expiration: 30 days if not wagered. Free spins expiration: 3 days. One bonus per person/address/device/IP. Own payment methods only. www.gambleaware.org Full T&Cs apply.

3.

4.7/5

Betnero Bonus Code

100% up to £100 + 100 Free Spins

Requirements (WR): 40x Bonus, Min. Deposit: £10

Go to Betnero

Get Bonus

1st deposit only | min deposit £10 | max bet £2 | max bonus £100 | max cashout x 3 the bonus | max cashout from bonus spin winnings £100 | x40 wagering on bonus and bonus spin winnings | 30-day bonus expiry | 24-hour bonus spins expiry | bonus is valid for selected games only

4.

4.6/5

LuckyMate Bonus Code

Bet £10 and get 50 free spins on Big Bass Splash

Min. Deposit: £10

Copy

Get Bonus

18+ Play responsibly www.gambleaware.org| Bonus T&Cs apply | User agreement | £10 min deposit | £10 in slot bets grant 50 spins on Big Bass Splash | £5 total spin value | £0.10 per spin | 7-day expiry | Selected payment methods only

5.

4.6/5

Betway Bonus Code

Stake £10 & get 150 free spins

Go to Betway

Get Bonus

New UK customers only. Deposit & stake min £10. Debit card only (exclusions apply). 150 free spins (£0.10) on selected games. Spins expire after 7 days. Promotion valid from 02/06/25 to 23:59 BST 31/12/25. 18+ BeGambleAware.org. Full terms apply