The Great Hall, with its distinctive portico entrance carved from Oamaru stone, was designed by architect James Cowlishaw in 1879 and built in 1880. It was the School’s main assembly hall from early 1881 until Centenary Hall opened in 1969.

The beautiful stained-glass windows at either end of the hall portray the School’s ideals. The northern window shows young Queen Victoria flanked by famous men in British history – maritime and military leaders, statesmen, poets, playwrights, and men of science – inviting the boys to ‘emulate their noble deeds’. The southern window portrays the rewards bestowed by the Crown for loyalty and service.

It is a special place for student and Old Boy events, from musical recitals and year group assemblies to weddings and memorial services. The Great Hall is the place students enter when they start at Brisbane Grammar School and from where they leave at graduation.