RE: Lost Cinema's of Brum - 7

SB, I saw rock around the clock at the Tivoli, teds bopping in the aisles, great stuff.

Hi David

Welcome to our forum, I'm sure we are all glad to welcome you and we hope that you will join in with us on any thread that interests you.

I think most of us have our memories of our local cinema. I think most of our young memories hark back to the Saturday matinée or the Saturday crush as it was better known. Prices ranged from 3d to 6d depending on which cinema you used. A couple of cartoons (Tom & Jerry) , a serial (Flash Gordon) and a main feature (Hopalong Cassiday) not bad value whichever price we paid and it kept us out of our parents hair while they did the shopping.

Here are both of the cinemas you mention sadly reduced to being a social club & a bongo club and one of the Royalty when it was still a cinema.

Phil

Interesting film on at the Royalty. Good way of dating the photograph

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039029/

'Rock Around the Clock' brings back memories. It was advertised to be shown at the Picture house, Harborne but they must have read of the problems when the film was shown elsewhere. They were obviously worried about dancing in the aisles and having seats torn out so they cancelled it. Two or three weeks later it actually arrived. The noise was unbelievable. I couldn't hear the soundtrack and the film was stopped several times. Bet they breathed a sigh of relief when the week was over. It looks so tame now but then Rock and Roll was new and exciting.

Intended to say the film 'Three Strangers' dates to 1946 and starred Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre. The Royalty was a marvellous Cinema. It opened in 1930 and seated 1,300. The photo shows the front entrance for the best seats but to the right (and not shown) was another entrance with separate paybox for the cheap seats. Later the Royalty sign was replaced by a large ABC logo. The projection box was under the balcony and a short throw from the screen. Went over to Bingo in 1964 and remains such today. It's inside is art deco (a bit garish in decoration) and is subject to a conservation order. It is pretty much unchanged from it's opening.

Although it was sad to see so many Cinema's change to Bingo. I suppose we have that awful game to thank for saving many fine old buildings.

SB

The trouble with that is that bingo is not so popular now so most of the bingo halls are closing down.

Phil

Posted by phil

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SB

The trouble with that is that bingo is not so popular now so most of the bingo halls are closing down.

Phil

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I know now some of them are turning into places of religion .

I thought bingo was a religion, try talking while that blokes calling out the hymn numbers.

Phil

I think the smoking ban was just about the last straw and now with less money in people's pockets we're going to say a final 'farewell' to a lot of old cinema's that thought Bingo was their Salvation

My favourite Cinema was The ABC (Forum I think it was called). New Street. The back row up in the mountainous Gods brings back happy memories. SB

I think the smoking ban ended quite a lot of the working classes entertainment. As an ex smoker myself, I thought that smokers in this country have been treated dreadfully far from filling the pubs and other places of entertainment when smoking was banned they have done exactly the opposite and 70% of the old local pubs are now closed along with 90% of the cinemas.

Phil

SB

Do you mean up here, I don't believe you went up there. You would have had a nose bleed.

Phil

Yep up there.
Every Friday night, Trust me it was scary.

Did you need climbing tackle? Some of the old cinemas were amazing. I recently sat in the Gods at Southend's palace theatre. Never felt so near to heaven in my life!!!