Paid Members Gus Mears Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 That's a lovely story, JV. I've got fond Showcase memories from the one in Bristol, which was the first cinema I went to (Space Jam I think). I sometimes forget how ubiquitous cinemas are now comparitively. Growing up in the arse end of Wiltshire, the Showcase was the nearest option and over an hour away after the one in Westbury burnt down when they got caught screening bongo flicks and they weren't allowed to show Disney films any more. The old man used to take me to the Showcase during Divorced Dad weekends. We smuggled in a selection of chocolates as per and he helped himself to a Snickers, which would have been fine if it wasn't pitch black and if he didn't have a nut allergy. The mad bastard just sat there 'because you were enjoying the film' thinking he was dying the whole time. It was Inspector fucking Gadget, not Taxi Driver. No one need die for that. I'm not sure what he imagined my reaction would have been once the lights went up and I found him stiff as a board. In any event, we got a taxi home and he was fine after a night spent vomiting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fog Dude Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 18 hours ago, Gus Mears said: Our local one is the Odeon at the pleasingly stupid sounding John Halle's Hall. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Halle's_Hall It's from the 15th century, so must be in the running for the oldest UK building with a cinema? I read the first few posts of this thread with utter envy, because all of my regular moviegoing haunts in Somerset and North Wales have either been more typical chain cinemas than your example or indies which were nothing special architecturally inside or out, then for some reason this jogged my memory and I realised I've actually watched two films in a 14th-century building: The Barn Cinema in Dartington, Devon is where my grandparents took me to see The Straight Story, then a few years later after Nana Foggy passed I went back with just my grandad to catch Kingdom of Heaven. It's a delightfully cosy, intimate venue that as the name suggests, is located inside a converted former barn. The above appears to be a more recent pic after the seating areas underwent a bit of a revamp. Looks like they've managed to squeeze a few more places in than before since tickets are understandably often in high demand among the locals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members mim731 Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 50 minutes ago, Fog Dude said: I read the first few posts of this thread with utter envy, because all of my regular moviegoing haunts in Somerset and North Wales have either been more typical chain cinemas than your example or indies which were nothing special architecturally inside or out, then for some reason this jogged my memory and I realised I've actually watched two films in a 14th-century building: The Barn Cinema in Dartington, Devon is where my grandparents took me to see The Straight Story, then a few years later after Nana Foggy passed I went back with just my grandad to catch Kingdom of Heaven. It's a delightfully cosy, intimate venue that as the name suggests, is located inside a converted former barn. The above appears to be a more recent pic after the seating areas underwent a bit of a revamp. Looks like they've managed to squeeze a few more places in than before since tickets are understandably often in high demand among the locals. That is a gorgeous little cinema. Old, grand buildings are great, but cinemas in less conventional buildings are just as special too. There's just something about seeing a film outside the identikit confines of the multiplex that makes it such a tremendously enjoyable experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRooster Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 The Bo'ness Hippodrome is the oldest purpose-built cinema in Scotland (it was built in 1912) and it is a really cool place to go watch a movie. Every year they hold a silent film festival with life music performed as a soundtrack to classic films. I wouldn't have thought it was my kind of thing, but I went to it years ago and it was actually a lot of fun. Here's the cinema from the outside: Bo'ness itself is a town that has suffered in recent decades, and the town itself, sadly, is falling apart physically; with lots of closed shops and little to do. However, the Hippodrome is absolutely worth a visit; as is the Bo'ness Railway Museum - a cheap but interesting visit, even if (like me) you don't give a shit about trains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 Just look at the Savoy in Heaton Moor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Hannibal Scorch Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 My first trip to the cinema was to see Snow White during a re-release in the 80's. Google suggests 1987 which means I was about 4. It was the first film I rememeber watching. The venue was the Granada Walthamstow. It wasn't the nearest cinema to where I lived (Ilford had Odeon's in Barking and Gants Hill), but it was where my grandparents lived so must have gone to see them after. I remember being wowed by the venue. Not that I had any idea what a cinema looked like, but it felt both grand and old at the same time, very fancy looking. I enjoyed the film, even if I was scared by the old hag transformation. But I remember when I went to other more modern cinemas in future visits how they seemed more normal and less extravigant. I remember going there a few more times to see Jumanji and Babe, and the cinema closed down for good in 2003. It is scheduled to re-open as a Soho Thetre venue in the next few years. It also has some claims to fame. It was Alfred Hitchcocks go to as he lived in near by Leytonstone. It also had a concert by the Beatles in 1963 when it was used as a music venue as well. The Foyer in later years Lots of articles about it as well like this one https://cinematreasures.org/theaters/9397 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Devon Malcolm Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 The Plaza in Stockport is wonderful, too, brilliantly preserved and quite underused, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Chris B Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 (edited) 22 minutes ago, Devon Malcolm said: Just look at the Savoy in Heaton Moor. I've visited Stockport so many times to see family over the years and only had that terrible cinema in Grand Central to go to this entire time, and none of the arseholes ever mentioned this place nearby? Fuck's sake. (Edit: The Plaza is awesome - they've just rarely been showing much when I've been around. The projectionist showed me the booth etc though last time I visited and that was amazing) Edited January 18 by Chris B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Carbomb Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 Not quite as lovely, but still nice, and it deserves a mention as the first ever cinema in the UK - the Regent Street Cinema was refurbished and reopened as a cinema a few years ago, after a couple of decades as a lecture theatre. They did a nice job with it: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Houchen Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 3 minutes ago, Devon Malcolm said: The Plaza in Stockport is wonderful, too, brilliantly preserved and quite underused, I think. Not saying algorithms work, but I keep getting sponsored ads for a Taylor Swift tribute with full live band at the Plaza, and a “Night of Nashville” one which looks awful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperBacon Posted January 18 Author Share Posted January 18 (edited) Worst cinema experience? Aberdeen. I'd climbed Ben Nevis that day with my Dad (which was torture and I just wanted to lay on a bed) and this was where we were staying for the night so we went to see Die Hard 4. We got tickets for the 9pm showing and my old man asked what time the actual film started. The young Rob Roy behind the counters eyes filled with memories of Bannockburn as he spat at my Dad who's cockney tones had clearly stirred up some hate "I just said 9pm pal. There's no (sorry, nae) adverts (sorry, udvurts)" and muttered as he walked off about the English. Sure enough, bang on 9pm with no adverts and no trailers. I was sat right under a speaker which had clearly blown, so I was tinny and fuzzy and far too loud, and it was by far the worst cinema experience I've ever had. And we had to stay the night in bloody Aberdeen. Edit: Come to think of it, might have been Dundee. Anyway, one of the scotch towns. Edited January 18 by SuperBacon Basturts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Chris B Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 39 minutes ago, Carbomb said: Not quite as lovely, but still nice, and it deserves a mention as the first ever cinema in the UK - the Regent Street Cinema was refurbished and reopened as a cinema a few years ago, after a couple of decades as a lecture theatre. They did a nice job with it: I'm very fond of this place too. Here's me as The Babadook for a Halloween all-nighter there. Won a whole bunch of Shameless horror DVDs for the costume too - really great night, and a shame they haven't done more like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 3 hours ago, Carbomb said: Not quite as lovely, but still nice, and it deserves a mention as the first ever cinema in the UK - the Regent Street Cinema was refurbished and reopened as a cinema a few years ago, after a couple of decades as a lecture theatre. They did a nice job with it: I went here for the first time over Halloween, for a friend's horror podcast doing screenings of some classic silent horror - I went to Haxan and the Phantom Of The Opera. The cinema has an original pipe organ, so they were both screened with full organ accompaniment as they would have had on original release, which is a fantastic experience. Superb cinema. I'm eyeing it up as one of my options to go and see The Iron Claw next month. The first cinema I ever went to was the Picture Playhouse in Beverley; at the time it used to annoy me, because it only got the big films in months and months after they'd been on at bigger cinemas, but my Dad would never be bothered to drive us to the Odeon in Hull, so it was all we had. I look back at it now, and it was such a gorgeous old building (a former Corn Exchange, now a shit department store after a few months as a music venue), I wish I'd appreciated it more at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lorne Malvo Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 Incredibly jealous reading this thread. All I've got near me is a shithole Showcase and an even bigger shithole Odeon. The Odeon is the only building that I still get lost in despite going there for years, because once you're past the foyer all the corridors leading to the screening rooms are identikit and all look like 'backstage'. The amount of times I've walked into another screening while trying to find my way out is ridiculous. It's genuinely scary at times how easy it is to get lost in there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Sergio Mendacious Posted January 18 Paid Members Share Posted January 18 Haven't found a nice old cinema around here; there was a drive-in that closed as soon as we arrived, but it had only been open since the start of Covid. I've almost exclusively gone to the RCE Theater in Roxboro (North Carolina), because it's dirt cheap, with a top price of $7.50 on a Friday night. Bought the popcorn bucket and soda cup with cheap refills for the year this year and last, so the two of us going to the pictures with popcorn and pop comes out at about $30. They have a lot of fun theme stuff, and most of the new films, and I wish I could have gone there as a kid, because it's in Palace Pointe, which would have been ace to go to a youngster. Other than that, we wanted to go and see Talk To Me, and they didn't have it, so we went to the city and paid $12 each for tickets, and $15 each of popcorn and a small drink, so stuff that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.