This Page Updated 3 June 2004
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1. 1885 Moving outlines First Demonstrated by Louis Le Prince, Washington Heights USA 2. 1895 The first public viewing of moving pictures, Hotel
Scribe, Paris France
3. 1923 Musical sound with film first demonstrated by Dr Lee de Forest New York USA 4. 1926 Talking movies first demonstrated by Warner Bros. New York USA 5. 1928 First moving picture with sound shown " The Lights
Of New York "
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Sheffield had it's first introduction to cinematography in 1896, when the Lumiere brothers, Who invented the cinematograph in 1895, demonstrated in the new Empire theatre, Charles Street. ( Now Totally Redeveloped and a housing office next to the former Sugg Sports ). Thereafter regular short films were shown in existing theatres. These films were often pictures of motor traffic in The Strand, football matches, and numerous other topics of interest. They had no music or sound. But in those days many people had never been more than 20 miles from home, and pictures of London and Paris were of great interest. The films were presented between other live variety acts, which were seen in theatreland at the time.
Fifteen years on, in 1910 the first purpose built picture house in sheffield was Sheffield Picture Palace.
Although other theatres, by this time, were being used more and more, the movie wasn't the pure art form that it is now, and the pictures were accompanied by music played, when appropriate by live pianist.
In the year 1920, there were 46 cinemas, but the next two decades saw a slower amount of cinema growth, up until the peak in 1940, when 58 cinemas were open at once. At this point every district of Sheffield had at least one Cinema, many had two or three. This notice on the right >>--->
Over the next five years, 1940 - 1945, world war 2 was raging, and Sheffield was bombed quite heavily, and lost many buildings, the cinema count went down to 56. Nationally at this point in the late forties, there
were so many cinemas that 10% of the UK population could visit the Cinema
at the same time. |
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Of the many cinemas that Sheffield
has seen coming and going over the last century. There have been very large
ones like The Gaumont ( Formally The Regent ) in Barkers Pool, in the town
centre, which had a massive 2,300 seats and a truly massive wide screen.
And tiny ones like The High Green Picture Palace which had only 320.
Some didn't last long
at all, The Olympia Electric Palace on Bramhall Lane, opened in September
1911 to show a film of a heavyweight championship fight, and closed only
three weeks later! It reopened as a roller skating rink. I've no idea which
part of Bramhall Lane it stood on .
Some of the biggest ones were lavishly decorated, the Gaumont had, check this out :-
- A Marble Staircase
- A Cut Glass Candelabra
- A Georgian Tea Room
- Lounges With Frescoes Of Moonlit Italian Gardens
- A 25 Piece Uniformed Orchestra
- A good sized stage for live productions
- A number of dressing rooms
- A Wurlitzer organ
- 5000 concealed electric bulbs in the huge auditorium
In Sheffield, cinemas died very quickly between 1955 - 1970 when It became out of fashion to go to the flicks, and television became the entertainment medium for the masses. A few survived, nearly intact as Bingo Halls, Supermarkets and Snooker Halls. Many were left to rot as it was not economic to remain open, and others continued to ply their trade as minority, foreign or dirty film cinemas.
In 1925 there were 66 cinemas listed as operating in sheffield area ( Sheffield, Rotherham, Dronfield ) as Cinematograph Halls.
In 1948 there were 65 cinemas listed as operating in sheffield area ( Sheffield, Rotherham, Dronfield ) as Cinemas.
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A B C cinema Angel Street Classic Cinema Fitzalan Square Darnall Picture Palace Staniforth Road Essoldo Barnsley Road The Gaumont Barker's Pool Greystones Picture Palace Ecclesall Road High Green Cinema Thompson Hill Hillsbro' Park Cinema Middlewood Road Manor Picture House City Road Odeon Theatre Flat Street Page Hall Cinema Idsworth Road The Palace Union Street The Pavillion Attercliffe Common The Plaza Picture House Richmond Road Rex Cinema Mansfield Road Ritz Picture House Southey Green Road Studio 7 Wicker |
In the early 1980's, the main cinemas for seeing the regular films, were all in the town centre. They were as follows :-
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Classic Cinema Fitzalan Square The Gaumont Barker's Pool Studio 7 Wicker |
Non of them exist in 2000, they all fell in the second blow to the cinema - The Video Cassette. The ABC and Gaumont were very large and in the late 1980's were shut and demolished, the Classic was a smaller cinema and that burned down in a fire which took the cinema and an electrical shop next door, Cinema has entered the Multiplex age with the following :-
Odeon Cinema, Arundel Gate UCI 10 Cinemas, Crystal Peaks Virgin Cinemas, at Valley Centertainment, Broughton Lane Warner Village Cinemas, at Meadowhall Shopping Centre |
In 2007 the Abbeydale is undergoing a resergence as a cherished old building, showing occasional films, plays, events and concerts, The Showroom thrives as a famous multiscreen independant cinema and the commercial cinemas in sheffield are taken care of by the 3 main multiplexes :-
Odeon Cinema Arundel Gate Showroom Cinema, Paternoster Row Vue Cinemas, at Meadowhall Shopping Centre |
This was the last large screen cinema that was built in Sheffield. Initially it had one large screen in the main auditorium and the concourse restaurant, upstairs, which was later converted into a smaller screen. It was built in 1961 and closed in 1989, and then demolished soon after to make way for a new retail development, which has still not been built 10 years on! and to add insult to injury is still an unmade temporory pay and display car park.
When it was opened in 1961 it was claimed to be the most modern cinema in Britain. Featuring the most up to date projection and sound equipment, and a very large 60 foot screen, which was one of the largest in the country.
The 1300 seats were laid out in a Stadium plan, where the circle was slightly raised from the stalls, with a thick dark wall between, instead of the more conventional balcony.
Some of them had an organ, often on a lift which raised out of the platform while the organist played, and then disappeared again as the film started.
There was almost always a tower in one corner, towering above the building, like a domed church steeple. This was because these were before the days of air conditioning, and the only efficient way of keeping the air fresh was to draw it through with a chimney like structure on the roof, often the tower was equipped with a fan to make the process more urgent.
Because the auditorium had to be shaped like a wedge, so that the seats could slope upward to afford a good view of the screen, there was always lots of other space in the building. This was often filled with a Cafe, Tea Lounge or Restaurant, and there was always refreshment and sweet stalls on the way to the seats.
Being a very large building, the basement was often used as a Ballroom, Billiards / Snooker Hall, Or Club. This had the advantage of a second income, and building a membership, which could be enticed into the Cinema to see films at a cheap rate during slack times.
The films in the past used to be shown with a newsreel or short film first, then a break while they changed the reel, where they would invite you to go to the lobby for refreshments. ( another money - making ploy ! ) And the usherettes would wear little sweet trays and go around the people who had remained in their seats, with ice creams, drinks and sweets.
In the late 1980s a resurgence of cinema was underway
with the advent of the multiplex. People were now bored of watching their
VHS video films at home, and started to hanker for a big screen once again.
But they were interested in more choice, and what was on offer was the
multiplex. The old movie theatres with their frivolous frescos and niches
had gone and, the modern clean lines of the purpose built facility, with
five or seven smaller screens were here.
The Gaumont had
been demolished in 1985 and replaced with the Odeon, which was an
ultra - modern glass and steel monstrosity, with three screens. This remained
open until 1994, and then remained unoccupied until now, where it is currently
being redeveloped inside as a nightclub venue called
Kingdom which
is due to open in spring 2000.
Crystal Peaks was built,
and the UCI Crystal Peaks, with it's ten screens, became extremely
popular. You still see scruffy old car stickers on cars from about 1990,
proudly declaring " did I See You At ICU ? ".
Meadowhall Shopping And
Entertainment centre, built the shopping centre in 1989 - 1990, but the
area earmarked for the Meadowhall version of Disney Land, between Meadowhall
Way and Weedon Street is still lying empty. Within the shopping complex
though, is the Warner Village Cinemas with 11 screens.
The Showroom, in pond street, opposite the bus station was a grotty cinema in the area beneath the Fiesta nightclub, and amidst the multi - story car park. This area was developed in the early seventies, but the showroom closed in 1992. It had spent many years as a seedy sex film cinema for the dirty mac brigade. It had three screens
Meanwhile in town, the ABC has been pulled down, and the Anvil has turned into a Curry House, and the final twist to townside cinematics is the Odeon on the old Gaumont site closed down.
Today In Sheffield
The old Fiesta nightclub, after a few years as a
casino, opened as the Odeon 7 cinema, Arundel Gate. It had 7 screens.
Then they took over the Fiesta or Showroom cinema in the basement, around
1993 which was accessible from the Pond Street side, at the top of a concrete
spiral staircase, and escalator which was also the back entrance to the
multi - story car park, and was strewn with litter and crisp packets.
With the basement cinema
in hand the Odeon now has 10 screens. The foyer area has a soft
drinks and snacks counter, where you can purchase coke and popcorn, and
loads of other stuff. There's a ticket office, next to some posters with
all the current films, which are on offer. And there's a bar area with
a pool table.
The Showroom cinema on Paternoster Row, shows special
interest films, carrying on where the Anvil left off. It has 4 screens,
and shows independent, art house and foreign language films in preference
to hollywood blockbusters.
The Smallest screen, 1 has 83 seats, 2 has 110
seats, 3 has 178 seats and screen 4, 282 seats. It opened in 1995 in the
old Kennings building, in 1998 the third and fourth screens opened and
the Showroom became the Largest Independent Cinema outside London.
The old Sheaf Market Hall is about to be redeveloped as a warner village, 12 screen multiplex cinema, with over 2000 seats!
Virgin Megaplex, is a multiplex cinema with one massive screen in Don Valley. It has 20 Screens.
The Warner Village Cinema, at the Oasis, Meadowhall, has plenty of films to see on it's 11 Screens.
The UCI Cinema complex at Crystal Peeks has 11 Screens and all the latest releases.
If all these cinemas remain open at once then there will be 68 Screens, that's the most screens ever in the sheffield area.
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Showroom - www.showroom.org.uk Warner Village Cinemas - www.warnervillage.co.uk Virgin Cinemas www.virgin.net/cinema/filmfinder/ U. C. I. Cinemas www.uci-cinemas.co.uk/uci.html |
[ Sheffield
Cinema Location Chart ] [
Cinematic Jargon Explanation Section ]
[ Bibliography
]
Thanks To Pauline T, Mark S, Brian Brady in Canada,
Joanne & Scott, Ade K and Foxi Lady
For Help With This Section
The Old Cinemas Of Sheffield
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| Guy Brown is a local photographer, and this classy web site takes a tour through the Abbeydale picture house |