EMPIRE CINEMA. Church Street.
Built as a theatre in 1911, change to films in August 11th 1930.
One of the most popular films to be shown at the Empire in the
50's was “The Quiet Man” which had numerous successful book-
ings. The Empire was the first cinema in Preston to adapt to
Cinemascope, with a long run of the film “The Robe.” When the
end of the Empire as a cinema was announced in 1964 the film
showing that week was “The Last Frontier” staring Victor Mature,
On the 1st August that year Pat Phoenix (Elsie Tanner of Corona-
tion Street” opened “The Empire Bingo Club” this continued until
1974, the site is now part of a shopping complex
THEATRE ROYAL. Fishergate.
Opened as a theatre in 1802 to cater for large crowds expected for
the Guild of that year. There were films at the Theatre Royal as early
as 1911. The theatre closed for remodeling in June 1928, the film
shown for reopening was H B. Warner in “Sorrell and Son” and
continued as a cinema until June 1956.
This grand Preston building which was demolished and replaced by
the ultra-modern ABC cinema, the opening was performed by
Richard Todd on 14th March 1959, the event was captured by Pathe
News who called it the most modern building of it’s day
A B C CINEMA. Fishergate .
There was a lull in cinema development in Preston until 1959,
when the new £200,0000, ABC replaced the old Theatre Royal.
The new ABC opened on March 1st 1959. Richard Todd was
there to perform the opening ceremony, and the first film to be
shown at the cinema was “The Reluctant Debutante.” Every
ticket was sold out within two hours of advance booking, price
of ticket range from 1s 9d to 3s 6d.
There was a new type of sound and projection equipment — the
first of it’s kind in the world — which dispensed of arc lamps
and rotary shutters. In November 1985 the cinema closed,
making it the shortest lived major building ever put in the town
centre
TOWN CENTRE CINEMAS
PRINCES CINEMA. Tithebarn Street.
The Princes, at the corner of crooked Lane and Tithebarn Street,
Built in 1882, and originally called the Gaiety, by the turn of the
century the Gaiety, had become the Princess, films were shown as
early as July 1913, and for many years managed by Will Onda; who
is recognized as the pioneer of cinema in Preston. latterly owners
were Rialto, Bolton.
Local view was that you had to be careful where you sat in the
Princes because pillars could sometime obscure your view of the
screen. Showed its last film on the nth October 1959 and the theater
closed for two years, being use for two weeks in November 1961 as
a church. Demolished July 1964 now part of St. Johns shopping centre.
