Thursday Challenge: Architecture - former Don Cinema

The Don Cinema on Bramhall Lane was opened on 25th September 1913. It had seating in stalls and balcony levels, and had a 30 feet wide proscenium. Independently operated, or occasionally operated by small independent chains, the Don Cinema was closed on 29th June 1957 with Norman Wisdom in "Up in the World". It was never equipped to screen CinemaScope wide screen films. It was sold to John Blundell Ltd. for use as a furniture store and has since become a Majestic Wine Warehouse store.

A contribution to Thursday Challenge: Architecture.

Plaza Reflection

The Plaza reflected in a pool of water on the flat roof of the shops by the entrance to the bus station viewed from Wellington Road viaduct.

For information about the Plaza see our post from 30th October 2013 and for a close-up of the sign see the post for 31st October 2013.

A contribution to Weekend Reflections.

The old Astor Steps

A rear view of the Egerton Arms on High Street. Next to the public house was a theatre which was pulled down in 1904 and replaced a year later by the Empire.

In 1915 it was renamed the Hippodrome which was converted into a cinema in 1951 named the Astor.

In 1965 it burnt down and its last advertised film "A Bucket of Blood" was never shown.

The red-brick wall here contains the remains of some of the steps from the old Astor.

A contribution to Ruby Tuesday and Our World Tuesday.

Where Angels Fear To Tread

The Angel Inn dates from the 1790s and had a theatre where it was possible to have a drink and enjoy a night of thespian magic. Afterwards further "pleasures" were available with the ladies of the night in the inn's notorious Angel Yard behind. It was completely refronted in 1886 by the Stockport architect Thomas Allen. The façade has ornate plasterwork to the upper floor. The lower part is modelled to resemble masonry, with window surrounds with angel's heads, a frieze above and a panel which formerly had the name Angel Inn. Above is a triglyph frieze, and large cross patterns, a bracketed cornice and parapet.

In recent times it was the home of Chafe's solicitors until 2010. Now it is the home of Seven Miles Out a digital and visual arts centre.

A contribution to The Weekend in Black and White and Shadow Shot Sunday.

Plaza sign

For a potted history of the Stockport Plaza see yesterday's post.

A contribution to signs, signs.

P is for Plaza

The Plaza first opened its doors to the public on 7th October 1932, with a charity show for Stockport Infirmary. The films shown were "Jailbird", starring Laurel and Hardy, and "Out of the Blue" with Gene Gerrard and Jessie Matthews.

It was refurbished in the 1950s and could cater for Cinemascope and 3-D. Live entertainment took place on Saturday evenings featuring local musicians and Sunday jazz concerts followed. In 1960, the Plaza staged its first pantomime with the Dallas Boys in "Babes In The Wood".

In 1965 the Plaza was sold to the Mecca Leisure Group for conversion to a bingo hall. Its final show was on 31st December 1966 and featured Jerry Lee Lewis in "Three on a Coach" and Audie Murphy in "The Texican" with William Starr at the organ. In February 1967 it reopened as Mecca Bingo.

In the 1970s the Café Lounge was converted into "Samantha's" nightclub but this later converted into extra bingo seating.

It closed in 1998 and Rank Leisure sold the Plaza to Stockport Plaza Trust in March 2000 and, after massive community and volunteer effort, audiences took their seats for the opening show on 7th October 2000.

In 2009 a £3.2 million pound restoration and refurbishment programme was started. It was closed from February until December.

This photograph was taken in January 2010 shortly after it reopened.

More information can be found on the Plaza's own website.

A contribution to ABC Wednesday.

G is for Garrick Theatre

The Stockport Garrick is the oldest Little Theatre in the country and has staged plays continuously since it was formed in 1901.

The Stockport Garrick Theatre was founded on 24th of October, 1901, by engineer Edwin Heys and his fellow actors: fugitives from the disbanded dramatic society of Stockport Unitarian Church, They met in what was then The Church Coffee Tavern on St Petersgate, Heys and his friends resolved to found a new society "to perform the best plays by the most capable amateur actors and with the finest scenic effects". The new society was named after the great actor David Garrick and has remained in the centre of Stockport ever since.

The theatre kept its doors and its curtains open throughout both World Wars, and attracted the admiration and support of numerous luminaries in the world of professional theatre. Garrick productions have been performed in venues around the country and The Garrick's first production, The Merchant of Venice, in 1901, internationally over the decades.

(The former NatWest bank on the site of the Church Coffee Tavern)
The society purchased its current building, an old mill occupied by an assortment of small businesses, in 1920. Since then, the building's labyrinthine interior has undergone various refurbishments to enhance the society's ability to produce theatre to the highest standards possible.

It is the Garrick's early ownership of its own theatre space that qualifies it as England's oldest Little Theatre, a status that was celebrated in 2008 by the unveiling of a plaque by President of the Little Theatre Guild, Sir Ian McKellen. This plaque can be seen on St Petersgate, at the site of the coffee house in which the society was founded, within sight of the building where the ambitions of Edwin Heys and his co-founders continue to inspire a full season of high quality drama every year.

The society has also run a thriving Youth Theatre for over half its life, which currently produces a full show each winter. Visit the Theatre website for more information.

A contribution to ABC Wednesday.