Steve Wigan

With the major circuits arguing with Fox about the installation of Cinemascope screens and in particular stereo sound in the early 50s, Essoldo and some other smaller 'circuits' jumped in and installed ,thus taking the early Fox Cinemascope product on first run. My father was chief at the Queens in Waterloo near Liverpool, a small ciruit of around 6 cinemas stretching from Walton in Liverpool to Wallasey and Wrexham, and they also installed Cinemascope before their local ABC and Odeon. The first Scope picture at ABCs was I think Doris Day in Lucky Me.
Eventually Odeon and ABC heeled their differences with Fox and the glory days for Essoldo and The Queens circuit and others quickly passed.

Tom Bancroft

An update on the uniquely designed Essoldo cinema in Stretford, Manchester which I mentioned earlier in this thread.

This Grade II listed building has been slowly deteriorating. However, this week the Manchester Evening News carried an article which appears to give some hope for the place.

The present owner, who bought the place in the 90's, says that although they have not been able to fund work on the exterior yet, a lot of work has been done to spruce up the interior. The local council and others are planning to open the building again as a theatre and leisure complex if possible.

To read more about this fine but quirky example of 1930's art deco, check this website Essoldo and you can check out an abridged version of the newspaper article by going to the Manchester Evening News website and clicking on 'Archives' - then type Essoldo Cinema in the search window.

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

Rick C

I'm a former (temporary) resident of Manchester and got to know of a number of local history locations to do with transport and entertainment. The Essoldo Stretford has got a few choice b/w photos on the Manchester Libraries website. Owing to their rather protective viewing policy I can give you the main page reference which is this one:-

http//:www.images.manchester.gov.uk

When you've got that far, steer clear of the Libraries information portion and click on the specialised "archive images" section. When you get that departmental homepage insert "Essoldo" in the search box and the info is up there for you. If you keep on clicking on the image of the cinema itself, you can get enlargements in several different sizes.

darrenburnfan

Does anyone know if the Longford, later Essoldo, was the only cinema in Stretford in the late 1930's? The reason I ask is that my late Godmother, Sarah McGough (1887 - 1964), who lived in Birchfield Road, Cheadle Heath, Stockport, had a son named Dominic (1920 -1943), who was killed in action overseas during the Second World War at the age of 23. His obituary in the Stockport Express newspaper stated that before he joined the army in 1940, he worked at a Stretford cinema (although it doesn't give his job there).

Now the strange thing is that when I was born in 1947, Sarah McGough thought the world of me and regarded me as Dominic come back to her and much later on, as I grew into a teenager, I also went to work in the cinema industry, in my case as a projectionist.

Now, I know it's 70 years ago now, but if the Longford cinema was the only cinema in Stretford in the late 1930's, is there any way that I can find out in what capacity Dominic McGough was employed there?

Tom Bancroft

Thanks for the info Rick, but I've been a devotee of the images.manchester website for quite a while now. For example, I was able to find pics of the printing company premises I worked at as an apprentice in the late 50's and the four later premises we moved to. They were all evetually demolished in the clearance shemes, so it was good to have a photo record of them. You're right about their strict rules. I believe that if you apply to use their pics in a publication (even a non profit one) they charge quite steep fees.

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

Tom Bancroft

Darren, I found this very comprehensive article on a history website. It shows that there was at least one other cinema in Stretford, ironically owned by the people who built the Longford. It was situated almost opposite the Longford on the other side of Chester Road (A56).

THE LONGFORD CINEMA, STRETFORD (now the Essoldo)
It was in the late 1930’s that Manchester businessmen Jackson and Newport, set their sights on building a new Super Cinema in Stretford. The pair already owned Stretford’s Picturedrome Cinema on the corner of King Street and Chester Road (next to where the Post Office now stands) as well as cinemas in Stockport and Reddish. They purchased the site on Chester Road and demolished a terrace of Georgian shops.

They employed architect Henry Alder to design the new building. Alder’s architecture was the height of art deco fashion; the main entrance on Chester Road was designed in the shape of a cash register flanked by two phallic symbols and the side entrance on Edge Lane was surmounted by a third phallic symbol, these represented Alder’s view that the modern film industry was dominated by money and sex. The commission for the work was given to local firm Normantons of Plymouth Grove, Mr Jackson was Clerk of Works and Jack Siddy was night watchman. The internal decoration was done by Holdings of Brooks Bar and included two huge murals to either side of the main stage by famous artist Frederick H. Baines, they depicted ‘Music and Dance’ on one side and ‘Comedy and Drama’ on the other.

The Longford was a revolution in Cinema Design. The building featured; sound-proofing, under-seat heating and air-conditioning. The foyer was floored in Venetian Marble. The Auditorium was decorated in tangerine and silver-blue art-deco designs. The room also contained a stage, which could be used for theatrical performances by various groups including the Streford Amateur Operatic Society.

The building was the first in Britain to be illuminated by neon tube lighting. The arrangement of the business was that the Longford would be used as a Cinema for three weeks of the month and as a theatre for the fourth week. Cinema attendants were forbidden from accepting gratuities. The stalls sat 1400, the balcony sat 600 and the café sat 146.
There was a car park to the rear of the building for free use of patrons, access to this car park was down Trafford Grove. Trafford Grove, which runs in three double blocks along the Bridgewater Canal from St Ann’s Church to the Cinema was built in the 1860’s by Sir Humphrey de Trafford. The Grove was built for Pedestrian access only, the houses having wide front gardens with a narrow walkway between.

Jackson and Newport approached the de Trafford estates for permission to remove the front gardens and put a road between the houses, but due to the tenant’s contracts, this could not be done without the permission of the residents.
The company therefore approached the tenants of the end block and told them that if they agreed to the proposal then they would modernise all their houses and true to their word when the road was completed the Longford Cinema Company installed Bathrooms and hot running water in all the houses which had sacrificed their front gardens.

The new Longford Super Cinema & Café was finally opened on 12th October 1936 by the Mayor of Stretford, Alderman Albert Smith. The debut film screened was ‘Tudor Rose’ starring Nova Pilbeam. Entrance tickets ranged from 1s 6d for a seat in the stalls to 3s for a seat in the circle. The Longford Bar & Café occupied part of the first floor, with windows looking out across Chester Road, with comfortable sofas and furniture.

During the Second World War the building was used for Sunday Concerts featuring various stars of screen and stage including a young Julie Andrews and when the Halle Orchestra was bombed out of The Free Trade Hall in 1940, the Longford played host to the dislodged orchestra under Sir John Barborolli.

In August 1950, the Cinema was purchased by the Essoldo Circuit, who renamed the building ‘The Stretford Essoldo’ and who continued to run the cinema for about fifteen years, however the television revolution of the late 1950’s and early 1960’s knocked the bottom from the cinema industry and the decision was taken to close the Essoldo in 1965.
The building was put on the Market and purchased by The Ladbrokes Company who reopened it as a bingo hall.

In 1979, Trafford Council were widening Chester Road into a dual carriageway and Compulsory Purchase Orders were put on all the buildings nearby. St Ann’s Church and The Bingo Hall were exempt, but were forced to give up their frontal land. The council bulldozers moved in and cleared the tiled walkway and low walls which led up to the entrance doors of old Cinema, leaving the remaining architecture unbalanced and incomplete.

On the 23rd June 1986 the site was acquired by ‘The Rank Group’, who reopened the old cinema as ‘The Top Rank Club’. They were responsible for the painting of the exterior tiled façade in its distasteful primary colours. The building was listed in the mid 1990’s by The English Heritage but due to falling profits The Rank Group closed the Club in 1995 and it was eventually sold in January 1997 to a business man from Sale.

Since that date various plans have been put forward for its future including a gym and health club however nothing has ever come to pass although the current owner says that the interior has had some improvement work done.

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

darrenburnfan

Many thanks for that, Tom. It seems that whatever job he did there, he worked either at the Picturedrome or the Longford.

Tom Bancroft

Another excellent site to read about this unique cinema is here:- www.longfordcinema.co.uk

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

Santonix

There were three cinemas in Stretford, The Essoldo, The Picturedrome and The Corona.

Why don't we talk in the crypt?

Tom Bancroft

That's interesting Santonix. never heard of that one.

Do you have any idea where the Corona was situated in Stretford and when it existed?

I know that there was a Corona in the West Gorton area of Manchester until it closed in the 60's or early 70's.

Perhaps it was owned by the same people.

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

darrenburnfan

Blimey, and he could have worked at any one of them.

Santonix

It was on Moss Road. My parents went there in the 1940's. I can remember in the 1960's, as a child walking past it many times, by then it had closed down. The building stood for many years, but has since been demolished.

Why don't we talk in the crypt?

Steve Wigan

There was also a Corona in the Crosby area of Liverpool , at least until the late 1950s, possibly longer. It took some 'first run' stuff...I remember seeing 'An Inspector Calls' there, and they changed the programme every Sunday and Thursday....I actually have a printed 'months coming attractions' programme from this cinema. I'll dig it out...it might indicate that it was part of a chain.

Tom Bancroft

Steve:-

Just had a look at a pic of the Crosby Corona on the 'Crosby Memories' website. The materials used and squarish architecture is quite similar to the Gorton one - a suggestion possibly that there may have been a connection.

Santonix and Darren:-

Just found an excellent photo of the Stretford Corona on the Education and Leisure section of Trafford Council's website click this link to see it http://www.trafford.gov.uk/content/t...p?ImageID=1822 there is also a potted history. It was apparently bought by Metrovicks in 1951 and used as their social club.

I have also discovered that the Gorton Corona became the 'Mayflower Club' in the 80's and had a couple of other names before its demise. Bands such as the Buzzcocks, Joy Division, etc. appeared there among others.

"I want to be a sailor - sailing out to sea"

Santonix

Tom, I will send you a PM.

Why don't we talk in the crypt?