Going To The Pictures

The aim of the Going to the Pictures Project has been to help preserve a part of our local cinema heritage by collecting and recording memories from people who used and worked in the local picture houses from the 1930's to the 1960's.

Memories are made of this… Project overview

The aim of the Going to the Pictures Project has been to help preserve a part of our local cinema heritage by collecting and recording memories from people who used and worked in the local picture houses from the 1930′s to the 1960′s.

Explore  this map of 21 local cinemas within a 3 mile radius of the Plaza, from 1930 to 1960.

Cinema Heritage Interactive Map

Explore this map of 21 local cinemas within a 3 mile radius of the Plaza, from 1930 to 1960.

In 1933/34 I went to “The Pictures” for the first time, but I was not impressed.  The black and white film was very old and scratched; it looked like driving rain to me.  A few years later I went again and paid a penny to get in with a penny for ice cream in the interval.

My first visit to the Winter Gardens, Waterloo.

In 1933/34 I went to “The Pictures” for the first time, but I was not impressed. The black and white film was very old and scratched; it looked like driving rain to me. A few years later I went again and paid a penny to get in with a penny for ice cream in the interval.

This is a scanned copy of a flyer that was handed out in cinemas to advertising forthcoming films.

Flyer for ‘Nine Hours to Rama,’ 1962

This is a scanned copy of a flyer that was handed out in cinemas to advertising forthcoming films.

Some of the females stars through the decades who drew in the crowds at the cinema

Female stars of the screen through the decades

Some of the females stars through the decades who drew in the crowds at the cinema

A couple’s first date at the opening of the Plaza Cinema in 1939.

Memories of the opening Gala Night at the Plaza Cinema in 1939

A couple’s first date at the opening of the Plaza Cinema in 1939.

The cinema became a place of respectable employment and offered roles to both men and women

Employment in the Picture Houses

The cinema became a place of respectable employment and offered roles to both men and women

The cinema memories we have recorded through the project have helped to create a short film which gives a glimpse into what Going to the Pictures was like from the 30's to the 60's.

The Going to the Pictures Project Film

The cinema memories we have recorded through the project have helped to create a short film which gives a glimpse into what Going to the Pictures was like from the 30′s to the 60′s.

Twicer ice lollies and the National Anthem

Dot Sharp (now living in Canada!) contacted us to share her memories of cinema: “My brother and I would run as fast as we could on our 5 and 6yr old legs from Bark Road […]

The Regent Cinema was the first suburban cinema in the area to have a cafe lounge installed when it was built in 1920, over the years the building has had  several uses including a bingo and social club. It is now part of St Mary's School Gymnasium.

The Regent Cinema – Liverpool Road, Crosby

The Regent Cinema was the first suburban cinema in the area to have a cafe lounge installed when it was built in 1920, over the years the building has had several uses including a bingo and social club. It is now part of St Mary’s School Gymnasium.