Tyla Fergusson-Platt takes a deep dive into the forgotten cinemas of Royal Leamington Spa. Exploring the clues that can still be found today, into a world that no longer exists.
Cinemas in the 20th Century were the life blood of a town. Before the invention of video and now streaming, they were the only place to see the latest blockbuster. Incredibly in the 1930’s, Leamington had 8 cinemas, showing how important and vibrant they were at that time. Leamington’s affluence (from being the go to Spa destination of the rich) helped to cement the significant investment in the town. Today sadly only one cinema survives – the Vue Cinema on Portland Place East.
The Regal Cinema (Now The Vue Cinema)
The Regal cinema has changed much since it was built in the 1920’s – although shadows of its past still remain. Walking along Portland Place East you can still see the original entrance to the cinema. The grand facades are now painted over, but elicit a time long gone. Kaleidoscopic stained glass adorned either side of the entrance, below a majestic frontage. The double door entrance must have been like stepping inside a fairground or Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. It is almost comically over the top and quite unbelievable that it ever existed there at all.
Inside the art deco picture house the wonderment continued. In front of the stage curtains were two bizarre glass oriental dragons, which lit up both sides of the proscenium. Further to this, in the galley of the main cinema room, there laid a rare Italian organ. It was so rare that it was the only one of its kind known in Britain. The original auditorium was pretty huge, with a capacity of around 1200. You can only imagine how it would have felt walking into this audacious lavish room, which was complete with a working organ and aesthetics akin to some Las Vegas Casino.
The cinema today has now expanded from one screen to six, providing more variety of showings from when it first opened. You can see the original cinema entrance in the picture below.
The Scala Cinema (Bedford Street)
The Scala Cinema was a grand Edwardian building on Bedford street built in 1911. During its life it had many guises starting life as the Bijou Theatre, but after bankruptcy renamed the Royal Leamington Picture House. It had a capacity for 600 people which included balcony seating, and its own tea room. In 1930 it changed its name again to Bedford Street Picture House, and later the Scala Cinema. It was sadly demolished after the 1950’s.
On the site of the Scala Cinema now stands an array of charity shops. Looking at the building today it is hard not to see some similarities in its design with its previous incarnation. The three curved arches of the Cinema doorways and the circular windows are all present on the modern day building, giving a glimpse into its past. It is sad that anyone would think to destroy such a unique building with distinct architecture. It is certainly a loss to the towns repertoire of buildings.
The Regent Cinema
The Regent cinema began its life as The Opera House in 1883. The picture of the Regent above is almost like looking at a side street in New York. You really get a sense of the affluence and vibrancy of the town during this time. In 1935 it changed from a variety theatre to a cinema, and renamed The Regent Cinema. It even included a working organ as part of the film experience. In 1962 it closed and changed hands to a bingo hall. Before its demolition it was used as a garage.
Presto, the music shop, now stands in its place. It is interesting that the buildings height and stature are similar in both pictures, and the town hall and spire in front of it are still present in the modern day picture (2024). The small house to the side of the cinema was also demolished.
Hi Tyla,
Love the article, those pictures of the Regal are fantastic, I’ve never come across them before and I studied it a LOT! I worked in that Vue cinema for 4 years (2013-2017) and I actually made my final University film inside it. I used much of the old building aspects (the original entrance, corridor, office, even the stage with the dragons which still hang there) as part of the films narrative. If you want, I can dig it out for you 🙂 Keep up the great work!