Hebden Bridge Picture House - BIM00103

Opened in 1921.

The History of Cinema-going in the Upper Calder Valley

ONCE there were six cinemas in the Upper Calder Valley. Now there’s just one - the Picture House in Hebden Bridge.

Not all were purpose-built (shows were held in venues such as Hebden Bridge Co-operative Hall and Todmorden Town Hall.)
But together they provided the main entertainment for local folk, opening doors to undreamed-of glamour, excitement and exotic, faraway places.

So take your seat and, as the lights dim and the curtains draw back, join the eager cinema-goers who for nearly a century have been finding escape and relaxation in the “people’s palaces.’’

The earliest purpose-built cinema in the Upper Calder Valley was The Hippodrome, Todmorden, erected in 1908. It is likely variety shows, as well as films, were shown in the early days. In 1921 owner Herbert Hartley and manager A.E. Nicholls were putting on nightly performances and were shrewd enough to ensure continuing success by installing a sound system in 1930, following the release in 1928 of the first talkie “The Singing Fool’’. (This revolution in film was to spell the death knell for many cinemas).

The Hippodrome, however, did not survive the down-turn in cinema-going several decades later but the building itself was saved and converted into a theatre by Todmorden Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society, who continue to use it for their productions .

Messrs Hartley and Nicholls, who obviously had a keen eye for business, acquired the Olympia in Burnley Road (originally a skating rink) in 1916, only to close it 15 years later in order to make way for bigger and better things.

The New Olympia, built on the site and opened by the Mayor of Todmorden in 1932, was on a par with most up-to-date cinemas in any city centre, no expense having been spared to make it the last word in luxury and refinement.

In addition to a terrazzo floor in the main entrance, there was a balcony (the supporting girder weighed 22 tons), ladies’ and gentlemen’s retiring rooms and all 1,500 seats in the magnificent auditorium were upholstered in best quality moquette.

The New Olympia was said to boast one of the best sound and light systems in the country; more importantly, the building had been specially constructed to make it as fire-resistant as possible.

Sadly all this glamour came to an end in 1966 when it closed to film and became a bingo hall. The building – still easily identified as a former cinema – is now used as a supermarket.

In Hebden Bridge The Royal Electric Theatre and Hippodrome – known more familiarly by local film fans as the “Wood Hut”- opened at Thistle Holme, New Road, Hebden Bridge, in 1912.
Manchester businessman Jack Shaw is credited with bringing the “magic of moving pictures” to grateful townsfolk, who were able to enjoy films such as “Father” (advertised as “truly the limit in fine pictures. Over 3,000 feet long”), at the same time feeling secure in the knowledge that the premises were regularly disinfected with Jeyes Fluid!

But the Royal Electric (its other nickname was the flea-pit) was by no means the first cinema in the town. A travelling theatre, Blake’s Alhambra, provided local folk with their first taste of the flicks in the early years of the last century. Performances took place on the site now occupied by the market and consisted mainly of live acts interspersed with interludes of animated pictures.

Film shows also took place at the Co-operative Hall, Crown Street, where Messrs Mann and Greenwood regularly regaled townsfolk with “Premier Pictures” – one show nightly with matinees on Saturday; programme changed twice a week. These continued until the early 1930s by which time the talkies were all the rage and shows at the 700-seater Co-op Hall, which failed to keep up with the times, ceased.

Todmorden Town Hall was also a venue for film shows, although records are sparse and only 1914 is listed.

And there was a cinema at Luddenden Foot, films shown in a hall built especially for the purpose just after the First World War. It shared the fate of the Co-op however, and, a victim of the increasingly sophisticated tastes of patrons, met its demise around 1930.

Cornholme also boasted its very own cinema – the BOS or Gem, opened in 1915 and still going as late as 1958.The first owners, Batty, Ogden and Spencer, of Nelson, handed over to Mr Lewis Hodson in 1922, who remained in charge until 1931, when the cinema changed hands again and was renamed the Gem.

But far as Hebden Bridge patrons were concerned it was the Picture House, opened amidst great excitement in 1921 by a syndicate of local businessmen trading as the Thistle Holme Estate Company, which was to set the standard for the next 80-odd years or so.

Designed by Hebden Bridge architect John Thomas Cockcroft and boasting an imposing exterior complementary to Hope Baptist Chapel directly opposite, the cinema could seat nearly 1,000 and had an Art Deco vestibule and box office (recently restored).

George Greenwood was the first manager and the first films screened were “The Iron Stair” and “Torn Sails.”

Castleford firm Star Cinemas took over in 1944, installing the amazing new Cinemascope wide screen in the 1950s. Before that, however, local film fans got the chance not only to watch the silver screen but appear on it too!

In 1947 “A Boy, A Girl and A Bike” was filmed in the Hebden Royd area ,offering locals the opportunity to star as extras alongside the likes of Honor Blackman, Diana Dors and Tony Newley, who played leading roles in the romantic drama – in which Jimmy Saville also made a brief appearance, head down over his bicycle handle-bars.

More recently “Fanny and Elvis” was shot in the Upper Calder Valley and once again hundreds of film fans took part in many of the scenes, which culminated in Millennium celebrations in St George’s Square.

In the 1960s extensive refurbishments were undertaken by owner, Mr Lloyd Brearley, but aware, perhaps, of the general down-turn in cinema-going, he sold out to Hebden Royd Urban District Council in 1971. The council remained in charge until the reorganisation of local government three years later, when Calderdale MBC took over.

Major modernisation schemes were carried out in 1977-’78 and 1985, the latter aimed at turning the Picture House into a dual-purpose building where dances, discos and other functions could also take place. The front row stalls were removed and seating reduced to 500.

Despite all these improvements, however, the cinema remained a focus for concern and there were proposals to sell it off for development or even demolish it altogether.

But - remarkably, some might say – the Picture House survived all these threats, last year celebrating its 80th anniversary. Together with the Rex, in Elland, it is now one of only two left in Calderdale - the ABC in Halifax having closed its doors at the end of June 2002. It also has the distinction of being one of only three in the country to be local authority-owned and run.

Thanks largely to support from local townsfolk and groups such as Friends of Hebden Bridge Picture House, who fought hard to secure its future, it is now flourishing at the heart of the community, hosting varied live events as well as a distinctive programme of films.

As an integral part of the Marina development scheme currently taking shape, the Picture House looks all set to celebrate its centenary in 2021!

From Milltown Memories Issue Two, Winter 2002
Written by Issy Shannon

Bill Marsden

Bill Marsden

1990s

PHDA - Bill Marsden Collection

Pennine Horizons Digital Archive

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