Forums Forums Wirral History : Chasing the Past Wirral History Cinemas

unit 4

the regal

No, I don't remember this one; it wasn't an area I went into often.

It looks big, but in fact only seated 1200. (Ritz 2000, Plaza 2500). From Silver Screens of Wirral.

Here is the Electric Theatre just after 1910 which was located by Birkenhead Park entrance. M Saronie ran this and the Coliseum in Old Chester Road. I don't know his relationship with James Roberts Saronie (born James Roberts) who ran the Scala in Prestatyn, both came from Liverpool and were apparently pioneers of cinemas - they may have been one and the same?

I've been scratching my head on this one, the cinema on Park Road West was ....

The Royal Pavillion
The Picture Theatre
Saronies Picture Play House AKA Electric Theatre
The Park - Skating Rink
The Gaumont
Quasar
Roller World

I guess it had bingo in the middle of there somewhere, also it must have been rebuilt before it became the Gaumont.
Furniture World.

Was The Park ever a cinema?

That above picture if you had the queens pub next to it would like they where all interlinked cause the outside looks like the Queens on the park road east side I went in the gaumont (furniture world) a couple of months ago to look for a table.. Tell you something "ghost hunt would be nice in there"

DD are you sure you mean park road WEST?

MissG - Probably not, I never could find my way round the park, I keep on tripping over my raincoat and getting lost. I'm not Lysdexic, I just don't have a memory.

park rd east

I miss wallaseys apollo 6 i lived in there ahh well

yerrr, me n the missus seen our 1st movie there, Dangerous minds!
also used to be the unit four

Don't start me on cinemas!
My faves were the Ritz, Regal, Plaza and Rialto.
We used to duck out of Wednesday sports afternoon and go to the Ritz instead. This was the pre-tv late '40s when the show was continuous from 2pm till 10.30pm and you could sit in the warmth for as long as you liked.
The full show would be the adverts,a 'short', the newsreel, a cartoon and the main feature but the Ritz was famous for its stage shows, included with the films. There were famous bands, such as Billy Cotton's, singers, variety acts, and not forgetting the famous organists. That really was value for money!
Here are some pictures from the Cinema Theatre Association's magazine (date unknown):

Does anybody remember the resurant in the Ritz. As a child I was taken there once for a meal by my mother and father, it must have been in 1947 or 1948 after the place was refurbished from the bombing. The meal was what I now know as Gammon and chips.

Here's the restaurant as built pre-war but I don't remember it at all.
Gammon and chips....mmmmmmmmmm!

Bri