George Cinema, Portobello

Exterior view of the George (2016)

The George Cinema is a former Art Deco cinema on Bath Street in Portobello, Edinburgh. The building opened in 1939 as the County Cinema. For many years a bingo hall, it is a Category C listed building.[1]

History

The Grand Opening Ceremony took place on Thursday, 30th March in 1939 at 2.30pm,[2] and the feature film of the opening programme was Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.[3] The George was the first cinema in the east of Scotland to use the four-track stereophonic sound with a wide screen. The system required 32 loud-speakers in the cinema, 16 of which were behind the screen.

The George Cinema was designed by Thomas Bowhill Gibson[4], also responsible for the Dominion Cinema in Morningside, Edinburgh.[5]

Interior view of the George from the balcony, showing the false ceiling and several original features (2016).

The George Cinema was threatened with demolition as a developer applied for planning consent for 20 privately owned flats.[6] The City of Edinburgh Planning Authority refused consent to demolish the art deco cinema.[2] An appeal was lodged in April 2018 by the developer, with an inspection to be made by the Reporter on 13 August 2018.[7][8]

References

  1. ↑ "14 Bath Street, The George, formerly The County". Historic Environment Scotland. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  2. 1 2 Baird, George. Places of Entertainment in Edinburgh, Part 4, Portobello.
  3. ↑ "Public taste in films". The Scotsman. 1939.
  4. ↑ http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/architect_full.php?id=200969
  5. ↑ "Art deco cinema demolition battle reaches hearing".
  6. ↑ "Help Us Save the George".
  7. ↑ "George planning application – appeal lodged - Public Notices". www.portobellocc.org. Retrieved 2018-05-15.
  8. ↑ "Scottish Government - DPEA - Case Details". www.dpea.scotland.gov.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-28.

Coordinates: 55°57′13″N 3°06′48″W / 55.95373°N 3.11321°W / 55.95373; -3.11321

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.