Empire Picture House
Lambpit Street and Chester Street,
Wrexham,
LL13 8BG
Lambpit Street and Chester Street,
Wrexham,
LL13 8BG
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Empire Music Hall, Empire Picture Palace
Nearby Theaters
Built in 1902 as a music hall theatre, it began screening films as part of the programme from the early years. By 1914 it had gone over to films only and was known as the Empire Picture Palace.
Back to variety theatre use in 1915, with only the occasional film shown. The Empire Theatre closed on 7th February 1932 with a variety show "Royal Magnets".
It re-opened on 13th May 1932 as a ‘talkie’ cinema with the film "Let’s Go Native" with Jack Oakie. The Empire Picture House then continued through to its final closure on 26th August 1956.
The auditorium was then used by a tyre company and the entrance foyer became an ice cream parlour. The building was incorporated into the adjacent Seven Stars pub (aka Saith Seren), a Grade II Listed building, built in 1898, architect Thomas Price of Liverpool. The former Empire Picture House remained unused in 2013.
Contributed by
Ken Roe
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
The Seven Stars Pub has closed and is up for sale. A photo from 2011 here – the theatre can be seen to the left of the building, accessed through the large arch :–
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/5599491593/
The Empire has not been demolished – it can clearly been seen from the photo above taken this week – the hall lies at right angles to the road running along the back of the pub.