Odeon Bournemouth
27 Westover Road,
Bournemouth,
BH1 2BZ
27 Westover Road,
Bournemouth,
BH1 2BZ
3 people
favorited this theater
The Regent Theatre was built for the Provincial Cinematograph Theatres chain(PCT). PCT had just been taken over by Gaumont British Theatres when it opened on 13th May 1929 with the silent film "Two Lovers" starring Ronald Colman. The Regent was wired for sound when it opened.
Designed by architect W.E. Trent who was assisted by the local architectural firm Seal & Hardy, the original seating capacity was for 2,267 in stalls and circle. The facade contains a series of seven colonaded arches, behind which was located the first floor restaurant which could seat 300 diners. The auditorium was decorated in a French Renaissance style and had painted panels on each side of the proscenium, the work of artist Frank Barnes.
The Regent was equipped with a Wultitzer 2Manual/9Ranks theatre organ which was opened by Reginald Foort. Full stage facilities were provided and the safety curtain had a charming landscape scene painted on its front, again, the work of Frank Barnes.
The Regent was re-named Gaumont from 22nd August 1949 and continued until 16th November 1968 when it was closed for twinning. It re-opened on 15th July 1969 as Gaumont 1 & 2 and the building continued to be successful.
It was one of the last of the Gaumont Theatres to be re-branded Odeon when the Rank Organisation were standardising the names of all their cinemas. The name Odeon appeared on the building from 30th October 1986 and in March 1989 the downstairs Odeon 2 in the former stalls was closed for sub-dividing into 4 screens. These re-opened as Odeon 2,3,4,5 in June 1989. Seating in these screens was:359, 267,119 & 121. Odeon 1 in the former circle remains intact today as a 757 seat cinema which has a very large and very deeply curved screen. In February 1995 the 140 seat capacity Odeon 6 was opened in the former restaurant area.
Contributed by
Ken Roe
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Recent comments (view all 17 comments)
Recently watched ‘Terminator 4’ at Odeon 6 (front old stalls). Amazed to see a massive new sized screen (previously was a pathetic postage stamp surrounded by black) Nice to see Odeon still making improvements on a site that is due to be closed. Sound was big and loud as you’d expect. Good one Odeon, keep it up.
Jeff
Big and loud what you mean hardly any real bass much less any sub bass which they don’t have behind the screen and you got poorly ripped off, because I’ve seen what they have behind the screen and its at least nearly 50 years old or shy under 50 years that is.
Volt or Altec I don’t care which but its not JBL LOL well the HF horns are JBL 2360A the cabs are loaded with maybe JBL 2226 15â€.
The cabs put out poor bass that may sound better in small cinema but not that cinema its not up to the demands of today’s cinematic digital soundtracks.
Surrounds are JBL 8330 in the poorest location why they should be on the sidewalls, now that is sheer Odeon laziness!
No subs, did I already mention that. It disgusts me. They have the nerve to charge what is it nearly £8.00? Daylight robbery!
If I was you! Hold on to your tickets and demand your money back plus extra for Odeon fibbing about saying their screen 1 is full digital, not even by half. Flipping cheek they have!
Oh, as to big and loud its mostly 100dba peaks that is too toppy or bright sounding! The bass is many db below and when I does try to push anywhere near 100dbc it starts cracking up! LMAO
I’ve monitored the sound pressure level in this cinema many times.
I almost laughed when I saw The Matrix when they had the Dolby CP and a third of the rest installed around 1999. When Neo did a back flip to avoid getting hit by train the sound system distorted so badly in the low range which is between 20Hz to 40Hz that is a rough target on the frequency. Screen channel right if I’m not too mistaken.
Andy,
Ive been a regular Bournemouth cinema goer for many years. There was a time when the cinemas looked tired inside and out. Within the last few years however I have noticed considerable improvements, bigger screens, new interior decor, new seats (though I’ve sat on better ones), curtains that work and coupled with big bright film presentation that has always been top quality. I’m not sure what you are on about to be honest but it seems you have an axe to grind and perhaps it is you that is ‘cracking up’?
Jeff
I’ve lived in Bournemouth all my life and I’m telling you it’s the it’s the truth. I used to be projectionist for UCI and Warner village. I know what to look for and listen for.
Well maybe Odeon Bournemouth has pulled its socks up finely but the rapped decline in presentation was on fast falling level from early/mid 1990’s which ran though right up till 2005, nearly 10 years or just over of poor presentation.
Would you believe if I told you that Odeon screen 1 placed Hi-Fi bookshelf speakers in the tight corners off the auditorium around mid 1990’s I think 1995?
These where typical speakers you’d buy a cheap store like, Dixons! They incorporated I think 6/5 bass mid and soft dome tweeter.
No wonder the surrounds sounded so poorly for several years. Several years of me paying these crocked crocks.
They even messed up the EQ on the stage channels where all you could hear is centre with left and right many db below Dolby reference guidelines. It had to be at least 20db or 25 db too low impossible to hear?
This occurred around mid 1990’s where many years before that the screen channels (unaware that I was of the time, that the stage channels where some 35 plus years old).
Some of the films I saw with poor presentation in screen 1 in no order at all because I have other things to do right now.
Screen1 poor EQ levels!
Star Wars A New Hope
Star Wars The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Return of the Jedi
Die Hard with a Vengeance
Crimson Tide
8mm
Titanic
Just about all these films that spans several years and that’s money I want back! The centre was imitating far too much sound as if they are trying to mimic a poorman’s THX sound system!?
That’s mostly the ones with the rubbish EQ I have no idea what Donkey did the EQ on the Dolby CP50 but I’m pretty sure I’ve bubbled into once while walking down Westover road and I have no respect for someone that rushes their work, or maybe he was going though a devoice LOL I don’t care I was paying good money and hearing lousy sound for many years.
Screen1 poor bass and more!
The Matrix sounded fairly good on the open was this playing in Dolby SR-D or Dolby SR? I knew they had installed a Dolby CP500 at the time, or where they waiting to play Dolby SR-D on Star Wars?
It sounded so good that is what SR role is. Its the best possible analogue sound around over, type A.
I was wrong this showed its full true colours towards the end where Neo jumps out of the way of passing subway train, Agent Smith is pancake! Just as Neo back-flips stage-front-right sounded like it was going to bottom out with a few seconds of very loud audible distortion!
I mostly sit front and centre (used to sit front and centre at this fleapit hole). This has nothing to do with hearing poor or good sound quality. I can sit back row middle row sweet spot or front and centre at the Empire Leicester Square screen1, and be totally impressed, now then!
Entrapment this sounded good nothing to complain or bitch about too much.
Star Wars episode 1 The Phantom Menace (god what a terrible film it was!) audible distortion and sheer lack of bass. No the force was not strong with this one.
House on Haunted Hill stage channels right was buzzing with audible distortion during the electric shock sequence.
The World is Not Enough sounded okay on the opening the rest was just dull and boring lacked bondbastic low end!
The Lord of the Rings part 1 I was bored with the Rings because the sound was unimpressive and wasn’t keeping my attention focused for the nearly 3 hours of listening to wet paint drying! Where’s the sodden bass in this film!!!!!
Star Wars episode 2 Attack of the Clones (can it possible get any worse than this!) audible distortion and sheer lack of bass. No the force was not strong with this one.
Bad Boys II sound was incredible dull and lifeless on stage channels left/right
Raiders of the Lost Ark again stage left and right channels was dull since one of the projectionists showed me behind the screen, thinking I, wouldn’t know what to look for?
To my horror I saw the stage left and right HF horns JBL 2360A laying on the floor pointing upwards to just about anywhere?? it was as if someone like Daren Payne chief projectionist on the site was too lazy to see that the HF horns are placed back in the correct location and tested.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom sound was incredible dull and lifeless on stage channels left/right
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade sound was incredible dull and lifeless on stage channels left/right
I’d have to look for the tickets that I’ve mostly kept but that’s roughly a good guess off the top of my head and I have good sense for the sound when it comes to films.
Did I find myself participating in the Dolby stereo experience?
I prefer the way it sounded before I was projectionist and even thou I had interest in this sound art-form many years before coming a projectionist and even some projectionists don’t care about the sound some like the image some like the sound some like both that is the way of it.
But I should complain about the years before, since the cinema wasn’t keeping up with the state of technological advances in cinema sound presentation.
Films like
Star Wars Dolby stereo
The Empire Strikes Back Dolby stereo
Return of the Jedi Dolby stereo
Close Encounters of the Third Kind Dolby stereo
Platoon Dolby stereo
Aliens Dolby stereo
Die Hard Dolby stereo
Die Hard 2 Dolby stereo
Predator Dolby stereo
Cocoon the return Dolby stereo
Who Framed Roger Rabbit Dolby stereo
Romancing the Stone Dolby stereo
The Final Countdown Dolby stereo
Apocalypse Now Dolby stereo
Bullets on Broadway, not that it matters since (Woody Allen) mostly has his films recorded in monaural sound!
The Black Hole Dolby stereo
The Spy Who Loved Me mono
Moonraker Dolby stereo
The Living Daylights Dolby stereo
Licence to Kill Dolby stereo
Octopussy Dolby stereo
The Man with the Golden Gun mono
Live and Let Die Dolby stereo
For your Eyes Only…or maybe for your ears only? Dolby stereo
A View to a Kill Dolby stereo
Hamburger Hill Dolby stereo
The Cat from Outer Space LOL mono
Tron Dolby stereo
The Abyss
Lawrence of Arabia Dolby stereo with SR cards in what is now called screen 6 with Dolby CP500 and fully installed JBL sound system.
Arachnophobia screen 6. it was then a friend I drove to High Wycombe CIC/UCI for the THX experience. He said it was voted something like 6th best THX screen in the world. he was right I was hearing if not feeling first hand lower bass octave to octave coverage and clear mid range to high range sounds without effort or strain.
It was almost better than the Empire Leicester Square if not on par since it was Bell Theatre Services that installed the purpose built JBL sound system.
Opening was just bass to sub bass weight heavy that would make most cinemas seem like a Vitaphone sound system. The lows mostly played within the 30Hz to 80Hz region when comparing the (DVD/Dolby 4.1) on a frequency spectrum real time analyzer or (Spectrumlab).
Happened to visit ‘Odeon 6’ (or Gaumont 2 as was) recently and I concur with Jeff. It’s good to see some improvements and the bigger screen is definately one of them – it used to be demoralising enough to have that old postage stamp sized one, only for it to get smaller for Cinemascope films! Funnily enough, I also happened to be passing outside on the day of the cinema’s 40th anniversary (since its twinning, which had a gala re-opening on 15th July 1969, the day before Apollo). Funny old thing really, but there were queues right down the street; I thought ‘happy birthday’ to the old place, ‘good on you’. I bet no one in the queue realised that up in Odeon 1 they were visiting the UK’s last surviving, intact, purpose designed Cinerama theatre. In the states they might have restored it and had it as a centrpiece to a multiplex (as in the Arclight/CineramaDome in Hollywood). That’s just a bit of fanciful thinking on my part…
A vintage photograph of the Regent Theatre, and the console of its Wurlitzer organ:
http://www.ukwurlitzer.co.cc/2020.html
I worked at the Gaumont Theatre, Bournemouth as a trainee projectionist from January 1961 to October 1963, transferring to other theatres in the Rank Organisation chain in an assistant management role in 1964. I returned to the Gaumont Bournemouth in 1968, joining the management team under Charles Booth. I was there at the time it closed for redevelop as a twin theatre, transferring during the redevelopment to the Odeon, Bournemouth. I remember that almost immediately after the audience had left the theatre after the last show, the seats where being ripped out. I returned to the Gaumont for its opening in 1969.
I remember my time at the Gaumont as a trainee projectionist under then Chief Projectionist Tom Mellor with affection. I was particularly thankful that Tom thought it unnecessary to hand polish the positive carbon rods used in the arc lamps on the Gaumont Kalee 21 projectors. This saved me from a dirty and tedious polishing job. I now live in Wales, somewhat saddened to hear that the theatre is likely to disappear. Great attention was made to good presentation and showmanship, which seems to be absent in typical modern multiplexes. On one occasion in 1961 when the screen curtains had been sent away for cleaning (and which shrank, therefore needing to have the length extended with new cloth) I was often sent down to the stage to hand pull the ‘Act drop’ up and down to ensure the presentation was up to standard. This was a heavy (though counter-weighted) red velvet and gold curtain normally only used for stage shows and pop one-night performances. We also marked the vinyl LP disks with chinagraph pencil marks so that the non-sync music finished on cue before the film credits. There were five full time projectionists operating on two shifts, including me. Days long gone.