Ideal Picture House
Manchester Road,
Bradford,
BD5
Manchester Road,
Bradford,
BD5
1 person
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Another fairly short lived cinema building survives today —– The Ideal Picture House was located on the western side of Manchester Road, south of Bradford city centre, close to the junction with Rooley Lane at Bankfoot. It was a purpose built cinema opening in February 1914. The building cost was £5,000 and it accommodated 700 patrons. It closed before sound was introduced in March 1930 and became a ballroom after lying unused for four years.
34 years later it became a bingo hall but in 2002 the building is once again empty and for sale. The exterior has hardly changed since opening. It retained the Ideal name throughout.
Contributed by
Ian Grundy
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Recent comments (view all 3 comments)
There is additional historical detail about this theatre on this webpage.
G J Mellor’s “Cinemas of Bradford” gives the cinema owners as Messrs Holmes, Pickles, Whiteside and Barnett; and the ballroom owner as Herbert Shutt. ‘Bert Shutt’, employed my father on the decorating of the ballroom.
The “Ideal” is almost opposite the end of Carbottom Road. The Rooley Lane junction is a distance away.
The Google map location is in Altrincham, many tens of miles away from the correct location in Bradford!