Odeon Birmingham
139 New Street,
Birmingham,
B2 4NU
139 New Street,
Birmingham,
B2 4NU
3 people
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The Paramount Theatre opened on 4th September 1937 with Errol Flynn in “Charge of the Light Brigade”. It was one of seven Paramount Theatres built in major UK cities by the American owned Paramount Theatres chain; Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow and London (Tottenham Court Road) were the others. The original seating capacity was for 2,439 with 1,517 in the stalls and 922 in the circle. It was equipped with a Compton 4Manual/10Rank theatre organ which was opened by Al Bollington. The Paramount Theatre had a large stage, dressing rooms and a cafe/restaurant.
On 25th August 1942, it was sold to Oscar Deutsch’s Odeon Theatres Ltd. and it was re-named Odeon on 29th November 1942. In 1965 it was closed for a period while major modernisation was carried out and re-opened on 24th June 1965. The Odeon was used for many live shows during this period of time, including appearances by The Beatles.
On 26th May 1988 the Odeon was closed for conversion into a six screen cinema, which re-opened in August 1988. Unfortunately, the Compton organ, which had still been used for concerts, was dismantled and sold. In 1991 two additional screens were opened in the former restaurant area and a former bar in the basement.
The cinema used to have a very ornate auditorium until it was altered. Now it is all very plain, including the foyer entrance. The last refurbishment was carried out in 1998 when an eighth screen was added. In 2013, it is the only one of the seven original U.K. Paramount Theatres still operating as a cinema.
Contributed by
DEREK L.HUNT, Ken Roe
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2007 photo of the Odeon.
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Scanned images of the Odeon in 1988 here:–
Foyer:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/4941088936/
Auditorium (with Organ):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/4941089140/
Ah, the memories. I saw MOONRAKER (1979), ROCKY III (1982), BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA (1986) and THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS (1987) here when it was a single screen. THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS was also the film that reopened the cinema as a cinema only after the last gig in the summer of 1987. I also saw Huey Lewis and The News at their sell-out gig in 1986. Always bizarre that the Widescreen movies played on a bigger screen than the Scope Films. Disney films and CARRIE were also two other movie regulars here.
A Birmingham resident, Mr, Cyril Barbier, has recently constructed a large, extremely detailed scale model of this theatre. There is a link to an article about it here and a link to a slide show that includes pictures of the theatre as it is today and several photos of the model.
A man walked through the blacked out Birmingham streets from the Paramount to our Edgbaston home early in World War II. Nothing special, except that the No 7 bus to Portland Road and all others had stopped running. He placed a small dud firebomb found during the air raid on our mantle piece.He was Arthur Raymond, resident organist at the Paramount from 1937 to 1944, and my father. His real name was Cecil Austin which he later used for Chopin concerts around the United Kingdom. It is very nostalgic to recall the glory of the Paramount after seventy-five years. However, my father’s talent was unique. The usual programme contained a supporting film, the news, trailers,occasional cartoon (Disney) and the main film. Very frequently threre was a stage show and Arthur’s repertoire: a slide show of operettas such as “Rose Marie”, “Student Prince” accompanied by records played from the projection room while he played the organ.The organ actually rose six feet or more and turned half right for dad’s performance. Audiences were really intrigued when he accompanied songs in a musical film. On 11/12/40 we had a really hefty air raid. It is surprising that the theatre was untouched; on Friday 13/12/40 I sat on the organ seat with him as he rehearsed the accompaniment to the “New Moon” with Jeanette MacDonald and Helson Eddy and of course played it the next week. I was allowed to go pretty well all over the theatre including the projection room with Jackson the operator,or watch Gregory the stage manager controlling the coloured lights still playing on the screen when the film opened. (Many years later I saw Nelson Eddy’s live show and spoke to him a day later)
One special event was the visit of cowboy singer Gene Autry and his horse “Champion”. The press photographer did not come, and I can’t say how thrilled I was to “snap” the star and Mr Smith- a manager from Loughborough- for publicity. I still have the B/W print in my album as well as much else: popular music which father gave me.
When I project the classic DVDs on a 6' by 41/2' screen, even that isn’t anything like watching it in such a luxurious and fabulous cinema as the Paramount was although I have visited the New Gallery, the Regert Brighton,and many theatres in the UK and US. The Paramount wsa artistry beyond compare.
Raymond, the organ console turned to the left, so that the organist could see the screen and the orchestra. If it had turned to the left the organist would have been facing the wall, and unable to see what was going on. Here is some footage of the ODEON and the organ in action. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCdunRXpuZg
Can’t argue after 70 years. That’s how it seemed to me. There is photograph of father on the organ in the May 1938 issue of “Cinema Management”. Remember, he is at the extreme left of the stage, as seen from the auditorium. I am fortunate in still having photos of Autry’s visit, of the enormous film projectors, some of the staff, including some charming usherettes. I might be able to forward them, although I have never done that before. It will have to wait, because they are in Anchorage, Alaska, and I am writing from Portland,. Oregon. I will watch the Youtube.
Kindest Regards,
Stan Austin.
Of course, I HAD to go and see the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios in Culver City, suburb of Los Angeles, and found it disappointing. Someone was making a clip for a TV weekly. Our group was allowed into the studio commissariat where we could lunch with the players.I did see Debbie Reynolds and a few from long forgotten series like “Shenandoah” and “Chaparral” “Dr. Kildare” Buildings were quite old, 1910s or 1920s. You could almost imagine operators hand-turning their cameras.
One of my memories is of when father sent me on an errand to Felton Rapley, the organist at the Gaumont in 1938. I caught a glimpse of the screen. It was a scene from “Snow white and the seven dwarfs”. Christmas ‘38 was a good time. “If I were King” with Ronald Colman was playing at the Paramount. (Fiction of Francois Villon, the knave poet, taking King Louis XI’s place for a day during a war with Burgundy. Came out as a musical in '56 as the “Vagabond King”.)
I remember that September 1937 when my father told us of his appointment as organist at the Theatre. There were some great times then: many stage shows between pictures.(Obviously I am a very senior citizen) One of them, just before Christmas, 1939, featured Robert Ashley, baritone, singing “Moon Love”. an adaptation of Tchaikowski’s Fifth Symphony, 2nd movement. There were also Robert and Murray Dickie,tenor, 16 years old, who with their mother stayed with us; both of the boys performed in the show and later became well known opera soloists. William Pethers' orchestra played “Somewhere over the rainbow” from the Wizard of Oz,and “Small Hotel”. My principal part(as actually a Paramount employee)was in a finale. I was dressed in my O.T.C. uniform, representing the Army.The two other services appeared one on each side so that we formed a human pyramid.