Plaza Cinema

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Uploaded on: October 4, 2025

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Though undated, this is is an early view of the cinema. When I frequented it as my local (from the early 1950s) there was a waiting room between the faïenced entrance and the rear exit. At some stage, the recess in the photo was filled in;and done exactly in the style of the rest of the building (which would have cost). The recess allowed for a window in the side of the auditorium. I recall it as a blocked recess for usherettes' torches, with a curtain over. The entrance is far more set back than in the 1950s; and the glazed rooms at either side were, back then, toilets for women and men (near/far respectively). The women’s toilets were moved to the other side of the men’s, and both given access from the auditorium. The photo also confirms a memory I have sometimes doubted. Originally, the stairs to the operating box were from the rear of the auditorium. Some time in the 1950s they were reversed, to be accessed from outside in the side street. The old photo confirms my recollection: as there is no door to the operating box - just the low one to the boiler room, and further down a rear exit. This photo is a fascinating find.