Stephen Joseph Theatre

Exterior, circle foyer and restaurant photos can be seen here (taken March 2009):–

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3402252351/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3402251839/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3403057900/

Side faiance tiling picture here (June 2009):–

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3594049497/

Three exterior shots showing off the neon lighting, taken in September 2009 here:–

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3935946539/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3935946309/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stagedoor/3935946113/

Whilst the Odeon could take a fortune during Scarborough’s short summer seasons by the ‘80s, such a large, single screen cinema just wasn’t feasible in the resort and any “summer profit” would be overtaken by mounting winter losses. The Rank Group were prepared to undertake a more expensive-than-normal, drop wall tripling to provide two small cinemas in the rear stalls while preserving the entire auditorium above and in front of the balcony with all its plasterwork, lighting coves and screen within the original proscenium. The two extra screens enabling three choices of film could have much reduced the winter losses but the Council wouldn’t allow any changes whatsoever and Rank had to cut their losses. This was the same council which, a few short years later, allowed the auditorium to be totally gutted in order for two small auditoria to be created within the shell. No amount of cleaned faience tiling and restored neon will ever compensate for the unforgivable loss of this impressive cinema. In the Odeon’s later years, it joined the Odeon, Leicester Square in being one of only two unsubdivided original Odeon theatres. Then there was one…

Whilst I agree that minis resulting from typical tripling have seldom, if ever, created what we would consider satisfactory cinemas, they have usually proved their worth with additional revenue prolonging the “parent” cinema’s life, albeit, as you say, not indefinitely. There were no plans to extend the large circle forward at Scarborough or utilise the front stalls. There were thoughts, as long ago as the ‘60s, of creating a cinema within the cafe area (which by then had become the rather tired Showbar)and we’ll never know whether a screen count of four would have enabled the Odeon to survive longer. Jim Whittell, then M.D. of Rank Leisure Services, persuaded the Board to go in for an “especially sensitive” tripling as he loved the Scarborough Odeon and was determined to stem the winter losses. I was Scarborough’s assistant/relief manager in the late 'sixties and it was something of a culture shock to be controlling queues and putting the “House Full” boards out quite regularly up until mid September and then find staff outnumbering patrons on some out-of-season days. Of course, some pre-release films and a Thursday start helped when Sunday start was the norm at provincial, non-resort cinemas, not to mention the vagaries of the English summer weather! In 1980 when Rank announced the closure of Muswell Hill, my late friend/colleague and former M.H. manager, Steve Gaunt, although having taken over the Odeon, Holloway, threatened to chain himself to the front doors! Although, mercifully, in the event, that didn’t become necessary. I’m surprised M.H. has lasted this long with just three screens, it may have a large catchment area but it also has other cinemas not very far away. York? Well what can I say? With a multiplex within two miles of York and a three screen Picture House operation in the city centre, one might have thought the Council would have encouraged the refurbishment Odeon wanted to do at the time but, instead, ignorance and intransigence won the day and the Odeon was lost. As with Scarborough, who knows how long the rebranded cinema would have survived but it would have been given a fighting chance. It’s now a dire Reel and, having known the York Odeon for over fifty years and having trained there in my management days, one visit to the Reel was quite enough. Guess nothing lasts forever.