Majestic Cinema

The Majestic Cinema opened on Monday 7th January 1929 and was built for Mexborough Theatres Ltd., proprietor being Mr J. J. Woffinden. The architect was a Mr Harry Slater of Doncaster and was built by the Doncaster firm of T. J. Jenkinson and Sons Ltd.

The cinema possesses an imposing frontage to Bank Street with terra cotta and pressed brickwork facade and there was a second entrance on Market Street. A centrally located entrance on Bank Street leads into the foyer. The balcony was reached by only six steps while stairs led down to the stalls as the cinema was built between the higher and lower roads of Mexborough. Seating was for 1,000. The first film, played Mon-Wed, was Pola Negri in “The Women On Trial” while Mary Astor in “Two Arabian Knights” played Thurs - Sat. A Western Electric Sound System was installed in September 1930 with Jack Buchanan in “Paris” being the first talkie shown.

In June 1955 the cinema was taken over by the Star Cinema Circuit, one of two to be run by them in Mexborough, the other being the Empire Cinema in Swinton Road. Closing on 2nd July 1955 after Anna Neagle in “Lilacs In The Spring” for modernisation and instalation of Cinemascope, re-opening with Tyrone Power in “The Long Grey Line”. The Saturday Childrens Star Junior Club was also introduced. Bingo was only ever played at the Majestic Cinema for a two week period in the early-1960’s while the Empire Cinema, which by then was on full time bingo, was being refurbished.

The Majestic Cinema closed on 2nd January 1972 with James Coburn in “Our Man Flint” and 2Blue Water, White Death", with Star Cinemas saying they could not compete with the more modern cinemas in the larger towns & cities nearby. This was not to be the end though, as on 8th November 1972 the Majestic Cinema reopened with a gala performance of Peter O'Toole in “Lawrence of Arabia” with the owners now being the Axholm Cinema Services who also ran the Scala (Ex Regal/Odeon) in Rotherham. The cinema remained open for another 11 years finally closing on 29th June 1983 with Michael Palin in “The Missionary”. The building lay empty for a while and was then transformed into a Snooker Club in the Circle and a Banqueting Suite in the Stalls, still called the Majestic in 2008.

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