Art Cinema

93 Lord Street,
Fleetwood, FY7 6JZ

Unfavorite 1 person favorited this theater

Additional Info

Previously operated by: Blackpool Tower Co. Ltd.

Architects: Albert Winstanley

Styles: Neo-Classical

Previous Names: Empire Theatre & Hippodrome, Art Pictures

Nearby Theaters

Empire Theatre

Located on West Street (later renamed Lord Street) in Fleetwood, 12 miles north of Blackpool. The Empire Theatre & Hippodrome was opened in mid-August 1909. It was designed by architect Albert Winstanley, and boasted to be ‘the first theatre to have a white marble facade’. From around 1913, it was listed as operating as a cinema. In early-1915, it was closed for reconstruction, when the seating capacity in the gallery was enlarged, and the total seating capacity increased to 900. It re-opened in June 1915 as the Art Pictures.

In 1923, the building was demolished to build a new Art Pictures, again designed by Albert Winstanley. The new cinema now had a single circle seating 340, with seating in the stalls for 668 and two boxes on each side of the 30 feet wide proscenium. There was also a cafe for the convenience of patrons. By 1937, it was operated by the Blackpool Tower Co. Ltd. By 1944, they had re-named it Art Cinema, and it was closed in the late-1950’s. It was demolished in 1960 and in 2014 an Iceland supermarket operates on the site.

Contributed by Ken Roe

Recent comments (view all 4 comments)

CSWalczak
CSWalczak on December 2, 2010 at 1:47 pm

There is a picture of the Art Cinema circa 1925 on this webpage; clicking it will enlarge it: http://tinyurl.com/23dox63

Ian
Ian on December 3, 2010 at 6:31 am

I think the Art was on Lord Street and was demolished in the early to mid 1960’s.

cas
cas on August 23, 2012 at 4:53 pm

Ken, hope you dont mind, i am from this town and someone was asking for information about the cinema. I have shared the information you gave but also credited it with your name, it isnt going to be used for anything its just a facebook page where us locals reminice about the old days. Thanks.

davidstirzaker
davidstirzaker on November 9, 2014 at 6:42 am

I am from Fleetwood too. I saw “A Night to Remember” there as well as a Doris Day film.

You must login before making a comment.

New Comment

Subscribe Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater.