Robins Cinema
6 Park Way,
Newbury,
RG14 1EE
6 Park Way,
Newbury,
RG14 1EE
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popcorn_pete why am I almost right? I worked there and I still have the Uniform (The uniform was black jeans and they supplied a Robins branded Fruit of the Loom jumper). The sign was replaced when a wagon was reversing into drop off the weeks supplies and the top of the wagon clipped the sign smashing the corner right off.
There are a few pictures about that have incorrect information tied to them. Don’t rely on the now showing banners, the cost of renting a film for a week was usually £60-110 for the size of cinema at the time. This meant showing old films again more profitable than some of the blockbusters owing to everyone flocking to Basingstoke Warner cinema or the Reading Showcase (if the carpark wasn’t flooded that day). The owners of Robins did a runner owing a lot of cash to staff, suppliers, and film distributors and brokers.
You are almost right m1dig. The cinema reopened again on 14 July 1995 with “Batman Forever” and eventually closed in November 1998. Not sure if Robins rebranded the cinema as pictures of it boarded up in 1999 show it as Newbury Forum!! Plans for a multiplex were on the table but dropped when there were no takers. The current BST gym opened in April 2015.
This has now opened as a gym again, under the BST Fitness brand. There’s not much left of the cinema inside, but you can see the proscenium arch at the front of the upstairs gym area.
The details here are slightly incorrect. The cinema was a Robins cinema in 96, I seem to recall it was also a Robins in 94 as I saw Frankenstein there in 94, well the first half, I nodded off halfway through (I had been working for 14 hours prior to seeing the film!). I’d swear it was a Robins then. I worked there in 96, possibly late 95 but not 100% sure. It was still a Robins in 98. The building was quite tired and required a lot of maintenance – the roof leaked badly, and the lack of working heating meant hiring a large industrial heater that filled the building with diesel fumes during the winter. Despite the wages being only £2.50 ph, I worked there for the love of the job and not to be paid. I enjoyed every day of it. I’m pretty sure it was still a Robins until the minimum wage laws came in.
It would be very interesting to find out. To me it stylisticly looks like a David Evelyn Nye. design.. Who did Our Regal Cinema Marlow
Can someone please confirm the name of the architect for this cinema.