Queens Cinema
High Street and Bell Road,
Sittingbourne,
ME10
High Street and Bell Road,
Sittingbourne,
ME10
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previous Names: Queens Picture Theatre
Nearby Theaters
Up a passage from the lower end of the High Street, the Queens Picture Theatre was converted from a brewery and followed the Drill Hall and Empire Cinema as the towns third cinema. Opened on 21st February 1912, the manager later claimed it was the first to use a mirror type of arc lamp. A three piece orchestra was provided initially.
A month of renovation by Watchester Cinemas took place in 1958. After the Classic Cinemas chain took over the nearby Odeon, films were dropped here in May 1973, but a live theatre use failed to attract audiences. Ray Sutton from Sheerness hoped to re-open for films, counting on the Classic going over to just a bingo club, but a covenant prevented the re-opening in 1978.
Various nightclubs and a disco took possession from 1980-84, but rowdyism and two fires sealed the building’s fate. It was demolished and a car park is all that remains. More details are in John Clancy’s book “Long-gone Cinemas of Swale”(2003).
Contributed by
Martin Tapsell
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Recent comments (view all 3 comments)
John Clancy in “The Long- gone cinemas of Swale” (2003) says the porch was added between the wars. His books contains extra photos including interior.
Happy memories of seeing 2001 and Planet of the Apes here in 1968.
Watchester Cinemas renovated the Queens ten years earlier than stated. A wide proscenium for scope was installed. I enjoyed very many films here for fifteen years as the Queens had the ABC release e.g Cliff Richard in the Young Ones. That film and others played to full houses. I was a part-time projectionist there when it closed in May 1973. A few weeks before, Cabaret was doing excellent business. Classic bought the Queens and transferred its bingo club to their Vogue bingo club in the former Odeon across the road where they had created two cinemas above the bingo hall.