Tivoli Cinema
High Street,
Gorseinon,
SA4 4BX
High Street,
Gorseinon,
SA4 4BX
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In Gorseinon, near Swansea, West Glamorganshire, the Electra Cinema was built in 1914. It is listed in the Kinematogaraph Year Book for 1932 with a Western Electric(WE) sound system, a 21ft wide proscenium and 784 seats. It is still listed in 1954, still with WE sound, but with 693 seats. By 1963, and in 1966, it has gone from the listings, but there is a Tivoli Cinema, listed in the High Street, with a BTH sound system, which is presumably a rename as it has the same phone number as the Electra Cinema. The Tivoli Cinema has gone from the listings by 1980. It became the Electra Bingo Club. Much more recently it has been a Rileys Pool and Snooker Hall, but that had closed down by 2015. It had re-opened by January 2016 as the Rainbow Room, a multi-function hall.
Contributed by
David Simpson
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
This was indeed the Electra Cinema,later named the Tivoli by Lyn Thomas,local cinema magnet who ran it alongside Tivoli Gowerton and Tivoli Pontardulais in late 1950s. A very early cinema with good sight lines and a raked floor, but not a popular location and we all made much more use of the Lido on the West End Square. Steat reduction was probably when they adjusted the plan of the hall, which was a normal reactangle with an added triangular section on the left , sight lines from these seats were terriuble and a plaster board wall was used to regain a rectangular shaped hall. Low key set up with projectionist having to come down and wind back the tabs before show could start. Original fontage altered when changed to snooker. Arched frontage over box which had name “Electra Cinema” following line of arch and stained glass windows to back wall of box with central window showing globe and a banner across “The world before your eyes” These windows had been painted out green by the mid 1950s, too much light getting through the ports into the hall I expect. Will try and locate a photograph with the cinema in the background on the Gorseinon Local History Web site.
Building has reopened as The Rainbow Room, a multi purpose venue. Seems the name is the historic name of the Electra Cinema as it was the Rainbow Music Hall before becoming a cinema.This is news to me and I will try and find out this period of its history, the original frontage shows the words ELECTRA CINEMA later known as TIVOLI in the 1960s. See photograph on web entry.
My 88 year old mum was an usherette at The Electra in 1943, although her memories are a bit vague now.
The Electra Cinema was built in 1914, planning application made in Oct 1913. Making this building one of the earliest remaining purpose built cinemas in Wales! The stained glass window, from the plans, fronted a managers office not the projection room as I thought, which was set behind this office. Will try and post further photographs of this building as new and when being converted to Bingo with modified facade.
The bingo operation decided on using the older name of Electra for the bingo club.