Regent Cinema

In Brownhills, Staffordshire, which is now in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, the Regent Picture House opened in 1928. When the ‘talkies’ arrived, a Morrison sound system was installed.

The Regent Picture House was owned by cinema entrepreneur Miles Jervis, and offered the first competition to the town’s existing cinema, the Palace Cinema, which had been operating since December 1912 (see separate Cinema Treasures entry).

This is especially relevant because, in 1932, the proprietors of the Palace Cinema, Sidney Bray and Wally Davies, were able to buy out their rival - and use the sale of the Palace’s site to install a balcony at the Regent Picture House. It was equipped with a Marshall sound system.

To designs by Wolverhampton architects Cleland & Hayward, the Regent Picture House was reconstructed in May 1938. The new balcony seated 148, while the stalls could accommodate 486, a total of 634 seats.

Sidney Bray died in 1940, and his son Bernard became Wally Davies' partner.

In 1954 CinemaScope was introduced at the Regent Picture House with the biblical epic “The Robe”. Unfortunately, this did not herald good times as, some two years later, the proprietors found themselves in court for failing to observe ‘quota’ requirements during 1954: they had only shown 23.9% British made films, as against the required 30%. Fines and costs totalling £100 were imposed.

It was around this time that the Regent Cinema closed. The final advertisement in the Walsall Observer was for “Demetrious and the Gladiators”, starring Victor Mature and Susan Haywood, starting on 7th May 1955. However, the court case took place in 1956, and there was, at that time, no mention of the cinema being closed.

It has also been suggested that the Regent Cinema was sold, as a going concern, to Miles Jervis' son, Miles Jervis II, after Bernard Bray’s death in February 1959 - It was still listed in the 1958 edition of Kine Yearbook and had a British Acoustic(BA) sound system. It was closed in February 1962.

Following the eventual demolition of the Regent Cinema, Ravens Court shopping precinct was constructed, and that opened in 1966.

Unfortunately, in more recent times, the precinct has become blighted by fly-tipping and rubbish. Gangs of youths tend to congregate there, and falling masonry has increased concerns about potential injuries.

Tesco had been due to take over the site, but their plans for a superstore fell through in 2014.

In April 2021 it was announced that the precinct will soon be demolished and replaced by a museum and leisure facility celebrating the history of our town. Hopefully this will include reference to the town’s cinemas.

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