Screen Archive South East is a public sector moving image archive serving the South East of England. The archive's collections of magic lantern slides, films, videos and associated materials capture the many varied aspects of life, work and creativity from the early days of screen history to the present day and serve as a rich and invaluable historical resource.
This film is part of Free
Herne Bay after the cinemas have gone
Alan Stingemore's short film shows what happens after a town's 1930s cinema has vanished from the scene - and the conservation efforts to rescue an even earlier example.
From the collection of:
Overview
The film starts at the junction of Avenue Road and Sea Street in Herne Bay where a large block of flats can be seen. The flats occupy the site where Herne Bay's original Odeon, later renamed Cannon, cinema once stood. We then move to the town's promenade with views of the Clock Tower and Pier Pavilion. A couple feed the local gulls accompanied by barking dogs. We then see an older building covered in scaffolding which was originally known as the Red Lantern Cinema.
Alan Stingemore's film follows up his earlier work which captured the demolition of Herne Bay’s Odeon cinema. Both films are held at Screen Archive South East. The Red Lantern cinema, seen in the latter half of this film, was originally opened in August 1911 as the Cinema De Luxe before closing for alterations by the architect J Wilson. Reopening in 1912 and now called the Bijou Theatre, it staged concerts and variety shows as well as screening films. After another name change to the Coliseum, the cinema was sold to a new owner in 1926 who once again renamed it as the Red Lantern Theatre. Closing in 1937 the building became a clothing factory for many years before finally opening as an antiques shopping arcade.
Related
Watch for free
Ramsgate's Odeon and the demolition of a Herne Bay cinema Ramsgate's Odeon and the demolition of a Herne Bay cinema
Amateur film 1985 8 mins Location: Ramsgate
Watch in horror as two of Kent's Art Deco cinemas await their terrible fate at the hands of developers
Watch for free
Various Cinemas in the Medway towns Various Cinemas in the Medway towns
Amateur film 1986 2 mins Location: Gillingham
A sad end awaits Medway's forlorn looking cinemas and theatres in Alan Stingemore's short film from the 1980s. Which ones will succumb to the bulldozers and which will survive?
Watch for free
The Frozen Sea at Herne Bay in 1963 The Frozen Sea at Herne Bay in 1963
Amateur film 1963 5 mins Silent Location: Herne Bay
John Clague's remarkable look at an ice-bound and shivering Herne Bay during Britain's Big Freeze of 1963
Watch for free
Herne Bay Pier & Prince Charles visits Westgate in Canterbury Herne Bay Pier & Prince Charles visits Westgate in Canterbury
Amateur film 1978 4 mins Silent Location: Herne Bay
Herne Bay's pier suffers a battering in this 1978 film by John Clague, which later shows the great and good of Canterbury greeting their royal visitor, Prince Charles
Watch for free
Herne Bay's new tower block Herne Bay's new tower block
Amateur film 1975 5 mins Silent Location: Herne Bay
Watch Herne Bay's newest high-rise building grow from its foundations to its topping out - in John Clague's film featuring his own architectural creation
Watch for free
Herne Bay Newsreel: The Carnival Herne Bay Newsreel: The Carnival
Amateur film 1967 3 mins Location: Herne Bay
Herne Bay pulls out all the stops for its 1967 Carnival - filmed in glorious colour by John Clague - with Beauty Queens, bagpipes and a harem on wheels
Watch for free
Getting it Back: The Story of Cymande - Q&A Getting it Back: The Story of Cymande - Q&A
Inside Film 2024 22 mins
The director of a documentary about British funk pioneers Cymande joins the band at BFI Southbank to talk about the film.
Watch for free
The West Case The West Case
Action and Adventure 1923 28 mins Silent Location: Tilbury
Plotting world domination, Devil Doctor Fu-Manchu steals plans for a new aero-torpedo in this earliest surviving thrill-a-minute serial instalment.
Watch for free
Enter the Scala!!! Enter the Scala!!!
Inside Film 2024 16 mins
Filmmakers Jane Giles and Ali Catterall discuss their documentary Scala!!!, revisiting the legendary and inspirational cinema venue and some of the most notorious films that screened there.
Watch for free
Smith Smith
Charity appeal 1939 10 mins
Long thought lost, this Powell-directed promotional short for a veteran’s charity was only rediscovered in 2003.
Watch for free
An Airman's Letter to His Mother An Airman's Letter to His Mother
Documentary 1941 6 mins
A poignant, stirring letter from a recently deceased pilot to his mother is read by John Gielgud.
Watch for free
The NHS75 Celebration The NHS75 Celebration
Short documentary 2023 3 mins
Former Bristol Poet Laureate, Miles Chambers reads a poem specially commissioned for the 75th anniversary of the NHS.