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.
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Captain Birdseye in Guildford
Join Captain Birdseye in Guildford as he appears at a fun run through the town - and guess what's showing at the Odeon
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Overview
This short film opens with a view of Guildford's Guild Hall with its famous 300 year old clock. In the street below we see the actor John Hewer - otherwise known as Captain Birdseye - taking time off from promoting fish fingers to appear at a fun run that is coursing through the town. We then get a view of the Odeon cinema, which is screening Lethal Weapon and Batman. Runners are seen crossing a road before we return to the Odeon where customers are waiting for the doors to open.
Guildford's original Odeon was designed by Andrew Mather and J. Raworth Hill, as a complex containing shops, offices and the 1600 seat cinema. It opened in May 1935 with a screening of 'Brewster's Millions' starring Jack Buchanan. The Odeon name was set into the white stone which formed a frieze at the top of the building’s tall facade. However, the use of neon lighting was not allowed by the town council. In 1973 the cinema was converted into three and later four screens as was common practise at the time. The arrival of an eight screen Odeon multiplex in 1996 sounded the death knell for the former cinema and in 2002 it was demolished. A block of shops and flats now stands on the site.
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