Essoldo Cinema, Beeston

The Essoldo Cinema, Beeston is a cinema open from 1938 to 1968 in Beeston, Nottinghamshire.

Essoldo Cinema, Beeston
Essoldo Cinema, Beeston
Location within Nottinghamshire
Former namesMajestic Cinema, Beeston
Address219 Queen’s Road, Beeston, Nottingham.
Coordinates52°55′20.9″N 1°12′36″W
Capacity1038 persons[1]
Construction
Opened1 September 1938 (1938-09-01)
Closed14 September 1968
DemolishedJuly 1988
ArchitectErnest S. Roberts

History

The impetus for building the cinema came from Max Nepolski of Majestic Cinemas Limited, who proposed a new cinema in Beeston to be built at the junction of Queen’s Road and Station Road, Beeston. It was designed on similar lines to that recently opened in Chaddesden,[2] also known as the Majestic. The main front towered 73 feet (22 m) high.

The cinema didn’t have much luck in its choice of managers. Two were convicted of theft in the 1940s. In 1941, the former manager Reginald G. Warner was bound over for 12 months’ for theft.[3] In 1947 the manager of the cinema, William Millburn Ross was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment[4] for embezzlement of £1,494 (equivalent to £137,500 in 2019).[5]

On 17–18 March 1947 the cinema was flooded when the River Trent overwhelmed much of Beeston. Fortunately the damage was contained.[6]

In 1952 the cinema was taken over by the Essoldo Group and renamed. It closed as a cinema on 14 September 1968 when the Essoldo Group was taken over by Classic Cinemas and spent some time as a bingo hall until 1988.

The site is now occupied by a Coop supermarket.

References
  1. "Essoldo Beeston". Cinema Treasures. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  2. "New Theatre for Beeston". Nottingham Journal. England. 13 April 1938. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  3. "Former Beeston Cinema Manager". Nottingham Evening Post. England. 15 February 1941. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. "Embezzled £1,494. Cinema Manager Sent to Prison". Nottingham Journal. England. 20 June 1947. Retrieved 28 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  6. Earp, Frank (2017). Secret Beeston. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 9781445664897.
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