mecca bingo swindon, old theater and cinema's feb/2010

[tommo]

big thanks to klempner69 for this :thumb

orignally statred out as the regent theater in 1929, staying open to entertain the swindon folk for 23 years before it became the gaumont theater in 1952

regent

gaumont

then changing again 11 years later in june 1963 to become the odean cinema

then the owners decided to turn it in to a bingo hall which was to become the top rank bingo hall in 1974, where it was thrived for over 30 years,but then with the arrival of the smoking ban in 2007 where it all went down hill just before having its name changed to the present mecca bingo shortly before its closure in april 2008 as far as i am aware the ceiling has been in place from when it first started out and is stunning as well as being in perfect condition

 

[tommo]

on with the pics


the entrance lobby

before walking round the corner to be greeted with this mint little beauty

taken from the stage area

cafe and bar

ticket office

bingo board

kitchen and mens toilets

next up headed in to the basement

boiler room

then the battery room which again was in very nice condition

now to finish off with some ceiling shots, which wasnt easy with or with out the lights on

and one of the many wall lights

 

[klempner69]

Well done fella..you captured the ceiling very well.Can I "Borrow" the old pics please?

 

[tommo]

Well done fella..you captured the ceiling very well.Can I "Borrow" the old pics please?

cheers stu, i guess u can borrow them......i did lol, google is great for stuff like that

 

[Foxylady]

Blimey, those colours are fantastic. Your ceiling shots are superb...beautiful stuff.
Love the battery room shots too.

 

[mr_bones]

Excellent stuff Tommo!

 

[Potter]

Superb. Really superb.

 

[Coal Cutter]

Wonderful decor! Kinda reminds me of the Wallaw cinema in Blyth. Very cool!

 

[spacepunk]

I work for Rank and this has happened to a lot of the older clubs, esp after the smoking ban. Good pics.