Tuesday, 26 July 2011

In this Wetherspoons…

This is a Wetherspoons in Llandudno in North Wales. It is the Wetherspoons which was once a cinema. At the age of 14 I sat in the first tier of seats, possibly to the right, and watched Clockwork Orange (along with most of the 4th and 5th and 6th form). I also sat there and watched the Exorcist (twice in a week) and had a crafty bottled Guinness in the cinema bar, that was when I was in the lower 6th. I think my parents saw films here in the 1950s — certainly not Bergman but I would like to think they queued up for Wilder (that’s the director by the way). The last film I saw here was an Austin Powers one, possibly the first. Nowadays when I return to Llandudno (as one must, but it’s hardly we’ll always have Paris), I go there to get the free WiFi and remember the movies I saw over the years (I have a pint as well, it’s got better over the last couple of years). The other cinema I used to go to (I saw a lot of Bond and Carry On movies there) was pulled down and is now a fortress of warden controlled flats. Cinemas, like pubs, have their own memories and like the Proms audience currently acclaiming a rather excellent performance of Listz’s Faust I acclaim Wetherspoons for their sensitivity in adapting somewhere that was so important to me when I was growing up.
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9 comments:

  1. Alistair Reece26 July 2011 at 22:22

    Old cinemas make great pubs and clubs. When I lived in Minsk, we used to go to a place called Kinoklub Moskevskaya which was a great night out - Baltika on tap, the latest in Russian techno and guaranteed free vodka by virtue of being an "international person".

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  2. Zak Avery26 July 2011 at 22:59

    Wetherspoons get all the best buildings

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  3. Adrian Tierney-Jones26 July 2011 at 23:03

    Velky — after pubs, cinemas stir a passion within, out here int he southwest if you applied a beer rule to films I am left with the beer equivalents of Leffe and maybe London Pride if I am lucky. The nearest arts cinema is in Exeter and no one has showings of Renoir, Melville, Bresson or even the Boulting Bros out here.
    Zak at least they don’t know them down

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  4. Alistair Reece26 July 2011 at 23:24

    Try growing up the Outer Hebrides!! We had a Saturday morning special at the army camp and that was about it. I still remember getting on the bus to go and watch Popeye. First proper cinema I went to was as a 19 year old in Brum, to see Seven.

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  5. Tandleman27 July 2011 at 05:47

    Adrian - It is one of the lesser known services that JDW provide. Just let them know your favourite old cinema and they turn it into a pub for you. It's a brilliant idea.

    Now for the Rialto in Dumbarton .....

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  6. Adrian Tierney-Jones27 July 2011 at 08:38

    Velky — Saturday morning cinema, went once, didn’t enjoy it cause there were too many rough lads about, on the other hand we had three cinemas in Llandudno and two in Colwyn Bay, one of which used to show ‘Swedish’ films, which none of us had the guts to try and get into.
    Tandle exactly, the one in Llandudno is rather magnificent.

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  7. Simon Johnson27 July 2011 at 10:18

    Wetherspoons have done the same with the Picture House in Stafford, one of my old student haunts. I'd like to say it brought back fond memories of New German Cinema but the last thing I remember seeing there was Cocktail. And the view from the back row was often, ahem, obscured...

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  8. Adrian Tierney-Jones27 July 2011 at 10:37

    Simon: if I remember rightly Cocktail was appalling, remember writing a review of the video release and letting it have it with as many barrels as I could muster. Mind you, Fassbinder could go on for a while, all that keening and mooning about and angsting about the state of West Germany whilst dropping trousers…give me Wim Wenders any day (then that is not now)

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  9. beersiveknown27 July 2011 at 13:11

    I love that Wetherspoon (sorry to be pedantic ATJ ;)) are good at reopening pubs that have been closed for yonks and convert to pub use to preserve excellent buildings. See the Old courthouse in Coleraine for another spectacular building. http://tinyurl.com/biktwo

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