Electric Cinema (Notting Hill)
Encyclopedia
The Electric Cinema is a movie theatre in Notting Hill
, London
, and one of the oldest working cinemas in the country.
's Portobello Road
on 24 February 1910 and was one of the first buildings in Britain
to be designed specifically for motion picture exhibition. It was built shortly after its namesake the Electric Cinema in Birmingham
, which predates it by around two months. The cinema was soon eclipsed by the huge picture palaces that became fashionable during the 1930s but, despite being shuttered for brief periods, it has remained in almost continual use until the present day.
Designed by architect Gerald Seymour Valentin in the Edwardian Baroque style, it originally opened as the Electric Cinema Theatre, and later became the Imperial Playhouse cinema in 1932. By this time the Portobello Road
area had become rather run down, along with the rest of Notting Hill
. The notorious mass murderer John Christie
(1899–1953) of nearby 10 Rillington Place is said to have worked at the Electric as a projectionist
during the late 1940s.
In the late 1960s it changed its name again, becoming the Electric Cinema Club, showing mostly independent and Avant Garde movies. Its fortunes however did not improve and thereafter it opened and closed several times without finding commercial success. It closed in 1993 and thereafter began to fall into disrepair.
Sasha Gebler persuaded RBKC planners that consent for a restaurant was necessary to create a viable mixed use scheme that would secure the future of the Grade II* listed cinema in its intended use. By 2001 the combined redevelopment was complete, costing roughly £2 million, funded by local resident and entrepreneur Peter Simon (founder of Monsoon
) who owned 191B and bought out European Estates in 2000. On reopening in February 2001 the cinema was briefly run by City Screen of Clapham Picture House but on completion of the restaurant, the whole development was leased to Soho House
. Gebler Tooth installed wide leather seats and sofas, a bar in the auditorium and a full size wide screen that mechanically unfurls from inside the listed classical proscenium arch. Cinema, restaurant and an upstairs private members club Electric House have all enjoyed great success since and the Electric is now one of London's favourite cinemas.
It is a Grade II* Listed building.
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is an area in London, England, close to the north-western corner of Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and one of the oldest working cinemas in the country.
History
The Electric Cinema first opened in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's Portobello Road
Portobello Road
Portobello Road is a street in the Notting Hill district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London, England. It runs almost the length of Notting Hill from south to north, roughly parallel with Ladbroke Grove. On Saturdays it is home to Portobello Road Market, one of London's...
on 24 February 1910 and was one of the first buildings in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to be designed specifically for motion picture exhibition. It was built shortly after its namesake the Electric Cinema in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, which predates it by around two months. The cinema was soon eclipsed by the huge picture palaces that became fashionable during the 1930s but, despite being shuttered for brief periods, it has remained in almost continual use until the present day.
Designed by architect Gerald Seymour Valentin in the Edwardian Baroque style, it originally opened as the Electric Cinema Theatre, and later became the Imperial Playhouse cinema in 1932. By this time the Portobello Road
Portobello Road
Portobello Road is a street in the Notting Hill district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London, England. It runs almost the length of Notting Hill from south to north, roughly parallel with Ladbroke Grove. On Saturdays it is home to Portobello Road Market, one of London's...
area had become rather run down, along with the rest of Notting Hill
Notting Hill
Notting Hill is an area in London, England, close to the north-western corner of Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea...
. The notorious mass murderer John Christie
John Christie (murderer)
John Reginald Halliday Christie , born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, was a notorious English serial killer active in the 1940s and '50s. He murdered at least eight females – including his wife Ethel – by strangling them in his flat at 10 Rillington Place, Notting Hill, London...
(1899–1953) of nearby 10 Rillington Place is said to have worked at the Electric as a projectionist
Projectionist
A Projectionist is a person who operates a movie projector. In the strict sense of the term this means any movie projector and therefore could include someone who operates the projector in a home video show or school. In common usage the term is generally understood to describe a paid employee of...
during the late 1940s.
In the late 1960s it changed its name again, becoming the Electric Cinema Club, showing mostly independent and Avant Garde movies. Its fortunes however did not improve and thereafter it opened and closed several times without finding commercial success. It closed in 1993 and thereafter began to fall into disrepair.
Modern era and revival
In the late 1990s local property developer European Estates and architect Gebler Tooth Architects, who had developed the Travel Bookshop nearby, acquired the site. Four years of planning followed in which Gebler Tooth developed the plan that would re-establish the commercial viability of the theatre. The critical element was acquiring the shop next door which would provide space for greatly upgraded WCs and air conditioning plant and a restaurant.Sasha Gebler persuaded RBKC planners that consent for a restaurant was necessary to create a viable mixed use scheme that would secure the future of the Grade II* listed cinema in its intended use. By 2001 the combined redevelopment was complete, costing roughly £2 million, funded by local resident and entrepreneur Peter Simon (founder of Monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
) who owned 191B and bought out European Estates in 2000. On reopening in February 2001 the cinema was briefly run by City Screen of Clapham Picture House but on completion of the restaurant, the whole development was leased to Soho House
Soho House
Soho House , Matthew Boulton's home in Handsworth, Birmingham, England, is now a museum , celebrating his life, his partnership with James Watt and his membership of the Lunar Society of Birmingham. It was designed by Samuel Wyatt and work on the current building began in 1789...
. Gebler Tooth installed wide leather seats and sofas, a bar in the auditorium and a full size wide screen that mechanically unfurls from inside the listed classical proscenium arch. Cinema, restaurant and an upstairs private members club Electric House have all enjoyed great success since and the Electric is now one of London's favourite cinemas.
It is a Grade II* Listed building.
External links
Retrieved November 2010- article on the Electric Cinema at cinematreasures.org Retrieved November 2010
- The Rediscovery of London's Electric Cinema, Sunday Times 04.03.01 Retrieved November 2010
- Electric Cinema at cinematour.org Retrieved November 2010
- review of the newly refurbished Electric Cinema Retrieved November 2010