The Empire / Odeon

Located in the High Street, opposite Marks & Spencer and opened on 1st August 1930, the cinema seated over 1,700 but closed in 1981. The building was later used by The Kings Church.

The history of the Empire begins well before 1930, with the settlement of the troops in Aldershot. The land on which the two cinemas were built, the Empire and the Ritz, was the area occupied by the Royal Engineers when they first came to Aldershot to build the Camp. In 1917 the Urban District Council tried to buy the RE Yard, as it was called, but without success. Then in 1927-28 the Aldershot Borough Council succeeded in the purchase of the RE Yard for the sum of 16,500. Construction of the Empire was well under way by the time the deal was finalised in 1930, and building was completed by 1st August 1930.

1930 was the heyday of the Cinema, and the Empire was a magnificent structure not only outside but inside too. It had a seating capacity equal to the Ritz if not slightly larger. In my photograph collection I have a photograph which shows the Empire under construction in 1930, with the R101 Airship flying overhead.

The cinema was built for both films and light entertainment. It had a Compton organ to the right of the stage, which was not over-used. The stalls were large, and the balcony was a horse-shoe shape to allow for two rows of chairs down either side of the theatre. Upstairs, over the main entrance, there was a restaurant serving teas and cakes. Downstairs, in the entrance foyer, the stairs to the left led up to the balcony and restaurant, whilst straight ahead was the sweet kiosk, with ticket booths and doors into the stalls on either side. On the third floor was the projection room, which was very spacious and was equipped with Kyle 21 projectors and a mono Western Electronics sound system. As time went on the cinema was rented to the J. Arthur Rank Organisation which resulted in the change of name to the Odeon.

As children, on Saturday mornings we would alternate between the Odeon and the Ritz to see which had the best line up, and go in to the show which took our fancy. Later on in life, I remember attending the late night film shows on Saturday nights, which started at midnight and went on until about 3.30 in the morning. Whenever I talk to people about the cinema, they are always enthusiastic about the 1930s. In those days you could have a good night out at the flicks for just three shillings, and this would include the bus fare, entrance to the cinema, sweets to eat and a portion of chips on the way home. Along with the main feature, there were newsreels and a "B" movie or cartoon to finish, and at the end everyone stood for the National Anthem.