The Hippodrome, Bo'ness

The sun shone and Kryptomart and I had a great afternoon in Bo'ness firstly, having a good wander in the town before going to the Hippodrome cinema to see Ewan MacGregor in 'Salmon Fishing in the Yemen'.

The Hippodrome Cinema in Bo'ness near Falkirk is an early example of a purpose-built cinema and thought to be the oldest such building surviving in Scotland. The cinema, which opened in 1912, was built for the Bo'ness cinematography pioneer Louis Dickson and designed by renowned local architect Matthew Steele.

The name and the circular form of the building that Steele produced for Dickson might suggest that it was originally designed as a circus or theatre venue for travelling shows, but the earliest known plans, dated October 1911, show no evidence of this. They do, however, show a dedicated Operators box for a projector and are labelled 'Proposed Picture Palace, Hope Street'.

Constructed on a corner site, the Hippodrome consists of a circular auditorium with wrap-around gallery facing a proscenium and small stage. What little ancillary space was wrapped around this filled in the corners of the site. The October 1911 plans show that at this stage the lavatories were 'to be built later'. The flat roof was supported on three girders, running parallel to the screen.

In 1926, the cinema underwent various transformations by the original architect, including adding a domed roof and ticket office. The building remained in use as a cinema until the mid 70's when it was turned into a bingo hall which it remained until its closure in 1980.

Following a number of years of delapidation, restoration took place and 0n April 9 2009, the cinema finally opened its doors again to the public - a reminder of the golden age of cinema!

P.S. the film was wonderful and is well worth a view!