Picture palaces of my youth

Its that time of the year when you say farewell to the Old and hello to the new. I guess its also time for thinking about the past and how you arrived at this point in your life. In my case and in keeping with this blog its a look back at the Picture palaces of my youth.

  My cinema going in Cardiff was based around price and convenience back in the 70's. I grew up on a council estate in Llanederyn , it was a time when suburban cinemas were still in existence. Such as the County cinema in Rumney, The Plaza and my particular local the Globe in Wellfield Rd.
     City centre cinemas were more costly during that time and the Globe was the first cinema on my local bus route. It was popular with students, OAP's and families as it was cheaper than going to the city center and it nearly always showed double bills. It was here that I saw Planet of the Apes and Escape from the Planet of the Apes when the television series boosted their appeal. It was cheap because it always showed films after the city center cinemas, end of run features and also old movies such as Zulu , the Carry on Films and On the Buses. Also it only did evening shows and they usually kicked off at 5.30 in the evening which made it convenient for my father who nearly always took me to the cinema leaving my mother to look after my younger brother.
    Here I saw Sinbad, Jason and the Argonauts. As we approached the early eighties it was here that I saw my first X film before I was old enough legitimately to see them. Nearly always in double bills for example
Friday the 13th with a obscure horror the Pack. Alien and the Entity and Poltergiest.
Its interior was tired, it was originally built in 1916 as the Penylan cinema and it closed on 25th May 1985. Ken and Ingrid Wardle were the managers and it is due to them that it lasted as long as it did. Theres a little film the Smallest show on Earth a Peter Sellers, Margaret Rutherford film that makes me fondly think back to this little picture palace. I remember its musty smell, aged and unforgiving seats and its old silver screen, tired but still up to the job.

     In honorable mention the Grandest cinema of my youth was the Cardiff Capitol this was the place I would go to for Saturday morning picture shows, James Bond films the last one being the Spy Who love me and the Herbie films. It had a large grande foyer large enough for them to have a Lotus Esprit on display. Its interior was fantasatic and its Auditorium was really grande. My fondest memory being when my father took me to see At the Earths Core there. What made this special was the fact that a visit here usually ended with a visit to the steak house next door.

Fond memories indeed.