Exploring The Abbeydale Picture House with Katharine L. Butchers

Urban Tiger Radio

I was privileged to be asked to attend an interview in the Abbeydale Picture House, Abbeydale Rd., Sheffield, by Katharine L. Butchers, a student at Sheffield University studying the social aspects of life in the 50's and 60's particularly, although the history of this building stretches back to 1920 when it was built as a Variety Theatre. The Cinema is a colossus of a building that straddles the top of a small hill, dominating the entire surrounding area with it's outer shell of white stone. Lit up outside at night, as it remains in my memory, complete with a wrought iron, glazed shelter under which to stand while queueing in the rain for the next must-see Hollywood Blockbuster, this cinema was a magnet for all at the south side of town.