King's Hall is a former cinema, now a bingo club, in

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England. Dating from 1911, it was later called the Gaumont and remained a cinema until 1960. It has been a bingo club since 1961, from 2018 named Buzz Bingo.

History

The King's Hall was the first purpose-built cinema in Dover, with the frontage in Biggin Street, and the cinema extending into the ground behind. It was designed by A.H. Steele for Dover’s Picture Palace Co. Ltd, and seated 800; there was also a stage for live entertainment. The cinema opened in October 1911, showing a film in

Kinemacolor Kinemacolor was the first successful colour motion picture process. Used commercially from 1909 to 1915, it was invented by George Albert Smith in 1906. It was a two-colour additive colour process, photographing a black-and-white film behind ...

of the unveiling of the

Victoria Memorial The Victoria Memorial is a large marble monument in the Maidan in Central Kolkata (Calcutta), having its entrance on the Queen's Way. It was built between 1906 and 1921 by the British Raj. It is dedicated to the memory of Queen Victoria, the ...

in London."Gaumont Dover"
''Cinema Treasures''. Retrieved 11 February 2025."King’s Hall, Gaumont Cinema and Gala Bingo Hall – Biggin Street"
''The Dover Historian''. Retrieved 11 February 2025. During the First World War the cinema was acquired by Harry Day, a theatrical entrepreneur and later a politician, who owned it until 1928. Because of increased competition in Dover, the cinema was refurbished in 1931, with seating for 1,050. In 1934 it was acquired by

Gaumont-British The Gaumont-British Picture Corporation was a British company that produced and distributed films and operated a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. It was established as an offshoot of France's Gaumont (company), Gaumont. Film production Gaumo ...

, and new sound equipment was installed. On 29 December 1937, most of the building was destroyed in a fire, with only the entrance façade saved. It was rebuilt in 1939 for the new owners Keystone Cinemas Ltd, to the designs of Verity & Beverley, architects of many cinemas in the 1920s and 1930s."History"
''Verity & Beverley''. Retrieved 11 February 2025. It was requisitioned by the Royal Navy during the Second World War, and was used to train recruits in the use of gunnery aiming equipment. In 1943 it was taken over by

Odeon Cinemas Odeon Cinemas Limited, trading as Odeon (stylised in all caps), is a cinema brand name operating in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway and Greece, which along with UCI Cinemas and Nordic Cinema Group is part of the Odeon Cinemas Group subsi ...

. It re-opened on 14 July 1947 with the film '' Frieda''; David Farrar, who starred in the film, made a personal appearance. The name of the cinema changed to Gaumont in 1951. It closed in 1960, and opened the following year as a bingo club; from 2018 it was named Buzz Bingo.

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures completed in 1911 Buildings and structures in Dover, Kent Cinemas in Kent