The Majestic Cinema is a

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King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...

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History

The Majestic Cinema was built in 1928 and run by Ernest Ralph Adams of Ripley House, King's Lynn. He worked closely with the architects John Lewis Carnell and William Dymoke White in the design and construction of the Majestic. Mr. Adams bought the contents of the Empire Theatre, Leicester Square, London (which was being demolished) and these, once restored, formed part of the interior of the Majestic. The 'Picture House' (as it was initially known) opened on May 23rd, 1928 with the silent film version of 'Ben Hur', starring Ramon Navarro. The ownership of the cinema later passed to Union and subsequently ABC Cinemas. The original ballroom was used as a venue by King George V for his Sandringham Hunt Balls.

2001: Multiplex demolition proposal

In , a scheme to demolish the Majestic Cinema and build a

Multiplex Multiplex may refer to: * Multiplex (automobile), a former American car make * Multiplex (comics), a DC comic book supervillain * Multiplex (company), a global contracting and development company * Multiplex (assay), a biological assay which measur ...

in its place was denied. The plans were submitted to the Borough Council of King's Lynn and West Norfolk by SMM Investments. Objectors to the cinemas demolition included the Lynn Civic Society, the national Cinema and Theatre Association,

the Theatres Trust The Theatres Trust is the National Advisory Public Body for Theatres in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1976 by an Act of Parliament to "promote the better protection of theatres for the benefit of the nation". The Trust has played a leadi ...

and councillor Dr Paul Richards. The owner of the Majestic Cinema at the time, Tony Rowlett stated in an interview with Lynn News: It was made a

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

in following lobbying by the Lynn's Civic Society. A report explaining the plans refusal stated:

References

External links

{{official website, http://www.majestic-cinema.co.uk/ Cinemas in Norfolk Grade II listed buildings in Norfolk King's Lynn