The Plaza Super Cinema and Variety Theatre

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

Stockport Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here. Most of the town is within ...

, England () opened in 1932 and is now a Grade II*

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 ...

. After being a bingo hall for many years, it has now been restored as a cinema and theatre, showing classic films and staging live shows.

Building

The building is in the Art Deco style, it was constructed in 1932 to a design by William Thornley. It opened as a cine-variety venue. It had an original seating capacity of 1878 (other sources say 1848)- and in its restored state has 614 seats in the stalls, 318 in the front circle and 254 in the rear circle (the balcony). The site involved cutting into the rock.

Compton Theatre Organ

To possess an original

Compton Organ John Compton (1876–1957), born in Newton Burgoland, Leicestershire was a pipe organ builder. His business based in Nottingham and London flourished between 1902 and 1965. Life John Compton was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham an ...

is rare, but the Plaza organ is notable in its own right. It was the first Compton Theatre Organ to be built with sunburst decorative glass panels. These can be illuminated in a range of colours. The Compton organ is a three

manual Manual may refer to: Instructions * User guide * Owner's manual * Instruction manual (gaming) * Online help Other uses * Manual (music), a keyboard, as for an organ * Manual (band) * Manual transmission * Manual, a bicycle technique similar to ...

instrument with a unique 150 stop tab layout which was designed for the Plaza and her sister cinema by Norman Cocker the resident organist from Manchester Cathedral and Arthur Ward one of the original Directors of the Stockport Plaza. It has in addition 42 toe and thumb pistons. There are 11 ranks of pipes situated in 2 chambers, one over the other to the right of the stage. These are concealed behind the decorative grill in the wall. There is no electric amplification, as the sound is produced acoustically straight from the organ pipes. The console is on a lift so that it can rise out of the floor, adding to the theatrical effect. As there is no amplification the organist controls the volume using swell pedals that operate shutters in the grill. It was played before shows, and during silent movies,

variety act Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

s and musical interludes between films. The organ can supply a large range of effects from sleigh bells to aircraft and sea sounds.

History

Early history

The first plans for a cinema on this site was made by William Thornley in 1929. It was a conservative scheme that incorporated a motor garage, a billiard hall, a restaurant with a 1600-seat cinema. Thornley, who had trained with

Bradshaw Gass & Hope Bradshaw Gass & Hope is an English architectural practice founded in 1862 by Jonas James Bradshaw (–1912). The style "Bradshaw Gass & Hope" was adopted after his death referring to the remaining partners John Bradshaw Gass and Arthur John Hope ...

was experienced in designing

silent movie ''Silent Movie'' is a 1976 American satirical comedy film co-written, directed by and starring Mel Brooks, released by 20th Century Fox in the summer of 1976. The ensemble cast includes Dom DeLuise, Marty Feldman, Bernadette Peters, and Sid Cae ...

cinemas. The owners of the site rejected the scheme. They had just opened the 1850 seat Regal Cinema, Altrincham which was designed by Drury and Gomersall and described as the ‘Cathedral of the Movies’. Thornley was commissioned to modify the Altrincham plans to fit on the more restricted Stockport site. 10,000 tonnes of sandstone was excavated to create The Plaza and the adjoining Plaza steps by outside labourers. The building was partially underground. The cinema was an

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

gem which was welcomed by the local cinema goers but opposed by the local business community, smarting from the use of outsiders when the town was still suffering from the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Technically the cinema had all the latest equipment the projectors that could project silent and sound stock, and a

Compton organ John Compton (1876–1957), born in Newton Burgoland, Leicestershire was a pipe organ builder. His business based in Nottingham and London flourished between 1902 and 1965. Life John Compton was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham an ...

to be played during the silent news reels. It was a cine-variety venue. The Plaza attracted competition and by 1939 there were two further super cinemas in the town centre- and two in the suburbs. After the war, in the 1950s The Plaza was refurbished and diversified into

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

and 3-D screenings. The conversion to a Bingo Hall was refused by Stockport Borough Council planning committee- this ruling was overturned by National government and

Rank Leisure The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment conglomerate founded by industrialist J. Arthur Rank in April 1937. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the United Kingdom, owning production, distribut ...

proceeded with their plan.

The Bingo Years

Bought in 1967, the Plaza operated as a Mecca Bingo Hall until 1999.

Restoration

The Plaza was sold to the Stockport Plaza Trust, first restorations started, and it re-opened for live shows and vintage film presentations. The first cinema show in December 2000 featured a performance of 42nd St which had been the first film shown at the Plaza in 1932. The

was found to be in working order, it was powered up and a performance of 1930s singalong music was given by Nigel Ogden. The Plaza was closed during 2009, and £1.9m restoration, funded by a National Lottery grant took place. Volunteers embarked on THE restoration of The Plaza to its original 1932 configuration. Most of the façade has now been unveiled and sports new name sign as well as red and green side panels, all constructed with neon lighting. The entire face has also been completely restored to its original cream ensemble.

Timeline

;Cinema 1929 (April): First Planning application made to Stockport Borough Council for the construction of Cinema, Mersey Square, Stockport. 1931: Construction of the Regal Cinema, Altrincham, designed by Drury and Gomersall for the Snape Cinema Circuit. 1932 (Oct): Cinema opens in Stockport 1937: Front Circle rake altered, balcony front raised, stage level raised 1949: Seven day programme introduced (same film for 7 days) 1953 (Aug): Large 48 ft.x 18 ft. projection screen installed 1953: Stockport's first 3D film presentation at - “Sangaree” 1954: first ‘CinemaScope’ presentation 1960: first Pantomime 'Babes in the Wood' featuring

The Dallas Boys The Dallas Boys were a five-piece vocal group from Leicester, England who were regular performers on British television in the 1950s and 1960s. They have been described as "Britain's first boy band". History The group formed in Leicester and com ...

1965 (July): purchased by the Mecca Group 1966 (Dec): closes as a cinema ;Bingo Hall 1967: Modifications to the auditorium to accommodate bingo; removal of roof tiling, loss of external verandah, neon lighting & signage. Flat floor insertion at rear of stalls, and alterations to foyer. Alterations to café area. 1967 (Feb): reopens as a Bingo Hall 1997 (Mar): Cinema listed grade II by English Heritage 1999: Cinema closes as a Bingo Hall ;Restored cinema 2000 (Aug): listing upgraded to II* by English Heritage 2000: Purchased by the Stockport Plaza Trust, first restorations started, and re opened for live shows and vintage film presentations. First cinema show in December 2000 featured a performance of 42nd St which had been the first film shown at the Plaza in 1932. There was also a variety performance, and Nigel Ogden of Radio 2's The Organist Entertains played the Compton Organ for a 1930s style singalong before the screening.( The organ had been found to be in full working order, only needing the power switched on to be used.) 2005: Further restoration plans begin 2007: The Heritage Lottery Fund approves an application for funding of £1.9m towards further restoration of the Plaza 2009 (Feb): Jimmy Carr officially closes the Plaza with two sell out shows and work begins on Restoration and Refurbishment of the Stockport Plaza 2009 (May): 'Plaza on Tour' commences - a host of events in alternative venues throughout the region during the Plaza's closure 2009 (Dec): The Plaza reopens following a £3.2 million restoration 2010 (Jan): 10 Years On Show featuring Plaza Volunteers and Youth, Joe Loss Orchestra and local talent staged to celebrate 10 Years on the saving of the Plaza. 2012 (Apr): Plaza obtains a venue licence enabling it to host wedding ceremonies, Louise Burchell & Ben Wainwright become the first to be wed at the Plaza Cinema, Stockport. 2013: Front Circle rake restored and balcony front lowered to original design, stage surface renewed 2014 (Jul/Aug): Brand new art deco seating cast from the original designs for the entire auditorium, removing the mixed origin seating. 2015 (May): Murals re-instated in Balcony of Wetherlam and Little Langdale Tarn in the Lake District. 2015 (Aug): Compton Organ restoration including the glass panel sides, pipes & bellows. 2016 (July): Murals re-instated in Stalls of musical instruments which include cymbals, tambourines, wind and various string instruments.

Filming location for

Used as filming location including:- *

Life on Mars (UK TV series) ''Life on Mars'' is a British television series broadcast on BBC One between 9 January 2006 and 10 April 2007. It tells the story of a Manchester police officer from 2006 (played by John Simm) who mysteriously finds himself working as a police o ...

(Season 2, Episode 6 - 2007) * The Maple State, Temperate Lives (2009) *

Just Henry ''Just Henry'' is a 2011 television film by ITV based on the 2008 Costa Book Award novel, ''Just Henry'' by Michelle Magorian. Plot Henry Dodge is a 15-year-old boy haunted by the tragic death of his father during World War II. Henry discovers ...

(2011) *

Eric and Ernie ''Eric and Ernie'' is a 2011 British television drama film based on the early career of the British comic double-act Morecambe and Wise. The film was produced by BBC Wales, completed in 2010, and premiered on BBC Two on 1 January 2011. It wa ...

(2011) *

Who Do You Think You Are? (UK TV series) ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' is a British genealogy documentary series that has aired on the BBC since 2004, in which celebrity participants trace their family history. It is made by the production company Wall to Wall. The programme has reg ...

(Series 10, Episode 3; Minnie Driver - 2013) * Messages Home: Lost films of the British Army (2016) * Road To Wembley (2016) *

Tina and Bobby ''Tina and Bobby'' is a British television series based on the relationship between footballer Bobby Moore and Tina Moore. The three-part series was first broadcast on 13 January 2017 on ITV (TV network), ITV. Premise The series follows the lif ...

(2017) * Time for Tea hort Film(2017) *

Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1910s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to middle-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...

(Series 5, episode 6 - 2019) as the Bingley Hall in Birmingham * Federal Charm, Can't Rule Me (2019) * Bargain Hunt (Series 54 Episode 22 - 2019) * The Stranger (2020) Netflix * Larkins, Are we having any fun yet (2020) * Jason Manford, Muddle Class (2020) * Blossoms live at the Plaza Stockport (2020) * A Certain Ratio "Keep It Together" music video (2021) * Blossoms "Care For" music video (2021) * Blossoms "Ribbon Around the Bomb" Album Short Film (2022)

Notes and references

;Notes ;Footnotes

External links

The Stockport Plaza official websiteThe Stockport Plaza official Facebook page
{{Buildings and structures in Stockport Borough Buildings and structures completed in 1933 Cinemas in Greater Manchester Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester Buildings and structures in Stockport Grade II* listed theatres Public venues with a theatre organ