The Forum was built as 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 ...

cinema in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England, in 1934, and was designated as 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 ...

on 28 May 1986. The building closed as a cinema in 1969, and has subsequently been used as a dancing school, a bingo hall, a church and a large event space for concerts and stand-up comedy. Its main auditorium has 1,600 seats, making it Bath's largest event venue.

Building

The Forum was built by

William Henry Watkins William Henry Watkins (19 March 1862 – 29 July 1924) was a British co-operative activist. Born in Plymouth, Watkins studied at Plymouth Public School and the Apprentices School, then took politics and economics through the University of Oxfo ...

and E Morgan Willmott, assisted by A Stuart Gray, at the cost of £80,000 () with a steel frame covered by

Bath Stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate. Originally obtained from the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its honey colouring gives the World Heritage City of ...

cladding in a combination of

and neo-classical style. Inside the walls are brick with concrete floors, with large art deco

candelabra A candelabra (plural candelabras) or candelabrum (plural candelabra or candelabrums) is a candle holder with multiple arms. Although electricity has relegated candleholders to decorative use, interior designers continue to model light fixtures ...

lighting. Above the auditorium is a ballroom with a

sprung floor A sprung floor is a floor that absorbs shocks, giving it a softer feel. Such floors are considered the best kind for dance and indoor sports and physical education, and can enhance performance and greatly reduce injuries. Modern sprung floors are s ...

and below it on the exterior of the building are shops. The building was heated by radiators, but also by washed air, a novelty in the 1930s.

History

The Forum initially sat 2000 and was opened on 19 May 1934 by the

Marquis of Bath Marquess of Bath is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1789 for Thomas Thynne, 3rd Viscount Weymouth. The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles Baron Thynne, of Warminster in the County of Wiltshire, and Viscount Weymouth ...

and was used as a cinema until 1969 when it was home to a dancing school and bingo hall. The building is owned by Bath and North East Somerset Council, and from 1988 is let on a 700-year term lease to the Bath Christian Trust as the home of Life Church Bath - formerly known as Bath City Church. It currently has 1600 seats, making it Bath's largest venue for events and so is also used for concerts, performances and presentations. The Forum has undergone a programme of extensive renovations under the supervision of Stubbs Rich Architects. In 2014, the Bath Christian Trust put together plans to convert part of The Forum's ground floor into a café which is now open.

References

External links

The Forum website

Life Church Bath
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forum, Bath, The Buildings and structures completed in 1934 Grade II* listed buildings in Bath, Somerset Art Deco architecture in England Former cinemas in England Cinemas in Somerset Culture in Bath, Somerset 1934 establishments in England