Cinemas in Faversham and Sittingbourne

From the collection of

Screen Archive South East at the University of Brighton collects, preserves, catalogues and provides public access to its collection of films and magic lantern slides. The collection charts the rise of screen culture in the region and the nation and captures many aspects of life, work and creativity in the South East from the late 19th century to the present day. It is available for research, screenings, creative re-use and commercial access.

Cinemas in Faversham and Sittingbourne

Screen Archive South East at the University of Brighton
Faversham
1987-01-01
Sound
3m

Filmmaker Alan Stingemore seeks out cinemas past and present in the Kentish towns of Faversham and Sittingbourne, capturing a variety of architectural styles and the era of bingo taking over the big screen.

We start in Faversham's Market Square where we see the New Royal cinema, bingo hall and social centre. Built in a mock-Tudor style, the building blends in well with its surroundings. The decorative plasterwork gives a clue to the original owner. At Preston Street we see a baroque-style shop facade that was once the Gem Cinema before we end at the Cannon Cinema in Sittingbourne with its Moderne-style frontage. A couple at the entrance look at posters before moving on.

Silver Screens: A Century of Cinemagoing

From the picture palaces of the past to modern multiplexes...

The cinema has always been so much more than just a place to watch films. At the heights of its powers, the silver screen stood for spectacle, sophistication, electricity and elegance as well as entertainment, and the very venues themselves were star attractions. These architectural marvels stood proud in cities and towns up and down the country, enthralling audiences in their thousands in the days when "going to the pictures" was a national pastime.

For over a century, cinema has endured, and cinemas have changed with the times. The rise of television, video and home cinemas may have splintered the cultural dominance of the movies while bringing films to smaller and more convenient screens, but the thrill of the communal experience remains - as do many of the monumental structures themselves, whether they have been converted into bingo halls, renovated into plush modern picture houses, or left to loom over the high street.

This collection celebrates the cinema as both a cultural icon and a haven for generations of starry-eyed dreamers, and documents the changing face of filmgoing from the bygone bioscopes and the lavish picture palaces of yesteryear to the sticky-floored multiplexes of today. So dim the lights, grab your popcorn, and lose yourself in the magic of the silver screen.