Why is cinema architecture not valued in the UK? That’s a question I often ask myself, and recently I have had cause to do so again with the news of two London developments that will wipe some historic picture palaces from the city forever. In both cases the culprit is the Odeon cinema chain – which may well be fanatical about film, but certainly doesn’t feel the same about cinemas (or about London).
The first blow came when I discovered that Odeon’s once impressive Marble Arch cinema is earmarked for redevelopment. This 1967 cinema was once the envy of Europe, with a massive curved screen (75 feet wide x 30 feet high), stunning 70mm print screenings and seating capacity for 1,360 in stalls and circle levels. Although the auditorium was carved up into five small screens in 1996, the cinema remains historic. Despite all of that, the Odeon Marble Arch’s days now appear to be limited. Developers Almacantar have unveiled plans for the redevelopment of Marble Arch Tower, to include a new Odeon cinema – and the demolition of the current one.
Then came the second blow, right at the heart of British cinema itself – Leicester Square. Two weeks ago the obliteration of one of Odeon’s Leicester Square cinemas was announced, which will make way for a 10-storey hotel-and-cinema complex. The art deco facade of the Odeon West End, one of the oldest cinemas in Leicester Square, will be replaced by the kind of generic city centre filler building that can be spotted anywhere from Liverpool to Milton Keynes.
The tragedy in both of these cases is that they show once again that cinemas are just not treasured at all as part of our national architectural heritage. The Odeon Marble Arch may only have been built in 1967 – but in 30 years time there will probably be no examples left of cinema architecture of that era – let alone those as iconic as this. By demolishing the Odeon West End, developers are depriving London and Leicester Square of a key building block of that historic part of town (supposedly a conservation area). I understand the need for progress, but I also understand the need for heritage and a sense of history. Is it not possible for developers to make lots of money and preserve the heritage of London? Must history be obliterated at every turn? And why must cinemas always be treated with far less respect than, say, theatres in the West End? Some of those theatres have had their battles to survive in the past – but cinemas seem to have far fewer vocal supporters.
Shame on you, Westminster Council, for supporting this erosion of heritage and shame on you, Odeon, for repeatedly showing no interest in your own heritage. Odeon did the same in Cheltenham, abandoning the historic art deco cinema there (where once the Beatles played, no less) and leaving it at the mercy of developers.
One final point on the Odeon Marble Arch – that grand slam of a cinema – right at the hear of London at the base of Oxford Street. Surely that cinema is an ideal candidate for an IMAX conversion, restoring it to a one screen cinema and securing a fine piece of modern London heritage at the same time? Obviously not. I will console myself with the thought that the-yet-to-be-built glass and steel replacements to these two cinemas will themselves be ripped down in 30 – 40 years when the Almacantar of the future can see the unimaginative designs for what they really are, and curse those unimaginative minds who allowed the destruction of their predecessors.
The London Review of Cinemas 