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Original Text (Annotation: EAW034999 / 880057)
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Victoria Cinematograph Theatre, New North Road, N1 - 1912 to 1957
The building that sits on the corner of New North Road and Ecclesbourne Road has always looked like something of a box, both today when it is an apartment block and even when it was the Victoria Cinematograph Theatre, which stood on the same site until 2001/2002 when it was demolished. The Victoria Cinematograph Theatre was another cinema built by the architectural firm Lovegrove & Papworth, however perhaps not one of their most attractive.
Back in the day before the Victoria had ‘talkies’ (1929) the cinema had a live orchestra to accompany the silent film screenings; it is easy to imagine that this must have been quite a boisterous affair, given that ‘Cloggy (John Clogg), the Victoria’s pianist, was a bit of a comedian; sometimes he’d play a sweet melody during a fight scene, and, when the hero and heroine finally embraced, he’d belt out a stirring [sic] march. The audience would demonstrate their appreciation with a show of orange peel and peanut shells!‘* Mr Katz, the cinema manager in 1920s, went to great length to ensure that going to the pictures at the Victoria something of a special event, for example not content to have just instrumental music play with the films, he employed live vocalists to accompany the film screening. At other times there would be competitions where audience members might find themselves lucky enough to be the spot-prize winner – the prize a pair of kippers!
Many cinemas in the early days of film production faced the danger of fire due to sparks – from the often-cranky projectors – coming in contact with the highly flammable cellulose nitrate film stock that was used at the time. The Victoria was no exception to these types of fires, thankfully though most were quite small; however information contained in the London County Council (LCC) reports state ‘a fire of more than ordinary interest’ did take place at around 11pm the 27th November 1916. The fire report indicates that the 14 year old assistant projectionist who was on duty alone in the projection box at the time removed a lose bit of carbon from the projector and dipped it in water to cool it down; carbon arc illumination was the norm at this stage and removing bits of lose carbon was all part of the job of film projection. Unfortunately, though, the boy had not cooled the carbon enough so when it was placed on the bench the heat from it ignited some film cuttings that were sitting close by. Quickly trying to put out the burning strips of film the boy brushed them off the bench, but what bad luck when they fell into a box with several spools of film that also quickly ignited making matters far worse. By now the senior projectionist had returned but he neither was able to put the fire out, the cinema was evacuated and we can only presume the fire brigade attended and put the fire out but not before an explosion took place that blew out the windows in the projection booth with such force that a piece of wired glass broke a window on the opposite side of New North Road!
Throughout the 45 years of its life the Victoria survived as an independent cinema, first under the direction of the Essex Road Cinemas Ltd, then Clissold Cinemas and finally by the time it closed in 1958 Seco Cineshows Ltd. This was quite some achievement really given that it was a rather plain building surrounded by a number of luxurious ‘picture-palaces’ within walking distance, including the lavish Carlton Cinema on Essex Road.
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