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This is a short tribute to the Former Gaiety Cinema the pride of South Bristol
The Gaiety cinema on the Wells Road in Knowle was one of three which once served the whole south side of Bristol. It came from an era before gay had been arbitrarily snaffled by the kind of chaps our mothers warned us against, and was part of a wonderful network of neighbourhood cinemas across the city.
When it opened in 1933, it was described as 'a new super-cinema for a growing suburb'.
'One of the most attractive features of the cinema will be a dance hall where it is hoped to hold tea dances and whist drives' said the Evening Post. 'The interior decoration has been skilfully done by Mr Legg of Birmingham, a scenic artist whose beautiful work will be illuminated by floodlighting in four different colours. No expense has been spared.
There will be an imposing entrance, attractive panelling, concealed lighting, a special heating apparatus, an operating theatre built under the wide balcony, and the latest projector'.
The operating theatre sounds pretty impressive for a mere cinema but in fact it was the old term for the projection room. Having it under the balcony instead of at the back considerably lessened distortion, a real problem in old cinemas
We spent many Saturdays at the Gaiety. first with children's films and those endless travelogues which introduced us to Dwile Flonking in Dorset and The Wild Astrakahn Hunters of the Uzbekstan Mountains. God, they did go on ?
Then there were the Pearl and Dean adverts which even to a childish eye were crudely edited with the name of some local business tacked on the end of a catchall film sequence. How we jeered when the local greasy spoon was plugged with shots of a sophisticated restaurant with tablecloths - something which this particular cafe would have scorned as a waste of time and laundry. Later came the discovery of girls and the endless, fierce competition to get the back row seats before they were taken.
But the trend towards hooped skirts and layer upon layer of petticoats was disastrous for any males with their minds on anything but the film. Those seats had passion-killing hard arms between them anyway, and awkward hooped skirts were the last straw.
The Gaiety was opened by Mr F. G. W Chamberlain, proprietor of the Knowle Picture House and remained in the family until his son Denys sold it in 1991 to Hallmark Cinemas, another family concern. As a youngster growing up in the Whitchurch area of Bristol in the post-war years, the Gaiety was our cinema (always referred to simply as The Pictures, of course). It was an easy bike ride, with the added challenge of trying to get up Red Lion Hill without dismounting my drop handle barred Raleigh, and the Chamberlains made sure it was safe for unaccompanied children.
The Gaiety was always superior to the Knowle Picture House (the Flea Pit) where we only went as a last resort. Even at children's matinees, there was plenty of noise but none of the riotous behaviour you got at the Flea Pit.
There was also that wonderful in-between time when you could get away with travelling half fare on the buses by looking small and cute, before lowering the voice, standing on tip toes and claiming to be 16 at the box office.
The cinema was busy enough then that we usually got away with it. The main competition came from the rather grand Ritz in Brislington ( now a supermarket ) but the Gaiety was always a bit special, as most family owned concerns have to be if they are to survive.
It served its time, I suppose. The tea dances and whist had vanished long before I went and it did try updating with some success. It opened in 1933 with Jessie Matthews in The Good Companions. It closed in 1995 with Pulp Fiction and Four Weddings and a Funeral, killed off by the huge Showcase cinema with its 14 screens, American fast food and giant car park. Different age, different needs.
May 2003: Sadly I can now report that the Gaiety Cinema is no more it was pulled down and flats have been built on the site - interestingly, some of the Gaiety's loyal customers are living in the flats going up on the site...
A Blue Plaque now marks the spot: The Gaiety Cinema 1933-2000
On this site stood the GAIETY CINEMA, the last family owned cinema in Bristol which showed films to an estimated 8 million people - Corner of Crossways Rd and Wells Rd, Knowle, Bristol.
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