The Regal Cinema

The Regal Cinema was a cinema on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. Opened in 1932, the cinema was situated within the village of Fortuneswell, until it was demolished during the 1990s after becoming a victim of suspected arson.

History

Portland originally had two cinemas during the early 20th-century; one at Easton, named Easton Palace, which opened in 1915, and another at Victoria Square. Both were owned by Albany Ward, who owned a number of cinemas in the West Country and the Channel Islands. When silent movies began to give way to 'talkies', a new luxury cinema, The Regal Cinema, was built during 1932, within close proximity to St. John's Church, at the northern end of Fortuneswell. It was built by the fairground family Herberts, in an Art Deco style typical of the period. The same period coincided with Portland becoming recognised by big film makers for its scenery.^[1] The cinema was one of four within the local area of Portland, Weymouth and Dorchester, alongside The Gaumont in Weymouth, the Odeon in Weymouth (both owned by the Rank organisation), and the Plaza in Dorchester.^[2]

The Regal proved to be a popular attraction. During World War II the cinema remained open, and queues often stretched far outside the entrance.^[3] However the cinema began to suffer with the advent of television. In 1961, The Regal was the first of the local cinemas to close, directly due to falling attendance.^[2] In response to this, the cinema attempted to boost its number of customers by specialising in the screening of 'X' Certificate films, largely targeted towards sailors of the Royal Navy.^[4] This incarnation of the cinema continued throughout the 1960s, and finally closed in the early 1970s.^[5] Once the cinema's days of screening films had passed, the building was transformed into a popular Bingo hall during the 1970s, run by Bob Tibble, who also ran bingo at Weymouth's Sidney Hall.

In October 1987, the site's owner Bill Coldwell had submitted a planning application to demolish the cinema, and erect 15 flats. This was withdrawn.^[6] The following year, in November 1988, saw another application to demolish the building, and its related accommodation, for the construction of 15 self-contained flats with garaging. This was approved, but never carried out.^[7][8] Instead Coldwell rented the building to two tenants, who during the early 1990s transformed the cinema into a nightclub named Rumours. This revived new interest into the building, which itself was repainted light blue, in contrast to its original beige colour. Once particularly notable feature of the club was a large model aircraft hung from the ceiling of the dance floor.^[4] This feature was a reference to the vital part Portland played during World War II.

In August/September 1992, Rumours caught fire one evening, and suffered major damage, damaging 95 percent of the building, though it was closed at the time, and no injuries occurred. At first early witnesses of the fire had heard what they believed to be car alarms, until further investigation saw the building alight. The fire services were at the scene by 2am on 1 September. With surrounding neighbours evacuated, a team of 40 firemen were needed to control the fire, which was revealed to consist of 30 foot flames. The entire interior was decimated by the fire, and with the fire successfully put out after three hours, work began on removing the majority of the building's remaining shell, including the facade. A mobile crane was brought to the site, after police closed the road to traffic.^[9]

The damage caused was valued at over £175,000, and police announced it to be arson. An investigation was launched, but the culprits were never caught.^[9] As one of a number of buildings on Portland to suffer from outbreaks of fire and suspected arson, a greengrocer's shop and takeaway, within close proximity opposite to the nightclub, were also victims of fire, but on different nights. The takeaway had been destroyed in April 1992.^[10]

In the Dorset Echo of 1 September, Weymouth police's Chief Inspector Alex Gracie had commented: "We are still investigating the blaze in liaison with the fire brigade. The club was not open for business at the time and no-one was hurt. Neighbours were evacuated for safety reasons but the fire was contained within the building." A spokesman for the fire brigade revealed: "There is not much left of the building. The fire damaged 95 percent of it and we will be pulling the front down today. The cause of the fire is not yet known." An eyewitness from Ventor Road was quoted: "The firemen had to go round the back because they couldn't break down the front door with their axes. It was like watching fireworks and there was so much smoke. The flames were around 30ft. high through the top floors."^[11]

In February 1994, Coldwell submitted a new planning application to demolish the remains of the nightclub, and replace it with 15 flats and associated car parking. However this application ended up being withdrawn.^[12] In the Dorset Echo, dated 4 August 1994, it was reported that Bill Coldwell, then the general manager of Weymouth Football Club, was fined by court due to the breach of a council order to demolish or restore the fire-ravaged nightclub. Coldwell had been given six months to take action by council planners. He admitted breaching the enforcement, and was ordered to pay a fine of £500, and an additional £285 of costs by Weymouth magistrates. Coldwell's defence had explained he was recovering from a heart attack at the time when the fire destroyed the nightclub, but that he was still making current progress at the site. It was also revealed Coldwell, now with no rental income from the site, was left with a debt of £80,000 from a loan, as the nightclub's insurance company had disputed the insurance claim. When Coldwell initially opted to demolish the site, it was revealed that the work had to be carried out manually due to the position of the building. The council refused a letter from Coldwell requesting the council undertake the work for him, and then charge him accordingly.^[13]

In June 1998 an application to erect a three-storey building providing six flats was approved the following month.^[14] The site was soon cleared completely, and the new development replaced it. However it had been agreed to place these houses further back from the road, which allowed St. John's Church to be seen more clearly from the road.^[4]

References

Coordinates: 50°33′39″N 2°26′39″W / 50.5609°N 2.4442°W / 50.5609; -2.4442