• Ep 1: The Ritz, Belfast - 1930s Cinema Boom, the Grand Opening and Gracie Fields

  • Sep 1 2024
  • Length: 31 mins
  • Podcast

Ep 1: The Ritz, Belfast - 1930s Cinema Boom, the Grand Opening and Gracie Fields

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    In the first episode of the Wonder Cinema podcast we go back to the 1930s to discuss the cinema boom and the grand opening of the Ritz, Belfast’s largest and most upmarket cinema.

    Cinema attendance grew rapidly in the 1930s and the Ritz, opened by British chain Union Cinemas, was one of many venues built to serve a growing audience of film fans in Belfast. We discuss the Ritz’s architectural style, cultural impact and the concerns many people had about this new ‘super cinema’. We then go back to 9 November 1936, the Ritz’s opening night, which featured a special appearance by Gracie Fields, possibly the biggest British box-office star of the 1930s.

    Links:

    Cinema Treasures - various pictures including the opening programme
    NMNI - Ritz exterior (1936)
    NMNI - Ritz interior (1936)
    NMNI - Ritz projection room (1936)


    Written and presented by Dr Sam Manning and Brian Henry Martin
    Music by Score Draw Music
    https://thewondercinema.buzzsprout.com
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