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Star Cinema Gravelly Hill Picture House

oldMohawk

oldMohawk

gone but not forgotten
Slade Road at the junction with George Road. I have not yet found out what that unusual looking building to the right of the tram was.
SladeRdErd.jpg
 
no idea what that building was phil...gone now but it looks like it was on the ground where either the brookvale pub is now..next to the pub is a tyre fitters so it could have been on that ground...brookvale pub was built in 1934 and that photo looks to be taken after that..
 
oldMohawk said:
Slade Road at the junction with George Road. I have not yet found out what that unusual looking building to the right of the tram was.
View attachment 108367
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The question intrigues me having lived around the area for about 50 years. It seems that it has been demolished and replaced by ATS tyre fitters. The Slade Road Primary School still stands. Such a distinctive building that remains in my mind's eye, but never noticed it had disappeared, and never new what it was!
 
Just a quick look on the OS Map for 1902 shows that the school had not yet been built, and there was a gap in the buildings from George Road to Bloomfield Road. In 1913 the school appears but the gap has not yet been filled. 1933 shows the development along to Bloomfield Road.
 
image.jpeg

Thanks for that Morturn. I think it would not have been forgotten if the rose window had not been removed!

The above advert shows it was built by the Star Picture Palace (Gravelly Hill) Company and advertised as the Star. I would suggest that it was always known as the Star, contrary to the info claiming that it was re-named in 1946, the Gravelly Hill being in brackets.

I can't as yet find anything to suggest that it is linked to the Villa Cross picture house, but it seems likely, but maybe under a differently formed Company
 
i agree pedrocut i think that distintive building was most likely where ATS is now...it should not be too difficult to find out what the building was...a kellys look up should solve it

lyn
 
The opening of Bosco's New Picture House at Villa Cross was advertised in May 1915 (not 1913 as stated in Cinema Treasures), and built from designs of C Sharp-Smith, architect, Bull Street, Birmingham.
 
Pedrocut said:
View attachment 108371

Thanks for that Morturn. I think it would not have been forgotten if the rose window had not been removed!

The above advert shows it was built by the Star Picture Palace (Gravelly Hill) Company and advertised as the Star. I would suggest that it was always known as the Star, contrary to the info claiming that it was re-named in 1946, the Gravelly Hill being in brackets.

I can't as yet find anything to suggest that it is linked to the Villa Cross picture house, but it seems likely, but maybe under a differently formed Company
Click to expand...
Many`s the time i`ve ridden out of the Star cinema on my trusty steed, six gun in each hand, blasting away at any baddy that crossed my path, & then the sherrif would catch up with me & tell me to get out of town by sunset. When i got a bit older i used to do the same thing in the Brookvale pub which was next door to the Star. I`m still the village idiot at 73!
 
sorry mort i missed your post...so now we know that the building was the star cinema..thanks mort

lyn
 
I was going to write that it definitely was the Star until I spotted Morturn's post. Dad lived in Bridge Road, off Copeley Hill, buried now beneath Spaghetti. The Star was a frequent haunt for Dad and Mom before the war. They also used a paying lending library just round the corner in George Road. It would've been on the right hand side of the curve as you went up. They were both avid readers and think it was 1d to borrow a book. Perhaps it had more up to date books than the council libraries. Dad went to Slade Road school (now called Slade School - anyone know why the name change? Is it supposed to sound posher?
 
I lived in Hillside road down on the right past the school from '62 to '87, was that building by the tram a cinema, the Star or similar name, my memory, unfortunately, not what it was. Eric
 
I love the gas heated washing machine. Wheelers were still trading in recent years, now operating out of the old George Stubbings yard on Short Heath.

It would be interesting look up the addresses of these traders to see how they look now.
 
Many thanks to Mark Tooze for posting those 1937 adverts for local businesses that were shown at the Star picture house.

I remember Bon Marche still being open in the 60/70s, as was The Stockland Garage (shown below), my Nan took me on a few day trips to the seaside with the "Sons of Rest" who were based at Brookvale Park and who frequently booked an Andy's coach for the day). My grandmother also used to mention having been to Doreen's clothes shop and Wheelers were still at the foot of Streetly Road until quite recently.

I also remember as a schoolboy seeing what remained of the poster from what I had guessed was the last film shown at the Star cinema, which had starred Jack Hawkins. The cinema front looked like the photo below back in the 60s.

1640020792532.png 1640021114798.png
 
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