Recent content by brianthelion

I’ll know more after a meeting Monday hopefully but it may be a while before I complete anything!

Hi all, am doing something about the history of the electric cinema and was wondering if anyone knows what was the first film shown in 1909 when it opened and what was the very last film to end the current life of this fine place in 2024?

White Horse Cellars now an off licence. Post in thread 'Ghost signs of Birmingham' https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/ghost-signs-of-birmingham.40355/post-621866

Hence the interlinked M's on the door photo earlier. So much trouble taken in those days.

It's the details that make it rather impressive which you can easily miss as you walk past.

Following on from yesterday's posts on the weather vane. I've had a good look around Aquinas House just now and attach some pics of nice features. I'm sure the weather vane is actually two faces now! The one with the arrow is blowing the storm away in the direction of the arrow. This fits in...

Right here's my ultimate speculation! I think the face is Thomas Aquinas (A canonised Saint). One of his Sisters was killed by lightning and he developed a great fear of thunderstorms as a result. An obvious candidate to be the face on this weathervane, which I suspect doubles as a lightning...

The weather vane is rather interesting. I'd be interested in what people think it is!

Don’t entirely disagree but I was very pleased with my efforts on this one, an old photo of the regulars outside the Vampire Pub.

Ta, so to make the last 16 was some achievement even if I messed things up.

The roof leaked badly for several years, as they do when the slates have been stolen and I wouldn’t be surprised if some load bearing walls were tampered with when the fittings were removed.

Urban myth has it that the interior was stolen to order for an American client.

kung fu dominoes, knock if you can’t go….

I wasn’t living in Birmingham in 1980 but remember trekking to Birmingham with my brother to play in a national domino tournament. I’m sure it was at the old Locarno night club. I know it was 1980 as Ian Wallace moved from Coventry to Forest that week as we were reading it in the paper queuing...