• Welcome to this forum . We are a worldwide group with a common interest in Birmingham and its history. While here, please follow a few simple rules. We ask that you respect other members, thank those who have helped you and please keep your contributions on-topic with the thread.

    We do hope you enjoy your visit. BHF Admin Team

Futurist Theatre

I last went there to see "Chariots of Fire" with my wife 40 years ago. Such a pity that it is no longer a cinema and became first a "gentleman's club" :eek: and now a "shisha bar" (or den), amazing that two such establishments were able to occupy such a prime location in the city centre. Some pictures below showing it's current use, apparently it involves "patrons sharing shisha "flavoured tobacco" from a communal hookah (pipe) or from one at a table or at the bar." Not quite the story of Eric Liddell and Harold Abraham's quest for 1924 Olympic gold, so I'm afraid it's a big No for me... ;)

images
images
images
 
I took a girlfriend to see Ghostbusters there in 1984, and I’m sure I saw a few other films there too. “The Pictures” was an ideal place for a young chap to take a girl even in the twilight days of the cinemas, especially on a first date. Grand old buildings, dark and cozy with threadbare seats, still with a slight touch of formality perhaps with the usherettes serving ice creams during the interval. The first time I went to a modern cinema I was dismayed, it was like buying paint at B&Q. Walking through bland, featureless corridors to find my way to the relevant bland, featureless room, only to be faced with dozens of mobile phone screens glowing in front of me. No romance there.
It saddens me (and a few other emotions) to see what’s become of the Futurist, but I suppose we should be grateful the building still exists and not gone the way of so many other old cinemas.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top