We all have fond memories of our first trip to the cinema.
Nowadays we have the likes of the Odeon Brighton, Cineworld Brighton and Duke of York’s Picturehouse to fulfil our movie cravings.
However, if you have lived in Brighton longer than 20 years then you may remember some classic venues that have been swept away with time.
Fond memories of watching the original Star Wars trilogy when it screened, or perhaps James Bond's adventures in 007 Goldfinger?
Or, if you're in your 20s like me, maybe Madagascar, Batman Begins or the first Kung Fu Panda?
We’ll be taking a look at the cinemas throughout the past century that were home to many memories.
Odeon Kemp Town, George’s Road
However in 1934, Kemptown had its own branch in the Odeon Theatres chain.
It provided one screen and seated an audience of roughly 956.
On September 14 1940, it was damaged in a German air raid, and 59 people were killed.
It was restored and re-opened three months late then continued to run for a further 20 years before closing for good in 1960.
ABC Brighton, East Street
The cinema was originally named The Savoy Cinema when it opened its doors in 1930.
Its interior had a Japanese theme and seated more than 2,000 people. It had four screens to choose from, and even had underground parking with hundreds of places.
Renamed to ABC Cinema in 1963 it kept the name until it was closed.
One of its screens was converted into a casino in 1991. The rest of the screens followed suit and all closed by early 2000 turning into a collection of restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
ABC Hove, Portland Road
Film star Anna Neagle attended the opening programme of The Kiss Before the Mirror with Nancy Caroll in it. It was functional as both a theatre and a venue to screen films.
Similarly to the Brighton branch, ABC took over the theatre in 1935 and then renamed it as the ABC in 1965.
It seated more than a thousand people until it officially closed in 1974, and finally demolished in 2011 after being a bingo hall from 1975 to 2003.
Arcadia Cinema, Lewes Road
The property was originally built as horse stables and was later converted into a garage. In 1910 it turned into People’s Picture Palace then later in the year opened its doors as Arcadia Cinema, which lasted for over 40 years until it closed its doors in 1952.
It had one screen and seated around 478 people.
It was sold to the Brighton Co-Operative Society which operated for over 100 years and closed earlier this year due to lack of funding.
Astoria Theatre, Gloucester Place
The theatre started life in 1933 thanks to a local independent consortium headed by E.E. Lyons which built several Astoria Theatres across Sussex.
It first showed Charles Laughton in The Private Life of Henry VIII. Thought it was originally a fully functional theatre with stage facilities it was taken over by ABC (Like many other places on this list) in 1935.
The cinema lasted until 1977 with the last show being Barbara Streisand’s A Star is Born and then was turned into a Coral Bingo Club.
It closed its doors as a Grade II Listed building.
Coliseum Picture Theatre, West Street
The building first opened in 1892 as a skating rink and later found new life as a concert hall and cinema which seated nearly 2,000 people.
Continentale Cinema, Sudeley Place, Kemp Town
What used to be home to a Congregational chapel was converted into Sudelely Place Picture House in the 1920s.
In the 1930s sound was installed and ultimately the seating reached 380.
After a few decades of change, which saw the cinema turned into a theatre under the name Playhouse Theatre in 1947, it then returned to a cinema in 1949 due to lack of funding with a new name Metro Cinema.
Once new owner Miles Byrne came in later that year it became known as the Continentale Cinema.
In 1986 the cinema got a major renovation project with a new screen, new seating and new carpeting, however following the death of the owner the cinema was immediately closed.
Embassy Cinema, Western Road
Another cinema under the Miles Bryne ownership group, it originally opened around the 1910s under the name Hove Cinematograph Theatre.
It seated around 500 people.
A food establishment now dwells in its place.
Hove Electric Empire, George Street
In 1910 Hove Council granted permission for the first purpose-built cinema in the town to be built.
It opened as the Electric Theatre in 1911 and seated 350.
It was then owned by Lewonski and Sons in 1961 who renamed it to the Hove Electric Empire.
It couldn’t compete with the new Odeon cinema in the 1930s and closed its doors in 1934 after a screening of Jack’s the Boy which starred Jack Hulbert and Cicely Courtneidge.
It is now two phone shop branches EE and Vodafone.
New Empire Cinema, Haddington Street, Hove
Harry Scriven applied for planning permission to convert the Blatchington Assembly Hall into a cinema in 1910.
Later that year The Empire Electric Theatre opened with a seating capacity of 350.
Not to be confused with Hove Electric Theatre on George Street, it was renamed as New Empire Cinema in 1930 when new owner William Fuller took over.
It closed its doors in 1933, in the same vein as its main competitor, due to the Odeon opening.
It now operates as a Co-op supermarket.
Odeon Hove, Denmark Villas
The cinema that killed most competition in the area started life in the 1930s.
Originally an ice rink, it was acquired by County Cinemas and converted into a one-floor cinema. Firstly, named The Lido Cinema, it then took the Odeon moniker in 1944 after being taken over.
It closed its doors in 1961 with a final showing of The Singer not the Song with Dirk Bogarde.
It is now an office block with a Tesco Express at the bottom.
Paris Continental Cinema, New Road
The Brighton Empire Theatre was built in its place and was taken over in 1907 and renamed Coliseum Theatre. It followed a long line of conversions until finally being converted to the Paris Continental Cinema in 1955.
It operated for eight years before closing on a double programme of Shirley Jones in Carousel and Harry Belafonte in Carmen Jones.
It is now a block of offices.
Princes Hall Cinema, Madeira Drive
It started life in 1901 as The Aquarium Winter Garden where it showed films about natural history and general interests.
It was then redesigned in 1927 and continued its order of business until 1939.
Now it is well known for housing the Sea Life Centre.
Regent Cinema, Queen’s Road
It seated over two thousand people.
In 1929, a fire damaged the stage and auditorium leaving the cinema in need of repairs. It reopened in the summer with Al Jolson in The Singing Fool.
It closed its doors after more than 50 years of operation in 1973 with Liza Minneli in Cabaret.
Boots now occupies the building of the old cinema.
Vogue Cinema, Lewes Road and Hollingdean Road
It opened as The Gaiety Cinema in 1937 with Swing Time with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
It provided over 1,000 seats and one screen, designed in an Art Deco style.
In 1965 it was renamed to Ace Cinema, which was short-lived, as it was finally renamed to Vogue Cinema in 1971.
Playing mainly risqué films it changed its programming in 1979 to feature family films but ended up closing later that year.
It has since been demolished.
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