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THE ABC CINEMA Sheffield


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ABC CINEMA

LOCATION

Angel Street

INFO

Built & Open - 18th May 1961

Doubled To ABC 1-2 - September 1975

Name Changed to Cannon 1-2 - 17th January 1987

Closed - 28th July 1988

Demolished - August 1988

Carpark during 1990s

Hotel From 2002

Seats Appx. 1327 Main Auditorium

On Doubling 94 extra seats in 1975

This was the last large screen cinema that was built in Sheffield. Initially it had one large screen in the main auditorium and the concourse restaurant, upstairs, which was later converted into a smaller screen. It was built in 1961 and closed in 1989, and then demolished soon after to make way for a new retail development

When it was opened in 1961 it was claimed to be the most modern cinema in Britain. Featuring the most up to date projection and sound equipment, and a very large 60 foot screen, which was one of the largest in the country.

The 1300 seats were laid out in a Stadium plan, where the circle was slightly raised from the stalls, with a thick dark wall between, instead of the more conventional balcony.

And don't forget the Saturday morning kids club !!!

PICTURES

pictured above - the last ever matinee show

LINKS

More info on old Sheffield cinemas - http://thewookie.co....emas/gone3.html

Buy Sheffield Cinema Sketches - http://hometown.aol....urepalaces.html

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Guest Deanbean

Saw a doubl bill here - Airplane and Life of Brian.... those were the days...

Saw`that too.....my second "aa" film,my first being broken glass.

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Guest Deanbean

I've not heard of Broken Glass - what kind of movie was that ?

[/quote

well from memory....god that makes me feel old.....it was about a pop star that made it big then went slightly mad,it starred hazel oconner,who had a big hit with "eithth day".........now you mention it ive never seen or heard of that film since,it would have been around 1980.

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Ah yeah - I remember the one you mean now

Bleak and early eighties type stuff

I saw it once on late night tv

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Ah!!! I remember the ABC saw ' The Excorsist ' there when it was originally released can anyone remember those people of the cloth who were stood outside handing out leaflets questioning the films morality and asking you not to go in.

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Ah!!! I remember the ABC saw ' The Excorsist ' there when it was originally released can anyone remember those people of the cloth who were stood outside handing out leaflets questioning the films morality and asking you not to go in.

What more could you ask for as a horror film production than to have that though

Brilliant publicity

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i remember the ABC cinema me and mum went to see ghostbusters and the whole cinema sang along to the film what a laugh that was all the best things and places in sheffield are gone now what a shame

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Up the side of the ABC - the passageway - always stank of urine though

I remember as a kid having to queue up there for the saturday morning club

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I remember queuing for ages to see KES at the ABC. Went there many times. Where Eagles Dare was one of the best I saw there.

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I remember going here, well I am almost sure it was here,

I was about 4 or 5 and I went to see, Superman the first Christopher Reeve version of Superman,

I was in a cue for what seemed like a lifetime as a young boy! with my dad,

probably only about 5mins or something! it would have been about 1977 or somewhere in that ball park!

I am guessing?

It seemed MASSIVE! I think it was my first ever cinema experience!

Shame it's not around anymore.

Rob

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The ABC will always remind me of The ABC Minors on Saturday mornings.

I saw Jaws, Towering Inferno and Earthquake at The ABC.... the queues to see Jaws seemed to last for hours.

Which reminds me I must start collecting CFF and BTF dvds and ..... I need a bigger house ;)

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Guest mega_monty

ABC reminds of my mum taking me to see ET would have been about 1983 I would think, all the girls and woman were crying.

but seem to remember before then been taken there to see a Tufty road safety film, think it was called the Tufty club or something and you got a Tufty badge and story book.

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Guest cheekymonkey

anyone remember the tuffty club? failing memory can only recall being dragged along with my brothers some sort of road safety campaign? please help me out?

in later years remember being let in for nowt via side fire exits lol

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Guest mega_monty

anyone remember the tuffty club? failing memory can only recall being dragged along with my brothers some sort of road safety campaign? please help me out?

in later years remember being let in for nowt via side fire exits lol

Yes read my post above ;-)

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Guest cheekymonkey

yes but do you remember tufty? he was a person dressed as a squirrel and there was a policeman too we got handkerchiefs embroided with tuffty club.

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Guest sheffsteel

I was also in the Tufty Club and the squirel did a campaign helping children to cross the road, this was

just before the Green Cross Code man (Dave Prowse aka Darth Vadar) did his stuff.

I remember seeing Jaws, Superman 1 and Grease at the ABC.

There was always a high level of excitement because you had to wait over an hour in the queue waiting

in the tunnel which lead to the Dove and Rainbow pub and yes, near the emergency exit doors it did

smell of urine.

My memory of ABC and Gaumont were the auditoriums were absolutely MASSIVE.

Three or four times the size of todays auditoriums at UCG , Warner Bros, showroom etc.

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I seem to recall The Gaumont could seat about 2,000! Sure someone will confirm the actual numbers.

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Guest sheffsteel

Yes I seem to remember the auditorium at the Gaumont was slightly bigger than the one at ABC

but there were both MASSIVE venues.

When you think about it going to the cinema in them days was much more of an event/ occasion

due to the sheer numbers involved.

It was a bit like going to a football match or rock concert.

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Guest tsavo

I seem to recall The Gaumont could seat about 2,000! Sure someone will confirm the actual numbers.

2,300 before twinning.

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Guest skyman

The first film to be shown at the ABC was 'Don't Bother To Knock'(a world premier), starring Richard Todd, I was there the first night when he made a personal appearance. I think that Elke Sommer, the female lead also appeared. I can also remember going to the first showing in Sheffield of 'Ben Hur', when the actor Finlay Currey made a personal appearance.

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What more could you ask for as a horror film production than to have that though

Brilliant publicity

I remember those people being outside the ABC with religious banners. I also remember them being there a few years before when The Devils was shown, starring Vanessa Redgrave and Oliver Reed. Those films, whilst shocking at the time, are nothing compared to the horror films of today

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