Chorley Empire Cinema at Chorley Theatre have produced a map of the town which takes walkers past all the significant sites of cinemas and entertainment in Chorley from the last 120 years or so.
Supported by Cinema For All and the BFI, the self-guided walking tour includes 26 points of interest and reveals where Chorley town centre’s six main cinemas of the 20th Century were located, most of which have since been knocked down.
Chorley Theatre has been showing films since 1910, making it one of the oldest still-operating purpose-built cinemas in the world. This map includes background information on that venue as well as the Odeon, Pavilion, and others which have come and gone over the years. It’s an overview of entertainment habits throughout the 20th Century, when all towns had cinemas like this. Between 1909 and 1914 over 3400 screens were opened in the UK, and by 1921 there were 11 cinemas in the Chorley area.
By 1935 there was one screen for every 9 people in Lancashire, but by the 1950s competition from television and a lack of investment led to many closures. The last commercial cinema in the town closed in 1986, just before the revival of UK cinema-going.
With Reel Cinemas opening in Chorley and Chorley Theatre adding a second screen in 2021 this is an excellent time to look back at what Chorley residents have had on their doorstep over the years.
Comedian Phil Cool says, “growing up in Chorley for me was great. I had a paradise of a playground, and could easily walk to the cinemas. I loved the monster movies at “The Pav” and going to see The Blob with my dad at the Plaza. I took a date to the Odeon to watch a Norman Wisdom but that was a big mistake as I couldn’t do anything for laughing”
The map also marks where Chorley Amateur Dramatic & Operatic Society was formed, and the site of Laughingas, the first ‘alternative comedy’ club outside of London.
The map is available from Ebb & Flo Bookshop, Massa’s and Fredericks Ice Cream parlours and will be at Malcolms Musicland and Anise when they re-open.
It can also be viewed here on the website. The walk is approx 3 miles long.
