Liverpool is brimming with stunning buildings and architecture that bring something special to our city, and for over a century, one of those venues was a "beautiful" cinema.
The Futurist, on Lime Street, had an iconic façade, making it a prominent building in the city centre area. It originally opened in 1912 as the Lime Street Picture House and was Liverpool's first purpose-built cinema.
The venue quickly became the go-to place for get togethers with friends, families and couples to watch the latest films. It had an extravagant grand entrance foyer with a black and white tiled floor and Sicilian marble walls, and the cinema itself had 1,029 seats and a full orchestra for silent movies.
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In 1916, a new cinema opened in Liverpool called the Lime Street Picture House, so the original venue changed its name to City Picture House. Four years later, the cinema had another name change after being bought by the Futurist company, and The Futurist picture house was born.
In May 1941, the building suffered bomb damage during the war, but was rebuilt quickly so that it was back open showing films by June. ABC took over the cinema in the 1960s and reportedly spent £50,000 on upgrades, which reduced its capacity to 870 people.
The Futurist went on to entertain for another two decades, until its closure in 1982. The iconic building would remain a part of Lime Street for another three decades, with locals witnessing its sad dilapidation.
In 2016, The Futurist was demolished to make way for a new complex as part of the regeneration of Lime Street. The demolition caused much controversy, prompting many people to campaign to try and save the building.
The ECHO recently posted a photo of The Futurist before it was demolished in our Liverpool memories and history Facebook group, prompting many to share their memories. Tony said: “My mate and I went there to see Freebie and the Bean with James Caan in 1972/3.”
William commented: “Watched a few films there around 1975-1980 with a mate from the street. We went on free tickets as my dad advertised in the program magazine, so got free passes for two but only on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday evening.
“Great architecture of the day. Inside was a bit posh looking with a balcony, plasterwork and all of the finials and archways, something that didn't really interest me back in the day as it does now.”
Eve wrote: “Lots of lovely memories this brings back.” Darren added: “Went to see Flash Gordon there six times.” James said: “[I watched] Earthquake in Sensurround, the seats were shaking!”
Commenting on the building, Mike wrote: “A beautiful façade that at least could have been retained.” Paul commented: “What a loss”.
What are your memories of The Futurist? Let us know in the comments section below.
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