CinemaTour - Cinemas Around the World - Empire Theatre, London UK

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Empire Theatre

2003 Photo from the Ken Roe collection.

UCI Cinemas
Leicester Square
West End (London) UK
0870 01 02 030

	Record #4590
Opened: 1928	Capacity: 1490 seats Architect(s): Thomas Lamb; George Coles Architectural Style(s): National Register: Current Organ: none
Also Known As:

Information for this tour was contributed by Ken Roe.

After demolishing the original music hall in 1927, MGM appointed American theatre architect Thomas Lamb to design a new movie theatre on the site. Designed in a High Renaissance style it seated 3,226. It remained the London home for MGM premier presentations until the end of the 2 years run of "Ben Hur" in 1961. The theatre was then gutted, leaving only Thomas Lamb's facade facing Leicester Square. Architect George Coles created a modern cinema in what had originally been the circle of the former cinema and the former stalls area was converted into a dance hall.

Photos
Photos remain the property of the Member and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the Member.

April 2004 photos from the Ken Roe collection.

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December 2003 photos from the Klaus Weber collection.

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February 1993 photos from the Lionel Fouillen collection.

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Last featured 2002-12-27. Last edited 7/3/2004.

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