Liquid/Envy, Redhill April 2014

[mookster]

Almost five years ago now I was talking to my mate in Redhill I'd known for years about explores and he offered to take me on my very first trip out, and when I rolled into Redhill that afternoon little knowing my life would change forever for the better afterwards this was the first place I saw - back then it was just about open, it closed as a nightclub a couple of years later. A few nights ago the same mate posted some photos he'd taken of the place and so we arranged to meet up and I poddled down there, retracing the same journey I had done almost half a decade earlier but this time the place was well and truly closed - and a new fence is going up, and there is a work cabin on site so it looks like it is the last hurrah for this Redhill landmark.

History, off Cinema Treasures...

The plans for the Odeon were passed in Council in June of 1936 and the cinema was built in on waste ground between the railway and Gurney’s Brook at the corner of Station Road and Marketfield Way, opposite Redhill Railway Station. The Odeon opened its doors for the first time on 23rd May 1938 with Edmund Lowe in “The Squeakerâ€Â. It was designed by architect Andrew Mather, assisted by Keith P. Roberts for the Oscar Deutsch chain of Odeon Theatres Ltd. There were 1,000 seats in the stalls and 474 in the circle.Its roof was painted in camouflage colours during the war but still got an enemy cannon shell through it that was probably intended for the railway station. For many years it held a youngsters' Saturday morning film club. In the early-1960’s it added fairly popular bingo sessions on Sunday afternoons.

The Odeon closed on 18th October 1975 with Roger Moore in “That Lucky Touch †and Anthony Quinn in “The Con Manâ€Â. It was converted to a nightclub and opened as Busby’s in 1976. It subsequently was revamped and renamed Millionaire’s in the 1980’s and became the British Embassy Rock Bar in 1996. Since 2002, it traded as Liquid/Envy. The nightclub was closed around 2011. In August 2013, it was announced that the building was to be demolished (retaining the locally listed fa�ade) and to build 61 apartments, a Tesco store and parking garage on the site of the auditorium.

The access to this place is, how can I put it...buttock-clenching! Once inside it was clear the site surveyors and contractors had already ripped most of it out at some point in the past but it was a cool relaxed wander (partly because nobody else would be silly enough to try the access...) and we spent a good while on the roof just chilling in the nice weather. This was only my second 'proper' ex-cinema and the first one since I did the Aylesbury Odeon way back in January 2010!!

And a few from the roof...

More here https://www.flickr.com/photos/mookie427/sets/72157643857906545/

 

[Lara]

Nice write up, and i love pic 3! Cool share there

 

[sentinel]

This is great, I'm just up the road, might go for a look at some stage,

 

[mookster]

You'll need to go quick, the proper demolition-imminent hoarding fence has gone up over the last few days and there is a large cabin on site now so it's probably not got long left!

 

[Nelly]

Nice stuff Mooks!!!

 

[skeleton key]

Nice shots and great use of light

 

[Silent Night]

cool stuff mooks shots came out nice

 

[Stussy]

Quality set of pics Mookster, great work

 

[silverainbow]

Very cool indeed, great set of pics !

 

[shaddam]

quality set there mooks

 

[Bungal]

great set of snaps there fella, I worked for Luminar Leisure for quite a while...shame they fooked things up

 

[TheBaronof Scotland]

like it mate

 

[Ghostpast]

Nice set! Looks like a great explore!