Stanley Picture House

Stanley like many other villages came to the point after the World War where it needed a picture house to entertain the growing population. Local business men got together to finance the building of the picture house and it opened its doors in 1920.

The Picture House just after it opened

Able to seat over 400 people it was entertainment for the masses and soon gained the nick name 'clog & rhubarb' due to two shops on each side of the entrance, one selling sweets and the other clogs. These clogs were sold by the Lamb family, and their footwear business is still trading in nearby Bottomboat. Many of the older villages have beloved memories of going to the pictures with their mates, the penny rush on a saturday and calling for fish and chips with the change on the way home.

Photo from the late 1960s, the garage was still in use at this time

With the coming of the Second World War, British cinema entered its golden period. With the enemy the other side of the Channel and bombs raining down on cities throughout the country, the picture house was one of the few things people could still enjoy. After the war decline in the industry started. Box office takings fell from £108m at the start of the 1950s to £64m by the end of the decade. Sadly with the introduction of TV sets the clog & rhubarbs days were numbered and it closed its doors in 1960. Since then it has been used as a petrol station, remaining in its previous owners hands today the building is rented by Gordons Tyres.

The building in 2010

Advertisement poster from August 1938

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