Grand Theatre, Corporation Street, Birmingham

Later The Grand Theatre of Varieties / Grand Cinema / Grand Casino Ballroom

Birmingham Index

Above - Photograph of the Grand Theatre of Varieties, Corporation St. Birmingham

The Grand Theatre, next door to the King's Hall on Birmingham's Corporation Street, opened on the 14th of November 1883.

The Theatre had a capacity of 2,200 on four levels, Stalls, Two Circles, and Gallery, plus boxes.

Right - The Grand Theatre, Birmingham - From an illustration in the Playgoer of 1901 / 1902 - Courtesy Iain Wotherspoon.

The Theatre was bought by Moss Empires Ltd in 1907 who renamed it the Grand Theatre of Varieties, and reconstructed the interior at a cost of £20,000.

The Theatre ran as a Variety Theatre until it was closed and converted to a Cinema which opened on the 1st of September 1930 with the film 'All Quiet On The Western Front.'

Surprisingly for the period the building did not remain in Cinema use for very long, closing down on the 13th of May 1933 and remaining closed for several years until it was reopened by Mecca Dancing as the Grand Casino Ballroom.

The building continued in this guise for 30 years but closed in 1960 and was demolished in 1963.

 

Above - Programme Details for a Variety Performance at the Grand Theatre, Birmingham on Monday the 1st of December 1919, with Vesta Tilley topping the Bill.