The Music Hall and Theatre History Website

Homepage - Site index - Contact me

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Theatres in Croydon

Grand Theatre - Davis Theatre - Croydon Hippodrome - Fairfield Halls / Ahscroft Theatre - Theatre Royal / New Theatre Royal / Hippodrome / Croydon Empire - Civic Hall - National Palace of Varieties / Palace Theatre / Empire Theatre / Circus

Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed in Croydon in 1890 and 1898

Grand Theatre, 125 High Street, Croydon

Formerly The Grand Theatre and Opera House

Above - An early programme cover for the Grand Theatre and Opera House, Croydon, showing the Theatre in its original form and its owners; Messrs Batley and Linfoot, and the manager Tom Cairn - Courtesy Chris Webster.

The Grand Theatre, Croydon, was built by Brough in 1896 and was opened on the 6th April that year by Herbert Beerbohm Tree under the ownership of Messrs Batley and Linfoot who can be seen in the programme above.

The Theatre was originally used for Plays and Melodrama but by the 1920s it became a touring house. The Grand closed in the early part of the war when Croydon was extensively bombed, but reopened in the latter part of 1942.

Right - The main lobby and entrance of the Grand Theatre, Croydon - From a Postcard.

After the war the Theatre continued with repertory (see programmes below) and also housed an annual Pantomime.

Left - Auditorium and stage of the Grand Theatre, Croydon - From an early programme for 'The Country Girl'

The Theatre closed in April 1957 after the final performance of 'No Chance for Davies' and despite a petition signed by 100,000 people who had battled to save it the Theatre was demolished and an office block and shops were built on the site.

There now follows an article on Croydon which is an extract from 'The Face of London' by Harold P. Clunn 1956, illustrated with programmes and images from my own collection.

Branching south-west from the pond at Thornton Heath is the Croydon by-pass road, which skirts the west side of the town at the top of the valley and rejoins the main Brighton Road at Purley. Much building has taken place on this new road since the construction of the Croydon Airport, formerly the terminal station of the Continental air-services, which is situated on the west side, about mid-way between Thornton Heath and Purley. The old aerodrome at Waddon having become too small for the ever-increasing air traffic, the present commodious buildings were erected in 1927.

Right - Early Croydon Grand Programme for 'A Country Girl' which seems to be a corrected proof for a proposed later programme.

On 15 August 1940, during the Battle of Britain, the Germans made a great mass attack, employing over a thousand aeroplanes as compared with the five hundred to six hundred used on previous days. In the evening, between twenty and thirty dive-bombers made a sudden attack on Croydon aerodrome dropping a number of bombs on and around the target. One aerodrome building was demolished and a number of people buried in the debris. Bombs also fell on an adjoining housing estate, a number of people were killed in this raid, but it was a sad day for the Luftwaffe for of the German bombers taking part in the attack on Croydon and for whom the Luftwaffe had prepared a banquet to celebrate their triumphant homecoming, it is doubtful if one ever returned to its base.

Left - Programme for 'The Real Little Lord Fauntleroy' at the Croydon Grand Theatre on Monday the 4th April (Year unknown). Also on the bill was a 'Programme of Music' under the direction of a Herr Gustav Howig and a musical four-hander play called 'His Masterpiece' by Sutton Vane and Edward Jones. - Courtesy Chris Webster.

From Thornton Heath pond a journey of about a mile along the London Road through a busy suburban area will bring us to West Croydon station and the central portion of the town.

On the east side of London Road is the handsome Congregational Church crowned by a tall spire. Croydon originally consisted of two parts, namely, the old and the new towns, each of which was about one mile in length. The old town is situated on a low plain near the source of the River Wandle, and contains the parish church of St-John-the-Baptist, a fine modern building of stone and flint with a lofty square tower designed by G. G. Scott and erected on the site of the old one destroyed by fire in 1867 except the tower which has been preserved.

Right - Programme for the Anglo Polish Ballet performing at the Grand Theatre and Opera House, Croydon on Monday the 7th of September 1942 for two weeks.

The town formerly had a close connexion with the Archbishops of Canterbury, and the existing part of their old palace situated near the church was sold in 1780 and used as a bleaching factory until 1887. It now belongs to the Sisters of the Church and is used for a girls' school; it includes a chapel, banqueting hall, gallery, and guard room.

After giving up this building in 1758 the archbishops had a residence at Addington until about 1890. The former Bishop's Palace is now a golf club-house. Near the church is Wandle Park through which the River Wandle flows into the Thames but passes underground for a short distance through the town.

Left - Programme for 'The Happy Family' at the Croydon Grand Theatre August 20th 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

The modern town is centred round the High Street, which was originally nothing more than a bridle-path over the fields. Being situated on higher ground and on a more direct course than the old road, it became the main road to Brighton and the south, and the surrounding district was rapidly built over. Here are located the Whitgift Hospital and the finest streets and shops in the town. In 1811 the population of the parish was 7,900 and the number of houses 1,480, but in Croydon town itself there were only 6,000 inhabitants and 900 houses.

Right - Programme for 'The Holley and the Ivy' at the Croydon Grand Theatre March 3rd 1952 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

By 1881 the population had risen to 78,947, and in the following thirty years it more than doubled itself, the population in 1911 having been 169,551 and in 1931 was 233,115. In 1949 it was estimated at 250,040. Croydon was not made a borough until 1883, and became a country borough in 1888 within its municipal area are included the suburbs of Norbury, Upper and South Norwood, Addiscombe, Waddon, Selhurst, and Thornton Heath.

Left - Programme for 'Dick Whittington' at the Croydon Grand Theatre 1950s - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

During the latter part of the second World War Croydon became the worst-bombed area in the kingdom. No less thin forty-five thousand houses were damaged by 141 flying-bombs that hit the town.

Right - Programme for 'Charley's Aunt' at the Croydon Grand Theatre October 8th 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

When seen from the air Croydon presents a patchwork of bright terra-cotta formed by the replaced roofs of the damaged houses. The work was carried out with such rapidity that by the end of 1945 over £4,500,000 had been spent in bringing tolerable comfort to the householders, thus providing a heartening picture of how quickly Britain was recovering from her wounds. The damage was mainly confined to residential quarters, and the side streets. Croydon's main thoroughfares, including North End, the High Street and George Street escaped almost undamaged.

Although now joined to London, and as metropolitan as Kensington, Croydon still prefers to regard itself as a detached town outside the metrpolitan area. Forty years ago the centre of the town from West Croydon Station to South Croydon was still one long narrow street, except a portion of the High Street, which had been widened on the west side in 1895. Since then North End has been widened between West Croydon Station and the Whitgift Hospital, and an extensive widening of the southern end of the High Street ending at the Swan and Sugar Loaf Hotel has also been carried out. George Street, leading from the High Street to East Croydon Station, has also been widened, but the Whitgift Hospital, which stands at the corner of George Street and North End, forms an obstacle to the complete widening of these two streets.

Left - Programme for 'Blithe Spirit' at the Croydon Grand Theatre September 17th 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

Some twenty-five years ago the Croydon Corporation intended to demolish the Whitgift Hospital for very necessary street improvements, but were prevented from so doing, partly through local opposition, but principally because the scheme has been vetoed by Parliament. The Whitgift Hospital was erected and endowed between the years 1596 and 1599 by Archbishop Whitgift as a home for maimed poor or impotent individuals, preference being given to the inhabitants of Croydon and Lambeth. A schoolmaster was also appointed at a salary of £20 per annum to teach the children of the poor of Croydon gratis. The Archbishop's gift increased greatly in value, and in 1881 the trust was reconstituted and another school founded, but the old hospital is still an almshouse. The new school is handsome building of red brick with stone dressings and a square clock-tower. The entrance is in North End through a garden with a private road.

Right - Programme for 'Arsenic and old Lace' at the Croydon Grand Theatre November 19th 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

A widening of Crown Hill from the south side has been commenced by rounding off the building line at the corner of the High Street and a handsome new building has been erected on this site. A more urgently-needed widening on the north corner of Crown Hill opposite the Whitgift Hospital however has not yet been dealt with by the Croydon Corporation. The Town Hall in Katherine Street is a noble block of buildings faced with red brick and stone in the Renaissance style, erected in 1893-94 at a cost of £90,000, and is crowned, in the centre by a lofty clock-tower. It replaced the old Town Hall in the High Street built in 1808, which itself replaced an ancient structure built in 1600.

Left - Programme for 'The Third Visitor' at the Croydon Grand Theatre August 27th 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage.

Croydon, in addition to being a great residential town for Londoners, possesses a number of manufactures, amongst others the making of clocks and also engineering works, as well as important markets for corn and cattle.

Some of the largest shops, including the two departmental stores of Messrs Kennard's and Messrs Allder's, are situated in North End, but that of Messrs Grant Brothers is on the west side of the High Street. North End, which is half a mile long, is a handsome shopping street and on a Saturday afternoon when it is crowded with shoppers it presents a scene of life and animation unexcelled even by that of Oxford Street in its busiest hours. So large and varied are its shops that no Croydon resident need ever go to the West End of London to find anything he may require. A short distance farther south on the opposite side of the High Street is the Davis Picture Theatre, erected in 1928 and said to be one of the largest in Europe, and having accommodation for four thousand people. A handsome lounge and cafe is attached to the theatre, and a considerable widening has been recently carried out in this part of the High Street. Farther down is the Grand Opera House. The finest residential quarters are situated on the east side of the town at Park Hill and at Addiscombe. Incidentally Croydon is the healthiest large town in the kingdom, this being partly due to its sanitation, subsoil, and the pure air of the North Downs.

From 'The Face of London' by Harold P. Clunn 1956.

Davis Theatre, High Street, Croydon

Above - The Davis Theatre and High Street, Croydon - From a contemporary Postcard, Courtesy Gavin Wood, whose father worked in Barrons the Chemist to the side of the Davis Theatre. He fire watched on top of the Davis during the bombing and put out many incendiary bombs. With the permission of one of the Davis brothers he also played the organ in the cinema when he was on fire duty.

The Davis Theatre was built in 1928 by Grace & Marsh of Waddon for the architect Robert Cromie with an enormous capacity of over 3700. My mother's first Husband, Ray Best, who died in 1950 only a year after their marriage, worked on the building of the Davis as an electrician responsible for the installation of the electrical equipment and wiring in the building. Sadly the Theatre was demolished only 31 years later to accommodate the widening of the High Street in May 1959.

For more information and images of the Davis Theatre you may like to visit this page on the excellent website of CinePhoto.uk

Right - Programme for 'The Festival Ballet Season' at the Davis Theatre, Croydon September 1951 - Courtesy Jean Lloyd - Part of a collection of programmes from my parents' Theatre visits in their first years of marriage. Click to see entire Programme.

A visitor to the site has recently sent in some memories of her time spent working at the Davis Theatre as a teenager in the 1930s, she says:

"My name was Joan Harper and I was born and lived in Waddon New Road, Croydon. I was 16 years old when I went to work at the Rotunda Cafe above the cinema of the Davis theatre. I was employed as assistant cashier and I had to help on Saturday afternoons for children's birthday parties on the mezzanine floor. I worked from 12pm until 9pm. I also sat at the second cash point to stop people leaving without paying. We had matinees Wednesdays and Saturdays with afternoon tea on the mezzanine floor. We had cinema teas consisting of sandwiches and cakes for 1s 3p only if you arrived before 1.30pm. All meals were 'silver service.' I had to work alternate Sundays on my own, I received 17s 6p per week and 2 free passes for the cinema. Captain Davis owned the cinema and his sister Miss Davis was the manager of the cafe. Mr Addie ran the 3 piece band on matinee days."

Text in quotes above by Joan Harper, Courtesy her daughter Jean Ryder.

Above - The Davis Theatre, Croydon - From a Postcard

The Theatre Royal, 94 North End, Croydon

Later - The New Theatre Royal / The Croydon Empire / The Hippodrome / The Empire Theatre of Varieties / Eros Cinema

Above - The entrance stairs to the Croydon Empire, previously the New Theatre Royal. - Photo Richard Norman - Courtesy Les Osman and Richard Norman.

The Theatre Royal, Croydon was originally built in 1800 and functioned as such for over 60 years. The Theatre was then rebuilt and reopened on Saturday the 29th of August 1868 as the New Theatre Royal. The Penny Illustrated reported on the new Theatre on the same day saying: 'At Croydon, one of the handsomest, most compact, and comfortable theatres of which the provinces can boast is announced to be opened to-day, the 29th inst. Built after the style of the elegant Amphitheatre in Holborn, it is light, neat, and commodious, and by an admirable arrangement will afford every facility for any kind of entertainment—dramatic, hippo-dramatic, or operatic, the stage being so arranged that it can be used for either purpose, as opportunity and circumstances may require. For the opening season, the proprietor, Mr. Solomon, has made arrangements with Messrs. M'Collum and Charman, of the Royal Amphitheatre and Circus, London, through whom has been secured a company of artists selected from all the principal English, Continental; and American Cirques, each one having some distinctive specialty new to English audiences.' - The Penny Illustrated, 29th August 1868 - Courtesy BF.

Arthur Lloyd is known to have performed here in 1890.

In 1897 the Theatre was altered and redecorated in the Louis XV style by the contractor George Veale to the designs of the well known Theatre Architect Bertie Crewe. The Theatre reopened with a variety show on Monday the 20th of September 1897 as the Croydon Empire.

The ERA published a review of the new Croydon Empire, and the opening night production, in their 25th of September 1897 edition saying: 'Of late years music halls have made great strides in popular favour. New houses devoted to variety entertainments are rearing their heads on all sides, and other buildings originally devoted to different purposes are being converted to the uses of the comedian and the serio, the acrobat and the sketch artist. Among these latter the latest instance is the old Theatre Royal at Croydon, which, after being altered and thoroughly cleaned and redecorated, threw open its doors on Monday night as The Empire, Croydon (Limited), Theatre of varieties.

Right - A Poster for a Variety performance at the Empire Theatre, Croydon, on the 15th of April 1912. On the Bill were Vesta Tilley, R. H. Douglass, the 4 Comptons, Talberto & Douglas, the 8 College Girls, Jimmy Sheilds, The Bioscope, Jimmy Godden, Spanish Goldinis, and Ena Dayne, Billed here as the new star juvenile comedienne. Poster courtesy Colin Charman whose Grandmother was Little Ena Dayne.

The place looks exceedingly fresh and bright in its new dress, and admiration and surprise were freely expressed at the great transformation effected since the last dramatic entertainment was given in the building. Cream and gold are the prevailing colours used in the scheme of redecoration, which is in the Louis XV style, whilst the ceiling is picked out with green panels on which are inscribed the names of Prominent men in letters and music. By the abolition of certain small rooms additional bar accommodation has been secured on the circle level. The alterations have been carried out under the supervision of the architect, Mr. Bertie Crewe; Mr A. C. Ebbutt is responsible for he upholstery, which is in crimson plush, Mr George Veale has done the general contracting, and the lighting, both gas and electric, has been arranged by Messrs Vaughan and Brown. The result of the efforts of all these experts, is a cosy establishment that should become a favourite resort.

The building is admirably adapted to its new purpose, the performers seeming able to at once get in touch with those in front, and the opinion of those who should know is that the Empire, Croydon, is going to be a big success. At any rate it will not suffer in its management, for the directorate have been fortunate in securing the services of Mr Will Sergeant, whose long and varied experience both as manager and performer should stand him in good stead. Mr Sergeant is popular with artistes and the public alike, and striking proof of this was furnished by the large number of congratulatory telegrams he received during the course of the evening, and by the crowd of well known people who came to wish the new venture good fortune. Among these may be mentioned Mr Edward Swanborough (Royal), Mr and Mrs Sparrow (Grand, Clapham, and National, Croydon), Mr Tom Linsley (Gatti's, Road), Mr Ben Baker (Gatti's, Cross), Mr W. Nutt (Mr Sergeant's old lieutenant at the Washington), Mr George Barclay, Mr Walter Norman, Mr G. D. Brown, Mr Orlando Powel, Mr R. D. Lincoln, Mr Fred Law (Royal Standard), Mr Fred Holden and Mr Peter Conroy (Canterbury), Mr William Bex, Mr.R. Voss, Major-General Bedford, Mr E. G. Pratt, and Mr H. S. Parker.

Huge crowds awaited the opening of the doors, and long before the curtain went up there was not a vacant seat to be seen in any part of the house. Uncomfortably packed as they were, however, the audience were wonderfully good tempered, and applauded their favourites with great heartiness. Mr Walter Munroe, whose sketches of Hibernian character are always impregnated with that cheerful humour that seems part and parcel of the Irish nature, had an uproarious greeting, and justified his admirers' enthu- by his capital rendering of a couple of songs, "Patsy's Paradise" and "Mike," and a splendidly executed top-boot dance. Miss Chummie La Mara, too, had the sympathies of the packed house with her, and nothing less than three ditties would satisfy those in front. "What has become of Mary? " and "Mary Ellen " were rendered with great vivacity and that clearness of articulation that is one of Miss La Mara's chief charms. Looking extremely handsome in a beautiful principal boy's costume, she with rare spirit gave a drinking song, "Here's to the health." A big hit was made by Johnny Gilmore, the quaint Australian comedian, whose droll business in "My Bosom " evoked roars of laughter. Mr Gilmore had twice to bow his acknowledgments. A splendid exhibition of pluck and skill was given by the Villion troupe of cyclists, who introduced a welcome leaven of fun into their act. They did some startling feats on all sorts of wheels—in fact, anything at all approaching the spherical is good enough for them—and richly deserved the enthusiastic cheers that greeted them at the conclusion of their turn, Mr Harry Lester had the house in merry mood with a ditty concerning a rooster and in the first few verses of "Where are you going to?" In the later lines of this song he showed his ability to extract sympathy as well as laughter. Messrs Newham and Latirnar, who have been popular public servants for many a year, had never a stronger hold on variety audiences than they have at the present time. On Monday they were soon on the best of terms with the audience, who were hugely entertained with the clever couple's impersonations of "The Potman the Barmaid " and " Bertie and Gertie, the Gaiety Girl.' The Percys, Miss Annie Howe, the Gazelles, who contributed a well-executed dance; Miss Bessie Hinton who roused the "gods " to emulation of her whistling in "My Bill ;" and Munro and O'Toole also entertained, and the programme was brought to a conclusion by Messrs Harrison and Howard's Combination in a condensed version of Douglas Jerrold's famous naval drams Black-Eyed Susan. Mr Adderley Howard repeated his fine impersonation of the bold William, Mr E. James was sufficiently villainous as Doggrass, Mr F. Monti created much amusement as Jacob Twigg, Susan was sympathetically enacted by Miss Zoe Elsworthy, and the rest of the cast was as follows:— Captain Cross tree, Mr F. H. Neville; Admiral Bargoyne, Mr E Harrison; Seward, Mr L. Bennett; and Polly May flower, Miss D. Howard. The sketch was capitally mounted, and the development of the story was watched with great interest. Mr J. Reillie and his orchestra got through their arduous tasks in capital fashion, and M J. Gates looked after the stage in the latter part of the evening.

Altogether the opening night of the Croydon Empire was a great success, and under the skillful and experienced guidance of Mr Will Sergeant,who, - by the way, has been none too well lately - there is no reason why this latest acquisition to our palaces of smoke and song should not be as successful as any of its compeers.'

The above text in quotes was first published in the Era, 25 September 1897 - Courtesy BF.

The Empire Theatre continued until the Company went into liquidation and were forced to close it in April 1898.

The Theatre was then altered and redecorated in 1899, reopening as the New Theatre Royal on Monday the 30th of July 1899 with a production of the play 'When London Sleeps.'

The Theatre would later become known as The Hippodrome (not to be confused with the Croydon Hippodrome Theatre of Varieties, shown above).

In 1906 the Theatre was again reconstructed, this time to the designs of the well known Theatre architect W. G. R. Sprague, and reopened as the Empire Theatre of Varieties. The auditorium of this Theatre was built on three levels, stalls, dress circle, and gallery and had seating for some 1,868 people. The Empire was also equipped with eight dressing rooms, an orchestra pit for fourteen musicians, and a stage of 30 foot wide at the proscenium and 30 foot deep.

Right - A Programme for 'Harry Lester's Comedians' at the Croydon Empire. The programme states that the show is an "all out comedy thrill show that takes you Away from this World."

The Theatre opened as a Variety Theatre in 1906 and had a reasonable career as such but films were soon forming part of the Bill too, and in 1930 the Empire went over to Cinema full time. The first film in this incarnation was the rather ironically title 'What Price Melody?' Live shows were still performed on the stage from time to time however and then, after the building was taken over by Moss Empires in 1938, it went back to full time Live Variety again with films relegated to Sundays only.

The Theatre was taken over by the Hyams Brothers in 1946 who continued to run it as a Variety Theatre but the end came on the 9th of May 1953 after the last performance of 'Soldiers in Skirts' when it was closed as a live Theatre and then reopened a week later as The Eros Cinema.

"The last Manager of the Empire, Croydon was Arthur Dixon, who stayed on when the Theatre was converted to Cinema use and was renamed the Eros Cinema. Arthur Dixon continued as manager but was much saddened by his beloved Theatre having been turned into a Cinema." - Ted Loveday, Managing Director Brunskill & Loveday LTD.

The Eros Cinema was not to last long however, it was bought up by a development Company in February 1959 and closed for good on May the 30th the same year after a last showing of the film 'Streets of Larado.' The building was then demolished to make way for shops and the Whitgift Shopping Centre.

Some of the information on the final years of the Empire / Eros was gleaned from the excellent Cinema Treasures website.

If you have any more information or images for this Theatre in any of its guises you are willing to share, please Contact me...

Civic Hall, Crown Hill, Croydon

Above - The Auditorium and Stage of the Civic Hall, Croydon showing the Croydon Philharmonic Choir in 1953 - From the Croydon Philharmonic Choir's 50 years celebration program in 1964. (Some of the choir can be seen up in the right balcony) - Photo by Cosser Photographic Services - Courtesy Gavin Wood.

The Civic Hall, on Crown Hill, Croydon was where most musical concerts were held before the Fairfield Hall was built. The Civic Hall gave lunch time concerts, private recitals; for example, by local pianist Dorothy Grinstead, and it was where the Croydon Philharmonic Choir, conducted by Alan Kirby and later Myers
Foggin, performed all the usual oratorios.

The Hall was long with a balcony down both sides.

Right - The Civic Hall, Croydon showing The Croydon Philharmonic Choir with Alan J. Kirby in the 1950s - Photographed by the Croydon Times - Courtesy Gavin Wood, whose mother can be seen 3rd from right in the second row.

Details and images of the Civic Hall were kindly sent in by Gavin Wood.

If you have any more information or images for the Civic Hall that you are willing to share, please Contact me...

National Palace of Varieties, North End, Croydon

Also known as The Palace Theatre / Circus / Empire

The National Palace of Varieties in North End, Croydon was built in 1895. The Theatre was also at different times known as the Palace Theatre, The Empire Theatre, and The Circus.

The Theatre closed for the last time in 1953 and was demolished in 1959.

Above - A cutting from the Era of the 17th of September 1898 for Arthur Lloyd and family performing at the Palace Theatre, Croydon - Courtesy BF

If you have any more information or images for this Theatre that you are willing to share, please Contact me...