Court Cinema Berkhamsted

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Uploaded on: February 20, 2025

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COURT RENOVATION In cinema reconstruction speed was essential in the 1930’s every day the cinema was closed meant a loss of revenue. The Court cinema Berkhamsted interior was removed and rebuilt, enlarged and modernised with new furnishings, equipment and a 1,000 seats installed by George Pixton Ltd. The exterior tower facade above the entrance was built with three sets of narrow windows on each of the three sides, exterior walls finished in white Permacrete making the cinema stand out like a beacon when flood lit at night. Within the auditorium the colour scheme was beige, silver, green and black in a great variety of treatment. The ceiling finished with a Marb-L-Cote surface of intertwining crescent form which was lit in three colours from troughs at sides and centre longitudinally. Strong bands of black and silver decorate the lower part of the side walls, above panels painted in moderne design with centre light fitting. The marine grilles finished in green and gold set into corrugated panels on either side splay walls with hidden lighting beneath, also a horizontal pilaster at the outer boarder so that more illumination was thrown forward towards the stage. Interior designer Eugene Mollo designed splay wall grilles in many marine variations for his cinemas in this design (ref:487) was used to cover the ventilation outlet and organ chamber which were installed within the splay walls, here at the Court cinema the organ chamber is on the right side of the proscenium while the left side covers the ventilation shaft. The Christie organ was the latest model with a Christie Holophane illuminated console seen above at full height in front of the closed house curtains, of champagne colour appliqued with added bars of contrasting colours. Note; these identical designs were also used at the Embassy Braintree, including front house curtains, silver festoon screen curtains and the same model Christie organ with illuminated console. Leslie Kemp was Architect for the construction of the Embassy Braintree and was not involved in any of the interior works or design, he stated to me in an interview during his late eighties when he mentioned Clark & Fenn were involved, they were not and as Leslie mentioned Shipman & King used Mollo & Egan for most of their cinema interiors, as they were also great friends with Eugene Mollo, who had also been born in Russia. Mollo used his marine grille variation design many times, the very first (ref:480) was designed for the Princess cinema Dagenham, October 1932 followed by the Plaza Dalston, August 1933. Mollo’s identical Marine grille Ref; MG487 was used at both the Court Berkhamsted and the Embassy Braintree.

Ron Knee