Gaumont Acton

The Globe Cinema was the largest cinema built in the west London district of Acton. It opened on 26th March 1921 with Thomas Meighan in “The Miracle Man”. The opening was officiated by Lady de Freece (aka Vesta Tilly, music hall star). It was initially was operated by an independent company known as Gillettes Pictures Ltd.

The façade was dominated by a pair of Doric pillars at the entrance, above which was a cupola which had a ‘globe’ mounted on top. Seating was provide in stalls and balcony levels and the cinema was equipped with a theatre organ manufactured by Jardine & Co. which was a 2Manual 26 speaking stop model that was opened by Quentin MacLean. A later resident organist at the Globe Cinema was Hubert Griffiths.

Within months of opening the cinema was taken over by the Provincial Cinematograph Theatres chain(PCT) and they in turn were taken over by Gaumont British Theatres in February 1929. The Globe Cinema was the first cinema in Acton to be equipped with ‘talkies’ when a Western Electric sound system was installed in 1929.

From 1949 it was re-named Gaumont and continued under the control of the Rank Organisation. It gradually became a second run cinema as Rank didn’t install the widescreen CinemaScope at the Globe Cinema, and it was closed on 4th April 1959 with Ronald Howard in “Black Orchid” and Charles Bronson in “When Hell Broke Loose”. The building was demolished and the site re-developed where today the Oaks Shopping Centre now stands on the extended plot of land.

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