Silver Cinema

York Street,
Belfast, BT15 1ED

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Torchlight
Torchlight on November 5, 2018 at 6:13 am

The Electric Cinema, which opened on 22 August 1910, was the second of five cinemas to open in the city that year (it was the first year of a cinema building boom in Belfast, which continued right through to 1920). All the evidence suggests the Electric was rather primitive (and not custom or purpose built as has been suggested), indeed Fred Stewart the owner closed it after a few months (possibly in October). Its replacement was much improved but didn’t open until April 1911. From then on its name kept changing, with variations including – BB (Bright & Beautiful) Picture Palace, PP (Perfect & Pleasant) Pictures and People’s Popular Picture Palace. Just when it seemed it had settled on The Palace (or the York Street Picture Palace), there was yet another change. Around 14 December 1912 it became the Silver Cinema and this time it stuck with the name, until its closure in 1915.

The Electric was the first cinema to open in the city centre in 1910. The site is now part of the Belfast campus of Ulster University.