Dromore Cinema

In Dromore, County Down, the Dromore Cinema was established in the Town Hall in the silent era, by a master electrician by the name of Rodgers. He was assisted by three apprentices, William John Baxter, John Thompson and Hugh George Boal. The projection equipment was primitive, with the films being hand-cranked. Local artistes provided live entertainment while the films were being changed. In due course Mr. Rodgers was succeeded by Mr. Hurst, who was a manager of the Banbridge weaving company William Walker & Co. He provided film shows in Dromore’s Orange Hall on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday evenings, but it is unclear whether he also continued the films at the Town Hall. Mr. Larmour, a painter and decorator from Banbridge, succeeded Mr. Hurst and continued to show films in the Orange Hall.

Cinema then returned to the Town Hall under the management of James Dale, who owned a chemists shop. Later on James' son Robert took over. The Dromore Cinema opened six nights a week and enjoyed wide support during the 1950’s and 1960’s but inevitably began to suffer from competition provided by television. Robert Dale soldiered on until 1969, when the Cinema was purchased by David and Rosemary Harrison. They ran it until 1976 when the Education and Library Board acquired the premises to house the Library, which still occupies the building today.

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