Westleigh Kinema

This was my local cinema from 1961 until it closed in 1964. Aesthetically, it was stuck in 1926 until the day it closed. The upstairs foyer was furnished with dusty Lloyd Loom wicker chairs and tables, complete with aspedistras! Tickets? No, you were issued with an octagonal metal token with a square hole in the middle – I’d never seen anything like this before or since. The intermission music was always, but ALWAYS, “Windows of Paris”. That said, the standard of projection was high, the sound good, the auditorium warm and comfortable, and most importantly, for an impecunious apprentice, much cheaper than the city centre cinemas. I remember the Westleigh with great affection and was sad to see it go.