Diamond Screen
Minstergate,
Thetford,
IP24 1BN
Minstergate,
Thetford,
IP24 1BN
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In Thetford, Norfolk, the former Burrell steam engine factory was home to the Diamond Screen. This short-lived cinema was owned and operated by Stowmarket based Neil Sutton. He had to overcome four separate incidents of vandalism, and spend around £70,000 during the six weeks it took to get the cinema ready. The Diamond Screen opened on 25th March 1994, with the evening attractions being “Sister Act 2” starring Whoopi Goldberg in the 228-seat screen 1 and Steven Seagal in “On Deadly Ground” in the 115-seat screen 2.
In a foretaste of things to come, screen 1 was only half full on opening night, and just eight people turned up for the show in screen 2. Market research commissioned by Mr Sutton had indicated a strong desire for a cinema in the town but, in the event, audiences just did not bear that out, although Mr. Sutton’s cause was not helped by his being unable to obtain films on ‘day and date’, often with a wait of over seven weeks for the big releases.
Sadly the Diamond Screen was closed on 20th August 1994 after only six months.
When I visited, part of the premises were occupied by an Iceland supermarket. There were no traces of the former cinema. More recently, the British Heart Foundation has opened a retail outlet alongside Iceland.
Contributed by
David Simpson
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
Diamond Screen was big investment that just didn’t pay off. I had enjoyed a long history with film distributors by this time but the cinemas in Bury St Edmunds obviously helped sway distributors concerning my twin in Thetford. In the end we were not far behind if at all but ultimately due to the nature of some of the patrons we decided to pull the plug and move on. Trevor Wicks at Hollywood Norwich bought much of seats and equipment and I was happy to turn the key!