Parkway Cinema
62-68 Eldon Street,
Barnsley,
S70 2JL
62-68 Eldon Street,
Barnsley,
S70 2JL
3 people
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Parkway Entertainment Company Ltd. (Official)
Additional Info
Operated by: Parkway Entertainment Company Ltd.
Previously operated by: Gaumont-British-Picture Corp., Ltd., Odeon Cinemas Group, Odeon Theatres Ltd., Rank Organisation
Firms: T.P. Bennett & Son
Functions: Movies (First Run)
Previous Names: Gaumont, Odeon
Phone Numbers:
Box Office:
440122.624.8218
Nearby Theaters
News About This Theater
- Aug 7, 2007 — Odeon cinema to reopen
- Aug 24, 2005 — UK Update from CTA
The Gaumont was a rather bland replacement of the former Empire Palace of Varieties/Empire Super Cinema/Gaumont (which had been destroyed by fire on 2nd January1954). It was opened on 27th February 1956 with Julia Arnall & David Farrer in in “Lost”. It was designed by the architectural firm of T. P. Bennett & Son. What it lacked in ornamentation it made up for in comfort and spaciousness seating 706 in the stalls and 532 in the circle.
It was twinned in 1980 (having been renamed Odeon in 1962) and still shows first run movies on its two screens which seat 636 and 419.
However, long held plans for a multiplex could well have brought the cinema in Eldon Street to darkness. The Odeon closed on 17th September 2005 and it seemed that was the ‘last picture show’ in the building. Almost two years later it was taken over by an independent Parkway Entertainment Company Ltd. and re-opened as the Parkway Cinema on 8th August 2007.
In January 2023 a second 35mm projector was installed and the film “Empire of Light” starring Olivia Colman was screened using single spool reels, with changeovers every 20 minutes, which gave great pleasure to audiences.
Contributed by
Ian Grundy
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Recent comments (view all 16 comments)
good news our cinema is reopening as a parkway cinema on wed aug 8th 2007. this means no more tran hoppiing to sheffield and going to the cinema will be a much more frequent experience.
i’ve been today not much has changed and is still very traditional. however i’m sure the screens use to be bigger than they are
Actually the screens are bigger than they were! We have retained the original screen frames, but made the screens as large as possible within them. Screen 2, at 12.5 metres wide, is said to be around the same size as the Odeon Leicester Square. Major surgery would be needed to make the screens even larger – all the re-installation work was funded privately, but we will invest further if we can attract sufficient audience numbers to pay off our credit cards!
The Parkway reopened in August 2007 and these pictures were taken a week later. It is a comfortable theatre with generous legroom and a large (new) screen in the lower auditorium. It has been fully refurbished for the reopening, retaining the Odeon seating.
Exterior
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Foyers:
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Screen 1
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Screen 2
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Good to read that this Cinema has reopened.
I thought Rob Younger worked as Service Engineer for City Screen, may be no longer there?.
I spent a few days working a cleaning company that helped restore the cinema, upstairs in screen two there is still the orignal brass rails that were the pride of the place for years i spent a full day bringing them back to how they used to be.The place has never looked better,The staff are very helpfull and the snacks and treats are fab go see for you’re self.Congratulations to Rob,Jezz and everyone else who worked hard on the project well worthwhile
terry hutcheon
Understand 70mm. was installed in Screen 2 in order to show “The Hateful Eight”. If this is the case, the Parkway team deserve both congratulations and support. I enjoyed the film at a packed Odeon Leicester Square and, at the time, it was thought Filmhouse Edinburgh would the only other cinema to show the Ultra Panavision 70 film once it ended its successful run in Leicester Square. Bradford Pictureville weren’t able to share the roadshow treatment as PictureHouse Cinemas book the films there and their parent, Cineworld, refused to show it in any of their locations in spite at Mr Tarantino and the distributors granting OLS four weeks West End exclusivity (barring PictureHouse Central in Shaftesbury Avenue until the huge Odeon’s run had clocked up four very successful weeks).
Hi to you all. I have been attending this cinema since 1956, my first film was Norman Wisdom, I was only 7 years of age at the time. At the time the Gaumont, as it was know then, was part of the Rank organisation, Norman Wisdom was tied to this company. I still attend 2 or 3 times a month, the picture quality being second to none. I had the misfortune to attend a multiplex cinema recently in West Yorkshire, the picture quality was worse than awful and cost double the price of the Parkway. Robert, yours is a brilliant, well maintained cinema and long may you prosper.
Made a point of visiting this cinema on the way up North from Bristol. I wasn’t disappointed. Excellent cinema with good picture, sound and sight lines - in Screen 2 at least, with theatrical presentation done right. Very friendly owner only too happy to show me round after the show. Crucial this cinema survives once Cineworld open nearby. Worth a visit and deserving your support if you are in the area.
Glad to hear the Parkway is still going strong, and may it continue, what ever happened to Andy Baker and the original projectionists, when it was still Odeon..