Bringing the Rothbury Back into the Daylight!

📸 Bringing the Rothbury Back into the Daylight!

We are currently on a mission to gather a "meaty" collection of photos showing the Rothbury through its many lives—from the cinema days and the Bingo era to the high-tech years of Southern Sound.

Can you help us fill the gallery? We know there are photos tucked away in drawers and old albums across Portslade (and Lancing!). We are specifically looking for:

• Inside the "Flicks": Does anyone have a "cheeky" snap of the old cinema interior or the projection box?

• The Bingo Hall: Any photos of the "full house" crowds during the Mecca years on Franklin Road?

• Radio House in Action: Did you take a photo during a studio tour or a charity auction in the 80s or 90s?

A rare glimpse inside the Rothbury

Rothbury cinema is showing "Show Business" and The White Cliffs of Dover"

Istvan Radi:Just found another ad for the Rothbury Cinema. This time with address and phone number From a 1945 B&H Gazette

Rothbury Bingo

"The Rothbury Cinema, Franklin Road, Portslade. Note the classic Art Deco frontage that would later house Southern Sound."

Opening Week: 27th March 1934

The grand opening film was the British masterpiece "The Private Life of Henry VIII", starring Charles Laughton.

It was a massive coup for Portslade at the time. The film had only premiered a few months earlier at the Astoria in Brighton and was the first British film to ever win an Academy Award. For the local residents on Franklin Road, having a state-of-the-art cinema showing Oscar-winning blockbusters right on their doorstep would have been a huge event.

The "Odeon" Connection

There is a fascinating bit of "behind-the-scenes" drama from that opening week:

• The Rothbury was actually co-opened by Oscar Deutsch, the legendary founder of the Odeon chain.

• The architect was George Coles, who became the "mastermind" of the iconic Art Deco Odeon style.

• However, Deutsch and his partners withdrew from the project almost immediately after it opened!

• A.L. Middleton (the builder you mentioned) took full control and ran it as an independent cinema. This is likely why it kept its unique name, "The Rothbury," instead of becoming just another "Odeon Portslade."

A Glimpse into 1934

If you had walked into the Rothbury that first week, you would have experienced:

1. High-Tech Sound: It used the British Thomson-Houston sound system—the height of "talkie" technology.

2. Luxury Seating: 548 plush seats (no wooden benches here, unlike some of the older "flea-pits" like the Pavilion).

3. The "Pink" Look: Before the grey cladding of 2020 and the white paint of the 80s, the cinema had a distinct Art Deco flair, likely with cream and pastel accents typical of George Coles' early work.

The Cost of a Night Out (1930s)

In the mid-30s, a seat at the Rothbury or the Luxor would usually set you back:

• Stalls: 6d (sixpence) or 9d.

• Best Seats: 1/3 (one shilling and threepence) or 1/6. To put that in perspective, for the price of a modern fancy coffee, you could have taken a whole family to the cinema with change left over for tobacco or sweets!

What was on the Programme?

A typical "night at the pictures" at the Rothbury wasn't just the main film; it was a full evening’s entertainment. A 1930s advert would usually list:

1. The Main Feature: (e.g., a Clark Gable or Gracie Fields hit).

2. The "B" Movie: A shorter supporting film.

3. The Newsreel: Usually Gaumont-British News or Movietone—this was the only way people in Portslade or Lancing actually "saw" world news before television.

4. Organ Music or a Cartoon: Disney’s Mickey Mouse was a staple at the Luxor in Lancing

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Here is a summary of the key dates and facts 

The Rothbury, Portslade: A Timeline

• 27 March 1934: Grand Opening as The Rothbury Cinema. The first film shown was The Private Life of Henry VIII starring Charles Laughton. It was designed by the renowned Art Deco architect George Coles and built by A.L. Middleton.

• The Cinema Era: A state-of-the-art venue with 548 seats and a 34-foot proscenium, bringing Hollywood glamour to Franklin Road.

• The Bingo Years: Like many cinemas, it transitioned into a Bingo Hall as television became more popular in the mid-20th century.

• 2 April 1983: Reborn as the home of Southern Sound Radio. The auditorium was converted into professional broadcast studios.

• The 1990s: The station’s heyday with legendary DJs like Chris Copsey. This was the era when you had your gardening adverts produced there!

• July 2019: Planning application (BH2019/02197) submitted to modernise the exterior as part of its conversion into a multi-tenant business Centre.

• October 2020: The "modern" look Gary Osborne captured is completed, featuring the Anthracite Grey corrugated cladding and updated window frames.

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A sequence of rare images showing some interiors and the exterior

Rothbury Assembly Hall

 A 1947 celebration! Sidney Albert Berry and Lily Emma Berry
 outside the Rothbury entrance on their wedding day.

Rothbury when it was a night club 1970s

Rothbury when it was a night club 1970s

Rothbury when it was a night club 1970s
Does anyone remember going to the Night Club?

Spectre Disc Club (not the 007 Spectre I assume)

The Rothbury now houses modern office facilities

"Layers of History: Comparing Gary Osborne’s 1982 demolition photos with this modern view reveals that the building underwent two major transformations. The first was the 1982/83 reconstruction for Southern Sound. The second, much later phase, saw the installation of the grey cladding we see today, completely reimagining the West wing for its current life as a business Centre."

🕵️ The Rothbury "Then vs. Now" Challenge!

As we bring these 19 images into the daylight, we can't help but wonder what remains of the building's "meaty" history today. While the Rothbury is now a modern business hub, the bones of the old cinema and radio studios are still there!

Calling all current Rothbury House office workers: Do you work in one of the managed suites on Franklin Road? We want to hear from you! Have you spotted any "cheeky" ghosts of the building's past during your working day?

• Hidden Features: Are there any unusually thick walls where a soundproof radio booth used to be?

• The "Flicks" Remnants: Have you found any Art Deco flourishes or old cinema fixtures tucked away in a cupboard or stairwell?

• The View: If you look out of your office window, can you match your view to any of the "Daylight Gallery" photos above?

Help us "seal" the map! If you have a photo of what your corner of the Rothbury looks like today, leave a comment below. We’d love to see the "Now" alongside our "Then."
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Update [January 2026]: "Recent evidence and photography provided by Gary Osborne have clarified the structural history of the building during the 1982 reconstruction. It has been confirmed that a large section of the western end of the original 1934 George Coles structure was demolished and replaced. This explains the hybrid nature of the current building on Franklin Road. For a detailed look at this phase of the building's life, please see our new gallery: Click here for the full Demolition Gallery.

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The Many Lives of the Rothbury

CVA - A Christmas Heartwarming Glimpse