DERELICT

Rained on and off all day so I waited for a lull in the showers before walking down to the village to get my repeat prescription. Then I got the bus to Newcastle to collect an online order from Tesco. As I was only in town yesterday I didn't stay long today.

The Forum challenge word for today is wood and I had something in mind to blip. However as I passed the old Odeon cinema I decided to use it as my blip for another Forum challenge - " Derelict Thursday".

The building opened as a cinema in 1931 as The Paramount and started showing talking movies for the first time. Back in the 1930s there was no cinema in the region to compare with art deco grandeur of The Paramount which was described as one of the best of its kind in Europe. It seated 2,602 people. The hanging light fittings in the foyer were fitted in nine-carat gold and the walls of the circle lounge were hung with oil paintings. The cinema’s mighty Wurlitzer organ rose on a power-operated lift at the side of the stage, as did the symphony orchestra pit.

In 1939 the Paramount chain was bought out by the Odeon chain. In the 70s it even hosted pop concerts.

Apart from going there to see films I remember taking Becky and Neil there on many a Saturday afternoon when they showed the Newcastle United matches live. In those days the football ground was always full and it was difficult to come by a ticket so it was great to be able to see the match live at the cinema. The atmosphere was wonderful.

In November 2002 the final credits rolled and the Odeon relocated to the newly built Gate complex. The building is now sadly an empty shell with an uncertain future.

Steps today - 6,555