Wigan Album

Isn't it King Street, Wigan?

hi artful i live in Ashton can you tell me where this pic was taken

Yes Irene, it is in King Street.

King Street yes, the building with the tall white arch is where Brocol House is now.

building top left of the pic is the Derby Arms

It's one that I posted quite a while ago.
It is King St. opposite the old Town Hall, the crossing is Chapel Lane where King St continues as Darlington St

The building just going out of shot to the right... would that be the Hippodrome?

Correct Dennis, & the last buiding, on the corner of the one with the big arch was "The Brewers" Pub across Chapel lane to "The Derby Arms"

So it would seem that then... as it is now, still a place where folk went for a night out. But... I would rather walk down THAT King Street then venture down it today.

So... what IS the building with the tall white arch? :D

That is the entrance to the cinema, Dennis...the building to the right has "Palace" painted on , with an arrow pointing towards the actual entrance.

The point on that arrow was the entry with a verandah half covering on the cinema wall.
That's where we had to queue to get in, the actual entrance was to the right of the cinema screen as you looked at it from your seat.Not on King St.
The floors & cock-up seats were mad of wood, no covering on either, & the flooor had a very gentle slope up to the back of the cinema, not as steep as others in Wigan.
The sound of people coming in wearing clogs was deafening, to say the least..;o)

Thanks, Art, I stand corrected;I really thought the white arch was the entrance. I feel as if I temember seeing the cinema as a small child in the fifties, but the memory plays tricks as you get older. I know I often went into King Steet with my mam.....would it be possible for me to have seen it? When was it demolished?

You must have gone to the Palace Irene but it had a different entrance when we were little. I remember it having metal Concerina doors when it was closed they were painted cream I saw a film on here called TOBOR the Great (tobor is robot spelled backwards) and the colossus of new york... I am sure some film buffs will tell us when these were released in the 50s/60s

Was there not a side entrance to the Palace, where you went up a long passage to pay for and get entrance to the cheaper front seats\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\/ Or is my memory playing tricks?

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the Palace was originally a roller skating rink when it opened, maybe in the late 1890s. Does anybody know anything about that?

The Palace Cinema was in King Street opposite the police station, further east approximately 50 or 60 yards it became Darlington Street at its junction with Capel Lane as you got into Darlington Street there was the Wigan Borough Police garages, for the police cars, I think there were about three or four police cars. There was also a shop near to the garage that sold some very nice paintings.

Derek, You may well be right. If my memory serves correctly, although I can only remember a front entrance, at the close of performance, when they threw open numerous exits, you could emerge onto the path that went over th' iron bridge to Wigan North-western Station. I guess where once there was an exit, it may also at some point have served as an entrance.

From the 1840s maps onwards to the 1890s maps this was Wigan Brewery.

HI Derek, you might be thinking of the County Playhouse, you could queue up down the long side entry for the cheap seats on the first few rows.

Wasn't the hippodrome opposite the police station,which when it was nocked down they built Lennons supermarket,the building on the corner of King St / Chaple Lane was the dole office.

was the palace where Brocal house is now

I believe my Great Grandfather owned the Palace theatre from late 19th to early 20th Century.His name was William Bond.He also owned the Raven Hotel or was the proprietor during the same period.Any Bond,s out there could maybe help.We may even be related.