A look at Knutsford's Curzon Cinema through the years

Films were introduced in the UK in the early 1900s when technology enabled 'moving pictures', and it took some time for them to be available to the general public, initially as silent films.

Gradually, people realised the value of these to entertain the masses and a new era was born.

In Knutsford, the Picture House opened in February 1918, located on Silk Mill Street. An advertisement appeared in Kinematograph Weekly in 1920 for an operator/electrician for the National Gas Engine and the Tyler Endom machine, apply to the manager, Picture House, Knutsford.

The owner of the Picture House, C Ogle, began to expand his 'empire' in the 1930s, and a new cinema was opened called ‘The Marcliff’ in Knutsford; it is assumed that it took its name from the nearby Marcliff Road, which is now named Marcliff Grove.

The cinema was opened on November 7, 1935, by Brigadier General Ernest Makins, MP for Knutsford (who received a KBE in 1938); the building was to cater for both film and variety with a stage and two dressing rooms.

Architecturally, it was designed to be in keeping with the town and command a prominent position on Toft Road, almost opposite the courts.

To quote a description at that time, the building: "was designed on the flat roof principal, in a way that looked pleasing and substantial without an overbearing effect.

"The front elevation was of rustic brick with white mortar, and on either side was a lock-up shop. The front of the buildings and shops were decorated in black, with egg-shell blue and primrose glass. The front was planted with shrubs, yew trees, and tubs."

Toft Road in the 1930s (Image: Rose Hurley)

The cinema was built to hold an audience of 672. The owner opened two further cinemas in the chain, one in 1937 called the Marcliff in Hazel Grove, opened by the Cotton Queen of Great Britain, and the Barcliff, which opened in Denton in 1939. 

The Marcliff at Knutsford showed many films and hosted a great number of theatre shows in the 1930s through to 1950s, including a free film show in 1938 called the ‘Cadbury Cavalcade’ – a programme of five films which included ‘All Aboard’ and a technicolour film called ‘The Plantation People’, presumably some sort of promotion.

Other popular films of the time included 1940 ‘Blossom Time’, 1940 ‘Contraband’, and in 1943 ‘The Magnificent Dope’ starring Henry Fonda.

Other stage shows over the years were ‘Victoria and Her Hussar’ in 1947, and ‘The Quaker Girl’, both by the Knutsford Amateur Dramatic Society in 1949. Ten years later, in 1959, the same company performed ‘Brigadoon.’ 

Toft Road in 2011 (Image: Rose Hurley)

The old Picture House continued until the 1950s when an advert appeared in 1955 in the Manchester Evening News stating that the premises were available to let or sell for storage purposes. The Picture House was closed and eventually demolished.

In the early 1960s, the Marcliff was taken over by the local council and opened as a Civic Centre Cinema, and in the early 1990s, it was renamed the Studio with a revamp and a reduced capacity of 400.

In 2013 it was taken over by the London-based Curzon Group, renamed as Curzon Cinema with a 25-year deal by the Cheshire East Council, to manage this historic cinema and building.

In 2018, a £1m refurbishment took place, and the building was divided into three smaller cinemas, called the Marcliff, the Cranford, and the Studio, with a total seating capacity of 299.

The Curzon Cinema in Knutsford (Image: Rose Hurley)

The independent group wanted to create an experience totally different from the large multiplex cinemas with a smaller, more intimate setting and a more personal approach.

Much of the character and ambience of the cinema was retained, and it remains a popular venue in the town.