November 2012 Newsletter

President: Gwen Taylor
Issue No. 2
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November 2012
with an Oscar style evening where awards are
made for a variety of categories in the whole
range of theatre, including pantomime, musicals
and drama. Gwen regularly comes up from
London to present her award which is for the
best performance in a musical.
GWEN TAYLOR – OUR NEW
PRESIDENT
I
T is with great pleasure that we
announce that the Derby born
actress, Gwen Taylor, has agreed
to become our first President.
Her connection with the Hippodrome goes back
to her youth when she was taken there by her
father; she remembers a wonderful building and
is very keen to see the theatre restored to its
former glory.
Her early career in theatre was with the Marlowe
Players and Derby Theatre in the Round, two
local amateur groups that have been presenting
high quality theatre in Derby for many years;
sadly, DTIR closed a few years ago but the Marlowe Players are still a vibrant company.
We are proud to have her on board.
Tony Jaggers
English Heritage is now, for the first time, creating an “at risk register” for Grade II listed buildings. They have already decided to add Derby
Hippodrome to this list, which they say will
make it easier to apply for restoration grants.
DERBY HIPPODROME
T
HE news of plans by the City Council to
undertake a Feasibility Study on the future of the Derby Hippodrome Theatre,
as reported in the Derby Evening Telegraph on
2nd October, is extremely welcome even if long
overdue. Mounted in conjunction with English
Heritage, the study should settle the future of
this wonderful Grade II listed building, described by the Theatres Trust as a “Sleeping
Princess”.
Our recently issued Options Appraisal (see separate article) demonstrated that the best future of
the building was to restore it to some kind of
theatre space. At the time of writing we have not
seen the brief for this new study but in a letter to
us the leader of the Council Paul Bayliss wrote,
Gwen Taylor (photo Granada Television)
Gwen always remarks on her gratitude for and
the wonderful time she had in her “am dram days
in Derby”. From this springboard she has appeared in television, films and, of course, on
stage all over the country. She was recently at
Derby Theatre in “Butterfly Lion” and will be
appearing there again in “Driving Miss Daisy”
(19th – 24th November 2012).
She maintains a link with the local amateur theatre scene by her sponsorship of one of the annual
Eagle Awards. Every year at Derby Theatre
there is a ceremony to celebrate the local talent
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“This study will build on the options appraisal
carried out for the Trust”. We are delighted with
the positive action by the City Council: when the
options appraisal was published we stated that
the next important step was a Feasibility Study
so that the whole project can move forward.
The consultants will be appointed in November
2012 and the report is due in April 2013. We
know that we will be on the list of organisations
to be consulted.
November 2012
here
FACEBOOK AND SOCIAL
MEDIA
W
E now have a dual presence within
the Facebook social network. The
Save Derby Hippodrome page, independently created some time before the DHRT
was formed, is now managed by the Trust and
offers an open forum for comment and discussions about the Derby Hippodrome.
The second Facebook presence is the Derby
Hippodrome Restoration Trust’s Page, which
acts as a direct news feed from the Trust, delivering the latest news and developments on the
DHRT’s progress. This service is also open to
comments and anything we have to report is also
broadcast (Tweeted) through our “Twitter Feed”.
We have been joined on Facebook by a number
of other campaigns to save Hippodrome theatres
at risk in other towns and cities around the UK.
Dudley Hippodrome is the latest to join the campaign trail. Dudley’s council wants to demolish
their (unlisted) Art Deco Hippodrome to make
way for a car park. This has inspired a group of
local enthusiasts to campaign for the building’s
restoration and re-opening as a theatre. So far the
Dudley Council are listening to local people’s
concerns.
Workington Opera House (unlisted) was due for
demolition; this inspired a campaign, Opera
Action, to restore the theatre to its former glory
and open it as a theatre. Workington’s Council
has cooperated and allowed time for the group to
come up with a business plan. The private
owner/developer, who had applied to demolish
the building, supports these plans and is in negotiation with the group.
Todmorden Hippodrome is a successful thousand seat theatre that is now owned and run by
the Todmorden Opera Society.
Finally we have Tameside Hippodrome, which
we take a look at in this edition of our newsletter
Chris Harris
There have been other encouraging actions over
the past few months. In January an article in the
Derby Evening Telegraph announced that the
problems over the development of nearby
Duckworth Square had been resolved and that
the Agent, Rigby and Co. who is responsible for
finding a suitable developer, was very optimistic
that this long standing eyesore would soon have
a plan. At the time the Options Appraisal was
still in progress and the article commented on it
“This is a tough challenge but at least it is showing endeavour and innovation in seeking to come
up with viable proposals to restore this fine
building to its former glory”. Since that announcement, students at the University of Derby
mounted an inspiring exhibition of their ideas for
Duckworth-Square.
A further encouragement has been the announcement that the area around the Hippodrome has been designated a Conservation Area.
Finally, a few days ago, it was announced that
English Heritage would be including grade II
buildings in their Buildings at Risk Register.
Louise Brennan, who is at the Midlands office of
English Heritage, stated "I have been involved
with the Hippodrome for a long time and it is
quite clearly at risk and would be included on a
register." The Theatres Trust already runs a
Theatres at Risk Register and the Hippodrome is
on that but the English Heritage Register carries
more weight.
With all the above developments, the publication
of the Feasibility Study next April should be a
watershed in the fortunes of the building. The
DHRT is aware that much action will be required
and we will need to be ready to take advantage
of what we hope will be a favourable outcome of
the report. These are detailed elsewhere in this
newsletter. Do please do whatever you can to
support us – exciting times are ahead.
Tony Jaggers
THE DERBY HIPPODROME RESTORATION TRUST
Formed in 2009, the Trust became a Private Company Limited
by Guarantee and was registered as a Charity in 2010. There
are currently four Directors: Mrs. Joan Travis, Mr. Joe
Aveline, Mr. Tony Jaggers and Mr. Peter Steer. The Trust is
managed by an Executive Committee. We are always looking
for people to help in any way – if you are interested please
contact us via our website: www.derbyhippodrome.co.uk
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THE FUTURE DERBY HIPPODROME?
November 2012
here
Artist’s impression of the new foyer of a restored Hippodrome, showing the glass lift
that will enable disabled patrons to access the roof top restaurant and balconies.
Artist’s impression of the proposed Roof Top Restaurant with its breathtaking views
over the city.
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TAMESIDE HIPPODROME
November 2012
here
look after it and turn it into a flagship for Ashton
Town Centre.
I
T always starts with a dream. The What if?
But if things are going to work, reality has to
set in early. The hard fact is that no theatre
can run on sentiment. No matter how much we
love it, no matter what wealth of architectural
detail there may be or what memories of the
greats who once trod its hallowed boards; it’s
called show business for a reason.
We talked with Bill Kenwright Ltd. Cautiously
supportive at first BKL became more intrigued
with our plans and our figures. Subject to contract they have confirmed that all of their productions for the next two years can use the
Hippodrome.
And so the Council got to work – files were
opened, surveys passed to us, staff detailed to
assist us. Councils might not have much money
but they have a wealth of expertise, knowledge
and advice available.
“Any chance those six coach stands at the back
of the theatre can be repainted? They’re a bit
faint.” Is six going to be enough?” “Hopefully
not but where else can you put them?” A look
passed. “That park and ride you’re building on
Ashton Moss…..”, “I was thinking the same –
would, say 15, be enough? Then you’ll need a
protected set down and pick up outside the
theatre so we’ll need to change the road markings…..
“If you can sort your waste out we’ll pick it up
for free”
Photo courtesy of Friends of the Hippodrome
When Tameside Hippodrome closed in 2008,
11,000 people signed a petition to reopen it and a
liaison group was set up. To re-open the theatre
we established three important criteria. First the
idea must be feasible. Then it must be viable.
And finally, it must be sustainable. So we
needed a good Business Plan. At the time Tameside Council was faced with having to find savings of £35million, 600 redundancies and capital
savings of 58%. It was no time to ask for a grant
to reopen a theatre.
“We don’t want your money” was a good starting point in our meeting with the council and got
their attention. “We do want your co-operation
and to us that is worth far more” further enhanced their interest. “In what way?” they
asked, cautiously. An hour later they were putting forward their own suggestions and ideas –
we had a partnership.
Photo by David Mills
There will be no grant from the Council, but
there is a very strong partnership working towards the regeneration of a run-down area and
the economic growth of the Borough. It’s a good
feeling.
What had we brought to the table? Fullyresearched financial information together with a
sound business plan. We told the Council that reopening the Hippodrome would put in excess of
£15.3million a year back into the local economy.
We would provide jobs (16 full-time and 70 parttime). We would bring in tourism (already we
had deals in place with hotels and coach companies). We would provide a training centre of
excellence through partnerships with local universities and colleges.
And we would take a dilapidated, expensive,
grade II listed building off their asset register,
The remarks expressed relate only to Tameside
Heritage and Arts Trust and Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council. TMBC has owned the
Hippodrome since 1983. The detail will not
apply elsewhere. But the ethos, co-operation and
goodwill are universal.
Keith Dalby-Oldham Chairman of the Tameside
Heritage and Arts Trust
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THE OPTIONS APPRAISAL
November 2012
here
Joan Travis our Chair opened the Meeting with a
general welcome; she then went on to give an
outline of the current position over the Hippodrome. The main work over the last year had
been the commissioning and publication of the
Options Appraisal. We were fortunate to obtain
a grant from the Architectural Heritage Fund and
the remainder of the cost was covered by the
Derby City Council. Latham Architects, in conjunction with PHT Consultants, had done a
splendid job and had demonstrated that restoration as a theatre was the best option for the building and that it could be a viable proposition.
Since then we had been attempting to speak to
the City Council but, with the change in party in
power, that meeting had not yet taken place.
A
YEAR ago, in our first newsletter, we
reported that we were about to commission an Options Appraisal on the
Hippodrome. This document, independently
researched to national guidelines, would establish whether the Hippodrome could be restored
and what viable use it could be put to.
From an initial seven architectural consultants
invited to submit a tender, we chose three to be
shortlisted and interviewed them during November 2011. The decision as to which to choose
proved very difficult as they all presented very
impressive bids but we finally chose a local firm,
Latham Architects. It proved to be a good
choice. They, in conjunction with PHT Consultants, another local company, did a very thorough
investigation which included a major public
survey. Over 800 replies were received which,
for a survey of this nature, is a very good response. The result of the survey was an impressive 90% of the respondents supporting
restoration as a theatre and over 95% either offered help or wished to be kept informed of any
future developments.
The appraisal investigated a wide variety of
possible uses but because of the nature of the
building, in essence a large ornamented space
(the auditorium), all possibilities except theatrical or similar use were ruled out.
AGM and The Ockbrook Big Band, Photo by Chris Harris
There then came elections.
Joan Travis was confirmed to continue as
Chairman. Her energies in pursuing various
issues that had arisen during the year had to be
commended. In the subject of Officers of the
Trust, the Secretary and Treasurer, there has
need to have been a change. Both of them,
namely Jane Temple and Yvonne Taylor, had to
resign earlier in the year due to personal circumstances. We thank them for their generous past
services in pursuit of our aims. We have been
fortunate to find two newcomers who volunteered to take on these posts, so the Executive
Committee co-opted them pro-tem. At the AGM
these two ladies were formally proposed and
elected – Mary Boocock as Secretary and Janice
Read as Treasurer. The existing ordinary members of the Committee were all willing to continue so were re-elected en bloc – Joe Aveline,
Penny de Abreu, Peter Billson, Paul Chadwick,
Chris Harris, Tony Jaggers and Peter Steer.
The report concluded, “It is clear from the findings of our study that the restoration project
could present cost efficient opportunities for
creating a modern theatre provision for the city.
However, before drawing any conclusions, there
are many associated and important issues that
need to be further investigated in a more detailed
feasibility study which also takes account of the
overall current theatre landscape and future provision within Derby.”
2012 ANNUAL GENERAL
MEETING
T
HE second AGM of the Derby Hippodrome Restoration Trust was held on the
16 July 2012 at the St. Mary’s Church
Hall, Derby. It was attended by a good
number of members as well as some other
interested people.
(Continued on next page)
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Issue 2
the silent films. They could only show short films
of about 10 minutes duration each. Probably the
first Bioscope came to Derby in 1897 travelling as
a novelty and set up in a tent at one of the annual
fairs in the town. This followed the invention of
moving pictures by the French Lumière brothers,
who brought their invention to show in London in
1896. In Derby, following the earlier temporary
venues, six (including the Picture House) purpose
built cinemas had been built and opened in the few
years prior to the Hippodrome’s opening. This new
form of entertainment was obviously going to
compete with the Variety Theatres which were
built specifically to accommodate short individual
acts. Examination of the original Hippodrome
plans shows that the proprietor was very mindful
of the draw of these new films, so he had his Architects make provision for housing a projection
facility, or Bioscope Room, within the Hippodrome. This is clearly drawn on the original plans:
a square room of internal dimensions 8 feet square
by 11 feet 6 inches high, with a projection opening
and a single entrance. This “box” was located
central at the rear of the circle seating. Sometime
after the submission of the original plans, there was
a rethink, and amended plans were submitted in the
October showing the Bioscope Room pushed back,
out of the auditorium completely, and now occupying an upper level above the Crush Space in front
of the Saloon. By pushing it up and back, it had
become sited almost entirely into the fresh air.
Specifically labelled the Bioscope Box, it was also
provided with a room below labelled Winding
Room, the two connected by a spiral staircase. By
now the Bioscope was electrically driven.
Following the formal matters of the meeting,
there was a short break for refreshments. This
was then followed, as in a tradition started last
year, by a light entertainment – a half hour or so
performance by the sixteen piece Ockbrook Big
Band, with their two vocalists. It was an excellent and polished performance; the audience was
most appreciative and the Trust very grateful for
their appearance and contribution to the evening.
Peter Billson
T
November 2012
here
THE BIOSCOPE AND THE
DERBY HIPPODROME
HE Hippodrome, designed by Messrs Marshall and Tweedy of Newcastle, was built
specifically as a Theatre for Variety Performances and Revues. The plans were submitted to the Derby Borough Council for approval under the Public Health Act of 1875 and
Local Bye-laws by Mr. D. G. Bliss on 1st July
1913; these were given the official number
11666 and these original drawings survive in
the archive of Derby Studies Library.
The construction of the
theatre was rapid and its
opening performance was
on Monday 20th July 1914
(just 15 days before the
First World War broke out
on the 4th August). In the
words of the Theatres
Trust, the building “is one
of a very few, which
represent a significant
stage in the evolution of
the building type which
ultimately became the dominant design for cinema
construction in the late 1920s”. The first purpose
built cinema had opened in Derby on the 27th July
1910 in nearby Babington Lane. Originally called
the Midland Electric Theatre, it had been renamed
the Picture House by 1914.
The occasional films shown in those early days
were, as in the cinemas, all quite short, probably
around 15 to 20 minutes, the length of time taken
for the average Variety Act. Particular films were
advertised in the local newspapers among the
names of popular acts appearing during a week.
The first short film shown at the Hippodrome was
of a boxing match – the Heavyweight Championship of the World: Carpentier v Gunboat Smith.
These Bioscope showings were probably discontinued by about 1920. Finally, when the Hippodrome closed as a theatre, to reopen as a Cinema
from the 15th September 1930, the original Bioscope Box was enlarged to three times its original
size by adding on either side of the existing Box,
thus creating the Projection Room still surviving
today.
Peter Billson 2012
Prior to these purpose built cinemas, the early films
were shown in various halls in the town, temporarily converted for film projection. For instance the
Temperance Hall in Curzon Street, where a temporary screen was erected on the platform and the
projector placed central three-quarters of the way
down the middle aisle, among the audience. In
these early years the projector, called a Bioscope,
was hand cranked and thus could be noisy during
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Issue 2
November 2012
here
host to guest organists such as Phil Kelsall from
The Tower Ballroom Blackpool and Robert
Wolfe. So a fine instrument in the heart of Derbyshire has been saved by the enthusiasm and
dedication of Dave Thorpe.
PIPES IN THE PEAKS
T
HIS is a story not about restoring a
theatre, but there is a link: how a
one-time local cinema organ was
retrieved from its bizarre installation in
a private residence, then re-built and
restored to become a spectacular instrument to hear and see in the heart of
the Derbyshire countryside.
Dave Thorpe of Thorpe (true!) Dovedale runs a
garage that restores old cars. He likes cinema
organs too, so back in 1990, he bought the British built Compton organ that was once installed
in the ABC Regal cinema, East Street, Derby.
The cinema opened in 1938.
Compton Organ (Photo by Paul Chadwick)
He had the vision to restore the ex- Derby Regal
Compton organ and place it in a fabulous setting
so that future generations can see, hear, appreciate and enjoy the organ that was installed and
played in a Derby cinema that is no longer there.
If you would like to attend a concert go to:
www.pipesinthepeaks.co.uk
I can remember hearing the organ play occasionally at the Regal, in between film programmes.
The sound came out of two ornate bronze grills
either side of the stage. See picture. What you
didn't see were all the effects and extra musical
instruments that were linked to the organ console. In Thorpe, all the working parts are visible
around the room including 1,300 pipes, a player
piano, accordion, solocello, vibraphone, glockenspiel, xylophone, an automated drum kit,
tweeting birds, a quacking duck, a hooting owl.
The list goes on.
Paul Chadwick
Just Five Pounds each is all that it
will take to help get the hippodrome
show on the road
£5
Simply Text a Fiver from your Phone
Regal Cinema showing the Compton Organ
On concert nights, the organ slowly rises from
below ground on a lift that was originally in the
Odeon Birmingham, and, as the music plays, the
organ console changes colour.
At certain concerts the organist plays duets with
the 17 piece Ockbrook Big Band, a feat of music
making that you would have difficulty finding
anywhere else in the UK. The organ sounds
magnificent in its Derbyshire location and plays
Gwen Taylor is appearing with Don Warrington in
Driving Miss Daisy, at Derby Theatre from 19th until
24th November 2012. The tour finishes at Southend
Palace Theatre the following week.
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November 2012
here
The Pre-application Plan. The target is to raise
£25,000 in pledges by April 2013; the money
will be needed following a positive result of the
Feasibility Study, which is scheduled to be issued then. The money will be spent on developing our Pre-application bid to the Heritage
Lottery Fund.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
W
ITH the Feasibility Study underway,
we will soon need some more funds
to realize our dream. Although the
final sum of money we need to raise is very
large, there is a very important phase now
coming up in which we are looking for very
small donations: these will have a major effect
on our future prospects. With this issue of the
newsletter we are launching a plea for donations of £5.00 each from all our supporters.
Please take a moment to look at the form that
came with this Newsletter and send us your
donation or, better still, phone your donation
through using our JustTextGiving scheme: this
will avoid the cost of postage.
The Development Plan. This is to raise
£250,000 to develop the initial design assuming
we are successful in our pre-application bid but
we would anticipate receiving half of this from
the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF Stage 1). We
will start this part of the plan in April 2013.
The Acquisition Plan. The target is to raise
£750,000 to cover cost of purchase and associated immediate expenses of legal fees, insurance,
security etc. We would expect this to be needed
towards the end of 2013 or early 2014.
Why are we looking for such small sums now?
We have analysed our future needs for cash and
developed a 6 point plan which is set out below.
What we are looking for now is £3,000 to run the
Trust for the next two years. Much of the work
has been, and will continue to be, on a pro bono
basis. However, there are a number of costs
such as postage and the printing of newsletters
and leaflets, which have to be paid for. We currently have well over 500 supporters and followers, many on Facebook. If all of you were to
donate a very small sum, for example £5.00
each, then, with a few donating a bit more, we
would achieve our £3,000 target. Our JustTextGiving scheme makes this very simple and,
if you pay income tax, you can “Gift Aid” it as
well. Why don’t you do it now before you forget?
The Design Plan. We will need £1.75M for this
with a start date of early 2014.
The Restoration Plan. The target is £15 to
£25M to be raised over the period 2015 to 2017.
Some of these targets may look very large but
achieving them will all depend on the small
donations at the beginning: once we can demonstrate a significant low level support the larger
sums will become easier. And, of course, we
will be looking to the large grant giving organisations for the major contribution.
So let’s get the ball rolling with your donations.
Our Six Point Plan to Restore the Hippodrome
The Initiation Plan, target £12,500. This has
already been achieved and was spent on the
Options Appraisal plus other initial expenses.
The Management Plan, target £3,000 by early
2013. This is the one we are launching now and
we hope that a large number of you who read
this newsletter will each donate £5.00. It will
keep us going for the next two years.
Restoration News Editorial Team: Tony Jaggers, Peter Billson and Christopher
Harris. Design, layout and artwork by Christopher Harris
Printed and published by the Derby Hippodrome Restoration Trust, A Company limited by Guarantee, No 7134945. Registered Office: The White House,
2 New Road, Darley Abbey, Derby DE22 1DR. A Registered Charity, No
1137707`
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