The Palace Cinema

A Memory of Wellingborough.

The pub on the left of the picture was renowned for a few brawls in it's time, originally called The Globe (now known as Raferty's) I recall walking down Cambridge St and seeing a man being hurled through the window into the street. The United Counties Bristol bus is parked outside the old Palace Cinema (better known by locals as the 'flea pit') These were the days of ice cream ladies in the interval, watching films through a haze of cigarette smoke and plastic orange drink cartons being squashed noisely to be followed very quickly by a cinema usher shining a torch in your face and escorting you off the premises.The Palace was renowned for having seats situated behind columns that supported the upper circle, as the actors crossed the screen one would have to dodge the columns (so to speak) to observe the action. At the end of every film show the national anthem was played accompanied by the sound of fold up seats banging open. The Palace was very handy for the bus home, the bus stop was right outside the exit doors. The last film I saw at the Palace was Star Wars in the 70's, it must have been a good film I went 3 times to see it again ! Today the Palace is no more, it has been converted to a public house serving food etc These days it's known as the Cutting Room. The room above the building is a snooker hall I believe. The road leading away in the distance shows another building this was a butchers shop at one time,later to become Park Road bookshop and now a tattoo parlour, the building to the right still survives today, during the 1950's this building was owned by Dexter's.