Former Dudley Hill Picture Palace

Former Dudley Hill Picture Palace

This former cinema, now used as a carpet and furniture showroom, was built in 1911–12 by the architects Howorth and Howorth of Cleckheaton for Walter and Percy Goodall. The building is constructed of mellow red brick with white Marmo faience dressings and a slate roof, and features a baroque façade. It is oriented north-east to south-west, with Tong Street bordering it to the north-east, Compton Street to the south-east, a later warehouse to the north-west, and later twentieth-century housing to the south-west.

The front elevation facing north-east is a wide 3-bay composition that appears as two storeys due to windows lighting the former balcony. It has a faience plinth, a cornice with egg and dart ornamentation supported by shaped corbels, and a stringcourse between the floor levels also incorporating egg and dart ornamentation. Full-height pilasters with faience panels flank the three bays and corners, which are curved. The pilasters flanking the central bay incorporate relief swag and garland decoration arranged around a Green Man-style head. The main entrance is centrally positioned and consists of a wide segmental-arched opening with faience quoining and a large triple keystone displaying the date '1912' in faded gold stylised relief numerals. Two sandstone steps, the upper one with yellow, green and black terrazzo covering, lead to two sets of timber double doors, each with six horizontal lights and original brass door furniture, set within a timber screen with overlights and side lights in matching style. Above the entrance is a large segmental-arched tripartite window with replaced glazing and faience surround incorporating a triple keystone. Surmounting the central bay is a large broken segmental pediment in faience with relief decoration incorporating wreaths, scrolled decoration and a shell motif. Relief lettering in faded gold at the centre of the pediment reads 'PICTURE PALACE'. A finial that originally stood at the pediment's centre has been lost. The outer bays each contain a slender segmental-arched window with quoined faience surround incorporating a triple keystone, and a first-floor oculus above with faience surround incorporating a keystone, hoodmould and festoon decoration. The outer bays are topped by a shaped parapet that continues around the curved corners and conceals the pitched roof from view.

Both the north-west and south-east side elevations are largely blank, with a number of blocked-up fire exits and windows bearing faience heads and sills. A stairwell providing access to a secondary entrance at the south-western end of the south-east elevation, originally intended for cheaper seating closer to the screen, has been infilled.

The rear south-west elevation is a rendered gable end that is blank except for a short brick stack rising from the gable copings.

Internally, the former entrance foyer has been partly opened up and the inner doors leading to the auditorium have been removed, though the original grooved wall frieze survives. A former office and balcony stair lie off the north-west side of the foyer, accessed through original doors with Art Nouveau-style handles. The office door displays the word 'PRIVATE' in relief lettering, and a sign declaring the venue licensed for public music and singing exists above the balcony stair entrance. The balcony stair is located at the north corner of the building and is now enclosed, with a modern partitioned vestibule created at the top.

The main auditorium retains its raked floor and possesses a barrel-vaulted ribbed ceiling with rose motifs adorning the ribs. Circular ventilators with surrounds incorporating egg and dart moulding and miniature cartouches are present. Pilasters rise up the side walls to meet the ceiling ribs, and a cornice incorporates a band of egg and dart moulding. The moulded proscenium arch survives at the south-west end, though the stage, cinema screen and seating have been removed. The straight-fronted balcony has a bolection-shaped front with festoon and ribbon plaster decoration. A projection room originally located at the centre of the balcony has since been removed.

An original five-panel door with classical architrave in the south corner of the auditorium leads to a south-east side entrance containing a small original paybox or ticket kiosk with a leaded-glazed door incorporating a segmental-arched hatch. Gentleman's and staff toilets with white glazed-tiled walls and original sanitary ware also survive.