Mayflower Theatre

The Mayflower Theatre, formerly the Empire Variety Theatre and Gaumont Cinema, was designed by W. and T. R. Milburn and built in December 1928. It is a large building, originally with a capacity of 2,250, constructed in a 1920s Reo-Grecian style.

The front elevation is five storeys high, built of stone with red brick infill. Each side features a half-octagonal stone turret. A deep modillion cornice runs along the top, and six stone pilasters rise through the façade. The second to fourth floors are adorned with lion's head masks at their base. There are five stone balconies, supporting five windows with metal casements. The first floor windows have deep architraves featuring interlocking circles and glyphs. The ground floor includes a Vitruvian scroll frieze and four square piers, also decorated with the interlocking circles and glyphs. The entrance is via double mahogany doors with brass fittings. A four-storey portion on the right-hand side is constructed of red brick with a pantiled roof, featuring three sash windows with intact glazing bars. There are panels between the second and third floors, an iron balconette, and a cambered arch to the ground floor.

The foyer is decorated with plaques depicting antique masks, swags and anthemion motifs, with the lower walls clad in marble. Staircases rise four floors on each side, with stair wells. Brass handrails have intersecting oval balustrades and newel posts culminating in urn details. The auditorium features a tall, curved proscenium arch with ‘torcheres’ decoration, flanked by panels with an anthemion motif. The seating arrangement is in three tiers, supported by columns (Ionic to the stalls and Circle). An oval dome is topped with original octagonal glass and metal lanterns, also decorated with anthemion motifs. Railings to the Circle and Upper Circle display fasces decoration. Two curved boxes are located on either side, with Vitruvian scroll decoration and pillars featuring anthemion motifs, topped with round-headed pediments displaying fishscale decorations and a plumed edge. Three round-headed arches lead to the Upper Circle boxes, which also feature Vitruvian scroll decoration. A rare survival are the 22 mahogany and glazed 'Standing boxes'. The walls are clad with marble to dado level.

The theatre is notable as a complete example of a theatre in the 1920s Reo-Grecian style.