Alhambra Bingo Hall, 33 Canmore Street, Dunfermline

Alhambra Bingo Hall, 33 Canmore Street, Dunfermline

A large former theatre and cinema designed by John Fraser between 1920 and 1922. The building comprises a main block containing an auditorium oriented east to west, with a three-storey three-bay entrance block attached at right angles to the north. It is constructed of red brick with sandstone ashlar dressings.

The northern elevation facing Canmore Street presents a classical composition. A triple round-arched entranceway with flat timber canopy extends across the projecting entrance block, with two-leaf glazed timber doors fitted with leaded fanlights to each opening. The bays and openings are divided by giant three-storey pilasters with corniced ashlar capitals; the entablature above forms the second-floor lintels. A curved broken-bed Baroque pediment surmounts the capitals to the central bay, with a raised panel at its centre and stepped parapet above. Sandstone ashlar forms the ground floor and eases cornice to this elevation. The entrance block adjoins separate two-storey buildings to either side, with the main block set back.

The eastern elevation on New Row features Romanesque detailing. A five-storey end wall displays seven slightly projecting bays with a bracketed parapet and a gabled jettied double-height bay to the top floor. Windows to the top floor are present in each of three flanking bays, linked by a cill band, with lower floors being more sparsely fenestrated. Narrow blank bays with lower-height parapet are set back to either side. A two-storey canted projecting three-bay section occupies the outer left, with entrances to the left of centre and one inscribed 'PIT EXIT' to the outer right. A gabled bay is set back to the outer right with upper three floors set back within flanking strip pilasters. A slightly projecting segmental-headed entrance with replacement timber door sits at ground floor, with brick lattice patterning above. An Edward VII postbox is positioned to the left. The sandstone ashlar base course extends to New Row, with a coped parapet and band course of bricks on end.

The western elevation is a blank end wall to the main block with a lean-to at ground level, a cented wall to the left return, and the side wall of the entrance block set back to the left.

The southern elevation is the side wall of the main block, with slightly taller gable-ended sections to either side. It is sparsely fenestrated, with a row of three windows to the third floor of the left gable-ended section and an opening at the gable. Two-light mullion windows appear elsewhere. Rubble walls of an earlier structure project at ground and first-floor level to the left section.

The building is roofed in grey slate with flanking coped mid-pitch wallhead stacks to either side of the entrance block (one later set back to the main block), and a square-plan louvred ventilation tower to the central ridge of the main block. Windows comprise mostly multi-pane casements and fixed frame windows to the main block, diamond-pane leaded casements to mullioned windows to the south, and PVCU replacement windows to the upper floor of the north elevation of the entrance block. Sandstone cills and mostly sandstone lintels serve the main block; sandstone cills and lintels serve the entrance block. Coped gables finish the design.

Interior

The decorative internal scheme and layout are largely intact, incorporating Egyptian, classical and Art Deco motifs within the decorative plasterwork. The entrance vestibule contains flanking ticket-offices within quadrant angles, with windows featuring lugged pilastered architraves. A recessed entranceway into the foyer is positioned beneath an arch with flanking Egyptian columns. An identical arch and columns appear in the foyer. Flanking staircases lead to the upper foyer. The auditorium is dominated by a segmental-headed proscenium arch with decorative plaster surround and flanking columns. Clocks sit in circular festooned surrounds to either side. The seating has been removed from the ground floor but remains intact to a deep curved gallery featuring circular light fittings along its parapet. The gallery adjoins two-tier semicircular boxes with flanking pilasters and open-topped semicircular pediments at either end. A decorative frieze and recessed ceiling ornament the auditorium. Panelled plaster dados and panelled timber doors appear throughout. Panelling to the stairs and upper foyer is grained to imitate timber, with the original balustrade and fixed ashtrays preserved. The stage area retains some original stage machinery.