麻豆社

EH51 0AA - Bo鈥檔ess

Bo鈥檔ess Hippodrome is one of the earliest purpose built cinemas in Scotland, if not the United Kingdom. Opened in March 1912, it operated as a cinema until the 1970鈥檚 before being re-styled as a bingo hall. After extensive refurbishment, it returned to a fully functioning cinema in 2009.
At the time of the First World War, Charlie Chaplin films and the likes of Tom Mix westerns were popular. Audiences came to see a mix of programmes 鈥� a feature film, a newsreel and a local topical film.

鈥淭he cinema industry was concerned that it wasn鈥檛 being taken seriously ,鈥� explains John Caughie, Emeritus Professor of Film and TV Studies at Glasgow University. 鈥淚t was seen as having come out of fairground entertainment. Cinema owners took the opportunity the war offered them of making cinema serious. By showing footage from the Front, or of troops at training camps, cinema came to be seen as a news medium during the war.鈥�

鈥淜itchener and the War Office did not like film makers going to the front,鈥� says John. 鈥淎part from the danger posed to those operating heavy cameras at the Front, he was concerned that audiences would be disheartened by the sight of men in battle being killed.鈥�

鈥淏ut that changed in late 1915, early 1916 when they realised war footage actually lifted morale and was a useful way of showing countries like America what was happening at the front,鈥� John continues. 鈥淲hen it was realised the power of film as propaganda, the War Office actually funded the making of documentaries made at the Front.鈥�

鈥淎 place like Bo鈥檔ess saw the cinema as part of being a modern culture,鈥� says John. 鈥淚t really welcomed cinemas and the fact all the cinemas in the town were all well supported suggests it was an important art form for Bo鈥檔ess.鈥�

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