A movie palace

“The proposed renaissance of the former Green’s Playhouse could be an attractive compliment to the signature feature in the area, the V&A Dundee,” writes Fraser Elder.

“The original template for the building was set in Glasgow in 1927 when noted theatre architect John Fairweather was commissioned by the Green’s Group to design a luxurious artdeco cinema.

“The indoor complex featured a movie palace seating an audience of 4,568 and an upstairs ballroom capable of accommodating 6,000 dancers. Nine years later, the Renfield Street building was replicated by Fairweather in the Nethergate, Dundee, with the architect adding features hitherto unseen in cinemas – fittings and furnishings identical to that of the luxurious interior of the Queen Mary liner which was being built at the time in Clydebank.

“Along with a palatial ground floor restaurant, Dundonians would be taken with the cinema’s other unique features, none more so than the Golden Divans – later to be dubbed the ‘dive-ons’ and ‘chummy seats’.

“The exterior was dominated by an 87-foot tower displaying the logo stating We-want-u-in. The building was christened by the owners as Dundee’s ‘cathedral of motion pictures’ and had an auditorium capacity of 4,123 – the second highest in Europe.

“The two mega-movie houses both failed to survive the 20th Century with the Dundee version closing in 1968 and its forerunner in Glasgow ending its reign after 46 years in 1973.

“The Nethergate building was ravaged by fire in August 1985 but was restored by the Mecca Group with an £8.5m refit and reinvented as Britain’s largest bingo hall with a membership of 15,000. Since then only the listed 87-foot tower has remained as a monument to what was one of Dundee’s most revered entertainment institutions.”