Nottingham Empire - Programme, 1952
Title
Nottingham Empire - Programme, 1952
Date
7 April 1952
Description
Full programme for Look In, a variety show at the Nottingham Empire, the sister venue to the Theatre Royal Nottingham
What's the story?
In 1897 Moss Empires the owners of the Theatre Royal commissioned renowned and prolific architect Frank Matcham to renovate the venue, as well as to build a new theatre next door on North Sherwood Street.
The Empire Palace of Varieties with its fine Anglo-Indian interior, opened on 28 February 1898 and played host to a variety of acts and performers over the coming decades.
Comedian Ken Dodd made his first professional appearance on the Empire stage in September 1954.
With the rise of cinema and television during the 1950s, traditional music hall entertainment was soon dying out and the Empire played host to striptease shows in its final years. It closed its doors in 1958 and was demolished a decade later, making way for the Royal Concert Hall which took its place as the Theatre Royal’s sister venue in 1982.
Whilst this digital archive is predominantly concerned with the Theatre Royal, the Empire has an important role to play in that same heritage and so this Empire programme is displayed here due to its ‘Next Week’ advertisement for comedy legends Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy, which has become a legendary Nottingham show. An interview with Theatre Royal Gillian Widdowson, who remembers meeting Laurel and Hardy is one of the links below.
The actual Look In show featured comedian Alfred Marks and a 17 year old Julie Andrews, who had performed in the Theatre Royal two years previously in the title role of Red Riding Hood, the Theatre Royal Panto for 1950.
The Empire Palace of Varieties with its fine Anglo-Indian interior, opened on 28 February 1898 and played host to a variety of acts and performers over the coming decades.
Comedian Ken Dodd made his first professional appearance on the Empire stage in September 1954.
With the rise of cinema and television during the 1950s, traditional music hall entertainment was soon dying out and the Empire played host to striptease shows in its final years. It closed its doors in 1958 and was demolished a decade later, making way for the Royal Concert Hall which took its place as the Theatre Royal’s sister venue in 1982.
Whilst this digital archive is predominantly concerned with the Theatre Royal, the Empire has an important role to play in that same heritage and so this Empire programme is displayed here due to its ‘Next Week’ advertisement for comedy legends Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy, which has become a legendary Nottingham show. An interview with Theatre Royal Gillian Widdowson, who remembers meeting Laurel and Hardy is one of the links below.
The actual Look In show featured comedian Alfred Marks and a 17 year old Julie Andrews, who had performed in the Theatre Royal two years previously in the title role of Red Riding Hood, the Theatre Royal Panto for 1950.
Type
Programme
Location of item
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Rights
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Contributor
Researcher: David Longford & David Hails
