ABC Eccles

52 Church Street,
Eccles, M30 0DF

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Showing 26 - 50 of 66 comments

triac505
triac505 on September 27, 2016 at 5:24 pm

Hi Derick I cannot recall you,(apologies) but then again I do forget many people from my past. I do remember Eccles am dram staging Bitter Sweet, What a wonderful show. Yes Mr Mancini Sir was certainly a bad tempered person. I recall he went ballistic one day when he turned up unexpectedly and found that we had not filled in the battery (emergency lighting) log. Jump up and down was an understatement.

Derick Moss
Derick Moss on July 9, 2016 at 3:36 pm

Hello triac505 What a scary character that Mancini chap was, always seemed to be in a bad temper, and had no patience whatsoever. Can you recall the rough date of that re-fit? and where you around when I was there?

triac505
triac505 on July 8, 2016 at 4:52 pm

Does anyone remember the re-fit. Mr Mancini was in for an inspection before the suspended scaffold came down . . mmm We had left a cleaners light hanging below the scaffold so the chief Ralph agreed that David the trainee to go up and pull it up. Mr Mancini was getting impatient and started shouting at David ( you didn’t do that to David) and unfortunately he slipped in the roof and straddled a beam, the plaster came falling, Mr Mancini looked skywards with a string of expletives, and David with his 2 legs astride a beam and his feet waggling shouting “Sorry Mr Mancini Sir” Can anyone remember the projectionist “Box” crew then.

Derick Moss
Derick Moss on May 31, 2015 at 8:55 am

Cheers Don, I will email you.

dgcarter63
dgcarter63 on May 30, 2015 at 8:55 am

Hi Derick, not been on the site for a while, my email is . If you recall, the staff room was through the ladies' toilt, I’m not really a pervert.

Derick Moss
Derick Moss on June 28, 2014 at 5:56 am

Hi Doug, (dgcarter63) Long time no speak! David and I met up last year for a chinwag. Whats this about a photo of you coming out of the circle foyer LADIES toilet!…erm. Let me have your email address for a one to one. You will find mine a couple of posts along. Derick (not Derek)

davidstirzaker
davidstirzaker on June 13, 2014 at 3:57 am

Doug, I have that one too!

dgcarter63
dgcarter63 on June 2, 2014 at 1:00 pm

Derek, I’ve got one somewhere pf me, you and David Stirzaker on the stairs up to the circle foyer, and one of me in Evening dress coming out of the Circle foyer ladies toilet.

Derick Moss
Derick Moss on April 23, 2013 at 5:38 pm

Hi all, Just found this site this evening and recognise a lot of the names from various posts. DELBOY, please reveal yourself, you seem to know a lot about my past!. The story about the Savoy Sale ice cream girl is entirely accurate, and thank you for calling me a ‘splendid bloke’

I would love to hear from anyone who may remember me from either Eccles, Sale, Stockport, Ardwick, Broughton or Deansgate during the 60’s.

I have emailed David Stirzaker and sent him a photo of our days at Eccles, as well as David and me the photo also shows Kevin Utley, who was the Manager, D.Carter A/M and a Ken (surname escapes me)T/M.

My personal email is

Ian1943
Ian1943 on June 24, 2012 at 9:57 am

Hi, If ‘terry’ should read this post, could he please let me have John McIntosh’s email address. I last spoke with John in 1963 when we were both at the ABC Sheffield and he was promoted to the Playhouse Dewsbury.

davidstirzaker
davidstirzaker on June 19, 2012 at 9:21 am

Hi Doug – Contact me via my e-mail –

DelBoy
DelBoy on June 18, 2012 at 2:30 pm

Dave Moss? Surely you mean Derek Moss!

Derek was a splendid bloke who was, around the time I knew him, assistant manager at the Broadway and trying his luck with a most delightful ice-cream girl from the Savoy Sale. I forget her name but I do remember her black hair and her pink overall.

I also recall she was married to (but separated from) an appalling thug who spotted Derek dropping her off at home one evening after work.

The ensuing debacle included Derek knocking the guy down with his car, followed by the guy jumping up again with an injured leg and stoically chasing Derek’s speeding car down the road for some distance.

Happy days. ;)

dgcarter63
dgcarter63 on June 1, 2012 at 2:50 pm

David Yes you still have my cufflinks. Red and white mother of pearl rectanglular. How are you?

davidstirzaker
davidstirzaker on July 21, 2011 at 11:00 am

Jimmy Gold made me the offer of becoming his house mananger at the new ABC Leeds. I turned it down and subsequently left ABC in April 1970. But I have always tresasured my memories.

davidstirzaker
davidstirzaker on July 21, 2011 at 10:58 am

Just came across this website by chance. I worked at the ABC Eccles and many others in the Manchester area during the late 60’s. I did not know I still have dgcarter’s cufflinks.

Ken Roe
Ken Roe on December 23, 2008 at 7:25 pm

A vintage photograph of the auditorium in 1966:
View link
The circle in 1966:
View link

terry
terry on November 3, 2008 at 6:38 pm

I followed Richard Roper into Huddersfield as A/M and knew a lot of the people mentioned; am still frequently in touch with John McIntosh (ABC Wigan), Frank Chambers (ABC Leeds – before Dave Riby) and, until recently, my very good friend, Brett Childes (Odeon Sunderland) who passed away on October 04.

I went on to manage ABC’s theatres in South Shields, Chester, Newcastle upon Tyne (Haymarket AND Westgate Road) and Darlington; sadly,the latter appointment was as a result of Cannon’s strategic withdrawal -true to form – from that city, when Odeon and Warner Bros were left to fight for supremacy; I am pleased to say that Odeon won when they moved to ‘The Gate'development, although that has since become the 'Empire'following the M&M’s intervention upon the Odeon/UCI and Cineworld/UGC mergers………all so complicated!

abcman
abcman on September 30, 2008 at 11:51 am

Will do! It’s a small world.

dgcarter
dgcarter on September 30, 2008 at 11:35 am

I knew dave riby. Jimmy Gold was the District manager in my day (before he went off to manage the ABC Leeds). Ken Pickering I knew of (I think at one point he was at Ardwick). There was also Bill Williamson, Dave Stirzaker, Dave Moss, Harry Ellams and a host of others whose names have gotten lost in the mists of time. If you ever come across Dave Stirzaker ask him when I’m finally going to get my cufflinks back.

abcman
abcman on September 30, 2008 at 11:17 am

Unfortunately quite a few of them have died, like Ken Pickering and Jimmy Gold. Did you know Alan Peel or Dave Riby. Still keep in touch with them

dgcarter
dgcarter on September 30, 2008 at 11:11 am

Anybody else I might know as well as Roger? I knew most managers on the Manchester and Yorkshire districts from the late 60s.

abcman
abcman on September 30, 2008 at 11:09 am

He’s retired now and lives in Eastbourne. A few of us old ABC Managers try and meet up once a year for a reunion.

dgcarter
dgcarter on September 30, 2008 at 11:07 am

I used to relieve him regularly in 68/69. He and his wife also ran a B&B just down the road at the other side of Washway Road.

abcman
abcman on September 30, 2008 at 11:06 am

Yes, indeed it was. I still keep in touch with Roger!

dgcarter
dgcarter on September 30, 2008 at 11:04 am

Was that the same Roger Newcombe who was at The Savoy Sale a few years earlier?