Odeon Bournemouth

Built for the Oscar Deutsch; Odeon Theatres Ltd. chain, the Odeon Bournemouth (aka locally as Odeon Lansdowne) opened on 7th August 1937 with Charles Boyer in "History Is Made At Night".

The entrance to the cinema was set in the centre of two adjoining blocks of apartment and retail units that were completed after the cinema opened. There was a protruding slender fin feature which had the ‘Odeon’ name located twice on both sides. The large auditorium was hidden from view behind the four storey high flats and shop units. The Odeon was located some distance from the main town centre in the Landsdowne district of the town.

The inside of the auditorium was decorated in an Art Deco style which was dominated by a series of stepped surfaces that contained concealed lighting. Seating was provided for 1,336 in the stalls and 642 in the circle. There was a café and a large free car park provided and the stage facilities included two dressing rooms. Provision was made for an organ to be installed, but the Odeon was never equipped with an organ.

The Odeon closed on 16th January 1974 with Linda Marlowe in "Big Zapper" and “The Conspiracy”. It was converted into a Top Rank Bingo Club which became a Granada Bingo Club, then a Gala Bingo Club. From June 2018 it was re-named Buzz bingo Club. It was closed on 21st March 2020 due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. On 15th July 2020 it was announced that the closure would be permanent.

The building was sold in February 2021. An application for demolition was applied on 26th July 2023, but was refused on 23rd August 2023.

Recent comments (view all 4 comments)

Ian on June 4, 2007 at 12:54 pm

Little changed in this 1989 shot as the Granada Bingo Club:–

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andysummers on November 10, 2007 at 11:19 pm

Last film I think I saw at this Odeon was the “Alice’s adventures in wonderland” 1972 yeah it’s nothing more than a bingo hall now and I’m not interested in playing bingo. Why can’t they just build new places for bingo and leave the cinemas alone.

Ian on February 3, 2008 at 2:59 pm

Another shot of the Odeon here:–

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Ian on June 15, 2022 at 4:13 am

Some photos taken after closure (June 2022):-

ODEON LANSDOWNE - facade

ODEON LANSDOWNE - entrance block

ODEON LANSDOWNE - auditorium east side

ODEON LANSDOWNE - auditorium west side