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Uploaded on: July 24, 2026

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Launceston’s historic Princess Theatre holds a landmark spot in Tasmanian cinema history as the venue that introduced 4 track stereophonic sound to the state in 1954.

Photo - 1954 Surround sound speaker box mounted on the theatre wall in an ornate plaster box, for the 4 track magnetic Stereophonic CinemaScope presentation of “THE ROBE”.

The History of Stereophonic Sound at the Princess - The Princess theatre invested a substantial £A10,000 in 1954 to install Cinemascope technology - This upgrade allowed the Princess Theatre to host the biblical epic The Robe in October 1954. It ran simultaneously with Hobart’s Prince of Wales Theatre, marking Tasmania’s first dual-city film premiere.

Contributed by Greg Lynch -