Empire Cinema

Still on bingo as of October 2025. The Empire name is still prominent at the front with the Apollo name displayed around the back.

Captain Pritchard was in fact born an ‘Elias’, quite a well known name around the area I live. The story goes that his brother moved to South London and founded a small chain of shops. Because of anti-semitic feeling at the time, although not Jewish, the brother adopted the name Pritchard to prevent any of this feeling affecting his stores. Captain Pritchard ( a Merchant navy title, not an army one) changed his name also, although there no record of anti-semiticism in North Wales. He retired from the sea in 1909 and lived in a house he purchased in Criccieth.