Former Cinemas in Harringay - The Electric Coliseum

The Electric Coliseum

The Electric Coliseum Cinema was built in 1912 on the corner of Green Lanes and St Ann's Road. It opened early in 1913.

In addition to seating for 650 in stalls and a small circle, there was a small stage for variety acts. The auditorium was richly decorated with gilded bas-relief plaster moulding. It was equipped with an organ, the first to be installed in any cinema in the UK.

The Salon du Bal dance hall was attached to the cinema, with its own separate entrance in Salisbury Parade.

Operated as an independent cinema through its entire life, its name changed to the Coliseum Cinema around 1930 when talking films were introduced. In the late 1950s it was bought along with the Regal (Premier Electric) by the Newcastle-based Essoldo company. In 1961 Essoldo implemented plans to turn the Coliseum into a bingo hall. It closed on 3 June 1961 with a final show including Tony Curtis in Who Was That Lady and Randolph Scott in Buchanan Rides Alone.

In 1977 the bingo hall closed and the Coliseum auditorium became a furniture store. The former dance hall with its domed ceiling became a popular gay nightclub known as Bolts, hosting acts such as The Weather Girls.

The furniture store closed early in the 1980s and the cinema section was boarded up and quickly became derelict. Bolts Nightclub eventually moved out of the dance hall and it became a club/bar.

In September 1999, the cinema building was sold for re-development. Although planning permission had been sought to protect the exterior, the cinema was demolished and a block of flats erected on the site. The block of flats preserves the cinema’s name, using 'The Coliseum' in its address.