I Can See Clearly Now

A quick update as to the progress of the demolition of the old Odeon cinema.

The demolition workers have had a final push and have removed the front of the building over the past few days.

They put fencing up to stop any debris falling onto the pavement. But there are gaps, and so I popped my camera through and took a few shots.

You can now see all the way through to Maid Marian Way. Something that no one has been able to do since the 1930s. So this is could be quite an historic documentary photograph in a few years time. And you saw it here first.

Down And Out

We return to the demolition of the old Odeon Cinema today, as the final section of this once popular entertainment centre is removed.

The frontage is the last bit to go. It wasn't very exciting to look at, but it did have the word ODEON as a ghost sign. But it is all gone now. Just a pile of rubble.

Going, Going, Gone

Well, we are almost there. Practically the whole of the former Odeon cinema has now disappeared. All you can see is a big pile of brick dust.

The front is the next to go. As I walked by tonight, I could see that the scaffolding has been erected, ready for the men to begin work on removing the facade over the next few days. They will have to be careful, as a lot of people walk by and it is on a bus route.

Bricks And Mortar

Another weekly shot of the old Odeon cinema demolition team in action.

A special brick crushing machine has arrived now and is turning all those thousands of bricks and concrete into rubble. Personally I wonder why they don't recycle them, as I know that there is a big demand for vintage bricks, as they are easier to blend into older buildings.

I wonder how much longer it is going to take before they start on the new building?

The Last Picture Show

Well back to work today, after having a week off. My first port of call at lunchtime was to visit the site of the old Odeon cinema and see how the demolition is going.

Well I was surprised in two ways. Firstly that the both ends of the building were still up, and secondly, that they had cleared nearly all the middle away and that you can now see the garden of the Bromly House private library.

I don't know how long the demolition is goin g to take, but I shall be visiting it at regular intervals and reporting back with photos.

Bringing The House Down (2)

What a horrible day it's been today. It's rained for most of the time. I got wet feet cycling in to work. Not so much from the rain, but the spray from the lorries and the big puddle at the side of the road, because the council haven't got around to cleaning the drains out yet and they are covered with leaves and rubbish.

Although it was wet, I still needed to go out for some fresh air & exercise. I didn't go very far though. There is a multi-storey car park near where I work, and so I thought I would go up to the top level and take an aerial photo of what the old cinema looks like.

As you can see, they've really got to grips with knocking it down. I think by the end of the week, the site will just be a pile of broken bricks and scrap metal. Which then will be sorted and the land cleared ready for the construction of the new building to start.

So I can see that going up the car park is going to be a daily ritual for the next week or so. I will be taking shots from ground level too, as the demolition gang get going.

Bringing The House Down

Well work has now started on demolishing the old Odeon cinema. It has been derelict and unloved for around 12 years now. I can't even remember the last film that played there. Looking at some old photos on line, it may have been 102 Dalmatians. Anyway the builders are in, and it is very slowly disappearing. They took the roof off this week, So I thought I would do a mini project of recording its final death, before the site is reborn as student flats.