Building record MHG52354 - Former Palace Cinema, Huntly Street, Inverness

NH64NE 817 66405 45222
Former Palace Cinema, now in use as a bingo club.
Information from RCAHMS (DE), August 2008 <1>

The building at 18 Huntly Street was erected during 1938 and opened as The Palace Cinema on 21 November 1938 with seating for around 1200 people. It was converted for use as a bingo hall in 1963. In 2010 it was the last surviving old cinema in Inverness.
The building was brick built over three floors and had a rectangular plan with a slightly angled front facing the River Ness. A building survey conducted prior to demolition showed that much of the original fabric and layout had been retained from the original phase of use as a cinema. A number of original Art Deco features were noted and photographed during the survey. In particular the projector room on the second floor was seen to retain its original fittings, including projector stands, windows, shutters and mechanisms, and switchgear.
A full description, documentary references and photographs are available in the report linked to this record. <2>

Photographs of the former cinema were taken by Historic Environment Team staff during a pre-survey site visit. <3>

The Inverness Courier reported on the redevelopment of this site in October 2010. <4>

A reel of 35mm film was recovered from the projector room by the demolition contractors. This was sent to CFA Archaeology and submitted to the Scottish Screen Archive for analysis. The film was identified as a 23 second piece of colour sound footage of the Royal Guards playing the National Anthem. This piece of film had a stock date of 1964. The film reel is currently held at Highland Council HQ until it can be deposited with an interested party. <5><6>