Travel through time: Heritage activities at the Tyneside
Imagine a world before the internet, before TV and when newspapers barely had any pictures printed in them. Back in the 1930s a phenomenon swept the UK as News Theatres were set up to show newsreel films to the public.
People flocked to these cinemas to see world events as moving images for the very first time. The Tyneside Cinema was originally built as Newcastle’s News Theatre in 1937 and today is the finest surviving news reel cinema in Britain.
Every day of the week our new permanent exhibit describes the history of the building and how the news was filmed and screened in the days of the newsreels. You can hear the stories of the people who made the news and what the newsreels meant to local people, you can even experience the thrill of making a projector whirr into life – first hand!
Photo: Allan Mushen
Free Self Guided Tours
Everyday, 10.00am-10.00pm
The building and the exhibits are open everyday for you to explore from 10.00am to 10.00pm, and you can pick up a free guide to the building from the Box Office. In the mornings you can also take a look around the Classic screen and be transported back in time with a free screening of an archive Newsreel.
Photo: Keith Pattison
Free Guided Tours
Every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 11.15am
Our Tour Guides will take you through the fascinating story of the Tyneside Cinema and give you an exclusive glimpse behind the scenes of this unique building. Guided tours are free but must be booked in advance by calling 0845 217 9909.
Present your ticket in the Tyneside Bar for 50p off a hot drink of your choice.
For parties with over 10 people or for special requests , please contact Louise Bennett or call 0191 227 5503.
Photo: Allan Mushen
Lights and Shadows on The Wall: Improving Amusements described by Peter Yates
The final part of the Tyneside Cinema restoration is now in place. In the Electra you can now see architect Peter Yates’ 1976 mural, originally displayed in the old Cinema 2/Electra screen.
Peter Yates began his career as an illustrator and modelmaker, and took drawing lessons in Paris from Georges Braque at the end of the Second World War. He was a founding partner of Ryder and Yates, an architectural practice responsible for some of the most innovative and individual buildings built on Tyneside from the early 1950s onwards.
After many years hidden from view, Yates’ amazing mural was rediscovered during demolition work for the 2006-08 refurbishment of the Tyneside and its conservation and re-installation has been made possible through the sponsorship of Ryder Architecture and The Pilgrim Trust, under the direction of conservation architect Cyril Winskell.
FREE Archive Newsreel Programme: July-August 2010
Archive Newsreel
Gaumont. July 1942.
Friday 18 June – Thursday 5 August
Between the 1st and the 27th July 1942 Axis troops commanded by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel tried to take the pivotal town of El Alamein and advance into Egypt. It was up to the allies to hold them back, and they did, commanded by Field Marshal Claude Auchinleck. This newsreel looks at the troops on the ground, and some of the other stories emerging from a country at war, and on the verge of its first significant victory of WWII.
