State Cinema

State Cinema
State Cinema in November 2007
General information
Architectural style	Art-deco
Town or city	Grays
Country	England
Coordinates	51°28′39″N 0°19′18″E / 51.4775°N 0.321667°E / 51.4775; 0.321667
Construction started	October 1937
Completed	July 1938
Cost	£100,000
Client	Frederick's Electric Theatres
Design and construction
Architect	Frederick Chancellor
Engineer	G.H. Buckle

The State Cinema is a Grade II* Listed building in Grays, Essex. It opened in 1938 as one of the most modern cinemas of its type at the time with seating for 2200 people. The cinema officially closed in 1988 but has held numerous events since including being used as a nightclub, however the building has now fallen into disrepair and is no longer in use.

The building itself was designed by architect Frederick Chancellor of Frank Matcham & Co and owned by Frederick's Electric Theatres Company. It was built at a cost of £100,000 and twenty houses in George Street were demolished to make room for it. Once complete it was one of the largest cinemas in Essex, it featured air conditioning and an illuminated Compton Organ. It also had full stage facilities enable it to change into a fully functioning theatre or live entertainment venue. The cinema opened its doors at 7:30pm on Monday 5 September 1938 showing the film The Hurricane.

In the 1970s the first signs of possible closure reared its head, the stalls were closed off, cuts to staffing were made and the organ fell silent. A campaign was launched to keep the cinema open and the then owners, Mecca Leisure Group, decided to spend £20,000 on improvements to bring audiences back to the old cinema.

In 1982 work began to restore the old organ by a group of volunteers who later became known as "Friends of the State", eight weeks later music was again heard in the building and a series of Sunday afternoon concerts were held, many of which were attended by recording enthusiasts who wanted to capture the sounds of the unique organ.

The building remained unaltered throughout its life as a cinema, perhaps due in part to its location or not demanding further screens. Once again falling audiences, possibly due to the development of multi-screen cinemas and the rising popularity of video film rental saw the State threatened with closure in the mid 1980s. Owners Mecca eventually left the building, a closing night event was held on 5 September 1988 and the film that opened the cinema 50 years ago to the day was shown once more.

The land and the cinema were earmarked for redevelopment and bulldozers were soon brought in, however a preservation order was quickly sought and the State became a Grade II listed building preventing its demolition.

After the closure the cinema was handed over to a small independent operator who in 1989 rebadged the building "The Grays State Theatre". Films continued to be shown and organ concerts were once again a feature of the programme as was the £1 entry ticket. Alas, the business model didn't provide enough income to sustain the cinema and it closed again soon after.