Telecinema, Modern cinema in South Bank, London, England
The Telecinema was a cinema on the South Bank of the Thames in London, housed in a grey oblong structure made of steel. The auditorium held around 410 seats arranged across different levels so that every viewer had a clear sightline to the screen.
The Telecinema was built in 1951 as part of the Festival of Britain, a national event meant to celebrate post-war progress and creativity. After the festival ended, the building was kept and became part of what grew into the South Bank cultural quarter.
The Telecinema was the first building in the world designed from the ground up to operate as both a cinema and a television studio. Visitors could watch films and early television broadcasts in the same seat, something that had never been possible before.
The Telecinema stood between Waterloo Station and the Royal Festival Hall, within easy walking distance of public transport links. A stroll along the Thames riverbank passes through this part of the South Bank, making it easy to combine with other nearby destinations.
The cinema regularly screened 3D films, for which audiences wore special glasses, a novelty at the time that drew a lot of curiosity. Its projection system could also handle both 16mm and 35mm film formats, which was technically unusual for a single venue.
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