Archibald Hurley RobinsonFRIBA (14 June 1883[1] – 24 February 1953)[2] was a prolificEnglisharchitect ofcinemas prior to theSecond World War.
Robinson was born inHandsworth,Staffordshire.[3] After serving in the Royal Air Force in the First World War,[4] he set up his own practice which was initially calledHurley Robinson & Sons and then renamedHurley Robinson & Partners, which were both based inBirmingham, England.
His work on cinemas was mainly during the 1930s. His cinemas were mainly of theArt Deco style that was popularly used byOscar Deutsch for hisOdeon Cinemas. A lot of Robinson's work was commissioned in theMidlands area ofEngland.
Hurley Robinson remodelled the Salters' Hall inDroitwich Spa,Worcestershire to become a cinema in 1933. This was again altered to become a library in 1982.[5] He also designed the Ritz Cinema inBordesley Green, Birmingham.[6] A pre-World War II work by Robinson was the Lee Longlands furniture store onBroad Street, Birmingham. This was completed in 1931, and is a rare example of a building that was not a cinema by Robinson before the war. The building was extended in 1939.[7] Another example of a pre-World War II work by Hurley Robinson is theKent Street Baths in Birmingham which was built between 1931 and 1933. The Art Deco baths survived, unused, until September 2009. HisSparkhill Baths, from the same era, still stand. Hurley Robinson also designed theDudley Hippodrome theatre, which was built in 1938.[8]
Following World War II, the cinema business deteriorated and Robinson's work was less concentrated on this aspect of construction. In 1959, Robinson was commissioned to design an extension to a factory used by Rootes Motor Parts Limited on the Coventry Road in Birmingham.[9] Also in 1959, construction of Norfolk House onSmallbrook Queensway, Birmingham was completed. The bow-fronted building was originally intended to be a warehouse, however it later incorporated offices and retail units and is now locally listed. The façade is clad in stone and there is a wavy shell concrete canopy above the street level.[10]
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Cinemas designed by Robinson include:
| Name | Location | Constructed/ Opened | Closed | Seats | Screens | Additional notes or references | Coordinates | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannon Bristol Road (also known asABC Bristol Road) | Edgbaston,Birmingham | 16 May 1937 | 16 May 1987 | 1,712 | 3 | [11] | 52°28′01″N1°54′07″W / 52.46691°N 1.90204°W /52.46691; -1.90204 | |
| Odeon Cinema (Also known asNew Empire Cinema) | Loughborough,Leicestershire | 14 September 1914 | 1,328 | 6 | [12][13] | |||
| Odeon Bilston (also known asNew Wood's Picture Palace) | Bilston,West Midlands | 17 November 1921 | 22 February 1964 | 1,400 | 1 | [14] | 52°34′00″N2°04′28″W / 52.5667°N 2.0744°W /52.5667; -2.0744 | |
| Plaza Cinema | Dudley,West Midlands | 28 May 1936 | 27 October 1990 | 1,600 | 2 | [15] | ||
| Regal Cinema | Evesham,Worcestershire | 10 October 1932 | 945 | 1 | [16][17] | |||
| Winson Green Picture House (also known asWinson Green Palace) | Winson Green,Birmingham | 1914 | 21 March 1959 | 1,299 | 1 | [18] | ||
| The Rex Cinema | Coalville,Leicestershire | 1938 | 3 May 1984 | Approx. 1,250 | 2 | [19] | ||
| The Regal Cinema | Coalville,Leicestershire | 2 Nov 1933 | 14 May 1960 | 1,200 | 1 | [20] |