n attempt to list all the shows ever performed at our Hippodromes, beginning with the temporary circus buildings, which from 1884 were specially erected on Pool Meadow for each visit - then, in 1903, to the first permanent, but short-lived, 'Tin' Hippodrome on the Priory Street side of Pool Meadow facing the old Swimming Baths. The popularity of these shows created the demand for a theatre worthy of our city, and so in 1906 began the construction in Hales Street, next to Swanswell Gate, of what we now regard as the Old Hippodrome.
Again, the success of this theatre meant that barely three decades later a greater capacity was required, and so we come to our lovely art-deco New Hippodrome in Hales Street, once known as the Showplace of the Midlands. Opening on the 1st November 1937, it was renamed Coventry Theatre in 1955, then from 1979 became The Apollo, giving its final performance in June 1985. After a short spell as a bingo hall it was eventually realised that such a building could not be put to any practical use, so, sadly, it was demolished in 2002. If anyone still has any tickets or programmes and would like to see them used to illustrate a show, please contact me.
1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985
1950 | New Hippodrome, Hales Street | ||
| Date(s) | Show | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 21st Mar until Sat 15th Apr 1950 | Annie Get Your Gun | With Barbara Shotter and Neville Mapp. | |
| Tue 18th Apr until Sat 13th May 1950 | Ice Cascades | Big Company of Ice-Skating Stars, with Phil Romayne, Terry Brent and Heinie Brock. | |
| Mon 15th May until Sat 20th May 1950 | Carissima | Musical Romance, with John Levant, Bettina Hayes, Hannah Watt, and others. | |
| Mon 22nd May until Sat 27th May 1950 | The Second Mrs. Tanqueray | With Eileen Herlie, Ronald Ward, and others. | |
| Mon 29th May until Sat 3rd Jun 1950 | Alicia Markova & Anton Dolin | Seven Gala Performances of Ballet. | |
| Mon 5th Jun until Sat 10th Jun 1950 | Way Out West | Western show, with Big Bill Campbell, and full company. | |
| Mon 12th Jun until Sat 17th Jun 1950 | The Carl Rosa Opera Company | A different Opera each night. | |
| Mon 19th Jun until Sat 24th Jun 1950 | Randle's Scandals of 1950 | Road show with Frank Randle. | |
| Mon 26th Jun until Sat 1st Jul 1950 | Norman Evans - "Good Evans" | With supporting touring company. | |
| Sun 2nd Jul 1950 | Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra | One night only. | |
| Mon 3rd Jul until Sat 8th Jul 1950 | Cheerful Charlie Chester | With his Famous Radio Gang. | |
| Mon 10th Jul until Sat 15th Jul 1950 | Ignorance Is Bliss & Twenty Questions | Two big Radio features, with Harold Berens, Michael Moore, Gladys Hay and Eamonn Andrews. | |
| Mon 17th Jul until Sat 22nd Jul 1950 | All-Star Variety Show | With Ronnie Ronalde, Billy Russell and Harry Kahne. | |
| Mon 24th Jul until Sat 29th Jul 1950 | You Lucky People | Variety with Leon Cortez, Maudie Edwards, and others. | |
| Mon 31st Jul until Sat 5th Aug 1950 | Black Chiffon | With Flora Robson, Wyndham Goldie and Anthony Ireland. | |
| Mon 7th Aug until Sat 12th Aug 1950 | Allan Jones | Hollywood Singing Star in Variety, with many others. | |
| Mon 14th Aug until Sat 19th Aug 1950 | Come On In | Musical Extravaganza, with Nat Mills & Bobbie, Patterson & Jackson, Jack Jackson, and others. | |
| Mon 21st Aug until Sat 26th Aug 1950 | September Tide | With Evelyn Laye and Frank Lawton. | |
| Mon 28th Aug until Sat 2nd Sep 1950 | Will Any Gentleman? | Farce, with Robertson Hare and Arthur Riscoe. | |
| Mon 4th Sep until Sat 16th Sep 1950 | Wild Violets | Musical Comedy Operetta. | |
| Mon 18th Sep until Sat 23rd Sep 1950 | All-Star Variety Show | With Sam Costa, The Nitwits, Bobby Breen and Georgie Wood. | |
| Mon 25th Sep until Sat 30th Sep 1950 | A Streetcar Named Desire | Play, starring Betty Anne Davies. | |
| Mon 2nd Oct until Sat 14th Oct 1950 | White Horse Inn | Musical play, with Nita Croft, Fred Stone, Nancy Burne and Bert Brownbill. | |
| Mon 16th Oct until Fri 20th Oct 1950 | Confidentially! Reg Dixon | With Hall, Norman & Ladd, Mary Naylor, Bobby Kimber, and others. | |
| Tue 24th Oct until Sat 18th Nov 1950 | Oklahoma | Musical with the entire London Cast. | |
| Mon 20th Nov until Sat 25th Nov 1950 | Sunny | Musical Comedy, with the Coventry Amateur Operatic Society. | |
| Tue 28th Nov until Sat 9th Dec 1950 | Gay's The Word | Ivor Novello Play, with Cicely Courtneidge. | |
| Mon 11th Dec until Sat 16th Dec 1950 | Harvey | With Joyce Barbour and full West End Company. (Theatre closed next week for Pantomime rehearsals.) | |
| Sat 23rd Dec 1950 until Sat 17th Mar 1951 | Jack and Jill | Pantomime, with Roy Barbour and Jessica James. (12 week run, showing to 224,000 people.) | |
Prev year: 1949 Next year: 1951
1884 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985
Also of interest might be A short history of Coventry's Theatres and Cinemas, by Bill Birch.
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