The Picturedrome opened in 1913. It was situated in Curzon Street, adjacent to the Railway Station.
Like other cinemas to follow, the cinema was established by local fairground entrepreneurs George Orton, Charles Spooner, and Orton’s sons. It was adapted from what was previously a roller skating rink that had fallen into dis-use and was being used as a Territorial Army venue.
It housed a church organ brought and transported from a London church which was played enthusiastically during the film, which itself of course was silent. In the late 1920s, the Picturedrome had the distinction of showing Burton’s first ever talking picture which was hugely attended. The cinema was serviced by a poster man whose task it was to regularly paste up new posters as the films changed.
The original structure was demolished in August 1931, and a lavish, modern new building holding around 2,000 seats was constructed in just four months. It was designed by architect Alderman Thomas Jenkins and local builders. In 1955, it was acquired by Odeon Theatres Ltd in 1955 and was officially renamed the following year.
It closed as a cinema on June 5, 1965 and the building was transitioned into a Top Rank bingo club, later operating as Mecca Bingo until it closed in December 2003. The structure was subsequently demolished, and a block of flats now stands on the site.