HISTORY

The Deco started life on Saturday 2 May 1936 as the Savoy. It was designed by William Riddell Glen, the house architect of Associated British Cinemas (ABC). Heralded as 'Northampton's Only Super Cinema' and opening with a full programme including 'Broadway Melody of 1936' starring Jack Benny. For the musical interlude, the Compton Organ 'rose from the pit' and there 'surrounded by an ever-changing array of coloured lights was organist, Wilfred Southworth'.

In the 1950's ABC embarked on a programme of modernisation, the individual cinema names were dropped and they all be came know as 'the ABC'. The Savoy was the first cinema in town to pioneer 3D movies in the 1950's. In 1963, the Beatles performed ten numbers on stage, culminating with 'Twist and Shout' during '26 minutes of mass frenzy'.

At the end of 1974 as was the trend; the Savoy was converted to a three-screen complex. Thankfully 'A unique feature of the Northampton cinema conversion is the retention of the stage facilities ... largely as a result of the persistence of the ABC manager, Mr Ken Porter who has been an active member of amateur operatic companies'. In the 1980's the cinema was renamed as the Cannon. The Savoy finally closed its doors in 1995, screening Pulp Fiction, Terminal Velocity and Just Cause.

The current owners embarked on a programme of restoration to return the building to the glory of the 1930's. The painstaking work, under the guidance of English Heritage, has drawn on Glen's original plans and the photographic record and using traditional materials and methods has created a stunning venue for the 21st Century.