Leisure
Theatre
The
first purpose built theatre in Cardiff, the Theatre Royal, opened in
1826, on the site of what is now the Park Hotel. It was destroyed by
fire in 1877, by which time another, wooden, theatre had been erected
in Westgate Street. This was called the Circus Theatre because it had
been built on the site of a wooden circus. This survived until 1896
when it was taken down to make room for the new post office.
The
New Theatre Royal on the corner of St Mary Street and Wood Street was
also built on the site of a circus in 1878 and designed by the architect
WD Blessley. When it was gutted by fire in 1899 it was completely rebuilt.
Its fortune fluctuated: in 1920 it was renamed the Playhouse, and in
1935 the Prince of Wales. It has kept the name the Prince of Wales in
its current role as a public house.
The
Empire Palace, Queen Street, 1895. Designed by Frank Matcham,
probably the most prolific theatre architect of all time.
[BC/S1/10904]
|
The Empire
Theatre, built in 1887, was able to accomodate 2000 people in
the audience. It became a cinema in 1933 and remained so until
its demolition in 1962.
New
Theatre |
| The
New Theatre was designed by Messrs Rutz and Ford who were responsible
for the Adelphi and Gaiety theatres in London. Built in 1906 the
stage was the largest in the country. |
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Cinema
The
birth of cinema took place in 1895 when Louis Lumiere first projected
moving photographic images for paying audiences in Paris. Motion pictures
soon became a popular form of entertainment. After the
First World War cinema developed rapidly into a major form
of mass entertainment. By 1934 there was one cinema seat for every
10 persons in South Wales.
The
music hall was the first home of the commercial cinema. Programmes
would consist of several short, assorted films, and would be changed
twice weekly. They were aimed at attracting an urban working class
audience. By 1912 films had gradually developed to feature length.
With
the demise of the music hall, films were shown in fairgrounds. One
local travelling fairground exhibitor William Haggar began to make
films himself. By 1910 films were being shown in the more respectable
picture houses. Programmes gradually changed to include two feature
films, accompanied by newsreels, organ music and advertisements. Variety
acts filled in time between films, and sometimes lectures were given
in local cinemas. Programmes later changed to the single feature with
a short showing for a week, then to the modern multi screen complex.
 |
Cinema
in Woodville Road, Cathays, 1913
[BC/S1/18481]
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Parks
and Gardens
Green
spaces are a feature of Cardiff, and it is possible to walk through
the centre of the city from the castle to Llandaff cathedral on
park land.
The
Improvement Act of 1875 gave the Corporation power to provide spaces
for recreation. Landowners saw the advantages of giving the borough
poor land for the authority to bear the cost of drainage, landscaping
and roadbuilding. Neighbouring estate lands would benefit from the
work and the pleasant surroundings.
In 1888 the
Marquess of Bute gave the city 80 acres in Roath that would become
Roath Park. A competition was held to landscape the park, but
although seven designs were submitted, none was chosen. William
Harpur, the borough surveyor laid out the park and the corporation
appointed William Wallace Pettigrew as head gardener.
|
Part
of a design for the park, submitted
for
the competition. |
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Roath
Park.
[DXGC20/150]
|
| 
Boating
on Roath Lake.
[DXGC20/158] |
|
Ordnance
Survey plan of Roath Park
[OS 43:7
2 edition]
|
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Other
landowners followed this lead. Lord Tredegar offered Waterloo Gardens
and Roath Mill Gardens. Both areas were also landscaped by William
Pettigrew.
Sporting
Venues
Cardiff
Arms Park was a swampy meadow behind the Cardiff Arms Hotel and was
owned by the Marquess of Bute. He stated that the ground could only
be used for recreation. In 1845 it became the home of the Cardiff
Cricket Club.
Cardiff
Rugby Football Club was formed in 1876 and it too used the park. Some
members of the club played their first game in top hats and evening
dress.
As
the popularity of spectator sports grew, the Rugby Football Club developed
a stand. In 1884 the first international match was played when Wales
beat Ireland, and in 1905 continued the strong tradition by beating
the New Zealand All Blacks.
In
1922 Lord Bute decided to sell the land. The stadium was bought by
the Cardiff Athletic Club and the Welsh Rugby Union. To help pay for
the upkeep of the site a greyhound track opened in 1927. In 1958 the
VI British and Empire Commonwealth Games were held in Cardiff. The
track and field events took place at the Arms Park on the former greyhound
track.
Cardiff
Arms Park
[BC/S1/25776]
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Greyhound
Identity Card
[
2001/101]
In
1934 a new double decker stand was erected on the north side of the
rugby pitch.
Plan
for a double decker stand at Arms Park, 1934.
[BC/S1/28945]
In
the late 1960s a National Stadium was built at the Arms Park to
host international fixtures. This was replaced in 1999 by the Millennium
Stadium.
The
Riverside Football Club, founded in 1899, played matches at the
Arms Park until 1910. Once the club began signing professional players
in 1908 it needed a suitable pitch. Ninian Park was provided by
the Corporation, and called after Lord Ninian Stuart who agreed
to act as a guarantor.
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Inns
Inns
and alehouses provided a regular form of etertainment for many
people. Skittles, bowls and billiards were all played there.
Ale
and beer were staples for most people in the 16th and 17th centuries.
By the 18th century porter was growing in popularity. It was a
heavier drink, named after the workers it was brewed for. It kept
for longer than other ales, and was of a more consistent quality.
It contributed to the expansion of the brewing industry.
The
oldest brewery in Cardiff was William's Malthouse, built in 1713
on St Mary's Street. This was taken over by Samuel Brain in 1882
and the business rapidly expanded.
Hancocks
opened a main office in Crawshay Street in 1894. |
Four
Elms Hotel, Elm Street, 1899.
[BC/S1/10703]
|
Brewers
House, 1899.
[BC/S1/7437]
|
| 
Section
through Brewer's House, 1899.
[BC/S1/7437] |
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Copper
tank for brewing, 1907.
[BC/S1/16408]
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Temperance
Town was the one place in Cardiff where the sale of alcoholic
refreshment was strictly forbidden. In 1850 Jacob Scott Matthews,
a market gardener and strict teetotaller leased land from Colonel
E. R. Wood, pioneer of the temperance movement. The land had been
a mud pit, but once it was filled and levelled for building purposes,
homes were constructed on the strict condition that no public
houses were to be erected there.
Temperance
town was eventually demolished to make way for the new bus terminal. |
[OS 43:15
1st edition]
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